Nepal’s LGBTQ community celebrates first transgender woman lawmaker

Draped in garlands, Bhumika Shrestha on Monday became Nepal’s first transgender woman lawmaker, marking a proud milestone for the marginalised community in the Himalayan nation.Nepal’s Election Commission confirmed the 37-year-old as a proportional representation MP from the centrist Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), which won a majority in parliament with 182 seats last week.“I am very excited but also feel the responsibility on my shoulders,” said Shrestha, an LGBTQ rights advocate.“Our constitution has provisions for our community but they have not translated to laws and policies. Our community expects me to raise our issues [in parliament].”Bhumika Shrestha receives garlands from other LGBTQ members at a Blue Diamond Society event on Monday. Photo: APShrestha will sit in the 275-member House of Representatives elected on March 5, the first poll since the deadly anti-corruption protests toppled the government in September last year.RSP, led by rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah, won 125 of 165 directly elected seats and secured 57 more through proportional representation, leaving it just two short of a two-thirds majority.