"We are not dying, we are being killed!" - CeDoSTALC Regional Report 2021

2021 REGIONAL REPORT ON THE VIOLATIONS OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE TRANS POPULATION OF LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

T O N E R A WE E R A E W , DYING !

D E L L I K BEING

“We are not dying, we are being killed!” This report intends to reflect the human rights violations suffered by trans people in Latin America and the Caribbean. It portrays the cruelest violations to the human rights which trans people in the region are victims of. We demand from all governments: political will and gender identity legislation NOW! This is to start to honor the debt democracy owes to us.” Marcela Romero, REDLACTRANS Regional Coordinator

Index 1.

REDLACTRANS ........................................................................................................................................ 2

2.

CEDOSTALC (Latin America and the Caribbean Trans Rights Reporting Office) ........ 3

Case Surveying Methodology ...................................................................................................................... 4 Summary of the situation of the trans community and the human rights violations they are subject to...................................................................................................................................................... 7 Violations of The Human Rights of Trans People in Latin America and The Caribbean in 2021....................................................................................................................................................................... 8 A.

Violations of The Right to Identity ............................................................................................. 8

B.

Civil Society Engagement, A Key Element for Development ........................................... 9

C.

Violations of The Right to Life and Physical Integrity ...................................................... 10

D.

Violations of The Right to Justice .............................................................................................. 13

E.

Violations of The Right to Health .............................................................................................. 17

F.

Violations of The Right to Education ....................................................................................... 19

G.

Violations of The Right to Work ................................................................................................ 22

Recommendations to The Governments of Latin America and The Caribbean ................... 26 Bibliography ..................................................................................................................................................... 29 Contact Information ................................................................................................................................. 30

INTRODUCTION 1. REDLACTRANS

REDLACTRANS (Latin America and the Caribbean Network of Trans People) was created in 2004 and today comprises 22 organizations led by trans persons. The organization promotes and guarantees that trans persons be their own representatives and speak for themselves. REDLACTRANS promotes the principles of inclusion and participation without discrimination of any kind, specially highlighting gender equality and respect for ethnic groups, gender identities and expressions, age, home country and socio-economic and cultural conditions.

Today, REDLACTRANS has offices in Argentina, Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, the United States, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay. We act to make the respect and enjoyment of human rights real for trans people through strategies of political influence, awareness, participation and strengthening of our organizations which include health, education and justice initiatives.

Thus, our vision is a region without discrimination and violence that respects our gender identity and our access to economic, social, cultural, political and environmental rights.

In this regard, the different reports drafted by REDLACTRANS have raised the awareness of the abundant violations suffered by the trans population on a daily basis, and contributed to expand the political influence of its member organizations. We have submitted the 2016-2017 regional report “Waiting to die” in the 167th and 169th Periods of Sessions of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights held in 2018 in Bogotá, Colombia, and Colorado, Denver, USA; the “Suggested Guidelines for the Provision of Comprehensive Health Care for Trans Women in Latin America and the Caribbean” to Mexican health authorities and activists in Guadalajara, Mexico, in January 2019, and in the political incidence meetings lead by REDLACTRANS with representatives from United Nations Agencies held in Geneva, Switzerland, in March 2019; as well as the 2018 regional report “Stop the Trans Genocide” in the 49th Regular Session of the Organization of American States General Assembly held in Medellín, Colombia, in June 2019.

Before this report was prepared and during the lockdown set by the countries of the region to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, and in view of the lack of government response, we launched the virtual “Trans Lives in Times of Pandemic” and “Stop Killing Us” reports.

These reports have raised the awareness on the situation of the trans people in Latin 2

America and the Caribbean, and denounced the extreme poverty and social exclusion to which trans people are exposed due to the lack of public policies and political will to mitigate the stigma and structural discrimination suffered by our bodies.

2. CEDOSTALC (Latin America and the Caribbean Trans Rights Reporting Office) In the region, there is very little knowledge and information on the social conditions of the trans population. In 2015, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights recommended that statistical data on the violence against the LGBT population in Latin America and the Caribbean be systematically collected. In general, the few statistics available pin point that one of the most extreme expressions of prejudices and discrimination against the trans population in Latin America is the violence inflicted by the society and institutions. Although the entire Latin America and the Caribbean population is subject to violence, trans people take it disproportionately as victims of hate crimes and due to the lack of punishment for these crimes. The social prejudice and discrimination worsen when trans people get HIV-AIDS, which becomes a significant barrier for them to have access to medical treatment and support.

To fight this, REDLACTRANS has created the CEDOSTALC, which offers first person information based on the reports on human rights violations suffered by the trans community in Latin America.

The CEDOSTALC was conceived as a community system to gather information on, monitor and provide an answer to the barriers restricting the human rights of the trans community. This system is based on a virtual platform to compile cases which allows to distribute and gather information from other NTROs and the Regional Secretary Office of REDLACTRANS. To implement the CEDOSTALC, REDLACTRANS carried out programs aimed at training trans women to document human rights violations in their countries. This is a strategy that guarantees that the documentation process is performed effectively since these women also belong to the trans community.

REDLACTRANS acknowledges the support from the Robert Carr Fund in the documentation and preparation of this report. This process has evidenced that the joint work of different organizations is the strategy that will secure the continuance of the efforts of the CEDOSTALC to reduce the human rights violations suffered by the trans people in Latin America and the Caribbean.

