Perú: Demand Investigation into Attack on Travesti
The Issue
On January 28th, 2009, a television news report showed an incident in which neighborhood watch patrols in the city of Tarapoto, Peru, chased and caught a travesti and her companion and then physically humiliated and insulted them. Neighborhood watch members cut their victims' hair and forced them to strip before subjecting them to a series of military training exercises until they collapsed from exhaustion. Throughout the ordeal, a crowd of onlookers made fun of the victims.
The television news report can be viewed by clicking on this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8GL8q30xm0&eurl=http://blabbeando.blogspot.com/2009/01/peru-news-cameras-capture-inhuman.html
Take Action
The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) joins MHOL and RedLacTrans in requesting that you send emails asking Peruvian authorities to investigate this incident. Please send your letters to:
Sra.
Mercedes Cabanillas
Ministra del Interior
Plaza 30 de Agosto s/n Urb. Corpac - San Isidro
ministro@mininter.gob.pe
Gral. PNP
Luis Hugo Mezarina Ponte
Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos del Sector Interior
sp-cndh@mininter.gob.pe
General de Policía PNP
Mauro Walter Remicio Maguiño
Director de la Policía Nacional
dgdinfo@pnp.gob.pe
Fernando D'Elio
fdelio@iglhrc.org
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Sample Letter (English Version)
Sra.
Mercedes Cabanillas
Ministra del Interior
Plaza 30 de Agosto s/n Urb. Corpac - San Isidro
I write on behalf of the International Lesbian, Gay, Transgender, Bisexual and Intersex Association (ILGA) to express outrage over a broadcast on America TV news on January 28, 2009, showing the public humiliation and torture of a travesti and her companion by members of a neighborhood watch association in Tatapoto, Peru. Patrol members chased and caught their victims and then forced them to strip before subjecting them to a series of military training exercises. Onlookers made fun of the victims throughout the ordeal, and even after they collapsed from exhaustion.
As a signatory to many international human rights declarations and treaties, it is Peru's obligation to ensure that human rights abuses are fully investigated and perpetrators are brought to justice. The actions in this case are clear violations of the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights—all of which have been signed by Peruvian authorities. Furthermore, the events captured by television cameras violate fundamental rights enunciated in the Peruvian Constitution.
We ask that you publicly condemn this episode, ensure that authorities make a full and fair investigation into the crime, and guarantee that once the perpetrators have been identified, they will be punished to the full extent of the law. We also ask that you closely monitor the way in which neighborhood watch associations throughout Peru treat sexual minorities, insist that their members undergo mandatory training to diminish homophobia and transphobia, and do everything possible to ensure that similar crimes are not repeated in the future.
Peruvian authorities should respect and protect the rights of all citizens, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.
We trust that you will give this issue the attention it deserves.
Sincerely,
Belissa Andía Pérez
I L G A
Secretariado Trans
Asociación Internacional de Lesbianas, Gays, Bisexuales, Trans e Intersexuales
Instituto Runa de Desarrollo y Estudios sobre Género
http://www.ilga.org
http://trans.ilga.org
http://www.runa.org.pe
