Recognition of Diverse Couples in Cuba: Race and Equality Promotes South-South Exchange on the Eve of Family Code Law’s Preliminary Draft

Recognition of Diverse Couples in Cuba: Race and Equality Promotes South-South Exchange on the Eve of Family Code Law’s Preliminary Draft

Washington D.C., July 1, 2021.- On June 29, 2021, the Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) launched the report, “Towards the Recognition of Diverse Couples in Cuba” on the eve of the presentation of a new Family Code to Congress, which will be subsequently submitted to a referendum for its approval. The launch was carried out in a virtual event in which representatives of independent civil society on the island and activists from Ecuador and Costa Rica participated to share their country’s experiences and strategies in the recognition of marriage equality.

The webinar was called Recognition of Diverse Couples in Cuba: Exchange of Experiences in the Region. The panelists included the Executive Director of Race and Equality, Carlos Quesada; the journalist and independent activist from Cuba, Maria Matienzo; the Director of the Institute of Equality, Gender and Rights of the Central University of Ecuador, Christian Paula; and the President of the Association of Homoparental and Diverse Families of Costa Rica and Executive Director of the Sí Acepto (Yes, I Accept) Campaign in Costa Rica, Nisa Sanz. Race and Equality’s LGBTI Program Officer, Zuleika Rivera, moderated the event.

In addition to the LGBTI+ community’s demand on the island, the approval of marriage equality is in line with Cuba’s human rights obligations, as well as with the Constitution adopted in 2019. It conceptualizes marriage as a voluntary union between persons. It was determined that egalitarian marriage would become a reality by including it in a new Family Code that was to be presented and submitted to a referendum within two years, in other words, this year of 2021.

Rivera commented that the possibility of a referendum to decide the approval of this Code, brings with it a series of positions in favor and against this process. On one hand there are the fundamentalist voices that oppose the recognition of the rights of the LGBTI+ population, and on the other hand, there is the same LGBTI+ community and allies that support it but criticize the fact that a referendum will determine their rights.

The report

The report, “Towards the Recognition of Diverse Couples in Cuba” articulates Race and Equality’s analysis of marriage equality considering international human rights standards, its aim is to encourage discussion on the right to equality and non-discrimination, and its scope in the area of family protection. In addition, the document includes a series of recommendations for the Cuban State, international organizations and civil society to strengthen the protection of the human rights of the LGBTI+ population in Cuba.

In presenting the main findings of this report, the Executive Director of Race and Equality, Carlos Quesada, said that “the right to equality must be guaranteed, it must not be left to a referendum. “Marriage equality is based on national legislation, specifically on the Cuban Constitution in articles 1, on equality; 7, on supremacy; 13, on equity and social justice; 16, on the enjoyment of human rights and the repudiation of any manifestation of discrimination; 41 on the protection of human rights, in line with the principles of progressivity, equality and non-discrimination, and article 44, on the right to equality and social inclusion, among others” he contends.

“The acknowledgement of diverse people requires the recognition of the civil rights of Cubans in general,” declared independent Cuban journalist, who lamented that the demand for the recognition of the rights of the LGBTI+ population is limited by the absolute control exercised by the State, “based on an ideology in which there is no place for a man who is not heterosexual with a woman who responds to his own interests.”

Experiences in the region

The Director of the Institute of Equality, Gender and Rights of the Central University of Ecuador, Christian Paula, referred to the legal regulations, both national and international, which served as a basis for undertaking the struggle for the recognition of marriage equality in Ecuador. The right to marriage equality has been a reality since July 8, 2019. The specialist said that the Advisory Opinion 24/17 of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) is very important for the region because the LGBTI+ population does not have an international treaty that specifically protects their rights.

The President of the Association of Homoparental and Diverse Families of Costa Rica and Executive Director of the “Yes, I Accept” Campaign, Nisa Sanz, shared her experiences of educational and the awareness campaign they carried out in Costa Rica’s demand for marriage equality. “It is very normal that in these types of advances countries face all kinds of barriers, ranging from total opposition to any kind of advance to those that completely favor egalitarian marriage”, she explained.

For Race and Equality, it is important to create this type of space for the exchange of experiences and to have the participation of activists from Cuba, a country where there is a severe restriction on the exercise of civil rights, and where the struggle for the recognition of rights for groups such as the LGBTI+ population is overshadowed by the government’s authoritarianism.

In the light of the experiences of Ecuador and Costa Rica, we hope that Advisory Opinion 24/17 of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights will be used by civil society in other countries of the region as a tool for the demand for the recognition and guarantee of the rights of LGBTI+ persons. In the context of the discussion and adoption of the Family Code in Cuba, we urge the Cuban State to act in accordance with its human rights obligations, for the complete fulfillment of the right to equality and non-discrimination.

“Loving and Resisting from Diversity:” Race and Equality Celebrates LGBTI+ Pride Day

Washington D.C., June 28, 2021.- To commemorate this LGBTI+ Pride Day, The Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) chose the slogan “Loving and Resisting from Diversity.” This slogan pays tribute to LGBTI+ organizations and activists who each day wage a powerful struggle to combat discrimination and violence, and move towards the recognition of their rights despite living in a context as adverse as Latin America and the Caribbean when it comes to human rights.

Although there has been little progress in the region in terms of recognizing and guaranteeing rights for LGBTI+ people, we want to exalt the great capacity to love and resist that people with diverse sexual orientation and gender expression or identity continue to sustain, when facing a society that attacks, excludes, and humilitaes them, in addition to increased attacks and instensified hate speech.

On this day we cannot refrain from remembering the Stonewall riots carried out in rejection of the police raid that took place in the early hours of June 28, 1969, in a bar known as Stonewall Inn in the New York neighborhood of Greenwich Village; this location is where LGBTI+ people used to meet. A year later that date would be declared as LGBTI+ Pride Day as a way to reclaim and celebrate the struggle for freedom and respect for the rights of this community.

Progress and Challenges

In the beginning of this month of June, the Prosecutor’s Office of Salta, Argentina, confirmed that the skeletal remains found by a day laborer and his son in a desolate area north of the city corresponded to Santiago Cancinos, a young trans man who disappeared in May 2017, who reported he was being bullied by his school and classmates.

This is one of the most recent and shocking events. However, when it comes to violence and discrimination, Latin America and the Caribbean accumulates a long list of episodes ranging from threats and verbal assaults to police brutality and murder. Hate crimes that in most cases remain unpunished-  this lack of will and judicial mechanisms only generates more negligence among authorities when making justice a priority.

LGBTI+ and human rights organizations closely followed the case of Vicky Hernandez v. Honduras, in which the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) determined the State’s responsibility for the alleged extrajudicial execution committed against Hernández in June 2009, which occurred in the midst of the tense socio-political context generated by the coup d’état that year. This set an important precedent of ensuring the application of justice in future cases of violence against LGBTI+ persons at the regional level.