3

Case Surveying Methodology

This report is the result of the work carried out by REDLACTRANS activists who have documented the human rights violations they experience on a daily basis. The aim of our work is to raise the awareness on these violations as a snapshot of the reality of the region.

This led us to prepare several reports that portray the situation of trans people in different countries as well as the following regional reports: •

“Waiting to Die” for 2016;

•

“Stop The Trans Genocide” for 2018;

•

“Stop Killing Us” for 2019 and 2020;

•

“Trans Lives in Times of Pandemic” for 2020; and

•

this report called “We are not dying, we are being killed!” for 2021.

These are solid reports to revert the historic context of violence and prejudice

suffered by our community.

Data collection is aimed at overcoming the current lack of public data on the conditions of the trans population in Latin America and the Caribbean as far as possible.

This is of absolute urgency in those cases in which governments fail to provide not only a solution to the lack of relevant data and boost the involvement of trans rights organizations in these kind of studies but also any kind of support through data systematization, which poses a challenge for future reports.

The data collected, albeit real and specific, are insufficient to show the real picture with clarity since it is impossible to document all human rights violations suffered by trans women in the region on a daily basis in a highly detailed manner. This may be the result of several factors, among which we can mention the alarming level of violations of the human rights of trans persons; the efforts individuals and governments make to hide this situation; the restrictions to justice; and, in general, the courses of action taken by governments, and the lack of trust from the trans community.

As explained in the introduction of the methodology applied to draft the regional 4

reports for 2016, 2017 and 2018, all the reports are the result of a long history of community work between the National Coordinators. In order to draft these reports, REDLACTRANS National Coordinators agreed, during the Regional Workshop held in Buenos Aires in April 2017, on the criteria to be applied by each of the sub-regions (South Cone, Andes and Central America) to conduct surveying, documenting and systematization tasks.

In addition, the form used for documenting violations was reviewed and validated.

This form was adopted unanimously by all NTROs. Based on this input, REDLACTRANS has started to develop a software suitable to the needs of our community. However, by the end of 2018, this software was subject to security breaches thus the developer shot it down. In response to this situation, the Regional Secretary Office of REDLACTRANS set the goal to create its own platform to continue the work of Trans Documentarist, which has been regularly active since May 2019.

In May 2017, REDLACTRANS held a training workshop on the documentation of human rights violations in the city of San Salvador, El Salvador, where human rights activists from Latin America were trained to collect information and record it in the software. This workshop was the beginning of a documentation process based on the use of standardized tools in every country so that all cases were documented under the same criteria.

A pilot test performed two months later was the beginning of the documentation process in 17 countries where members of the NTROs started to collect cases of human rights violations involving trans people in their territories.

In this sense, it should be noted the vastness of the knowledge of NTROs about the data to be collected in their countries, where trans activists live and suffer the violations of their rights. In these territories, they work to develop own intervention devices against the lack of respect for their rights which, as stated above, can be shared by them at first hand.

In addition, recording tasks were coordinated and supervised by the Regional Secretary Office located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. As part of the control stage of this process, two in-person events were held to identify obstacles and lessons learned throughout the first months of the process. These events were the Political Influence Subregional Workshops held in Quito, in September 2017, and in the City of Mexico, in October 2017.

5

The regional reports, “Waiting to Die”, “Stop The Trans Genocide” and “Stop Killing Us” for 2016-2017, 2018 and 2019-2020, respectively, were prepared based on the input collected and systematized in the reports prepared by NTROs. This report is a situational analysis of the human rights violations suffered by the trans population of the region and proposes a series of recommendations for the Latin American governments to provide the necessary means for trans people to effectively enjoy all their rights, which they have been deprived of for too long.

6

Summary of the situation of the trans community and the human rights violations they are subject to

2021 has not been an exception with respect to the human rights violations and hate crimes suffered by trans people in the region. Therefore, this report will focus on analyzing and evidencing the situation we denounce through the stories recorded in the CEDOSTALC by the Trans Documentarist. This will show the violation of effective legislation and international treaties and agreements, which continues to translate into poverty, social exclusion, institutional violence, social crimes and forced migration.

In 2021, 78% of the trans people interviewed for this report engaged in sex work as their only means for survival, in hostile contexts of persecution, abuse and institutional violence. In turn, almost 30% works in the informal sector or do so sporadically, or they just remained unemployed, all of which evidence the continuous poverty and social exclusion we suffer in the region. With respect to the type of violence suffered, we found that 54% of trans people was victim of discrimination, intimidation or threats, and harassment; and 46% was subject to one of the cruelest types of violence: murder, kidnapping, beating or physical aggression, sexual abuse, and unlawful arrest. As far as the authors of these humans rights violators, 28% are public officials, health care and education workers, and law enforcement officials.

The impunity and lack of political will to stop this violence makes governments accomplices of these deaths and responsible for the human rights violations suffered by the trans population in all the region.

2021 Social Situation

22%

Trabajo sexual Trabajos informales, esporádicos, desempleo

78%

7

Violations of The Human Rights of Trans People in Latin America and The Caribbean in 2021

A. Violations of The Right to Identity Only 10% of the countries in all the region have passed gender identity legislation allowing trans people to enjoy their right to identity, the basic right to enjoy all the other human rights.

