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Tent blaze kills 15 at gathering of eunuchs
Source: Agencies |
November 22, 2011, Tuesday
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AN isolated and shunned community of castrated men, transvestites and transsexuals yesterday mourned 15 comrades killed when a fire blazed through a makeshift tent in New Delhi, India, where they had gathered to honor deceased friends.
The fire on Sunday night in Delhi sent the gathered eunuchs into a panic as people struggled to escape from the burning tent. In addition to those killed, at least 36 were injured, most of them elderly.
The term eunuch, or hijra, is used in India to describe a community of people who identify themselves as neither male nor female but as members of a third gender. They traditionally survive by begging, dancing at weddings or blessing newborn babies, and are frequently subjected to discrimination.
While the community of 700,000 is often mocked, eunuchs' prayers and good wishes - and curses if they are angered - are considered powerful by many Indians.
Most eunuchs are shunned by their birth families and live together in communal houses led by a guru or master.
Thousands of eunuchs from around India came to an east Delhi fairground over the weekend for an occasional gathering of the community.
"We were just here to pray for our dead members and the wellbeing of all the children in India and everywhere else," said Sita, who like many eunuchs uses just one name. "It is one of the few times when we can all meet each other."
The gathering included both Hindus and Muslims, Sita said.
The tent was packed on Sunday and the fire caused panic, said Babli, another eunuch. "The older hijras were hurt," Babli said.
Smoke hung in the air yesterday as small groups of eunuchs were allowed into the cordoned-off area to salvage belongings. Hundreds of others outside sought news of their friends and consoled one another. Investigators believe the fire was caused by an electrical fault.
The fire on Sunday night in Delhi sent the gathered eunuchs into a panic as people struggled to escape from the burning tent. In addition to those killed, at least 36 were injured, most of them elderly.
The term eunuch, or hijra, is used in India to describe a community of people who identify themselves as neither male nor female but as members of a third gender. They traditionally survive by begging, dancing at weddings or blessing newborn babies, and are frequently subjected to discrimination.
While the community of 700,000 is often mocked, eunuchs' prayers and good wishes - and curses if they are angered - are considered powerful by many Indians.
Most eunuchs are shunned by their birth families and live together in communal houses led by a guru or master.
Thousands of eunuchs from around India came to an east Delhi fairground over the weekend for an occasional gathering of the community.
"We were just here to pray for our dead members and the wellbeing of all the children in India and everywhere else," said Sita, who like many eunuchs uses just one name. "It is one of the few times when we can all meet each other."
The gathering included both Hindus and Muslims, Sita said.
The tent was packed on Sunday and the fire caused panic, said Babli, another eunuch. "The older hijras were hurt," Babli said.
Smoke hung in the air yesterday as small groups of eunuchs were allowed into the cordoned-off area to salvage belongings. Hundreds of others outside sought news of their friends and consoled one another. Investigators believe the fire was caused by an electrical fault.
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