Thailand leads the way in empowering trans women in the space sector
Rights — di Lucia Bellinello
In Chiang Mai, Thailand, a conference was held to support the empowerment of women in the space sector — including LGBTQA+ and trans women.
Thailand leads the way in empowering trans women in the space sector
In Chiang Mai, Thailand, a conference was held to support the empowerment of women in the space sector — including LGBTQA+ and trans women.
Before taking the stage, Silvye straightens her miniskirt, tucks a lock of hair behind her ears and switches on the microphone. The silence in the room is broken only by the hum of the air conditioners and the call of a tropical bird from outside. Silvye greets the audience and begins to speak with the ease of someone accustomed to standing before a full house. And it could not be otherwise: Silvye leads major space-related projects in her country. She is an astronomer, chief executive officer and founder of a company that trains new talent for the sector. In her role, she can call any senior official at any hour of the day or night. But no one in her home country knows that Silvye is a woman. A trans woman. Because in her country, women like her come to a bad end.
The LGBTQ+ community in space
Silvye is among the speakers at Building an inclusive astronomy community: an Lgbtqia+ meeting, one of the first conferences in the world designed to empower and promote transgender people and the rainbow community in the world of work related to astronomy and space, which was held in February 2024 at the National Astronomical Research Institute in Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand.
According to some estimates, more than 40 per cent of gay, lesbian and transgender people who study or work in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) conceal their gender identity because their career prospects would otherwise be far more limited.
"None of my colleagues or employees know I'm here: it would be too dangerous for me," Silvye says. "I realised that something inside me didn't fit during secondary school. It took me a while to accept it and I only began to truly be myself in 2018. But knowing what happens to people like me in my country, I am forced to keep a low profile. We trans women feel like prisoners in our own home."
At Silvye's request (a pseudonym), we will not name her country of origin: the risks she faces are too great. Where she lives, anyone who engages in sexual relations considered "against nature" faces extremely severe penalties. Despite this, her desire to be herself is so strong that a few years ago she came out to her foreign colleagues abroad. And now, whenever she steps through the doors of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, or attends international conferences, she goes in a skirt and high heels.
Back in her own country, however, Silvye still goes to work dressed as a man. No one knows her true identity, except for a very small and trusted circle of friends. When evening finally comes and her employees leave the office, Silvye takes off her tie, puts on her miniskirt and her lipstick. "It is very hard to be myself, especially given the professional position I hold," she says. "Some of my friends have got into serious trouble for being trans."
Thailand's tolerance and its contradictions
The fact that this conference was held in Thailand is no coincidence. Thailand is considered one of the most "LGBTQ+-friendly" countries in the world. So much so that the Tourism Department has even turned this into a marketing exercise, launching GoThai.BeFree, a project that aims to "proudly welcome" gay, lesbian, trans and bisexual tourists "to the exotic islands of the south and the lush hills of the north".
Thailand is estimated to have the highest percentage of transgender people in the world, which according to unofficial but multi-source confirmed data is thought to be in the region of 500,000–600,000 people. Thai culture even has a word to denote a very broad spectrum of gender identity, "ladyboy" (kathoey), which refers to transgender women and effeminate men, through to intersex people in general.
The level of tolerance in Thailand is also very high. According to a survey conducted in 2022 by the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida Poll), more than 90 per cent of Thai people said they accepted the presence of people belonging to the so-called "third gender" within their circle of friends, in the workplace and within their own family unit. This tolerance is rooted in large part in the Buddhist culture of society, which promotes respect, compassion and acceptance of diversity.
Being a transgender person in Thailand is therefore not a taboo. And being served by a trans person at a restaurant or supermarket is an everyday occurrence. But as Nikki Phinyapincha, 36, from Bangkok, one of the speakers at the Chiang Mai conference, explains, those are among the very few professions that Thai trans women can actually access. "The trans community is very much mythologised," says Nikki. "Aside from the beauty, entertainment and a few other sectors, the doors of the working world are firmly shut. According to a survey carried out in 2018 by the central bank, 77 per cent of transgender Thai people are rejected at job interviews not due to a lack of skills but because of their gender identity: that is the highest exclusion rate compared to other LGBTQ+ groups such as gay men and lesbians."
