[Foundation-l] [Wikimania-l] Wikimania 2008 will happen in Alexandria, Egypt

[geni]

On 11/10/2007, Mark Williamson <node.ue at gmail.com> wrote:
> My primary concern is the safety of potential transgendered and
> transsexual conference attendees.
>
> Someone earlier asked me if I have a study about the number of people
> who will or who will not attend Wikimania due to such concerns...
> well... we have voluntary listings and we have userboxes for gay,
> lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered Wikimedians. My guess is that
> there will be few to no transgendered and transsexual attendees, not
> because there are no T people who wish to attend but because there are
> not many T people who feel comfortable in El Iskandariyyah.
>
> I'm not naming names here because it is their own business, but I do
> know of several prominent T Wikimedians and I have seen in blog
> comments and the like that they are not planning to go because they
> fear for their safety. That we have a whole demographic of people who
> are not going to go because they fear for their safety is appalling to
> me. What is even more appalling is that really, nobody seems to care.
>
> Lots of you have said you have had LGBT/GLBT friends go to Egypt and be fine.
>
> My guess is that your friends have only been gay, lesbian, and
> bisexual... have you had trans friends go to Egypt and say they felt
> safe there? I think I already know the answer.
>
> Mark
>


As long as they have been diagnosed by a doctor transsexuals should
encounter no legal problems in Egypt. Egyptian law and current Islamic
custom in that area views transsexualism as an illness and sex change
operations and the like to be a legitimate form of treatment.


-- 
geni