Production still from “Tales of the Waria,” a film by Kathy Huang
While you may seem them occasionally busking on the streets or working in salons, the vast majority of waria (the Indonesian term for transgendered individuals, a portmanteau of the words for man (pria) and woman (wanita)) in Indonesia live in the shadows, invisible at the margins of society.
So there may be many more out there then you would ever guess. Julian Rettoblaut the chairperson of Forum Waria Indonesia (Indonesian Transexual Forum), says that, according to a 2008 survey, in Indonesia there are about seven million transsexuals in Indonesia and about 8,000 in Jakarta.
While those figures may seem high (Julian did not specify who conducted the survey or the methodology), 7 million out of Indonesia’s population of 250 million would mean that about 2.8% of the population identifies as transgender, which is in line with the 2-5% estimate sometimes given by transgender advocates.
Julian, who is known to many as Mami Yuli, said the stigma faced by waria in Indonesia force them into occupations like busking and sex work to make money.
“In fact, many waria were expelled from their homes and work hard to adapt. They eventually end up on the streets to try and survive. They have no other choice, ” Mami Yuli said, as quoted by Tribunnews.
Mami Yuli went on to say that Jakarta has become a major destination for waria from all over Indonesia who have become alienated from their families. That’s why the number of transvestites in Jakarta continues to grow each year.
A number of Governmental Organization (NGO) work to help this at-risk population, routinely conduct job trainings to help get them off the streets.
“Of the 8,000 waria [in Jakarta], about 3,000 of them have received help. That is, they are already trained and work in several businesses, such as salons, bakeries and so on,” Mami Yuli said.
She also noted that the Indonesian government does in fact provide some forml assistance for waria. According to Mami Yuli, every year the Ministry of Social Affairs conducts outreach programs, although the budget is small at just Rp 98 million.