A graduate in Italian language with a master's degree from the Università della Svizzera italiana, and a former director of strategic communications, Nikki founded Trans Talent, a consultancy agency specialising in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI): a project whose aim is to develop a culture of inclusion within companies, alongside strategies for targeted and profitable growth. "Trans people are held back not by their abilities, but simply by the fact of being trans," says Nikki. "It is as if people cannot see our professional, credible side, to say nothing of the legislative dimension, which still has major gaps today."
Bill to protect people with diverse gender identities rejected
In fact, despite widespread tolerance, Thailand recently missed a major opportunity to prove itself a pioneering country on the front of rights for the trans community: at the end of February 2024, the Thai parliament rejected a bill on the recognition and protection of people with diverse gender identities — a measure that would have allowed transgender and non-binary people to change their name and the sex recorded on official documents.
Parliament rejects MFP’s gender recognition bill #Thailand #news #ThailandUpdate prachataienglish.com/node/10836
"Even though I was 'reborn' six years ago now, my documents still show me as a man, and because of this I'm often stopped — at passport control in airports, for example," Nikki says. "Not to mention when I book a hotel room, given that I travel for work all over the world: people think I'm there to practise the world's oldest profession. This gives us a measure of just how stigmatised the trans community still is today."
These are just a few examples of how, even in tolerant Thailand, the road towards full equal rights for trans people is still long and uphill. According to Human Rights Watch, the fact that they cannot obtain legal recognition of their gender identity makes them vulnerable to various forms of discrimination.
As stated in the report "People can't be fit into boxes", transgender people in Thailand enjoy few legal protections. And the few that do exist are not fully enforced. The absence of legal recognition of gender identity limits not only access to various services, but also exposes these people to daily humiliations: looking for work and legal assistance, accessing educational and healthcare services, buying and renting a home can all become extremely difficult. As well as humiliating.
Gender affirmation surgery in Thailand
And yet, despite all these contradictions, Thailand is also internationally recognised as a leading centre for gender affirmation surgery and transgender healthcare. The quality of healthcare and the lower costs compared to other countries attract more than two million patients every year, who travel from all over the world to undergo vaginoplasty and phalloplasty procedures, to name just a few. The prices for these operations, according to various sources, can be up to fifty to sixty per cent lower than in the West.
Why I chose Thailand for my gender reassignment surgery cntrvlr.co/Ux0lp5K
Even though no official statistics exist, sources close to the diplomatic mission estimate that in 2023 "dozens" of Italians flew to the "Land of Smiles" to undergo this type of operation. The Kamol Cosmetic Hospital in Bangkok alone performed around forty procedures on patients from Italy. And in Bangkok, there are dozens of clinics like it.
Furthermore, the government's strategy to promote medical tourism, a sector worth more than eight hundred million dollars, only serves to encourage this trend.
But one of the workers at Mit, Movimento identità trans, told Lifegate over the phone: "It's important to remember that in Italy you are guaranteed a transition support pathway, something that is not always available abroad. Those who go to Thailand for this type of procedure usually do so to avoid the long waiting times we have here. In Italy, the costs of gender reassignment surgery are covered by the national health service, but waiting lists can last as long as two or three years."
The weight of social networks
In a world that is still largely unwilling to accept and promote diversity, social networks turn out to be a surprisingly vital ally in the battle for equality: as astronomer Silvye and businesswoman Nikki Phinyapincha explained to Lifegate, social media can act as a megaphone and tell the less well-known, less stereotyped side of trans people's lives. LinkedIn, for example, has become a more inclusive space in which to look for work and build networks.
"Social networks give us the opportunity to tell our story more fully," Nikki Phinyapincha explained. "But it still isn't enough: to truly change things and eliminate discrimination, we need to work with people. We must promote a culture of inclusion starting from families, schools and workplaces, and build collaborations at multiple levels both within and outside our own community, forging new alliances to break down barriers that have by now become systemic. For example, trans leadership in the professional sphere is a new form of storytelling that I am promoting, including through partnerships with the private sector, in order to broaden and consolidate trans representation at decision-making tables and within organisations — a way of ensuring greater sensitivity and inclusion."
The "Building an inclusive astronomy community" conference in Chiang Mai sought to do precisely that: to break down barriers for a more inclusive world, in every sector. This was also the message of Italian queer astrophysicist Alfredo Carpineti, who joined the event by video link from London: "Scientists are people — no one should be excluded," he said. "I hope that in the future there will no longer be anyone in the world who is afraid to be themselves."
Silvye has overcome her fear by taking her destiny into her own hands and choosing to be herself. An example of courage that can be an inspiration to many other women.