With respect to the COVID-19 pandemic, we see how the situation of vulnerability of this population is exacerbated, as the health emergency deepens conditions of inequality in the fields of health, social assistance, education, work, among other inequalities. In addition, States have not taken into account the LGBTI+ realities of discrimination and institutional violence against gender nonconforming and trans people. For instance, in Colombia, people with diverse gender identity or expression were left in limbo with policies like “pico y género.”[1]

However, the commitment to fight for a more just and equitable society for all people has also led to celebratory results in the last year, like the approval of equal marriage in Costa Rica. We are slowly witnessing the progress of campaigns and bills for the recognition and guarantee of the rights of LGBTI+ people. In Argentina on June 11, the Chamber of Deputies approved the bill that guarantees the trans-transvestite labor quota. The so-called Diana Sacayán – Lohana Berkina Law, who were recognized defenders of the formal trans and transvestite labor inclusion, was passed with 207 positive votes, 11 negative votes and seven abstentions.

Let us celebrate!

Race and Equality spoke with LGBTI+ activists from different countries in the region and asked them about the importance of celebrating LGBTI+ Pride. These are their answers.

Christian King, trans non-binary activist and member of Trans Siempre Amigas (TRANSSA) – Dominican Republic: For me, celebrating LGBTIQ+ Pride Month is nothing more than claiming my personhood, and at the same time reclaiming all the people who have fought, who have lost their lives making themselves visible, those people who have led us to enter this movement of struggle and recognize ourselves as members of the LGBTIQ+ community, and to demand that the State recognize our rights.

Agatha Brooks, trans activist and member of Trans Siempre Amigas (TRANSSA) – Dominican Republic: Celebrating Pride Month is to make ourselves visible as the rainbow flag represents each of us, we are a brand that grows more and more every day. We become more visible so that equality becomes present in our communities, in our country and throughout the world

Darlah Farias, Coletivo Sapato Preto – Brazil: Celebrating LGBTI+ Pride is celebrating the life of this population. Not just the lives that struggle today, but all the lives lost so that we could be here. Principally I, as an Afro and lesbian woman, carry all my ancestry with me and understand that our struggle is forged in revolution and reinvention.

Thiffany Odara, FONATRANS – Brazil: Celebrating LGBTI+ Pride is celebrating the right to life, my existence, the right to be who I am, it’s celebrating the memory of my ancestors. Celebrating who I am is the greatest challenge for Brazilian society. The challenge of resisting to guarantee policies of social equity. Long live the LGBTI+ Pride Movement! I’m proud to be who we are!

Gael Jardim, Trascendendo – Brazil: Celebrating LGBTI+ Pride Day is about making a real difference. It’s remembering that this day was born out of a revolt so that people can have the right to exist in society, and no longer in ghettos, closets or exclusion. To celebrate Pride Day is to give visibility to our cause and our struggle, which is not a day but a whole year of citizenship.

Santiago Balvin, nonbinary transmasculine activist and member of Rosa Rabiosa – Peru: Pride for me is important because society has imposed feelings of guilt and shame on who we are, but we rise up against them by showing pride in who we are and by showing ourselves in an authentic way. It is also very important to know that we have been in hiding and that visibility has been important to be able to show ourselves, and also give voice to our problems.

Leyla Huerta, founder and Director of Féminas – Perú: Celebrating Pride Day is very important to me. It’s the day in which we recognize ourselves as brave, strong and resilient. It is also a date of commemoration for all those people who are no longer with us, and who, due to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity, were exterminated because that is the word that best fits our disappearances. A society that does not recognize us, a society that limits us in our own development, it does just that: exterminates us. Pride Day, as the word conveys, is a day in which we should be proud because we are here, resisting, advancing and educating.

Roberto Lechado, independent comedian – Nicaragua: Celebrating Pride Month is to celebrate life, but also to recognize myself as part of a community and remind myself that I’m not alone and that’s a super nice feeling. It is also reminding myself that it is okay to be the person I want to be, that my love is valid and valuable, and my existence is magnificent and important. Celebrating Pride is also for me, to make visible these colors that many times in the day to day become opaque, and to say to society “we are here, we exist, we deserve, and we matter!”

Miguel Rueda Sáenz, director and founder of Pink Consultores – Colombia: For me, celebrating gay pride means a lot of things. There’s an important historical force, it also shows community and group strength and fundamental social aspects, and it has an enormous personal stance as it recognizes me as a gay man, this day allows me to shout even louder. It is very important for me on June 28 to be able to celebrate who we are and why we exist.

Lesley Wolf, actor, dancer, and BA in Performing Arts – Colombia: Celebrating LGBTI Pride is more than a celebration, it turns into a demand for resistance. It’s re-signifying and dignifying a struggle that not only costs us nor takes us just a month, but a whole year, it’s a constant activity.

María Matienzo, activist and Independent Journalist – Cuba: For me to celebrate Gay Pride Day is to celebrate the claim of rights that we should all have as citizens of the world, although it’s not really a matter of one day, it should be a matter of a lifetime.

For Race and Equality, it is an honor to know and accompany the work that is being carried out, individually and collectively to defend and promote the rights of the LGBTI+ population. Denouncing the violence this population faces in different areas of society, making visible and documenting their realities and demands, and strengthening their capacities to influence Sates and the human rights mechanisms of the Inter-American and United Nations system.

For us, celebrating LGBTI+ Pride Day means reinforcing and renewing our commitment to working for a more just and equitable society for all people, without any discrimination. In addition, it represents an opportunity to make recommendations to States aimed at protecting and promoting the rights of the LGBTI+ population:

  • To implement educational campaigns on sexual orientation and gender identity, aimed at making people in all areas of society aware of and respect the diversity of the population.
  • To collect disaggregated data with an intersectional focus on the LGBTI+ population, including information on the violence they face.
  • To train authorities, mainly justice operators, health and education providers, so that LGBTI+ people can access these basic services without discrimination and without restrictions based on prejudices about sexual orientation and gender identity.
  • Adopt policies and laws that allow LGBTI+ people to fully enjoy their rights, such as the gender identity law.
  • Sign, ratify and implement the Inter-American Convention Against All Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance.

[1] “Pico y género” was a sex-based quarantine measure temporaily implemnted in Bogotá and Cartegena, where women and men were allowed out for essential tasks on alternating days of the week; trans women and men could go out according to their gender identity. However, the policy resulted in some 20 cases of targeted discrimination against trans people.

