Activists: Investigate Honduran Transgender Murders

By Advocate.com Editors

Local activists and human rights groups have called on law enforcement officials in Honduras to investigate the recent murders of transgender women in the Central American country, where advocates point to a rise in hate crimes against LGBT individuals.

Human Rights Watch reports that six transgender women had been murdered in recent months in Honduras, where a 2009 HRW report found widespread failure to investigate attacks on transgender individuals.

"Our fellow transsexuals are murdered on the street with a gunshot to the head," Yndira Mendoza, director of Red Lésbica Cattrachas, told CNN World. "Our fellow gay people are being brutally killed inside their homes. But the last five murders that have happened here in Tegucigalpa have been extreme hate crimes that we have seen in recent times. Victims have been raped, stabbed, shot at, and even strangled."

Blabbeando has extensive coverage of the Honduran violence against LGBT individuals, click here to read.

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Trans, Gay Murders Rock Honduras

By Michelle Garcia

Three murders in Honduras have raised the number of LGBT deaths in the Central American country to 31 in recent months, a cause for concern among officials at the U.S. Embassy.

"The protection of Honduran law extends to all its citizens regardless of sexual orientation and the Lobo Administration has repeatedly expressed its commitment to defend the rights of all Honduran citizens," read a statement from the embassy. "It is in this regard that we call upon Honduran law enforcement authorities to vigorously investigate these crimes, bring to justice the perpetrators, and take all necessary steps to protect LGBT persons, who are among the most vulnerable to violence and abuse in Honduras."

Those killed recently include a 23-year-old transgender woman known as Lorenza, according to Gay City News in New York. She was found dead in Comayagüela in December, with bloody rocks near her body, indicating she may have been stoned to death as well as set on fire. Condoms were also found near her body, leading to speculation that she was also raped.

Gay City News blames the murders on a government-backed campaign to target gay people.

According to the National Resistance Front's website, which has been keeping tabs on the murders, police have been minimally invested in solving the cases.

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