In the map, countries shown in purple recognize trans identities under the law. As of the date of this report, the other countries have yet not passed gender identity legislation.

Failing to legally recognize trans identities is the first piece of the historical and structural barrier preventing us from accessing and enjoying basic rights.

Without debating and passing inclusive legislation aimed at terminating current inequities, it will not be possible to move towards the sustainability prescribed in the goals of the 2030 Agenda.

Passing a law itself will not put an end to the violence and discrimination trans people suffer but will be a precedent for government agencies and civil society organizations to have a tool that helps working towards inclusion.

As stated in the previous reports, Latin America and The Caribbean saw significant progress in the recognition of the gender identity of trans people which led to one of the most advanced pieces of legislation in the world, Argentina’s Gender Identity Law. Similarly, REDLACTRANS demands the application of Advisory Opinion OC-24/7 of 8

the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, which recommends Member States to amend their legislation so that trans people can change their registered identities based on their choice.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the institutional violence exerted by governments has grown in our countries due to the lack of official identification documents which reflect the identities of trans people. As it was also evidenced in the “Trans Lives in Times of Pandemic” report, one of the main measures adopted by governments has been discriminating males from females in the circulation permits for men and women in different days of the week. The passing of such executive orders has exacerbated police brutality on trans people and non-binary gender identities that were forced to go out to get food or assist those people that depended on them.

These discrimination measures based on gender were only adopted in Latin America and The Caribbean, something that should not come as a surprise based on the long history of discrimination against trans people in the region. Instead, this fact evidences everything that still needs to be done as far as human rights are concerned.

The lack of legal recognition of our trans identities during the COVID-19 pandemic is alarming in the context of the increasing institutional violence generated at different levels of government and from other social actors.

B. Civil Society Engagement, A Key Element for Development The history of the trans movement in the region can be traced back to more than five decades and, in many cases, organizations led by trans people have been educating and exerting influence in their territories for thirty years.

This is a relevant fact since, due to the sanitary crisis arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, the governments of the region have designed and implemented strategies to mitigate damages without considering the trans population, and other vulnerable populations.

Based on the information provided by the trans organizations from Argentina, Bolivia, Bahamas, Belize, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay, more than 60% of the governments of the region failed to engage trans organizations in the debate and decision-making processes. This evidences the lack of sensitivity from public officials and service providers regarding the human rights involved in the situation and characteristics of the trans population of each country.

The crisis affecting trans people in Latin America and The Caribbean is the absence 9

of governments, the lack of access to human rights and the trans genocide.

Without doubt, civil society organizations led by key populations working in the field will be the answer to the design of effective public policy and programs aimed at knocking down the barriers that, in 2021, prevent us from enjoying our human rights.

C. Violations of The Right to Life and Physical Integrity In Latin America and The Caribbean, trans people die due to the action and inaction from governments. According to the information from the national reports drafted by NTROs1, the main violations to the human rights of the trans population in 2021 can be accounted for in percentages.

These data evidences the models implemented throughout the region which are configured as the main types of violations to the human rights of trans people.

We recommend consulting the source reports published under the same title, “We Are Not Dying, We Are Being Killed!”, prepared by civil society organizations since they know the situation of each country and are able to provide accounts of the restrictions imposed by local regulations in each country as well as the socio-political and cultural situation.

Thus, the types of abuse and violations registered include discrimination, transfemicides, beatings, forced disappearances, harassment, and sexual abuse, among others.

However, these are not isolated events. They represent a social, structural and historical construction of violence and discrimination. The research conducted by REDLACTRANS in 2014 concluded that the life expectancy of trans people in the region is under 40 years.

This average is the result of two structural problems. The first one is the mortality rate due to the lack of gender identity legislation in the countries of the region as well as programs providing access to effective comprehensive and quality health care, which leads to a trans genocide caused by treatable diseases. The second one is the hate crimes arising from institutional violence and transfemicides.

1

National Trans Organizations

10

Main types of violations of the human rights of trans people in 2021: At the regional level, discrimination accounts for 55.6% Bolivia

Ecuador

El Salvador

Guatemala

Uruguay

65.38%

43%

43%

59%

67%

At the regional level, beatings account for 41% Chile

Costa Rica

El Salvador

Nicaragua

Paraguay

33%

42%

21%

81%

27%

At the regional level, transfemicides account for 35% Ecuador

Honduras

Mexico

Panama

Peru

36%

21%

61%

40%

17%

These data, which are related to the main authors of these acts as well as the places where the abuses and violations took place, evidence the impunity with which our bodies are attacked.