Menstruation: a vital topic for ensuring human rights in Latin America

Washington, D.C.; May 28, 2021.- To mark Menstrual Hygiene Day, celebrated worldwide on May 28th, the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) held a virtual panel with Latin American activists and experts who discussed menstruation and its relationship with human rights. The panel also launched the new report Menstruation and Human Rights in Cuba, written and published by the Cuban civil society organization Plataforma Femenina (Women’s Platform).

The panel began with a presentation of Menstruation and Human Rights in Cuba, which discusses the obstacles that women, adolescent and young girls, and other menstruating people face in accessing menstrual hygiene products. The report offers recommendations to the State of Cuba regarding the need to provide the conditions for menstruating with dignity. From there, the panelists discussed how greater understanding of menstruation and menstruating people’s needs should lead to greater fulfillment of their human rights, particularly their economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights.

Christina Fetterhoff, Race and Equality’s Director of Programs, opened the panel and explained the growing use of the term “menstrual hygiene” among United Nations bodies such as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, UNWomen, UNICEF, and the UN Population Fund. Nonetheless, she invited the panelists to use the term they considered most adequate and with which they felt most comfortable during their presentations.

Menstruation in Cuba

Eroises González, national coordinator of Plataforma Femenina, explained that menstruation is difficult for many Cubans due to limited availability of menstrual pads and other hygiene products. Officially, only 10 pads, which are of poor quality, are sold per woman each month; this ration is insufficient for many women’s menstrual periods.

Women with disabilities or who are deprived of their liberty face even greater difficulties. In both cases, they must rely on family members to acquire hygiene products, which is further complicated by Cuba’s economic situation. González emphasized that these difficulties can lead to an “ordeal” for women who begin their menstrual periods without necessary products.

The report and the panel’s discussion recognized that the United States’ economic embargo of Cuba affects the availability of products such as hygiene supplies while also pointing out that according to the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, “the imposition of sanctions does not in any way nullify or diminish the relevant obligations of that State party. As in other comparable situations, those obligations assume greater practical importance in times of particular hardship.”

The report closes with eight recommendations for the State of Cuba, including the passage and implementation of a law to ensure free and equal access to menstrual hygiene products. The report also recommends greater integration of this issue with Cuba’s existing commitments under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly regarding health and well-being, education, gender equality, and clean water and hygiene.

“An issue of equality”

Commissioner Margarette May Macaulay, a member of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), remarked that menstrual hygiene is an issue of gender equality and that factors such as gender stereotypes, extreme poverty, and emergency contexts make menstruation into a source of stigma, violating the rights of people who menstruate to equality and non-discrimination.

Macaulay, the Commission’s Rapporteur on the Rights of Women and on the Rights of Afro-Descendant People, stated, “Studies demonstrate that when girls cannot manage their menstrual period adequately, their attendance and performance at school are affected, which in turn affects their participation in society and generates inequality.” Macaulay also pointed out that the World Health Organization and UNICEF both define “adequate management” of menstrual periods as the ability to use sanitary hygiene products that can be changed in private, access to soap and clean water to wash oneself, and proper facilities for disposing of used products. She reiterated that States are obligated to ensure access to these requirements.

Inclusive and comprehensive initiatives

Santiago Balvin, a trans-masculine activist and member of the Peruvian organization Rosa Rabiosa (Fierce Rose), discussed menstruation from the perspective of trans men, trans-masculine people, and non-binary people assigned a female sex at birth. Santiago began by stating that for many members of these groups, practically “sexual and reproductive rights don’t exist,” as these rights are typically addressed only from a cis-gendered point of view.

“Not all people who menstruate are women, and it’s necessary to understand that for trans and non-binary people, menstruation is not only an issue of bodily comfort, but a key question for their identities,” said Balvin, emphasizing that even the simple act of buying menstrual hygiene products can cause non-binary people to suffer attacks on their psychological and social well-being, due to not being treated in accordance with their gender by others.

Andrea Marín, a menstrual therapist from Colombia, spoke from her professional experience about how to achieve a more comprehensive approach to menstruation. She remarked that, “These spaces are necessary because we need opportunities to name, reflect on, and question our different understandings of human flourishing, and to develop new ones, because we all have different relationships with our bodies, our menstrual cycles, and our environments.”

Marín stated that an important first step is to speak openly about menstruation in order to improve society’s understanding of it, speaking about it in both private and public spaces “to have a place where it can be explored, made visible, and thereby create guarantees through public policies.” She summed up her perspective by stating that menstruation should be informed, safe, and free, with menstruating people enjoying health information, hygiene products, and the freedom to make decisions.

Anahí Rodríguez, the founder of MenstruaciónDignaMéxico (Dignified Menstruation Mexico), argued that for a natural physiological process, that many people experience roughly monthly over forty years of their lives, to be unaddressed in public policies in “unbelievable.” Because of this failure, she stated, menstruation is often an occasion of human rights violations, including violations of the rights to health, education, and the fundamental right to non-discrimination.

“We have to speak strongly and clearly, tackling the challenges that women and other menstruating people face during our periods. It should be an imperative for States to provide every person with the right to menstruate in a hygenic, intimate, comfortable, safe, healthy, and dignified way,” said Rodríguez, pointing out that 40% of Mexican women live in poverty, 36% of people in Mexico do not have daily access to clean water, and 10% have no access to sanitation.

Race and Equality recognizes that women, adolescent and young girls, and other menstruating people across Latin America and the Caribbean face serious obstacles to a dignified menstrual cycle, and that these obstacles prevent them from fully enjoying and exercising their human rights. Therefore, we join civil society across the region in demanding that States create and implement public policies to ensure access to menstrual hygiene products. We also call on the international community to monitor this situation and support the recommendations made by civil society to improve it.

Race and Equality expresses concern for imprisoned Cuban activist Yandier García Labrada and calls on Cuba to comply with the decisions of the IACHR

Washington, D.C.; May 26, 2021.- The International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) expresses our serious concern at the situation of Yandier Garcia Labrada, a Cuban activist and member of the Christian Liberation Movement (MCL) who has been held in “El Típico” prison for nearly eight months without any charges being presented against him.

Yandier Garcia Labrada was detained on October 6, 2020, after protesting against problems with the distribution of food in Manatí, Las Tunas. After being detained, he was held incommunicado for approximately a month, during which time he suffered beatings at the hands of security forces which left him with an immobilized arm. He has still not received any medical attention, despite this injury and his severe asthma.

Recognizing the serious risks that Yandier faces in custody, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) granted him precautionary measures on January 7, 2021. These measures require the State of Cuba to protect his life and personal integrity, particularly by guaranteeing that he is held in conditions compliant with international standards on the rights of people deprived of liberty. The Commission also called on the Cuban government to adopt these measures in consultation with Yandier and his family and to report on the actions taken to comply with the decision.

