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Claudia Maria Acevedo: Working to Save the Individual Identity of Guatemalan Women-Amnesty International Newsletter 06/05/06 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Claudia María Acevedo González, general coordinator of the Liberated Lesbians Association or "Lesbirated", is one of the main leaders of the gays and lesbians movement for the human rights in Latin America. This organization emerged from the efforts of twelve women who, with the participation of other lesbians in Guatemala, have fought for the visibility of lesbianism and the public defense of lesbians' human rights.
1.) Can you tell me about your main breakthroughs and the challenges you think you will have to face?
I think our major breakthrough has been the chance of saying "Well, yes, let's get together and start a fight to change this situation". I believe this is the main challenge, since lesbianism in Guatemala not only is stigmatized but it is also dangerous to be a lesbian in a society that denies sexuality in itself.
(PDF - 135 Kb) Document Date: 5 Jun 2006 (Downloads: 470)
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Guatemala Under Fire by Marta Donayre-El Observador-01/23/06 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Two women were shot in the early hours of Dec. 17 in Guatemala City, one is dead and the other critically injured. The attackers allegedly wore police uniforms, and the entire LGBT community is under siege,..
(PDF - 57 Kb) Document Date: 23 Jan 2006 (Downloads: 491)
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Guatemala's Dykes Dig in Their Heels-Violence won't stop lesbian organizing by Kelly Cogswell-The Gully.com-07/25/03 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Montenegro, head of Guatemala's women's rights commission and herself a target of paramilitary groups, also seems unable to understand that the problems of lesbians are rooted in those of women. Already this year, more than a hundred women have been murdered in Guatemala, many after being raped. Recently, Guatemala's Congress, where only ten of the 113 deputies are women, decided that sexual harassment is not a crime. One deputy even chastised women for mistaking "gallantry" for harassment.
The use of violence as a means of social control to keep women compliant and invisible is a huge problem for lesbians. It keeps them out of public spaces, enforces the closet, and leaves them prey to homophobic families. "Even our discrimination is invisible," Acevedo told us. "It doesn't happen in the streets the way it does with gay men and transgendered people, because we, as women, are not in the streets. As a result, we have little factual evidence of human rights violations against us."
In Guatemala, "when families find out that their daughter is a lesbian, they lock her up at home, rape her, force her to marry," said Acevedo. She offered the example of Carla, who was imprisoned at home after her parents found out that she had a girlfriend.
"They locked her up in her own bedroom. They'd just open the door to give her food. She was only let out to go to the bathroom, always escorted by a brother who was assigned to guard her day and night. Shortly after her eighteenth birthday, she managed to escape and got to us. The family found out where she was and got the police involved. The authorities supported the family and tried to bring charges against us for kidnapping, even though the girl was of age. We got a lawyer for Carla and countersued her family. It was a long process.
"At every turn, the authorities pressured the girl to drop her lawsuit; each time, Lesbiradas denounced them and fought back. Eventually, at a court hearing, the family persuaded Carla to return home. She accepted and they quickly got her out of Guatemala. We don't know where she is now. But we're satisfied that we held our ground. It's not against the law to be a lesbian in Guatemala, even though your rights aren't protected."
(PDF - 248 Kb) Document Date: 25 Jul 2003 (Downloads: 457)
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Guatemala- RESPONSES TO INFORMATION REQUESTS (RIRs)-GTM101794.E-Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa- 10/26/06 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Guatemala: Treament of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered/transsexual individuals and availability of state protection; police attitudes towards same-sex domestic violence and state protection available to victims (2003 - September 2006)<br><br>According to Gaytimes, Guatemala is characterized by "deep-rooted homophobia" and "state harassment of the [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered] LGBT community" (n.d.). Human Rights Watch (HRW) states that it has received numerous reports of "acts of violence against and intimidation of transgender women, lesbians and gay men in Guatemla" (21 Feb. 2006b; HRW 21 Feb. 2006a).