Place where abuse and violence took place: At the regional level, streets account for 50.4% Argentina

Paraguay

Nicaragua

Costa Rica

Mexico

24%

94%

65%

42%

27%

At the regional level, health services account for 23%

Argentina

Bolivia

Guatemala

Costa Rica

Uruguay

64%

17%

9%

17%

8%

At the regional level, workplace accounts for 47%

Uruguay

Peru

Panama

Chile

El Salvador

46%

75%

33%

28%

50%

At the regional level, the victims’ homes account for 24%

Bolivia

Chile

Ecuador

Nicaragua

Mexico

12.5%

17%

32%

24%

33%

11

Additionally, national reports also indicate other places where abuse and violations took place, including: ● El Salvador: correctional system, 14% ● Costa Rica: correctional system, 8.33% ● Argentina: correctional system, 3% ● Bolivia: education system, 12.5% ● Chile: social media/media, 11% ● Ecuador: government agencies, 11% ● Uruguay: education system, 8 % With respect to the authors of abuse and violence:

At the regional level, law enforcement agencies account for 21.45%

Uruguay

Peru

Panama

Nicaragua

Guatemala

36%

36%

20%

6%

9.27%

At the regional level, civilians account for 39.64%

Argentina

Bolivia

Ecuador

Honduras

Nicaragua

12%

19.23%

36%

50%

81%

At the regional level, sex work clients account for 35%

Uruguay

Peru

El Salvador

Costa Rica

Panama

21%

47%

36%

50%

20%

At the regional level, public officials account for 14.64%

Bolivia

Ecuador

Panama

Uruguay

Nicaragua

19.23%

14%

20%

14%

6%

12

D. Violations of The Right to Justice To begin our analysis of the access to justice of trans people in Latin America and The Caribbean, we will consider one of the indicators of the CEDOSTALC related to the number of reports filed or not filed with court offices in the countries of the region.

Regional average of reports filed or not filed with court offices.

Source: Cases registered in the CEDOSTALC in 2021 Filed report

52%

Did not file report

48%

Southern Cone region - reports filed or not filed with court offices

40%

Si

60%

No

Andes region - reports filed or not with court offices

38%

Si

62%

13

No

Central America and Mexico - reports filed or not with court offices

1; 1%

43% 56%

Si No Ns/Nc

Based on these data, it can be concluded that there has been an increase in the number of reports filed with court offices. For example, the national report of Bolivia indicates that 100% of reports are filed. One of the reasons that explains this positive change is the implementation of the CEDOSTALC platform by NTROs in 2016.

This was part of an strategy of political incidence, since, through legal counseling, we try to raise the awareness on the violence trans people suffer from government agencies.

Thus, NTROs have acquired this good practice, providing counseling and support to those victims that get in contact with them, and assisting almost all of them in filing formal reports.

With respect to NTROs, it is evidenced that civil society organizations do not have the necessary resources or support to provide information and assistance to 100% of the trans population of the region.

We believe it is relevant to share some of the situations included in the reports of Chile and Guatemala, in which access to justice has been significantly hindered: As stated by Violeta Quezada, Trans Documentarist of the CEDOSTALC in Chile: “Under these conditions of inconsideration of trans people in the justice system, the law does not do much to criminalize indirect and structural discrimination, that is, the fact that an institution can exert influence on the possibility of accessing specific remedies or services, which grants Chile’s Police the power not to follow their own procedures. In relation to indirect violations, no action is considered against hate speeches both in private 14

and, above all, public spaces, such as the media.

That is why trans people prefer not to file reports, since they fear being subject to retaliation from their attackers or their accomplices. However, in those cases in which reports are filed, they are forgotten or just lost among many other court files. This can be clearly seen in the above chart, which shows that only 30% of the victims decided to file reports”.

Filed formal report 100% 80%

70%

60% 40%

30%

20% 0% Yes

No

According to Ángela Romero, Trans Documentaris of the CEDOSTALC in Guatemala: “With respect to whether victims filed formal reports, 72% did not file any sort of report, 17% did file one and 11% preferred not to answer. Impunity is high because trans people have little trust in the justice system, which fails to investigate their reports and discourages them to file them”.

Filed formal report 100% 72%

80% 60% 40% 20%

17%

11%

0% Yes

No

N/S

Between August and November 2021, Trans Documentarist held online meetings with the Regional Secretary Office in which they shared tools to collect data and inquired on the most relevant aspects of different indicators. In relation to the access to justice, they agreed that victims do not file reports because:

15

-

they are scared of being mocked at police stations;

-

they fear being subject to retaliation;

-

they lack of information on the channels available to file those reports;

-

they suffered abuses or harassment in the past when trying to file reports; and

-

after filing reports or assisting other trans people in filing one, they are “forgotten”, without any sort of investigation or punishment for attackers.

As evidenced by the NTRO from Uruguay in their report: “From ATRU and as part of our strategic action, we continue to support the victims of human rights violations so that they file reports. (...) 80% of the trans people interviewed for the preparation of this report managed to file formal reports.

In spite of this progress, access to justice for trans people is still very difficult.

We were able to confirm this when ATRU receives cases of violence and abuse and tedious paperwork needs to be filled or people with discriminatory attitudes need to be dealt with. We have had many successful reports but we have also witnessed that, in some places, justice is not equal for all. That is why, cases of extremely cruel violations whose victims do not file reports are still being recorded.

According to the NTRO from Panama: With respect to justice, our greatest executioners, aside from governments, are members of law enforcement agencies, who infringe our rights arbitrarily, with the impunity provided by their action or inaction. (...) We get arrested and beaten for no reason, and we are then taken before authorities for them to punish us without justification. Fines are never ignored because the cost would be higher and we cannot file appeals to get them revised,” stated Venus Tejada.

This report also indicates: It should be noted that the trans people interviewed for this report filed formal reports thanks to the support from APPT. These reports account for 60% of the reports filed.

The need for governments to ensure appropriate access to justice is clear so that the 40% of trans people who DID NOT file formal reports can do so without suffering retaliation or harassment from court office representatives.