The government, however, has not adopted any measures to implement the ruling. Yandier’s situation has only worsened, including through the denial of family visits supposedly due to pandemic-related restrictions. His phone calls are also limited: in the last five months, he has only been permitted one phone call with his family in March 2021. Since then, his family has lost all contact with him and are greatly concerned for his well-being, knowing the poor conditions of Cuban prisons and the risks he faces due to his asthma. Yandier also suffers constant abuse and intimidation at the hands of security forces. The criminal case against him remains open, despite the fact that no charges have been presented and he has not been granted a trial.

Race and Equality calls upon the State of Cuba to adopt all necessary measures to comply with IACHR Resolution 5/2021 and preserve Yandier’s fundamental rights to life, liberty, and personal integrity. We also demand that the State respect the right of all Cubans deprived of liberty, including Yandier, to remain in communication with their loved ones and legal representatives.

Two years after Havana’s historic May 11, LGBTI+ activists in Cuba discuss progress and challenges

Washington, D.C.; May 11, 2021.- On May 11, 2019, Cuba’s LGBTI+ community staged an unprecedented event. After the Nacional Center for Sexual Education (CENESEX) cancelled its annual LGBTI+ pride parade without explanation or justification, LGBTI+ Cubans and their allies held their own celebration in Havana. Although the day ended in repression, it also marked a new high point for the country’s LGBTI+ movement and gave greater visibility than ever to the community’s realities and demands.

Independent Cuban activists and members of the LGBTI+ movement told Race and Equality that despite the violence and arbitrary detentions meted out against them, they remember May 11th as an authentic expression of their community’s demands to increase LGBTI+ visibility and secure human rights for all Cubans.

“The march was the result of three key elements: the community’s rejection of the government’s decision to cancel the annual Conga (parade) against Homophobia and Transphobia, the accumulation of unmet demands from the LGBTI+ community, and the efforts by independent activists to join forces and concentrate our energy,” said Isbel Díaz Torres, a human rights defender and leader of the platform AcciónLGBTIQ-ba (Q-ba LGBTI Action).

The events of May 11

Before 2019, CENESEX had put on the annual Conga against Homophobia and Transphobia for 11 years, with the Conga serving as the kick-off to the Festival against Homophobia and Transphobia. In 2019, however, CENESEX announced that that the Conga would be cancelled due to “new tensions in the regional and international context,” causing outrage in the LGBTI+ movement and across civil society.

Isbel Díaz told Race and Equality that almost instantly, social media channels began to light up with ideas for an alternative celebration. “These ideas popped up in a decentralized way, but it was the work that we had put in previously to build networks of LGBTI+ activism that allowed a single agreed-upon proposal to form,” she explained.

The Afro-descendant LGBTI+ activist Raúl Soublett learned about the independent Conga, held in Havana’s Central Park, through social media. “I went with a group of friends,” he remembers, “when we arrived, nobody else was there. I started thinking it wasn’t going to happen, but we took out our banners and the park started to fill up. It was a little disorganized, there weren’t any specific leaders, there was no agreement about a route for the march, but we went forth. Many people came and joined in. There was no political propaganda one way or the other, we were just there making our legitimate claim to have our rights recognized and respected, and to be visible in society.”

Human rights defender Boris González Arenas remarked that cellular internet access, which had just recently been introduced in Cuba in December 2018, was crucial to the independent Conga, as it has been crucial for Cuban civil society and activism in general. Activists first saw the potential of online activism in January 2019 when, after a tornado caused deaths and severe destruction in Havana, civil society organized shows of support and solidarity with the victims while highlighting the shortcomings of the government’s response.

Raúl Soublett remembers that state security forces were present from the first moments in Central Park and that a group of security personnel initially attempted to block and disperse the march. When the marchers refused to comply, officers responded violently. “Before they struck, we conducted a peaceful sit-in and a “kiss-in.” The police wanted us to disperse, they even had buses there for us, but people refused and protested,” he recalled.

Isbel Díaz and his husband Jimmy Roque Martínez, meanwhile, could not even make it to the Conga. “That morning, as we were leaving the house at 8:30 am, two men wearing civilian clothes approached us. They demanded that we hand over our cell phones, that we not resist, and that we get in two police cars sitting nearby. They took us to the police station in Lawton, Havana, where they charged us with supposed ‘counter-revolutionary activity.’ The officer in charge told us that we were being arrested for ‘organizing and convoking an illegal act of civil disobedience against the revolution.’”

LGBTI+ activism, two years later

Boris González sees the events of May 11, 2019 as evidence of the Cuban LGBTI+ movement’s development, but also of Cuban civil society as a whole. After the Conga, he told Race and Equality, civil society began to leave behind its previous ideological divisions and seek greater cohesion. Importantly, he also sees the event as marking the eclipse of CENESEX and its director Mariela Castro as the center of Cuban LGBTI+ activity. “CENESEX had already been declining in popularity,” he said. “It had previously gained goodwill by supporting the LGBTI+ movement and had launched some interesting initiatives, but with the cancellation of the Conga and Mariela Castro’s subsequent statements, that was all lost.”

The LGBTI+ activist and member of the Latin American Federation of Rural Women Irina León, who lives in Pinar del Río, views two major obstacles to LGBTI+ activism over the years: the government’s attitude towards civil society and the patriarchal characteristics of Cuban society. “LGBTI+ Cubans are ready to demand respect for our rights. We have to come together and find common goals to work for, with which we can show the rest of the population that we are human beings like them, with the same need to be heard,” she says.

Isbel Díaz reflects that “from that moment on, we can talk about ‘the Cuban LGBTI+ community.’ Before, there were disjointed efforts, egos, and no chance of forming formal organizations, which prevented us from working together. Now, it’s possible to think of us as a community encompassing political, ideological, racial, and age diversity.”

Raúl Soublett emphasizes that the COVID-19 pandemic has had both personal and organizational impacts on the LGBTI+ community in Cuba. The pandemic has exposed and worsened the inequalities in Cuban society, especially those facing people with diverse sexual orientations and/or gender identities. “During our physical isolation and the tough public health measures, LGBTI+ activists have had to reinvent our methods, spaces, and ways of thinking. New projects, initiatives, support groups, and more have cropped up. But Cuban LGBTI+ activism is still precarious because we have been working for years and still not accomplished recognition or legal fulfillment of our rights. Furthermore, Cuba is a country with no liberties at all, which makes it hard to develop a true movement. We still rely on spontaneity, as occurred with the Conga,” he says.