(PDF - 164 Kb) Document Date: 26 Oct 2006 (Downloads: 501)
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Guatemala: Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005 - Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor-March 8 2006 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
The law does not criminalize homosexuality, but it also does not expressly include sexual orientation or HIV status among the categories prohibited from discrimination. There was social discrimination against gay, lesbian and transgender persons and persons with HIV/AIDS. Homosexual rights support groups alleged that members of the police regularly waited outside clubs and bars frequented by sexual minorities and demanded that patrons and persons engaged in commercial sexual activities provide protection money. These groups also complained that police at times raped lesbians and transvestites, but that due to a lack of trust in the judicial system and out of fear of further persecution or social recrimination, victims were unwilling to file complaints.
On December 17, transvestite Juan Pablo Mendez Cartagena was shot and killed, and transvestite Kelvin Josue Alegria Robles was seriously injured in Guatemala City by persons that members of the homosexual rights group OASIS alleged were wearing police uniforms. At year's end the matter was under investigation by police authorities.
(PDF - 44 Kb) Document Date: 8 Mar 2006 (Downloads: 433)
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Guatemala: The International Lesbian and Gay Association-World Legal Survey-07/31/00 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Homosexual acts between consenting adults are not defined as a criminal offense.
(PDF - 194 Kb) Document Date: 31 Jul 2000 (Downloads: 464)
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Guatemala: The long road to safety: gays fleeing violence abroad appeal to the United States for asylum. Refugee Flavio Alves tells their stories in a new book - Immigration-by Steve Desroches-The Advocate-06/25/02 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Police raids on Guatemala City gay bars are a normal occurrence. Everyone knows the routine: Show ID, perhaps pay a bribe, and then stay out of sight for a while. But no one was prepared for what happened one night in 1997 at a downtown nightclub.
Suddenly the music stopped. The music always stopped during a raid, but this time the room was also filled with a blinding bright light--the police had video cameras with them. The officers lined everyone up against the wall, frisking them and taking extra time to fondle the women. Then, person by person, they began videotaping, forcibly lifting the chins of those who hung their heads. Waiting in the lineup, Alejandra Vasquez knew that if the police broadcast the tape, she would lose her job as a pediatrician. She refused. "I have the right to know why you are doing this," said Vasquez. "You're a dyke! You have no rights," said the officer. When Vasquez continued to argue, the officer dragged her outside and began to beat her. "I thought I was going to die," she remembers. "I heard one say, `We'll take her to prison and show her how to be a woman.' I knew they would rape me if they took me to prison. I either wanted to die right there or fight back rather than have those bastards rape me. So I fought."
As Vasquez struggled for her life, her friends collected money to bribe the police to spare her. They gave the police the equivalent of $20. The beating stopped, and the police left. "Now I always carry a $20 bill. I never spend it," says Vasquez.
(PDF - 59 Kb) Document Date: 25 Jun 2002 (Downloads: 484)
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Guatemala: Victims Concerned That Police May Have Been Responsible For These Crimes-Amnesty International-02/21/06 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
One transgender woman was murdered and another critically wounded... Eyewitnesses reported that the assailants were wearing police uniforms and riding police motorcycles that identified them as members of the national police.
(PDF - 94 Kb) Document Date: 21 Feb 2006 (Downloads: 353)
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Lesbian and Gay Guatemala - Gaytimes.co.uk-02/02/06 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
As with many Latin American countries a macho attitude prevails with deep rooted homophobia. There is state harassment of LGBT community.... The police have been implicated in a series of anti-gay murders.
(PDF - 83 Kb) Document Date: 2 Feb 2006 (Downloads: 435)
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Peru: HOMOFOBIA, IMPUNIDAD Y MÁS DISCRIMINACIÓN: Policías que violaron y torturaron a joven gay, libres... -Homophobia, impunity and more discrimination: Police who violated and tortured gay youth, free...-By Manuel Herrera Loayza, Boletin Diversidad- 04/29/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
El Manual de derechos humanos aplicados a la función policial dice que el personal de la Policía Nacional del Perú siempre debe tener presente, entre otros aspectos, ?evitar todo acto discriminatorio o vejatorio? y ?no permitir la agresión sexual?. Aprobado por resolución ministerial No. 1452-2006-IN (31/05/2006), reconoce explícitamente en su Capítulo IV (?Víctimas y grupos vulnerables?) que ?lesbianas, gays, travestis y bisexuales son grupos de personas que debido a su orientación sexual son discriminados en diversos ámbitos de nuestra sociedad, como el laboral, político, cultural y hasta el familiar. A estos actos de discriminación no han sido ajenos algunos efectivos policiales, quienes muchas veces han perseguido y maltratado a estas personas sin motivación alguna, menoscabando su dignidad como seres humanos?.