This evidences that trans people in Panama do not file formal reports on the violation of their human rights because there are no guarantees for a real access to justice or because they do not believe that those reports will be considered with the seriousness and commitment they deserve.

Upon analyzing and comparing different data provided by NTROs with respect to the access to justice, we observe an alarming level of violations. This not only shows the 16

lack of access to justice for trans people but also that governments do not have real and effective mechanisms for key populations to get such access.

E. Violations of The Right to Health Providing comprehensive health care to trans people is one of the most significant debts from the governments of the region (“Stop Trans Genocide,” 2018). The violations in this regard are carried out by health workers and they are due to the lack of public programs that mitigate the damages in the health of the trans population.

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a crisis at all levels and for all social actors, we observe the urgent need to address the lack of access and protection of the right to comprehensive health care of the trans population.

Considering the dilemma arising in society with respect to assigning hospital beds to young people or elderly ones (which also evidences the overvaluation of youth combined with the hate of the elderly), we ask: What happens with hospital beds for trans people? And what happens with the elderly trans population? Trans people hospitalized during the COVID-19 pandemic are dying.

There are serious health risks for trans people mainly arising from diseases like pneumonia or tuberculosis, which are not included in the preventative measures or protocols adopted by governments for health services.

Additionally, trans people aged 40 or older, who are considered survivors (the life expectancy of trans people in Latin America and The Caribbean ranges from 35 through 40 - REDLACTRANS, 2014) and who have suffered all sorts of violations throughout their lives, today do not have the resources necessary to access health services or are not eligible for health assistance programs, since they have no health insurance or pensions to face this global crisis.

National reports agree that the lack of sensitivity of health workers, both in the public and private sectors, is also one of the types of violations of the human rights of trans people.

In the report issued by the NTRO from Uruguay, Nicole Casaravilla, CEDOSTALC Trans Documentarist and activist from ATRU, states that: From the moment a trans person leaves their home to go to a health center, they are mocked by people. When they get to the health center, they are received with odd looks, comments from people, laughs from law enforcement officials and, on many occasions, even abuses. Then, when filing admission forms, their gender identities are not respected since effective legislation does not allow changing 17

registered identities. Health workers show a strong resistance to accept social names or just last names. There is also resistance when they are told about comprehensive legislation for trans people. There is no interest in listening.

This has a negative impact on the health of trans people since, upon being humiliated or discriminated, they frequently decide not to get the treatment they need, as stated by Nicole Casaravilla: ...because it is humiliating when we are called by the name indicated in our identity cards, the looks in the eyes of people in the waiting room, the murmuring, the laughs... And then, a physician who does not even look at your eyes, let alone check your health. They still see us as objects of sexual disease transmission. This discrimination is a lot stronger in the case of trans people living far from big cities.

The report of the NTRO from Honduras denounces that health centers do not provide adequate treatment to trans people and that there are still discrimination and stigmatization based on gender identity or expression. Although in some comprehensive care centers the names with which trans people identify are recognized, not much progress has been achieved with respect to the way trans people are treated in Honduras.

In this sense, the report includes the story of Alondra, Head of the CUCR organization and CEDOSTALC Trans Documentarist, showing what happens when a trans person gets to a public hospital to see a physician: The first thing they do before protecting your life is sending you to get an HIV test. As a result of this system of exclusion, many trans people prefer to attend private health centers recommended by TROs or other trans persons to avoid being victims of discrimination based on their gender identity.

This report also states: In Honduras, there are no protocols or programs to access hormone replacement therapies thus most trans people resort to self-medication, without control or supervision from health professionals. With respect to sex reassignment surgeries, there are no professionals specifically trained for these purposes and health service providers show no will to improve the quality of life of trans people.

During the pandemic, trans people were affected by circulation restrictions.

For almost two years, some health centers and public hospitals stopped providing services. During this time, many trans people were affected by the lack of access to different treatments, which translates into another violation of human rights.

18

In this sense, the report issued by the NTRO from Argentina warns that: Argentina has one of the best gender identity laws in the world, which includes a specific section regarding the right to comprehensive health care.

However, it is still one of the countries where this right is hindered due to the lack of sufficiently trained professionals and a huge demand that is never met, with appointments postponed for more than two years. This situation has worsened due to the pandemic. Sex reassignment surgeries are limited due to the lack of assistance in public hospitals and the lack of enforcement of Section 11 of Law No. 26,743. Our bodies are still in danger.

When a health professional humiliates or minimizes the pain or discomfort of a fellow trans person, they may be even putting their lives at risk. For example, many people take hormone treatments on their own, or go through surgeries to change their bodies in unhealthy and illegal clinics. (...) The lack of comprehensive health care is still the main cause of death for treatable diseases. So far this year, 55 lives that could have been saved have been lost.

Our ATTTA national network is continuously working to improve the access to comprehensive health care not only through health staff training but also through information campaigns and events to empower trans people.

However, health agents should make a commitment to make health care accessible, comprehensive and free from discrimination.

Among the indicators considered to elaborate national reports, the authors of acts of violation or abuse is one of them. According to the data from national reports, for every ten violations of the human rights of trans people, one is committed by health staff.

This fact is important since it shows that trans people are not only expelled from the private health care sector but also from the public one, which leads to more stigmatization and discrimination.

