Kathmandu, Nepal | February 18, 2025 — Intersex Asia (IA), a leading regional network of intersex-led organizations in Asia, is proud to host the 4th Asian Intersex Forum in Kathmandu, Nepal, from February 20 to 22, 2025. Under the theme “Engage, Embrace, and Empower,” this event will unite 45 intersex activists, and representatives of intersex organizations from 11 countries across Asia including Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Russia, Japan, and Taiwan. The participants will discuss the challenges and issues faced by the intersex community in Asia to develop a strategy for advocacy and amplify the voices of the intersex population because we are often neglected in global Human Rights conversations, policies, and funding while connecting the community with potential donors and allies from Central Asia, Oceania, Europe, and Africa. This event comes at a critical time when a major shift in global political power and funding mechanisms threatens to undo the result of the almost two-decades-long intersex movement in Asia.
“I” Exist: Visibility and Survival
The forum centers on a critical truth: Intersex people exist, and matter! We have always existed in Asia and worldwide, yet remain marginalized, and largely misunderstood in societal narratives. This gathering challenges that erasure, affirming that intersex lives are not abstract—we are human, valid, and deserving of attention and support. The event also underscores the urgency of the intersex rights movement, which goes beyond recognition to saving lives. Countless intersex children across Asia endure non-consensual medical interventions that violate bodily autonomy, leaving lifelong physical and psychological trauma. The forum will spotlight these human rights violations and strategize ways to end them.
Engage, Embrace, and Empower
In collaboration with our local partner, Campaign for Change Nepal, we have brought together the most intersex participants for the first time to this 4th Asian Intersex Forum, including 12 participants from Nepal. The three-day forum aims to:
- Engage participants in dialogue about systemic challenges, including healthcare discrimination, legal invisibility, and stigma, and identify potential solutions/ strategies to advance Intersex rights, their health, and well-being.
- Embrace intersex diversity through team-building activities and shared storytelling, fostering solidarity across cultures and identities.
- Empower activists with training and resources to advocate for policy changes, community education, and grassroots mobilization in their home countries.
A highlight of the agenda includes the graduation ceremony for IA’s 2024 National Fellowship Program in Nepal and the Philippines, celebrating local leaders who have advanced intersex rights through education and advocacy. Participants will also explore the global intersex movement’s history, tools for policy reform, and strategies to combat harmful medical practices, discrimination, stigmatization and violence.
Hiker Chiu, Executive Director of Intersex Asia, emphasized the event’s significance: “This forum is more than a meeting—it’s a strong proof of intersex existence. —our existence is undeniable. United, we raise our collective voice to demand bodily autonomy, justice, and inclusion. Coming together at this event not only strengthens our community but also fosters meaningful dialogue that drives positive change.”
Our Future United!
The 4th Asian Intersex Forum marks a critical point for regional collaboration. In light of the new political development and a major change in the funding landscape, deepening connections between intersex communities and allies, potential donors are more important than ever. This is not just any movement, this is a life-saving movement. It is directly linked with countless innocent lives, many of which will suffer both physically and mentally without timely support. All of which can only be achieved through legal recognition, healthcare reform, and societal acceptance. As participants prepare to gather in Kathmandu, Intersex Asia reaffirms its commitment to a future where intersex individuals are free to live as they are. Through shared stories, strategies, and solidarity, the forum will amplify a message of resilience and hope—one that transcends borders and inspires global change.
#EngageEmbraceEmpower #IntersexAsia #4thAIF2025
For media contact, please reach out to:
–Esan Regmi, Executive Director, Campaign for Change: esan@intersexasia.org
–Andrey Tran, Communication Officer, Intersex Asia: communication@intersexasia.org
About Intersex Asia and Campaign for Change Nepal
Intersex Asia is an autonomous regional network of intersex-led organizations and individuals from Asian countries that work to support, educate, and advocate for the rights and lives of intersex individuals and raise awareness of human rights violations and discrimination faced by intersex communities. Intersex Asia was established when 12 intersex people representing organizations and communities from Hong Kong (China), India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam came together to attend the first Asian Intersex Forum which took place in February 2018 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Started in 2017, Campaign for Change (CfC) is the first and only organization led by intersex people and established to address the plight of the intersex community in Nepal. It brings the needs of intersex people to national, regional, and international attention and strives to create a safe and enabling environment for the intersex community. Campaign for Change aims to lobby and advocate with the government and different institutions along with communities to get the situation of intersex people recognized, through capacitating and enhancing skills, building knowledge, and raising awareness of the intersex community. Hence, we use our agency to address the existing inequalities and bring change.
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