(PDF - 114 Kb) Document Date: 29 Apr 2008 (Downloads: 335)
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| 3431. |
Brunei-Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2007-3/11/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination<br><br> There were no reports of societal violence or discrimination based on sexual orientation or against persons with HIV/AIDS. The law makes it a criminal offense to have "sexual intercourse against the order of nature." There were no reports of official discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment, housing, access to education, or health care.
(PDF - 94 Kb) Document Date: 11 Mar 2008 (Downloads: 421)
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Chinese transwoman gets new ID card- Rex Wockner International News # 731- 04/28/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
A 33-year-old MTF transsexual has become China's first post-op
transsexual to go public about obtaining a new state identity card
listing her new gender.
(PDF - 18 Kb) Document Date: 28 Apr 2008 (Downloads: 475)
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Con protesta recibieron a lesbianas que ganaron tutela para volver al colegio- Lesbians who won the right to go back to school were met with demonstrations- www.eltiempo.com/ 04/25/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
'No las queremos', les gritaron cerca de 700 alumnas del colegio Leonardo Da Vinci de Manizales, mientras las dos jóvenes de 16 y 17 años, hacían trámites para regresar a clases.<br><br>
El abogado Guillermo Rodríguez, a quien la rectora le dio poder para que la represente, anunció que este lunes ella impugnará el fallo de la tutela.<br><br>
"We don't want them," shouted about 700 students of the Leonardo Da Vinci of Manizales School, while the two young girls were returning to class.
The lawyer Guillermo Rodriguez, who the school director gave power to represent her, announced that this Monday she will challenge the verdict of the guardianship.
(PDF - 53 Kb) Document Date: 25 Apr 2008 (Downloads: 312)
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Exigen que policía panameña elimine normas homofóbicas de su reglamento- It is demanded that Panamanian police eliminate homophobic standards from their bylaws.- By Christian Rea Tizcareño - México DF (NotieSe) 04/26/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
La Asociación de Hombres y Mujeres Nuevos de Panamá (AHMNP) exige que la Policía Nacional de esta nación reforme su reglamento interno para evitar que más gays y lesbianas sean despedidos de la institución por su orientación o identidad sexual.
<br><br>
Comentó que su organización también ha presentado denuncias ante el Defensor del Pueblo, Ricardo Vargas, esto por las constantes agresiones de parte de elementos de la Policía Nacional hacia gays, lesbianas y transgéneros; sin embargo, ?no parece tener mucho interés en el tema. Me solicitó una reunión, a condición de que no participe nadie más?.<br><br>
The Association of New Men & Women of Panamá (AHMNP) demands that the National Police of this country reform its internal bylaws to avoid more gays and lesbians being dismissed from the institution for their sexual orientation or identity.<br><br>
They commented that their organization has also presented complaints before the Public Defender, Ricardo Vargas, for the constant aggression on the part of elements of the Natinal Police gainst gays, lesbians and transgenders; nevetheless, it doesn't appear that he has much interest in this topic. He requested a meeting with me on the condition that no on else participate.
(PDF - 439 Kb) Document Date: 26 Apr 2008 (Downloads: 333)
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Indonesia-Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2007 -3/11/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination<br><br> Stigma and discrimination against persons with HIV/AIDS were pervasive. However, the government encouraged tolerance, took steps to prevent new infections, and provided free antiretroviral (ART) drugs, although with numerous administrative barriers. The government position of tolerance was adhered to unevenly at all levels of society; for example, prevention efforts often were not aggressive for fear of antagonizing religious conservatives, and in addition to barriers to access to free ART drugs, potential recipients had to pay medical fees that put the cost beyond the reach of many. <br><br> Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment<br><br> On January 22 and 23, two gay men in Banda Raya, Aceh, were physically and verbally abused by their neighbors and then arbitrarily arrested, beaten, and sexually abused by police. Four police officers were suspended and administratively sanctioned for their abuse of the men. At year's end the case was still under investigation, but the authorities maintained they were unable to file charges because one of the victims had fled Aceh and the other refused to be questioned.
