Pakistan Jails Lesbian Couple in Sex Change Case

LAHORE, Pakistan — A couple who sought legal protection from harassment were separated and sentenced to three years in prison yesterday for lying to a Pakistani judge that surgery had turned one partner into a man.

The case of Shumail Raj, who was born female but had breast- and uterus-removal operations 16 years ago, and Shahzina Tariq has raised issues of homosexuality and transsexuality largely taboo in this conservative Muslim society.

The couple, who married last year, had approached the Lahore High Court for protection against harassment by Ms. Tariq's relatives. They said they wed to protect Ms. Tariq from being sold into marriage to pay off her uncle's gambling debts.

Court-appointed doctors who examined Ms. Raj ruled the earlier operations were not complete and that Ms. Raj was still a woman. The couple said they had lied about 31-year-old Ms. Raj's gender because they were in love and wanted to live together. Ms. Raj, who has a close-cropped beard, has expressed a desire to go abroad for surgery to become male.

"There are certainly laws to deal with perjury, so they deserve due punishment," said Hina Jillani, head of the Legal Aid Center of the nongovernment Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. "But what I believe is that they should have been given some more leniency. Since our society sees such relationships as immoral and illegal, the couple certainly has this pressure on them. That is why they lied to the court."

Presiding Judge Kahawaja Mohammed Sharif, announcing their conviction for perjury, said he was issuing a "lenient" sentence, below the seven-year maximum, because they had apologized.

The judge also fined them $165 —two months salary for an average Pakistani — and dropped a charge of committing an act of unnatural lust, which can be punished by life in prison.

Ms. Raj and Ms. Tariq, 26, appeared shocked by the verdict. Their eyes widened as Judge Sharif announced their punishment, and they briefly clasped each other's arms before police led them away.

Defense attorney Zahid Husain Bokhari said the couple would appeal.

Ms. Raj, wearing a short-sleeved white shirt and jeans, urged President Musharraf to step in. "Musharraf is talking about moderation and enlightenment. We hope he will do something for us," Ms. Raj told reporters outside the court.

Asked about the prospect of three years in separate jails for women, Ms. Raj said: "No matter, no matter. We love each other."