Members of Indonesia's diverse male-to-female transgender
community often describe themselves as waria.Waria do
not equate being feminine with being female. They do not want to be women; they
aspire to be likewomen. It entails
cultivating mannerisms and wearing make-up and women's clothes, shaving one's
legs and styling one's hair. But some go further in their practices of
self-administered, chemically assisted bodily transformation.
Field research took place in Makassar, the capital city of
South Sulawesi; in a smaller town in the regency of Bulukumba on the south
coast of Sulawesi; and in the special region of Yogyakarta in Java. Data were
collected through repeated in-depth interviews with ten waria youths
aged between 18 and 26 in each site; interviews with pharmacists, drug and
cosmetics store clerks; three focus group discussions at each site; and
participant observation.
Our respondents saw their bodies as ‘projects’ they can
manipulate with pharmaceutical products and cosmetics. To lighten their skin,
they experimented with different brands of exfoliating liquid, whitening cream,
powder, foundation, face soap and skin scrub. To grow breasts and reduce muscle
mass, they experimented with different brands and dosages of contraceptive
pills and injections in order to get faster, better and longer-lasting results.
Harm reduction programs often neglect chemicals that are not
narcotics, not related to sexually transmitted infections, and which are
legally and freely available. Safety issues arise when otherwise safe products
are used off-label in large quantities. Drug policy-makers are paying
insufficient attention to the safety of cosmetics.
Below: The most popular brands for pills and injections
Table 1
Contraceptive products used to feminize bodies.
| Product | Manufacturer/licence | Content | Product information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andalan pill | Marketing: DKT Indonesia | Each tablet contains: 0.15 mg Levonolgestrel 0.03 mg Ethinylestradiol | Begin taking on the first day of menstruation |
| Manufacturer: PT Sydna Farma, Jakarta, Indonesia | Indication: low dosage oral contraceptive for breast-feeding mothers | ||
| License: NV Organon, Netherlands | By prescription only | ||
| Marvelon 28 pill | Marketing: DKT Indonesia | Each pack consists of 21 large tablets, each containing: 0.150 mg Desogestrel 0.030 mg Ethinylestradiol No active ingredient in the small tablets | By prescription only |
| Manufacturer: PT Sydna Farma, Jakarta, Indonesia | |||
| License: NV Organon, Netherlands | |||
| Trinordiol pill | Manufacturer: Wyeth, Germany & Republic of Ireland | Each light brown tablet contains: 0.03 mg Ethinylestradiol 0.05 mg Levonorgestrel | Synthetic oestrogen and Levonorgestrel is a synthetic form of progesterone |
| Each white tablet contains: 0.04 mg Ethinylestradiol 0.075 mg Levonorgestrel Each ochre tablet contains: 0.03 mg Ethinylestradiol 0.125 mg Levonorgestrel | Each 21-day pack contains three types of tablets (six light brown, five white, ten ochre), each with a slightly different hormone dosage | ||
| Microgynon pill | Manufacturer: Schering do Brasil Quimica Farmaceutica Ltda, Sao Paolo, Brazil | 21 Sugar-coated tablets, each containing: 0.15 mg Levonorgestrel 0.03 mg Ethinylestradiol 7 Sugar-coated tablets, each containing 48.25 mg Lactosa | By prescription only |
| Importer: PT Bayer Indonesia | |||
| Microdiol 30 pill | Manufacturer and distributor: Kimia Farma Indonesia | Each small tablet contains: 0.150 mg Levonorgestrel 0.030 mg Ethinylestradiol No active ingredient in the large tablets | By prescription only |
| Cyclogynon pill | Marketing: PT Tunggal Idaman Abdi, Indonesia | Each tablet contains: 0.15 mg Levonorgestrel 0.03 mg Ethinylestradiol | |
| Manufacturer: PT Sunthi Sepuri, Indonesia | |||
| Andalan Laktasi pill KB | Marketing: DKT Indonesia | Each tablet contains: 0.15 mg Levonorgestrel 0.03 mg Ethinylestradiol | By prescription only |
| Manufacturer: PT Sydna Farma, Indonesia | |||
| License: NV Organon, Netherlands | |||
| Andalan contraceptive injection | Manufacturer: Harsen, Indonesia, incorporated under DKT Indonesia | Each 1 ml contains: 150 mg Medroxyprogesterone acetate | By prescription only |
| Sterile suspension of Medroxyprogesterone acetate in water | |||
| Cyclofem contraceptive injection | Manufacturer: PT Tunggal Idaman Abdi, Indonesia | Each vial contains: 25 mg Medroxyprogesterone acetate 5 mg Estradiol USP sterilized micronized | By prescription only |
| License: Concept Foundation, Thailand | |||
Below: Exfoliating products
Full article
at:
By:
aDepartment of Anthropology, Faculty of Social
and Political Sciences, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia
bEuropean Research Council Chemical Youth
project, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Nurul Ilmi Idrus: moc.oohay@surdiimlilurun; Takeo David
Hymans: moc.liamtoh@snamyhdivad: moc.liamtoh@surdiimlilurun
⁎Corresponding author at:
Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Kampus
Unhas Tamalanrea, KM 10, Makassar 90245, Indonesia. Email: moc.oohay@surdiimlilurun
More at: https://twitter.com/hiv_insight
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