(PDF - 98 Kb) Document Date: 11 Mar 2008 (Downloads: 465)
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Moldova-Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2007-3/11/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination<br><br> There were reports of governmental and societal discrimination based on sexual orientation. According to the gay-rights NGO GenderDoc-M, lack of community recognition, negative media portrayals, and condemnation by the Orthodox Church often led to public ostracism of gays, lesbians and their families. On April 11, Chisinau municipal authorities refused permission to GenderDoc-M to hold a demonstration calling for legislation to bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. In Transnistria homosexuality was illegal, and gays and lesbians were subject to governmental and societal discrimination. ON April 11, Chisinau municipal authorities refused the gay rights Ngo GenderDoc-M permission to hold a demonstration calling for legislation to bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. The denial was issued despite a February 13 Supreme court ruling that a similar ban in 2006 was a violation of the right of assembly. Several NGOs reported instances of discrimination against persons with HIV/AIDS, particularly in rural villages.
(PDF - 97 Kb) Document Date: 1 Jan 2008 (Downloads: 490)
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Mongolia-Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2007-3/11/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination<br><br> Homosexuality is not specifically proscribed by law. However, Amnesty International and the International Lesbian and Gay Association criticized a section of the penal code that refers to "immoral gratification of sexual desires," arguing that it could be used against homosexuals. Homosexuals reported harassment by police, but remained divided over the overall level of societal discrimination. There was no official discrimination against those with HIV/AIDS; however, some societal discrimination existed.
(PDF - 95 Kb) Document Date: 11 Mar 2008 (Downloads: 429)
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Nepal-Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2007-3/11/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination<br><br> The country has no laws that specifically criminalize homosexuality; however, government authorities, especially police, sometimes harassed and abused homosexuals. According to Blue Diamond Society, an indigenous NGO that worked to protect against discrimination against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities, harassment of homosexuals continued. Between July and September, authorities arrested five transgender persons in Kathmandu. All were released on the same or next day. On July 2, the NA fired a trainee after keeping her in solitary confinement for 49 days because she was a lesbian. On July 20, the NA fired Bhakti Shat after keeping her for 60 days in solitary confinement for the same offense. Bhakti Shat had served in the NA for four years prior to her dismissal. At year's end, her case was pending. On December 21, the Supreme Court ruled that sexual minorities (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, and intersex) are "natural persons" and should be allowed to enjoy all the rights defined by national and international human rights law and instruments.
(PDF - 98 Kb) Document Date: 11 Mar 2008 (Downloads: 344)
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Republic of Korea - Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2007- Released by the US Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor -3/11/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination<br><br> Some observers claimed that persons with HIV/AIDs suffered from severe societal discrimination and social isolation. A 2006 UN Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic estimated that the country had approximately 13,000 persons with HIV or AIDS, although the government recorded only 4,229 official cases. The AIDS Prevention Act ensures the confidentiality of persons with HIV/AIDS and protects individuals from discrimination. The government supported rehabilitation programs and shelters run by private groups and subsidized medical expenses from the initial diagnosis. The government operated a Web site with HIV/AIDS information and a telephone counseling service. A 2007 Human Rights Watch letter maintained that, although the law prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, transgender people were at risk of discrimination in employment, education, housing, and healthcare.
(PDF - 96 Kb) Document Date: 11 Mar 2008 (Downloads: 372)
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Singapore-Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-3/11/08 (Sexual Minorities & HIV Status)
Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination<br><br> Some individuals with HIV/AIDS claimed that they were socially marginalized and faced employment discrimination if they revealed they were suffering from the disease. The government discouraged discrimination, supported initiatives that countered misperceptions about HIV/AIDS, and praised employers that welcomed workers with HIV/AIDS. Consensual homosexual sex is illegal but in practice was not prosecuted.
(PDF - 94 Kb) Document Date: 11 Mar 2008 (Downloads: 460)
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