It should be considered that these records are only a snapshot of the situation of trans people in the region and constitute clear evidence of the stories told by each Trans Recorder in each CEDOSTALC national report.

F. Violations of The Right to Education In the countries of Latin America and The Caribbean, the right to education is guaranteed by the legislation effective in each of them and, in many cases, it is even enshrined in their national constitutions and safeguarded under commitments made in international treaties and agreements.

However, for trans people, the right to education is also infringed and, unfortunately, the lack of guarantees both to access the education system and stay in it 19

brings consequences for the rest of their lives.

To get a regional snapshot, we asked trans people victims of human rights violations registered in CEDOSTALC in 2021 about their maximum educational level reached.

The analysis based on the data provided in the NTROs’ national reports clearly indicates the need to generate urgent strategies from governments to eliminate the barriers that limit trans people’s access and stay in the education system.

It is clear that the systematic exclusion from formal education has effects on the personal and professional development of each individual and, also, in the development of society as a whole.

In Dominican Republic, 100% of trans people interviewed in the preparation of this report have not completed primary education. In Uruguay, this group accounts for 85%; in El Salvador, 36%; and in Panama, 40%. Thus, we can say that 52.2% of the trans people in the region have been excluded from the education system at the primary level.

With respect to incomplete secondary education, failure is also significant. In Honduras and Guatemala, it reaches 33%; in Argentina, 68.6%; and in Costa Rica, 58%. The regional average for this indicator is 58%.

There is also a percentage of trans people of the region that has never attended school. This is an even greater human rights violation, infringing most effective legislations and international treaties. In Ecuador, 4% of trans people have never attended school; in El Salvador, 7%; and in Mexico, 15%:

Second sample on the level of education reached by victims of human rights violations in 2021.

Source: Reports from NTROs in CEDOSTALC 20201 NTRO report

Complete primary

Incomplete

Tertiary education

Tertiary education

education

secondary

Incomplete

Complete

college

college

education

education

education

20

N/S

Bolivia

8%

23%

4%

0%

0%

Argentina

9%

69%

0%

0%

0%

Chile

9%

26%

17%

17%

30%

Ecuador

0%

23%

4%

23%

0%

Mexico

12%

15%

0%

6%

15%

Nicaragua

38%

6%

13%

0%

0%

Honduras

42%

33%

8%

0%

0%

It is not just a coincidence that the high rates of school failure occur in children and teenagers. Trans Recorders have agreed that most discrimination, bullying and access restriction to educational institutions occur when trans people start to express their selfperceived identity.

In response to this, we are mocked, laughed at and exposed to violence not only by fellow students but also by teachers and, frequently, by school authorities. This affects our social life and our possibilities to acquire the knowledge necessary to find a job, which also has an impact on our mental health.

As stated above, access to universal public education is constitutionally protected, in line with dozens of international human rights treaties and conventions. However, for almost half of the trans population of Latin America and The Caribbean, this is not the case since primary education.

The early exclusion from the education system has consequences throughout the lives of trans people, acting as an immediate barrier to the access to secondary education and an additional restriction to get formal jobs. As it can be observed from the sample of trans people who completed primary education, 30.6% failed to complete secondary education. Therefore, the number of trans people who get to higher education levels decreases continuously.

21

Maximum education level of trans people victims of human rights violations in 2021 100% 80% 60%

58% 36%

40% 20%

7%

0% Secondary education

Complete secondary education and higher

N/S

In addition to this social, economic, environmental, cultural, and political context, the rising of fundamentalist religious movements promoting hate speech constitutes one of the greatest barriers hindering the access of trans people to human rights. In this sense, religious education is still the main source of the reproduction of stigmatization and discrimination.

The stories collected by NTROs reflect that, in 2021, obsolete dress codes are part of the structure of violation, stigmatization and discrimination.

G. Violations of The Right to Work As evidenced in the “Stop Trans Genocide” report, governments from Central and South America have repealed laws that established criminal punishments to same-sex relationships. However, in some countries, there is legislation in force that somehow criminalize people based on their gender identity or expression.

This sort of legislation is frequently used to criminalize sex workers in the region.

The deep discrimination and prejudices suffered by these workers result in violence and persecution, which are worse in the case of sex workers who are also trans persons.

At the time of publication of this report, only two countries of the region have passed inclusive legislation regarding the work environment of trans people:

22

-

Uruguay: Sections 10 and 12 of Trans Law No. 19,684 from 2018, which promote reparative public policies with respect to the access to formal employment.

-

Argentina: first through Executive Order 721/2020 on trans employment quota and then through Law No. 27,636 in 2021. Although they constitute steps in the right direction, Executive Order 721/2020 and Diana Sacayán - Lohana Berkins Law No. 27,636 for the “Promotion of The Access to Formal Employment for Trans, Trans and Transvestite People” are not enough. These pieces of legislation fail to reach the whole trans population, specially trans people aged 45 or older. That is why we highlight the need for comprehensive trans legislation that covers all the needs of this population. For effective labor inclusion to exist, first there should be true social integration at the cultural, economic, education and health levels.

Also, international consensus include strategies aimed at eradicating poverty in key populations through programs recommended to the governments of the region.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights reiterates that, in Latin America, structural discrimination and exclusion in the labor market based on gender identity and expression is one of the triggers of an “endless cycle of continuous poverty”. This situation takes place in the absence of affirmative legislation for the trans population and gender identity legislation.