The activists who spoke with Race and Equality agree that the most important issues on the LGBTI+ community’s agenda today are the enshrinement of marriage equality in the upcoming Family Code, recognition of and formal apologies for abuses against LGBTI+ Cubans in the 1960s, fighting violence and discrimination against trans Cubans, and, like other independent civil society groups, guarantees for freedom of association.

Donna Suárez, a trans woman and activist, emphasized the particular fight for trans rights on the island, pointing out the high numbers of trans people who are exposed to danger and even death as they practice sex work. Donna also warned that national dialogues about the need for a law against gender-based violence are leaving out the perspectives of trans women. This failure, along with the lack of a law on gender identity, further marginalizes trans women and their specific needs. According to Suárez, however, the independent Conga of May 11, 2019 “has made us visible and given us the perception that if we don’t fight for our rights, no part of the state will do it for us.”

Race and Equality remains committed to accompanying Cuban LGBTI+ activists as they fight for their fundamental rights. We call on the Cuban government to heed their demands and fulfill its international obligations to protect, promote, and guarantee human rights for all people, without discrimination. We urge the government to ensure that the draft Family Code is inclusive and incorporates the demands of civil society, particularly marriage equality and the legal recognition of diverse families.

Human Rights Absent from the Eighth Congress of the Cuban Communist Party

Washington, D.C.; April 27th, 2021.- The eighth Congress of the Cuban Communist Party, held from April 16th-19th, failed to discuss the country’s serious human rights problems or take action to address them. Independent Cuban civil society felt that the Congress was ‘more of the same,’ despite the government and official media’s efforts to declare it a success.

Since the Communist Party is the county’s highest authority, the Party Congress, held every five years, invariably gives rise to speculation about changes in the country’s direction. On the first day of this year’s Congress, President Miguel Díaz-Canel tweeted that “here we refine ideas, recognize the past, and discuss the future.”

At the international level, the most newsworthy element of this year’s Congress was the passing of the position of First Secretary of the Party from Raúl Castro to Miguel Díaz-Canel. For Cuban civil society, meanwhile, the Congress was yet another official forum that neglected the most basic issues plaguing the country: difficulty accessing basic goods, lack of access to medicine, the spread of COVID-19, violence against women, and restrictions on the freedoms of expression and association.

The Afro-Cuban leader and national coordinator of the Citizens’ Committee for Racial Integration (CIR) Juan Antonio Madrazo told Race and Equality that “the Party Congress focused more on strengthening the ideological front, which has been showing cracks for some time now, than on addressing the immediate problems in society.” According to Madrazo, “the Party vanguard did not discuss how they will modernize social policy nor how they will use the social protection system to tackle poverty and inequality.”

The Congress also ignored Cuba’s human rights obligations and the structural failure of Cuban law to conform with international human rights law. When Cuba drafted its new Constitution in 2019, the original proposed text stated that “the rights and responsibilities established in this Constitution shall be interpreted in conformity with international human rights treaties ratified by Cuba.” This text was removed during the drafting process, however, and Article 8 of the ratified Constitution now states that the Constitution takes precedence over international treaties such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights; the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; and others.

The struggle against racism

Activists and organizations fighting against racism and racial discrimination were concerned by the Congress’ failure to address these issues, especially considering that the government’s National Program Against Racism has had no tangible impact and that few Cubans even know of its existence. “Efforts against racism, homophobia, and gender-based violence were not included because the State considers these issues to be part of an ‘enemy agenda,’” said Madrazo.

CIR’s efforts to hold the National Program Against Racism accountable for its stated goals has brought persecution, attacks, and arbitrary detentions down on its members, as Race and Equality has denounced before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the United Nations. In January 2021, the IACHR granted precautionary measures to Madrazo, Marthadela Tamayo González, and Osvaldo Navarro Veloz because of these violations, and in March, UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlor called on the Government of Cuba to end the intimidation of CIR’s members.

“The Congress leaves a bitter taste in our mouths – it is clear that repression, ideological vigilance, and constant human rights violations will be the tools to maintain control over diversity,” reflected Madrazo.

Violence against women, repeatedly left off the agenda

President Díaz-Canel’s call to “discuss the future” rang hollow for activists working for a future free of violence against women, particularly those fighting for a proposed law to criminalize gender-based violence. Violence against women and girls was left off the agenda of the Congress.

As of April 23rd, 16 women have been murdered in Cuba this year. Violence is also inflicted constantly against women activists in the form of persecution, deprivation of liberty, and threats. In response, a coalition of women’s groups on the island is demanding a comprehensive law on gender-based violence, formally petitioning the National Assembly to take up the issue on November 21st, 2019.

María Matienzo, a Cuban writer, was unsurprised by the Congress’ failure to address the situation of women and other vulnerable groups, explaining to Race and Equality that the Congress’ purpose was strictly ideological. Although President Díaz-Canel issued a presidential order on April 8th (International Women’s Day) creating a National Program for the Advancement of Women, Matienzo explained that “this is merely an ideological response from the Party to the demands we have been making for two years.”

Marriage equality delayed again

Marriage equality, an urgent demand from Cuban civil society and a right that must be enshrined for Cuba to fulfill its international obligations, was also left off the agenda. The 2019 Constitution, in defining marriage as a union “between persons,” opened the doors to marriage equality, but the government ultimately capitulated to anti-LGBT sentiment and removed the legalization of non-heteronormative marriage from the text. The government promised to implement marriage equality through the referendum process of the upcoming Family Code, but a year and a half later, no progress has been made on this front.

COVID-19

The COVID-19 situation in Cuba is highly concerning, even as the possibility of mass vaccination approaches with the trials of two vaccines developed on the island. On April 26th, health authorities counted 23,056 patients in hospitals for COVID-19. Of these, 5,466 were confirmed cases; 3,302 were suspected cases; and 14,288 were “under observation.” The pandemic, however, did not appear on the Congress’ agenda.

Repression

While the Congress unfolded, a series of repressive actions against independent activists, journalists, and artists was also underway. Between April 19th and 25th, the civil society organization Cubalex counted 25 cases in which activists and journalists were prevented from leaving their homes by the police. Cubalex also registered at least 15 detentions, principally against members of the San Isidro Movement and the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU).

According to Maria Matienzo, “The Party Congress maintains the machinery of terror. We all have to ask ourselves what will be the next incident of repression, if we will be detained, disappeared for hours at a time, or given arbitrary and unjust prison sentences. Since the Congress was announced, there has been a rise in violence and hate speech.”

It is concerning and disheartening to observe the Communist Party, Cuba’s highest authority, failing to heed the Cuban people’s demands. Race and Equality calls on the Cuban government to prioritize public policies that will respond to unmet basic needs and to end its repression against activists, human rights defenders, journalists, and artists.

