Portrait
Nisha Ayub
Born
5 April 1979Malacca, Malaysia
Trans rights activistMalaysia

Nisha Ayub

Jailed in a men’s prison for wearing women’s clothes, she became Malaysia’s leading voice for trans rights.

Nisha Ayub grew up in Malacca in a Muslim family. At 21 she was arrested under Islamic law for “a man posing as a woman” and sentenced to three months in a men’s prison, where she was sexually abused. The experience shaped her life’s work.

In Malaysia trans women face arrests under religious laws in several states, as well as discrimination in work, health care and housing. Ayub began working for HIV prevention organisations and then co-founded two organisations of her own: the campaign Justice for Sisters, which documents and fights the persecution of trans women, and the SEED Foundation, which supports trans people with shelter, health care and job training.

In 2016 she received the US State Department’s International Women of Courage Award – the first trans woman to be honoured with it. She has received threats for her work, but continues to speak publicly.

Ayub has said that she wants trans people in Malaysia to live with dignity, safety and the same rights as everyone else.

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