This article contains references to suicide.
Aisya Zaharin “ran away” from her home country to avoid being persecuted.
A Muslim transgender woman of Malaysian origin, Ms Zaharin came to Australia in 2012 seeking a safe haven.
But amid debate on the contentious religious discrimination bill, she feels just as vulnerable as when she lived in Malaysia.
“I ran away from my country to avoid being persecuted for being a trans woman. But now I don’t see any difference between Australia and Malaysia, where they use religion to discriminate,” Ms Zaharin told SBS News.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, the bill passed the lower house after.
The legislation was set to be introduced to the Senate later that day, but the upper house instead voted against debating it, with the Coalition fearing it would not have the numbers to pass its preferred version of the bill.
With just two Senate sitting days left before the federal election, it's unlikely the bill will become law before then.
But even with the bill now shelved, mental health experts and LGBTIQ+ advocates are concerned about the long-term effects the recent debate will have on the psychological wellbeing of the LGBTIQ+ communities.
“When we have conversations at a national level around whether LGBTIQ+ people have the same rights as others to attend schools and access particular services, it has a hugely negative impact,” senior manager of inclusion at Mind Australia, Kate Larsen, told SBS News.
Mind Australia is one of the country’s leading community-managed specialist mental health service providers.
Its Aftercare program specialises in counselling LGBTIQ+ people experiencing suicidal thoughts.
The program received more referrals of LGBTIQ+ people experiencing suicidal thoughts via the Mind Australia website in the past two weeks — as the religious discrimination bill debate raged on — than it did in the previous two months combined.
Luke Beck, an associate professor of constitutional law at Monash University, said LGBTIQ+ people of multicultural backgrounds suffer even worse mental-health issues due to such debates.
“The religious discrimination bill in its current form has a double impact on migrant LGBTIQ+ people. Because if you’re a Hindu nurse at a religious hospital, you could be sacked because you’re a Hindu. And if you’re a gay Hindu nurse, well, that’s two avenues through which you might be discriminated against,” he said.
“And then on top of that, your participation in community life may be impacted because there may be some community groups with whom you’re associated who might feel emboldened to use your sexuality against you,” Professor Beck said.
Ms Zaharin is experiencing the psychological consequences of the recent religious discrimination bill debates in real time.
Luke Beck is an associate professor of constitutional law at Monash University. Source: Supplied
A devout Muslim, Ms Zaharin visits a mosque in Brisbane on a regular basis.
When SBS News, her biggest concern was if people in her mosque find out she’s a transgender woman, she could be ridiculed.
“If I ever go [to a mosque] and tell people about my trans identity, there would be a backlash. There would be a lot of disagreement,” she told SBS News last year.
Now, in the wake of the religious discrimination bill debate, Ms Zaharin fears her mosque may make it even harder for her to visit the place of worship.
“I am a person who’s really attached to my religion but [issues like] the religious discrimination bill further a narrative [that allows] persecution and discrimination of LGBTIQ+ people,” she said.
Ms Larsen said it has been a few very challenging weeks for the LGBTIQ+ community in Australia and everyone can do their bit to help.
“I would urge people across the community, if you know any people who are LGBTIQ+, it would be a great time now to connect with them, check in to see how they’re doing,” she said.
“And if you’re an LGBTIQ+ person, I would love you to know that there are lots and lots of people out there who are fighting to ensure that these kinds of bills don’t progress,” she said.
Readers seeking support can contact Lifeline crisis support on 13 11 14, visit or find an . Resources for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders can be found at .
LGBTIQ+ Australians seeking support with mental health can contact QLife on 1800 184 527 or visit . also has a list of support services. Intersex Australians seeking support can visit Intersex Peer Support Australia at
