bangkok after dark. the thai capital is famed for its raucous nightlife.

it's also known for something else. these cabaret dancers are all transgender. born as men, now women. being one of the leading countries for sex reassignment surgery, thailand has a reputation as a transgender paradise. in certain sectors of the workforce and not just entertainment, they have a high profile. their social skills are especially favored at supermarkets and restaurants. >> but there are many occupations are discrimination against transgender people persists. one of them is in education.

a teacher at a public elementary and secondary school, the school recently decided to dismiss her after she dressed as a woman in the classroom. a similar storyry. earnrning a university educatio degree with excellent grarades s nott enoughgh. three years after graduation, she still makes a living as a tutor. >> but some in the education field are taking a stand against this kind of discrimination. a lecturer at thailand's prestigious tamastat university. in 2015, she, then an assistant, took a promotion exam to become a lecturer, but her promotion

was refused. they said her behavior would offend the university's dignity. in response kent sued the university. after a 2 1/2-year trial, the court ruled in her favor. >> i want to desestroy the beginning concept of gender like. the world is half male and half female only. >> in this episode we tell the story of transgender people who are fighting discrimination. the university in the center of bangkok is the oldest national university in thailand.

in keeping with tradition, students are required to wear uniforms. a third-year student in the faculty of education, she was born a boy but has identified herself as female since childhood. she went to a boy's school but it never felt right. after entering university, she decided to live her life as a woman.

>> but there was a problem. the university was reluctant to allow jirapat to go to school in a woman's uniform. the university asked jirapat to submit a doctor medical certificate showing she had gender identity disorder. after meeting that request, she was given permission to wear a woman's uniform. but her troubles continued. as her teachers became aware she was transgender, she was subject to various forms of discrimination. this is a recording of what an associate professor said to jirapat during a lecture.

>> jirapat reached out to other transgender students on campus. she also contacted journalists. this is one of the media reports published online. the voice recording of an asasciate profofessor h has c c a stir on n social media..

the transgender student who was the t target off this comment ststands up for her right to we the uniform of her gender identity. she is not alone in that fight. the rainbow sky association based in bangkok was set up to eliminate discrimination against sexual minorities. founded in 1999, the group drew support from across the gay and lesbian community. one of the original members says at that time thai society was much more intolerant of sexual minorities.

>> he showed us some textbooks used in secondary schools until recently. >> the rainbow sky association set out to eliminate such prejudice and discrimination against sexual minorities. the first task was to prevent

the spread of hiv. at the group's headquarters, an hiv testi ining corridor was se. they also handed out condoms on the street promoting awareness and prevention of the e aids virus. three years after the group started, the thai government declared that homosexuality is not a mental illness. the announcement came amid a growing debate worldwide on protecting the human rights of sexual minorities. the rainbow sky association also held workshops and events to help the general public better understand gay and lesbian people. and appealed for a law to prohibit discrimination against them.

that goal was realized in 2015 when a new law was enacted in the thai parliament. it was the gender equality act. the law specifically prohibits any gender discrimination including discrimination against transgender people. it stipulates that offenders be fined or imprisoned. the law set up a committee under the ministry of social development and human security to rule on cases of gender discrimination. it consists of 11 members. in the case of a complaint of discriminati discrimination, the committee examines the facts and makes a decision. this is the director in the ministry that oversees this committee.

>> jirapat and fellow students at the university are now waiting for the committee to rule on their case. >> the rainbow sky association hired more staff and helping sexual minorities to a appeal t ththe government committee and courts.

one of the staff says shehe fel that she was a female for as long as she could remember. her mother acknowledged that identity and raised her as a girl. encouraged by her mother who was a nurse, she studied medicine at a top-level school in northeastern thailand. she earned a doctor's degree in traditional medicine. after graduation, she looked for work as a doctor. that's when a harsh reality hit home. she eventually found work in a department store. she chose to work in sales but it allowed her to dress as a woman.

in 2017 urged on by a friend, she joined a beauty contest sponsored by the rainbow sky association and won a prize. not long after, she camee on board as a staff member. she lives alone in bangkok. femininity is all important to her and she works hard to maintain her beauty as a woman. she spends 30 minutes just treating her skin before applying makeup. >> two years ago, she underwent sex reassignment surgery, but

despite having the body of a woman, she is not recognized as a woman under thai law. >> on this day, she visited buriram province in eastern thailand. a trans woman who works as a teacher at an elementary and secondary school is asking the rainbow sky association for help. this is ukrit. she was hired as an assistant teacher in october 2018. one year later the school

decided to fire her. she starts listening to her story. initially, ukrit gave classes dressed in women's clothes. soon after, she was called into the principal's office. ukrit followed the school's destructions and started dressing as a man, however, that lasted only a few months.

ukrit felt it was her right to dress as she chose, but three months later the school conducted a teacher assessment and ukrit was judged unsuitable for the job. in december 2019, the school issued ukrit a notice of dismissal. she told ukrit that the rainbow sky association would take up her case. the group will support her appeal to the government committee and back her cause on social media.

>> how do the people in the district see ukrit?

>> the school's assistant principal agreed to be interviewed but not on camera. the assistant principal denied gender discrimination. she said some parents were concerned that ukrit's daily behavior would negatively influence the students. ukrit's family home is about 100 kilometers away from the school. her mother raised ukrit as a single woman while running a

restaurant. ♪ ukrit came out to her mother that she was transgender when she was in secondary school. she says she couldn't accept it right away. >> ukrit decided to become a teacher, an occupation that would allow her to earn a stable income and support her mother.

she went on to university and passed the teacher qualification exam. she finally accepted her daughter. >> it is expected to take the committee six months to make a final decision. their ruling will determine if ukrit can continue teaching.

tamasat university is one of thailand's most prestigious education institutes. one member of the facululty her owes her position to a court trial. kakate is a lecturer with the ft factulty of social administration. the theme of the lecture is sexual diversitity. it's a popular class.

>> kath graduated from thamasat university with excellent grades and was hired as an assistantnt. the follllowing year she took a promototn exam t to become a lectur lecturer, but her promotion was rerejected. the university said kath's behavior would offend its dignity. >> and i feel like my case is a discrimination. itit's a discrimination casese. and ifif discriminatation based my gender -- >> in october 2015 kath went to court to argue that the university's judgment was unfair. the trial attracted media attention.

one of the journalists who interviewed her was tanakorr. in march 2018 the judgment was declared. the courts dismissed the university's claims and ordered the university to hire kath as a lecturer. >> it lookoked like another cas for other trans peoplple, even theyey have a problem on job discrimination,, they might lean from my resesult from the justi system what the reason. >> among those learning from her

is the third-year student at chulalonkon university. in november 2019 the university started responding to her claim of discrimination. as for the associate professor who made discriminatory comments, the university authorities are trying to mediate a solution.

>> thai transgender people are standing up against discrimination. the battle to create a society where diversity is recognized continues.

> i verery hope that in the future we maybe have a judge as a transgender. a teacher as a transgender. a soldier as a transgender. and that's not increasing thehe numberer of people, but increas ing in society. ♪

>> tens of thousands of pepeople flee as the government continues to bomb. hello. this is al jazeera. security liberties in libya. festivities inflames. a horrific wildfire that reduced their homes to ashes on christmas eve. >> i am here