The main occupation of the trans persons interviewed for this report is still sex work, which accounts for 78%, according to the samples from:

78% Sex work

Uruguay

Peru

Paraguay

Costa Rica

Argentina

69%

72%

94%

67%

88%

To provide more evidence on this complex context, below we include a breakdown of the data collected on the occupation of trans victims in 2021.

23

Uruguay

Occupation 100%

“(...) Unfortunately, the census

90% 80% 70%

conducted by the Ministry of

69%

Social Development in 2016 is

60%

still valid since more than 60%

50%

of trans people engage in sex

40%

work as their only means of

30% 15%

20%

8%

10%

survival”.

8%

0% Trabajadoras Activistas Desocupadxs sexuales defensoras de DDHH

Otros

Peru

Victims’ occupation Unemployed

“(...) when engaging in sex work

11,11%

mainly in the streets, violence Other informal job

16,67%

from law enforcement agencies,

Sex worker

clients and people in general

72,22% 0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Paraguay

Victims’ occupation 100%

are frequent”.

94%

80%

“These figures evidence that, in

60%

Paraguay, trans people are

40%

deprived from their right to

20%

6%

0% Sex worker

Activist/HR advocate

24

choose a job”.

Costa Rica

Victims’ occupation 100%

“This shows the need for

90% 80% 70%

labor

67%

and

education

inclusion for trans people, so

60% 50%

that sex work becomes an

40%

option, not just the only way

30%

to survive. It should be noted

17%

20% 10%

8%

8%

Formal job

Other

0% Sex work

Other informal job

that 67% of the violence acts recorded were suffered by trans people engaged in sex

work”.

Argentina

Victims' occupation 100%

88,06%

“One

80%

of

the

limitations

greatest

imposed

by

60%

society to the trans and

40%

non-binary populations is

20%

4,48%

5,97%

Other informal job

Formal job

1,49%

0% Sex work

Other

the

access

employment.

to

formal

Therefore,

faced with the need to

survive, many trans people resort to sex work or some sort of informal job. The lack of recognition as legal subjects, which has been denied for so many years, directly translates into difficulties to access the labor market, and, of course, lacking education opportunities is another element of this system of exclusion”.

In conclusion, the governments of Latin America and The Caribbean continue to hinder the access to the human rights of trans people. When compared with the rest of society or other key populations, the situation of trans people constitutes a trend which roots grow deeper and deeper into society.

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Recommendations to The Governments of Latin America and The Caribbean The following recommendations are based on the continuous violations trans people are subject to in the region. They constitute a collection of the recommendations made by NTROs in their national reports, which REDLACTRANS demands all governments, agencies and decision-makers in Latin America and The Caribbean to adopt: •

Debating and passing gender identity legislation in all the countries of the region.

Based on international consensus and Argentine Law No. 26,743, passing legislation that guarantees the access to identity through the modification of registered names and gender in official documents without subject to none pathologizing evaluation practices. This process should be a simple administrative procedure, free from any charges.

•

Promoting comprehensive trans legislation to create public programs and policies that guarantee comprehensive and universal access to physical and mental health, non-religious education, formal employment, reparation and housing for the trans population.

•

Promoting, passing or amending legislation violating or restricting human rights based on Advisory Opinion OC-24/7 of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on same-sex marriage and gender identity.

•

Promoting strategies and formal communication channels between government agencies and civil society organizations led by key populations since the process of drafting gender identity legislation as well as any other legislation for the trans population should take into consideration the opinion and approval of TROs, which have historically worked in the defense and promotion of human rights.

•

The process of drafting gender identity legislation should involve international cooperation agencies, like United Nations or Organization of American States bodies, since this will allow developing public policies abiding by international standards on human rights.

26

•

Promoting awareness programs for law enforcement agencies and creating law enforcement agencies with gender and human rights perspectives that include trans people in initiatives to eradicate gender-based violence. Investigating and punishing law enforcement officials involved in arbitrary detention and other illegal acts to eradicate impunity.

•

In order that no human rights violation goes unpunished, implementing mechanisms to guarantee the access to justice for trans people, with the appropriate level of seriousness to deal with transfemicides to achieve fair procedures through investigations, trials and punishments.

•

Creating, promoting and advertising public and institutional campaigns to raise the awareness of the general population to eradicate violence and social crimes.

•

Promoting the access to comprehensive quality public health care for trans people as well as resolutions in furtherance of the respect for self-perceived identities in all health care services. Promoting the access to human rights and training all health care staff. Governments should guarantee and include in health care services all those practices related to the specific approach of the needs of the population, such as hormone treatments and surgeries.

•

With respect to the access to non-religious quality education, creating programs for the reintegration of trans people into the education system within a framework of respect for their self-perceived identities and human rights. In this sense, it will be necessary to implement comprehensive sex education programs based on international standards, which will also have an impact on the access to information and the exercise of sexual and reproductive rights.

•

Including content aimed at raising the awareness of teaching, management and ancillary staff in existing continuous training programs, which constitutes an strategic pillar to eradicate discrimination and harassment from schools.

•

Public programs and policies should promote and respect childhood and adolescence without failing to respect progressive knowledge acquisition abilities and the exercise of individual rights.

