Education Minister Dr A N M Ehsanul Hoque Milon has said he used the word “transgender” unintentionally in a speech at an event, when he meant to refer to third-gender people. Correcting his choice of words, he said the term he intended was “third gender” (tritiyo lingo).
Milon, who is minister of education and of primary and mass education, said this in a post on his verified Facebook page on Friday (30 October).
“I want to correct a word used in my speech at a recent event and make clear the context of what I said,” he wrote.
At that event, he wrote, a third-gender student received a degree. “Welcoming this achievement, I spoke about encouraging third-gender people to take part in education. Many of them face neglect, deprivation and negative attitudes in society. What I spoke about was how they overcome these barriers and come forward in education.”
“While trying to say ‘third gender’ during the speech, I unintentionally used the word ‘transgender’. The word I intended was ‘third gender’,” the minister wrote.
Ending the post, he said he respects the religious values and feelings of the people of the country, and that the aim of his speech that day was to encourage educational opportunity for third-gender people and to recognise their academic achievements.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report