Race and Equality also expresses our particular concern at the elevation of Humberto López, host and director of the Cuban television program Hacemos Cuba (We Make Cuba), to membership in the Party’s Central Committee. Under his direction, Hacemos Cuba has launched countless vicious attacks against those who criticize the government and demand respect for human rights.

Race and Equality is committed to the belief that respect for human rights is a necessary base for all societies and the first step towards a dignified and prosperous life for all. We will continue to support independent Cuban civil society organizations in their struggle for human rights and their work to ensure that Cuba’s human rights obligations are enshrined in national politics and society.

Cuba: activists demand an adequate response to the “silent pandemic” of gender-based violence

Washington, D.C., April 12, 2021.- On International Women’s Day 2021 (March 8th), the Cuban government published Presidential Decree 198/2021, which inaugurated the National Program for the Advancement of Women (known by its Spanish initials, PAM). According to the decree, the PAM “forms the cornerstone in the development of pro-women policies, while furthering the advancement and development of gender equality in Cuba and the institutionalization of this right.”

The decree comes as Cuban activists and civil organizations demand a law against gender-based violence in response to alarming levels of violence against women and girls on the island. So far in 2021, civil society organizations have documented 10 murders of women; civil society counted 32 women, including two girls, murdered in 2020.

Cuban women’s demands

On November 21, 2019, 40 women representing independent civil society submitted a petition to Cuba’s National Assembly requesting a law against gender-based violence, highlighting the following key points, among others:

  • Article 43 of Cuba’s new constitution (approved in 2019) requires the State to create institutional and legal mechanisms to protect women from gender-based violence.
  • The 2016 National Survey on Gender Equality found that partner violence is an issue for women across the country and that the majority of survivors do not seek justice or assistance from State institutions.
  • Cuba’s own National Report on the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda (presented in 2019) officially recognized ‘femicides’ as an official category of documentation and analysis.

The National Assembly, however, sent a response to the presenters of the petition on January 10, 2020, informing them that a law against gender-based violence would not be included on the next legislative calendar, which includes all potential bills and laws until 2028.

A campaign for equality

Despite the Assembly’s refusal to consider the matter, activism to fight gender-based violence is vibrant throughout Cuba. Several organizations have pushed the issue forward through Twitter, Facebook, and other online channels. The increasing availability of internet and mobile data in Cuba has allowed these women and other Cuban activists to fight for their rights. Denunciations of sexist violence grow more and more visible, as do activists’ demands.

Cuban civil society organizations emphasize that in the Americas, only Cuba and Haiti lack laws criminalizing femicide. On International Women’s Day 2021, as the government published the decree creating the PAM, women’s organizations published their own manifesto, entitled “Gender-based Violence: The Silent Pandemic,” which documents the various forms of violence facing Cuban women on a daily basis.

“Understanding violence as a personal issue facing individuals puts women into a situation of subordination to men and takes for granted historically unequal power relations between men and women, legitimating the maintenance of men’s domination over women,” the manifesto reads. “This prevents women from denouncing the violence they face due to feelings of fear, shame, or guilt.”

The need for a comprehensive law

Gender-based violence is rooted in the gender inequalities facing women and people with feminine gender identities. These inequalities are imbedded in cultural and social structures, relegating all those who do not fit a male and heterosexual ideal to second-class status. Direct, symbolic, and structural violence are all inflicted upon women, manifesting as physical, verbal, and psychological attacks along with denial of opportunities. Sexism and misogyny also manifest in violence committed against women for reasons of gender, presenting a specific and differentiated threat of femicide.

The Cuban government must act swiftly to approve a comprehensive law addressing gender-based violence. Having signed and ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), Cuba is bound to advance legislation promoting gender equality. A law that criminalizes gender-based violence and promotes women’s enjoyment of their rights is a necessary step towards fulfilling Cuba’s commitment under the Convention.

Various international mechanisms have already recommended the passage of such a law. The UN Committee on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women, which oversees the implementation of the Convention, expressed concern at the levels of violence against women in Cuba and recommended a law outlawing gender-based violence, acknowledging that gender-based violence against women represents a serious form of discrimination in society.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) also recommended the creation of a legal framework to address women’s rights violations in its last country report on Cuba, including legal standards on discrimination against women. The IACHR also called on Cuba to sign and ratify the Inter-American Convention to Prevent, Sanction, and Eliminate Violence Against Women, known as the Convention of Belem do Para.

Race and Equality urges Cuba to use the creation of the National Program for the Advancement of Women (PAM) as a first step towards the creation of a comprehensive law on gender-based violence. Full implementation of the PAM should include the creation of trustworthy, disaggregated statistics so that Cuban policy can respond to women’s diverse and intersectional needs. With both the COVID-19 pandemic and the ‘silent pandemic’ of violence against women raging across Cuba, such policies will save many women’s lives.

Cuba must also formally recognize and criminalize all forms of violence against women. The end of impunity for these violations is a critical step to advancing women’s well-being. The tireless work of activists in Cuba has made violence against women a pressing issue at the national and international level. Race and Equality is proud to join this campaign and call for the passage of the proposed Comprehensive Law Against Gender-Based Violence.

IACHR begins formal process to determine the State of Cuba’s responsibility for human rights violations against activists

Washington, D.C. – April 8, 2021.- The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has agreed to process a petition presented by the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality). In the petition, Race and Equality requested that the Commission find the State of Cuba responsible for human rights violations including arbitrary detention, unjust imprisonment, and torture against members of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) between October 2019 and April 2020.

The petition lists José Daniel Ferrer García (UNPACU’s founder and leader), Fernando González Vaillant, Roilan Zarraga Ferrer, and José Pupo Chaveco as victims, documenting that the four men were detained without an arrest warrant on October 1st, 2019, in violation of both Cuban law and Cuba’s international human rights commitments.[1]

Race and Equality has requested that the IACHR declare the State of Cuba responsible for violations of the men’s rights to freedom, security, personal integrity, freedom of expression, protection of personal reputation and honor, familial protection, health, protection from arbitrary detention, and due process, all of which are guaranteed in the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man. Race and Equality also requested that the IACHR officially establish a legal category of “political prisoner” to characterize the four victim’s situations. The Commission transmitted the petition to the State of Cuba, requesting the State’s observations and response within a period of three months (beginning March 15th of this year).

With the petition now in processing, the Commission will receive arguments from both Race and Equality and the State regarding the admissibility of the case under the Commission’s rules of procedure. Should the case be found admissible, the Commission will investigate the facts of the case to determine whether the State is responsible for human rights violations and, if so, what recommendations will be given to the State to ensure justice.

Continuous violence against UNPACU

After being detained on October 1st, 2019, the four UNPACU members were placed in pre-trial detention, where they suffered inhumane prison conditions for six months and two days before being released to parole or house arrest on April 3rd, 2020. During their time in prison, they experienced cruel treatment, were often prevented from communicating with the outside world, and suffered violations of their personal integrity.

