Nicaragua – Race and Equality

17May 2020 by admin No Comments

No more silence: Reclaiming our voice on the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia

Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, English, LGBTI, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Race and Equality

Washington D.C., May 17. This May 17 marks 30 years since the World Health Organization (WHO) declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder, a global milestone that accelerated progress in the recognition of the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people (LGBTI). On this date, we commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, a day to draw attention to the violence and discrimination that LGBTI people still suffer in our societies. This year the promoted theme is “breaking the silence,” inviting people from the LGBTI community to no longer be afraid to express their sexual orientation or gender identity to their family or to others in their social circles. The commemoration this year is also framed within a global health crisis generated by COVID-19, which has…

08May 2020 by admin No Comments

Race and Equality launches practical guide for requesting precautionary measures at the IACHR

Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, English, IACHR, LGBTI, Mexico, Nicaragua, OAS, Panama

Washington, DC. May 8, 2020. The International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) has released “Precautionary Measures at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights: Function and Process,” a manual to assist activists and human rights defenders with the process of soliciting precautionary measures from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR). “This educational tool can provide support to civil society organizations who face the risk of serious human rights violations when they prepare requests,” remarked Carlos Quesada, Race and Equality’s Executive Director. The guide consists of two documents: one aimed at attorneys and legal experts, and an illustrated guide that follows four characters through the process of requesting and receiving precautionary measures, designed to explain the steps of the process to grassroots activists. “We assembled this…

04May 2020 by admin No Comments

On World Press Freedom Day, Nicaraguan journalists share the challenges they face

English, Nicaragua

Washington D.C., May 4th, 2020. To commemorate World Press Freedom Day, the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) spoke to four leaders in Nicaraguan journalism and media about the state of independent journalism in their country, which has been immersed in a serious human rights crisis since 2018. The journalists agreed that the independent press continues to withstand attacks by the authorities, including the murder of the journalist Ángel Gahona, the destruction or occupation of newsrooms, physical attacks, threats, intimidation, forced exile, censorship, theft of equipment and the imprisonment of journalists. “The work of informing, investigating and communicating is under harassment and assault from the government," says Patricia Orozco, director of the Onda Local radio program. Authorities raided the offices from which the program was…

17Apr 2020 by admin No Comments

Two Years of Crisis in Nicaragua: Impunity and Persistence of Human Rights Violations in a Country Now Confronting COVID-19

English, Nicaragua

Washington, DC, April 17, 2020 – This April marks two years of a human rights crisis in Nicaragua, a watershed moment in the recent history of this Central American country, where grave human rights violations persist to this day with consequences for the lives, physical integrity, and individual freedom of Nicaraguans, especially those who defend human rights and express their political opinions or perform independent journalism, and an opposition that confronts wrongful restrictions imposed by the regime on the exercise of their political rights. In the 24 months since that April 18th that began a peaceful rebellion, and in the face of no responses forthcoming from the State, the three basic demands of the citizenry remain in effect: freedom for political prisoners and the reestablishment of Constitutional freedoms, rights, and…

30Mar 2020 by admin No Comments

Race and Equality calls on Latin American States for more inclusive measures to be taken for transgender people

Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, English, LGBTI, LGBTI, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru

Washington D.C., March 31st 2020. Today we commemorate the International Transgender Visibility Day, a day to celebrate transgender lives and raise awareness about the discrimination this population faces. On this day, the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality), wants to give visibility to the issues transgender people face throughout Latin America. All over the world, racism and other forms of discrimination marginalize and ostracize the trans population. This makes access to health services, education, work, and housing extremely difficult. Unfortunately, States limited disaggregated data on the situation of trans people rendering them invisible from groups targeted for public policies designated to support vulnerable situations, especially in Latin America. Combined, these factors place them in vulnerable situations where they are more susceptible to different illnesses, addictions,…