El IBAHRI aplaude emisión de veredicto histórico en un caso de tortura y discriminación contra integrante del colectivo LGBTQI+

Friday 17 April 2020

The International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) welcomes the decision of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights that determined Peru's responsibility for the arbitrary arrest and rape of a transgender woman . The decision , issued on April 6, 2020, is the first by the Inter-American Court on a complaint of discriminatory torture against a member of the LGBTQI + community.

In 2008, police officers from the northern region of Peru undressed, beat and raped Azul Rojas Marín , in addition to making disparaging comments about her sexual orientation. State prosecutors dismissed his criminal complaint against police officers. In November 2019, IBAHRI filed an  amicus curiae  before the Inter-American Court. The amicus examined discrimination as a purpose of torture, and addressed the state obligation to investigate acts of violence against members of the LGBTI + community. The document was based on regional and international jurisprudence, as well as the gender-inclusive interpretation  of the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment..

 

The IBAHRI co-chair, the honorable Michael Kirby AC CMG , commented: “The IBAHRI commends both the judgment of the Inter-American Court that makes Peru responsible for the discrimination against a torture victim of the LGBTQI + community and the measures adopted to prevent an crime of such brutality reoccur. With its decision and its foundation, the Inter-American Court has demonstrated its leadership not only in the inter-American region, but throughout the world, where there is a pressing need to promote new approaches towards transgender people, whose humanity and human dignity are violated by all. days ” .

In this historic ruling, the Inter-American Court held that the detention of Ms. Rojas Marín was "manifestly arbitrary" and that in 2008 she was subjected to an act of torture at the hands of the Peruvian police authorities. The Court has ordered the Government of Peru to pay damages, to provide the victim with medical and psychological care, and to promote a series of measures to prevent similar crimes from occurring in the country. The measures include a new protocol to investigate attacks against the LGBTQI + community; monitor the statistics on violence against the community, and design and implement a training and awareness plan on violence against LGBTQI + people aimed at representatives of the State.Inter-American Convention on Human Rights .

IBAHRI co-president, Anne Ramberg Dr jur hc , stated: “The Judgment of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights against the Peruvian state authorities is of enormous importance for the LGBTQI + community in the Americas, since it consecrates the human rights of the people belonging to this group in the region. We are proud of IBAHRI's contribution to this case, and we welcome the judgment of the Inter-American Court, as well as its initiative to launch a training program against discrimination. Following the discouraging sentences recently issued in Singapore, this case renews IBAHRI's hopes that courts around the world will uphold the fundamental freedoms that protect LGBTQI + people from discrimination .

ENDS

Notes to the Editor

  1. En mayo de 2010, el IBAHRI aprobó la Resolución sobre Orientación Sexual y Derechos Humanos. En la Resolución se reconoce que la discriminación contra cualquier persona por motivo de su orientación sexual e identidad de género va en contra de los principios fundamentales de derechos humanos. En vista de este reconocimiento, el IBAHRI está determinado a oponerse a las leyes penales que imponen sanciones contra las personas por actos sexuales privados consensuados y entre adultos. Haga clic aquí para leer más:
    www.ibanet.org/Human_Rights_Institute/About_the_HRI/HRI_Activities/sexual-orientation
  2. El IBAHRI lleva adelante una intensa labor de capacitación dirigida a profesionales de los ámbitos jurídico y médico en lo referido a la prevención de la tortura. Haga clic aquí para acceder a una variedad de recursos, incluidos videos e informes.
  3. Haga clic aquí para ver información relacionada sobre el trabajo del IBAHRI en el Perú:
    www.ibanet.org/Human_Rights_Institute/Work_by_regions/Americas/Peru
  4. El copresidente del IBAHRI, el Honorable Michael Kirby AC CMG, fue magistrado de la Suprema Corte de Australia (1996–2009), y previamente también ocupó cargos en el ámbito internacional, por ejemplo, como Presidente del Consejo de las Naciones Unidas sobre los Derechos Humanos en la República Popular Democrática de Corea (2013–2014).
  5. La copresidenta del IBAHRI, la Honorable Anne Ramberg Dr jur hc, es la Ex Secretaria General del Colegio de Abogados de Suecia (2000–2019) y ha ocupado una serie de cargos, entre ellos como magistrada ad hoc del Tribunal de Justicia de la Unión Europea.
  6. El Human Rights Institute de la International Bar Association (IBAHRI), una entidad autónoma con independencia financiera, trabaja para promover, proteger y exigir el cumplimiento de los derechos humanos de conformidad con las normas del estado de derecho, y para preservar la independencia del poder judicial y la profesión legal en todo el mundo.
  7. La International Bar Association (IBA), la voz mundial de la profesión jurídica, es la organización internacional de profesionales jurídicos, colegios de abogados y sociedades jurídicas más importante del mundo. Establecida en 1947, poco tiempo después de la creación de las Naciones Unidas, su origen se fundamenta en la convicción de que una organización conformada por colegios de abogados de todo el mundo puede contribuir a la estabilidad y a la paz mundial mediante la administración de la justicia.

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Romana St. Matthew - Daniel
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Link to the IBAHRI SPANISH website for this press release:
Short link: tinyurl.com/ts8pgqq