These violations are only some examples of the constant repression that UNPACU suffers at the hands of the Cuban government, which works ceaselessly to prevent the organization from carrying out its mission of defending human rights and promoting democracy.

Led by José Daniel Ferrer, dozens of UNPACU members have been on hunger strike since March 20th to protest a police cordon that has surrounded UNPACU’s offices for over three weeks. During this standoff, police have arbitrarily arrested several UNPACU members and members of Ferrer’s family.

On April 7th, the Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS) announced that the organization is on “high alert” regarding the health and well-being of the hunger strikers. The OAS also condemned the Cuban government for carrying its repression of UNPACU to such extremes. IACHR Commissioner Stuardo Ralón, the Commission’s Rapporteur on Cuba, also expressed his solidarity with the strikers, calling on the State to comply with its human rights obligations and avoid “risking the life and integrity of the people, who are already suffering a visible physical deterioration.”

Race and Equality calls on the Cuban government to end its repression of UNPACU and its members and to heed the demands of independent civil society as it calls for democracy and respect for human rights in Cuba.

[1] Race and Equality included José Pupo Chaveco as one of the victims in the original petition submitted in 2020. Since then, Mr. Chaveco has left UNPACU and is no longer in communication with the organization or with Race and Equality. He is no longer represented by Race and Equality.

Cuba: The International Community Must Demand Accountability from the Cuban Government For Its Actions and to Immediately Stop Unlawful Short-term Arbitrary Detentions, House Arrests, Forced Exile, and Smear Campaigns against Dissenting Voices

In response to the aggressive acts committed by police officers in recent weeks against Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) activists on hunger strike; the beatings and arrests of members of the San Isidro Movement; the forced exile imposed on Cuban citizens, making them stateless; permanent house arrests; and smear campaigns against journalists, artists, and dissidents, the undersigned 7 organizations issue the following statement:

“We are deeply concerned about the ongoing pattern of repression against critical voices which are freely expressing themselves over the current status quo in the country. We call on the international community to urgently focus on Cuba. International organizations, the foreign press, democratic governments, and embassies present in Havana must rigorously monitor systemic human rights violations, provide assistance to human rights defenders who suffer abuse, and demand a reliable response from the Cuban government. There is an urgent need for solidarity for the victims and a common international position against the abuses perpetrated by Cuban State Security. These acts cannot be normalized in the eyes of global public opinion.

The Cuban government must immediately act with accountability and end the police siege and physical attacks directed against UNPACU members, who in response have been on hunger strike for more than 20 days. The beatings against members of the San Isidro Movement and the short-term arrests carried out by civilian officers against these and other artists, journalists, and dissidents must end. It is unacceptable that the Cuban government has converted the activists’ homes into permanent prisons, and that it continues to intimidate its emigrants with the condemnation of statelessness. The media manipulation campaigns deployed by official press outlets, which constitutes incitement to hatred and violence against those who disagree with the political system, must be urgently denounced.”

Background

On March 20th, after years spent seeking an international response to serious human rights violations, UNPACU leader José Daniel Ferrer[1] and nearly 50 of its members began a hunger strike as a final plea for Cuban State Security to end a siege against the organization.  Despite the delicate physical and mental state of the 31 activists who were 15 days into their strike, mobs organized by the Cuban authorities stoned Ferrer and his wife, Nelva Ortega Tamayo, on April 3rd. The authorities also cut internet and telecommunications access and have even detained the children of those who remained on strike. As the country faces an ever-mounting economic and humanitarian crisis, UNPACU has become a staple in the community, providing basic hard-to-find food and medicine.

During the first quarter of 2021, the wave of repression also impacted members of the San Isidro Movement (MSI), a group of artists who launched their own hunger strike in November 2020 and who have been outspoken against restrictions to their freedom of expression. In recent months, the state security has used tactics that have essentially transformed activists’ homes into makeshift prisons, preventing the occupants from leaving. Short-term arbitrary detentions, involving physical violence and mental abuse, have been disproportionately used as a tactic to silence dissent. Luis Manuel Otero and Maykel Obsorbo, two of the primary targets, have frequently returned home with bruises, cuts, and torn clothing.

We have also witnessed a spate of arrests and detentions, that last no more than a few hours, carried out by undercover officers who do not inform their victims or document their actions in official records. On April 5th, activists and journalists Luis Manuel Otero, Hector Luis Valdés, Esteban Rodríguez, María Matienzo, Kirenia Yailit, and Manuel Cruz were detained in Havana. In Camagüey, Bárbaro de Céspedes remained unaccounted for several days, after being arrested at the door of a church. He had been carrying a wooden cross bearing the inscription “61 years of communism” as a symbol of protest.

In another instance where the Cuban government has backtracked on its human rights commitments, journalist Karla Pérez González was prohibited from entering the country on March 18th. Upon graduating from the University of Costa Rica, Pérez González had legally requested and received the documentation needed to return home to Cuba. However, upon landing at her connecting airport in Panama, state officials informed airline representatives that she was banned from entering Cuba. Pérez González was forced to return to Costa Rica, where she finally received political refuge. The Cuban government continues to intimidate its emigrants by threatening to prohibit their return home if they speak out against government policies while abroad.

In addition to the aforementioned events, the government has renewed its media-defamation strategy, which is deployed by the state-run media against independent artists, journalists, and activists. This mechanism seeks to curb critical voices and intimidate victims and their families, while also condemning international support for domestic civil society voices, which are labeled “mercenaries” or “enemies of the homeland.”

At the international level, Cuba has not ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, nor the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Furthermore, the Cuban government has not extended an invitation to the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders. The International Committee of the Red Cross, which visits political prisoners, has not been able to enter Cuba since 1989. Cuba is also the only country in the Americas that Amnesty International has not been able to visit since 1990, and it is the only country with a closed civic space in the Americas according to the CIVICUS Monitor, an online platform that records civic rights violations globally. Lastly, in the newly released 2021 edition of Freedom House’s Freedom in the World report, Cuba was rated Not Free, earning 13 out of 100 possible points—the lowest score in Latin America.

List of signatories:

CADAL

CIVICUS

Civil Rights Defenders

Freedom House

People in Need

Race and Equality

Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights

[1] Ferrer is one of the most prominent opposition leaders on the island. He suffered an arduous period in Cuban prisons in 2019. Amnesty International also previously recognized Ferrer as a prisoner of conscience while he was incarcerated from 2003 to 2011, when he was a victim of a wave of government repression against dissidents known as the “Black Spring”; 75 people were sentenced to long prison terms under Law 88: The Protection of National Independence and the Economy of Cuba.