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•

Promoting the access to formal employment for trans people. This can be achieved through programs, training or quotas that promote equal opportunities. This process should include awareness raising instances for all employees and human resources staff to encourage the recognition and respect of the human rights of trans people.

•

Collecting data and creating official data banks on the situation of the trans population in relation to their access to economic, social, political, cultural and environmental rights.

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Bibliography Borgogno, Ignacio G. (2009). La Transfobia en América Latina y el Caribe. Un estudio en el marco de REDLACTRANS. Available at: http://redlactrans.org.ar/site/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/LaTransfobia-en-America-Latina-y-el-Caribe.pdf CEDOSTALC (2021) “We are not dying, we are being killed!” National reports available at: www.redlactrans.org IACHR (2015). Informe sobre violencias contra personas LGBTI. Available at: http://www.oas.org/es/cidh/informes/pdfs/violenciapersonaslgbti.pdf IACHR Advisory Opinion OC-24 issued on November 24, 2017. Available at: https://www.corteidh.or.cr/docs/opiniones/resumen_seriea_24_esp.pdf IMPO. (2018). Law No. 19,684 Passing of the Comprehensive Trans Law. Available at: https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/leyes/19684-2018 Ministry of Justice and Human Rights. Human Rights Secretary Office. (2014). Argentina. Law No. 26,743 on Gender Identity. Available at: http://www.jus.gob.ar/media/3108867/ley_26743_identidad_de_genero.pdf Ministry of Women, Gender and Diversity. (2020). Executive Order 721/2020. Trans Employment Quota. Available at: https://www.argentina.gob.ar/generos/cupo-laboral-travestitrans#:~:text=A%20trav%C3%A9s%20del%20decreto%20721,personas%20travestis%2C%20tra nsexuales%20y%20transg%C3%A9nero.

United Nations (2005). Section 23: Right to Work. Available at: https://news.un.org/es/story/2018/12/1447461 United Nations. 17 objetivos para transformar nuestro mundo. Available at: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/es/ OAS. (November 1969). American Convention on Human Rights - Pact of San José, Costa Rica.

Available at: https://www.oas.org/dil/esp/tratados_b32_convencion_americana_sobre_derechos_humanos.htm OAS. IACHR. REDESCA. (August 7, 2020). Informe sobre Personas Trans y de Género Diverso y sus derechos económicos, sociales, culturales y ambientales. Available at: https://www.oas.org/es/cidh/informes/pdfs/PersonasTransDESCA-es.pdf REDLACTRANS (2018). Regional report Waiting to Die. Available at: http://redlactrans.org.ar/site/informe-regional-cedostalc-2016-2017-esperando-la-muerte/ REDLACTRANS (2019). Stop the Trans Genocide - CEDOSTALC 2018 Report. Available at: http://redlactrans.org.ar/site/informe-regional-cedostalc-2018-basta-de-genocidio-trans/ REDLACTRANS (2020). Trans Lives in Times of Pandemic. Available at: http://redlactrans.org.ar/site/primer-informe-las-vidas-trans-en-timpos-de-pandemia/ UNICEF. (2006). Convention on The Rights of The Child. Available at: https://www.un.org/es/events/childrenday/pdf/derechos.pdf

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This report is the result of the actions coordinated by Marcela Romero, REDLACTRANS Regional Coordinator.

Through the CEDOSTALC platform, sixteen trans activists have systematized cases of violation of the human rights of trans people in: Argentina (by Nazarena Fleitas from ATTTA - Association of Transvestites, Transexuals and Transs of Argentina) Bolivia (by Moira Andrade from Bolivia Trans Network - Red Trebol) Chile (by Violeta Quezada from the Amanda Jofré Cerda Union) Costa Rica (by Janeth Valladares, Kerlyn Obando and Isamar Morales from Trans Vida) Ecuador (by Claudia Boada from ALFIL Association - Identities in Dialog) El Salvador (by Pamela Orellana from Solidary Associaton for Promoting Human Development - ASPIDH Arcoíris Trans) Guatemala (by Angela Romero from Reinas de la Noche Trans Organization - OTRANS-RN) Honduras (by Alondra Miranda from Collective Pink Color Unity - CUCR) Mexico (by Paty Betancourt from Association of Mexican Trans Women - AC) Nicaragua (by Yadira Gómez from Domestic Workers and Other Trans Occupations Union SITRADOVTRANS) Panama (by Venus Tejada from the Panamenian Association of Trans People - APPT) Paraguay (by Viky Acosta, Yren Rotela and Mariana Sepúlveda from Panambi Association) Peru (by Patty Albuquerque from Organization for The Human Rights of Trans People TRANS) Dominican Republic (by Cassandra Peralta and Katherine Lisbeth from Dominican Trans Sex Workers Community - COTRAVETD) Uruguay (by Nicole Casaravilla from Uruguay Trans Association - ATRU) Data collection, coordination, review, control, edition, design, schematization and proofreading: REDLACTRANS Regional Secretary Office Team March, 2022 This report has been possible thanks to the funds provided by the Robert Carr Fund and the support from German Government Funds through OUTRIGHT International.

REDLACTRANS is solely responsible for the contents of this report. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the financing institutions.

Contact Information

REDLACTRANS Marcela Romero, Regional Coordinator.

Regional Secretary Office in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

E-mail: info@redlactrans.org Web site: www.redlactrans.org Social media: @redlactrans in Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube.

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