Meti is a term used, in the country of
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
, referring to a
feminine
Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as socially constructed, and there is also some evidence that some behaviors considered fe ...
displaying and
masculine
Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors con ...
bodied individual.
Metis are a part of a larger group of queer individuals in Nepal referred to as ''anya''.
Metis are an officially recognized ''
third gender
Third gender is a concept in which individuals are categorized, either by themselves or by society, as neither man nor woman. It is also a social category present in societies that recognize three or more genders. The term ''third'' is usually ...
'' in the country of Nepal as of a Supreme Court ruling in 2007. As of this Supreme Court ruling, metis are able to be officially recognized by the Nepalese government and able to have a government-issued ID card listing “both” as an option under “gender."
This also set a precedent of using self-determination as a source of proof in determining a person eligibility in establishing a gender on government documents.
Discrimination
Discrimination is a common issue among self-identified meti individuals. In 2004, 39 meti individuals were arrested and detained for "spreading perversion" and furthermore were unable to receive due process, as a result of the lack of LGBT support among Nepalese laws.
Meti are commonly associated with the
Blue Diamond Society of Nepal.
The society is a LGBT rights association devoted to crusading for the rights of marginalized
LGBTQ+
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term is ...
individuals.
HIV
The
HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
epidemic prevalent in Nepal is especially concentrated among the meti community.
[{{Cite journal, last1=Wilson, first1=Erin, last2=Pant, first2=Sunil Babu, last3=Comfort, first3=Megan, last4=Ekstrand, first4=Maria, date=2016-10-07, title=Stigma and HIV risk among Metis in Nepal, pmc=3030668, journal=Culture, Health & Sexuality, volume=13, issue=3, pages=253–266, doi=10.1080/13691058.2010.524247, issn=1369-1058, pmid=21058085] This can be attributed to the unique struggle that Meti face finding employment and acceptance in society. Many meti are pushed into the
sex-industry working as prostitutes and are unwelcome in any other roles in society.
As with issues of discrimination, the key to starting to solve the HIV epidemic among meti is making knowledge readily available and educating about safe-sex methods.
References
External links
* http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/Nepal-Survey-Oct-2014.pdf
Transgender in Asia
Transgender identities