International Day of Trans Visibility: Honoring the struggle to protect and promote trans rights in the Americas

Washington, D.C.; March 29, 2021 – On the eve of International Day of Trans Visibility (March 31), the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) honors the activists who work tirelessly to protect and promote the human rights of trans people in Latin America and the Caribbean. We also call upon all States to put in place laws and policies that ensure respect, recognition, and full enjoyment of rights for the region’s trans population.

Sadly, for yet another year, the Day of Trans Visibility will be marked by a lack of recognition and protection for trans people in the Americas, resulting in threats, physical and verbal attacks, persecution, exclusion, and the deaths of people with diverse gender expressions and/or identities. According to the international organization Trans Respect vs. Transphobia, of the 350 killings of trans people that were reported worldwide between October 1, 2019 and September 30, 2020, 82% took place in Latin America.

The COVID-19 pandemic worsened the already-vulnerable situation of trans people throughout 2020. Some governments failed to consider trans people’s needs when designing gender-based pandemic response measures, exposing trans citizens to sanctions for supposedly violating these measures. Meanwhile, both police violence and violent criminal attacks against trans people increased during the year, especially violence against trans women sex workers.

Despite this adverse context, however, activists and civil society organizations remain firm in their commitment to fight for trans people’s fundamental rights. Race and Equality applauds the trans community’s efforts throughout the region and is committed to providing support and technical assistance as civil society advocates before regional and international human rights bodies.

To commemorate International Day of Trans Visibility, Race and Equality spoke with activists from around the region about their work and about their visions for a just society. These activists spoke of great challenges, but also of the victories they have won and their dreams for the future.

Recognition and respect

The Brazilian journalist Caê Vasconcelos told us that society needs to learn to see trans men in their full and complex totality. Caê, himself a trans man, said, “we should be able to bring our whole life stories, experiences of life, struggle, love, care, and all the power that our trans bodies have.” He emphasized that a lack of knowledge of trans people’s experiences renders them invisible in Brazilian society. This invisibility manifests, for example, in a total lack of gynecological or pregnancy care for trans men. Making trans people’s needs visible is a vital step to honoring their existence and ensuring their rights as full citizens.

This invisibility also results in transphobia and violence against trans people as Brazil’s cis-heteronormative structures lash out against those who are different. As the National Association of Travestis[1] and Transsexual People (ANTRA) reported in their Dossier on Homicides and Violence against  Travestis and Transsexual People in Brazil (2020), some conservative ideologies and political sectors encourage this hatred, leading to Brazil’s status as the country with the most murders of trans people.

In Nicaragua, the human rights activist and former political prisoner Victoria Obando sums up the trans movement’s demands as, “Stop killing us.” Recently, Nicaragua’s LGBT community was horrified by the brutal murder of Anahís “Lala” Contreras, a 22-year-old trans women who was beaten by two men and dragged behind a horse. For Victoria, such a grotesque act reveals the levels of violence and exclusion facing trans people in Nicaragua.

The case of Celia Cruz is indicative of the arbitrary persecution and criminalization that trans Nicaraguans have suffered at the hands of their government throughout the socio-political crisis that began in April 2018. Celia, a trans woman, has been held in a men’s prison since April 21, 2020, where she is serving a 10-year sentence after being convicted of obstruction of justice and kidnapping for ransom.

Tomás Anzola, coordinator of the Trans Support and Action Group (GAAT) in Colombia, told Race and Equality that he wishes “for trans people to be able to construct our own identities and bodily experiences in loving and safe environments, in the company of our support networks.” In Colombia, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in increased violence against trans people, with 28 trans people (27 women and 1 man) killed in 2020 and 6 already killed in 2021.

As Colombian society debates the decriminalization of abortion, several trans organizations have spoken out about the need to ensure that reproductive rights extend to trans Colombians, emphasizing that denying such rights to trans people denies their very identities. These organizations are also demanding reforms to the National Police after an attack against a trans woman in Soacha (Cundinamarca department) in which police officers insulted, attacked, and sexually abused her.

Colombia’s trans activists and organizations make clear that Colombia has not yet implemented effective public policies guaranteeing full recognition and enjoyment of trans people’s rights. This failure, they emphasize, leaves trans people highly vulnerable to prejudice and violence.

Living without fear

Isabella Fernández, an activist with the Peruvian organization Féminas, told Race and Equality that above all, she wishes for trans people to be able to grow up in homes free of violence and discrimination. Worldwide, trans people and others with diverse gender expressions and/or identities frequently leave home after being rejected by their families, putting them at risk of violence and other harm.

In Peru, organizations fighting for LGBT rights are working towards a national law on gender identity, seeking to ensure that trans people can have their genders recognized by public and private institutions. Currently, those whose genders do not correspond with their civil registrations or identity documents struggle to access health services, education, jobs, and housing.

The Dominican activist Geisha Collins, part of the organization Trans Siempre Amigas (Trans Always Friends, or TRANSSA) shared with us that trans women must have access to identity documents that reflect their genders, which is why TRANSSA is fighting for a gender identity law in the Dominican Republic. Geisha also works to fulfill trans Dominicans’ right to health services that reflect their needs and for access to education, work, and the justice system without discrimination.

TRANSSA is also leading a national campaign for the General Law on Equality and Non-discrimination, which will put into practice the guarantees of Article 39 of the Dominican Constitution. The draft law includes sexual orientation and gender identity as protected categories, outlawing “the denial of the right to enjoy a gender identity of one’s choosing,” which in turn “implies the right to reassign one’s gender or image on public documents.”

Race and Equality laments the lack of recognition for trans people on the part of States and societies in Latin America and the Caribbean, which in turn leads to violence and human rights violations. We support the demands of trans activists and organizations across the region and call on States to respect and protect all people’s human rights, without regard for their sexual orientation or gender identity and/or expression. We recommend the following steps to governments across the region:

  • Approve gender identity laws that allow trans people to exercise their citizenship under the correct gender without obstacles or delay, as called for in Consultative Opinion 24-17 of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
  • Strengthen programs to train public servants, including the police and judiciary, on gender identity and trans issues.
  • Investigate and sanction all acts of violence against trans people, guaranteeing protection and respect to trans people throughout the process.
  • Implement public education and awareness-raising campaigns to promote respect for LGBTI people and their rights.
  • Create specific public health protocols for attending to trans people and people with diverse gender identities and/or expressions.
  • Collect and publish disaggregated data on violence against LGBTI people, using an intersectional approach.
  • Sign and ratify the Inter-American Convention against All Forms of Discrimination.

[1] Travesti is a Portuguese term for a person who was assigned male at birth, but who identifies and self-expresses as female, with or without any related medical interventions.

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