'Sex-change' man and wife jailed for perjury in Pakistan

Pakistan’s first publicly acknowledged same-sex couple were today jailed for three years for perjury.

The case of Shumail Raj – who was born female but had two operations to remove her breasts and uterus 16 years ago – and Shahzina Tariq has made waves by raising issues of homosexuality and transsexuality that are taboo in the country.

The couple, who married last year, had approached the Lahore High Court for protection against harassment by Tariq’s relatives.

However, the judge accused them of lying about the gender of Raj, 31.

Court-appointed doctors examined Raj and decided she was still a woman - something the couple acknowledged later in court.

Raj has expressed a desire to go abroad for surgery to become male.

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 apologised.

The judge also fined them 10,000 Pakistani rupees(€125) and dropped a charge of committing an act of unnatural lust.

However, Raj and 26-year-old wife Shahzina Tariq appeared shocked by the verdict and said they would ask the president for help.