WASHINGTON In response to continued violence against the Honduran LGBT community, Congressman Jared Polis and LGBT leaders and supporters in Congress June 26 wrote to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urging the State Department to press the Honduran government to investigate and resolve these crimes.
It also requests detailed information about the steps being taken to resolve cases, such as that of Walter Trochez, a prominent LGBT activist and opponent of the 2009 coup who was murdered in a drive-by shooting in December 2009.
The text of the letter follows:
June 26, 2012
The Honorable Hillary Clinton
Secretary of State
Department of State
Washington, D.C. 20520
Dear Madam Secretary,
We write to express our concern regarding the recent increase in violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals in Honduras. We have long supported your efforts to respond to human rights violations and abuses of LGBT persons around the world. As you have said, "this effort is one of the most urgent and important human rights struggles of all times." It appears, however, that our efforts in Honduras are failing.
Honduras is currently experiencing institutional breakdown, widespread drug trafficking, and judicial impunity, which have led to unprecedented levels of criminal violence. Of particular concern are recent reports which have indicated that members of the LGBT community have increasingly been victims of violent hate crimes. Therefore, we would like to know what steps you are taking to ensure that this violence will end, and what steps you are taking to ensure that the government of Honduras successfully resolves the cases of murdered LGBT individuals.
As the State Department's 2011 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices reported, the Honduran law enforcement has been complicit in human rights abuses. The report states that "the Honduran police force had deep-seated and unaddressed corruption problems, and police officers targeted vulnerable persons, including LGBT people." These problems persist. According to human rights organizations in Honduras, 70 LGBT Hondurans have been murdered since the June 2009 coup. Many of these cases have not been effectively investigated and remain unsolved. For example the report cites the case of Walter Trochez, which has been unresolved since 2009. The fact that these crimes continue to occur with impunity leads us to question whether the government of Honduras has the will or the ability to bring these perpetrators to justice.
Therefore, we call on you to urge the government of Honduras to take immediate steps to investigate and resolve these crimes. Given the level of U.S. support and assistance for the Honduran government, it is vital that we ensure they protect the human rights of all their citizens, especially vulnerable populations like the LGBT community.
In addition, we would like detailed information about the steps being taken to resolve cases like Walter Trochez's. While we understand that the State Department has offered to aid the Special Victims Task Forcewhich was intended to bring to justice the perpetrators of these cases of egregious violence against the LGBT community in Hondurastargeted violence continues unabated. Just last month another national LGBT leader, Erick Mart�nez �vila was beaten and strangled to death. Mr. Mart�nez �vila was a radio journalist and the first ever openly gay candidate to run for Congress in Honduras.
Finally, we request information about the ten LGBT murder cases that U.S. investigative and prosecutorial advisors helped the Special Victims Unit close. It is essential to know the names of the victims whose cases have been closed, and the outcome in each case, in order to ensure accountability for the resources the U.S. has allocated for the Special Victims Unit and for the Honduran LGBT community to know that these cases are being effectively prosecuted with U.S. assistance.
Given the pervasive threat facing LGBT persons in Honduras we urge you to respond with haste, so that together we can measure of the effectiveness of the government of Honduras in bringing accountability for the murders of LGBT Hondurans. This will help to guarantee that President Obama's directive to ensure all U.S. government agencies engaged overseas "respond swiftly to abuses against LGBT persons" is rigorously implemented.
Sincerely,
Jared Polis (D-CO), Barney Frank (D-MA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), David Cicilline (D-RI), Howard Berman (D-CA), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), John Conyers (D-MI), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Adam B. Schiff (D-CA), Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), Nydia M. Vel�zquez (D-NY), Ra�l Grijalva, Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), Dennis J. Kucinich (D-OH), Jim Moran (D-VA), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Michael Honda (D-CA), Edolphus Towns (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. (D-IL), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL), Sam Farr (D-CA), Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Henry A. Waxman (D-CA), Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. (D-GA), Fortney "Pete" Stark (D-CA), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), John Yarmuth (D-KY), Jackie Speier (D-CA), Gwen S. Moore (D-WI), George Miller (D-CA), Jim McDermott (D-WA), Russ Carnahan (D-MO), Bob Filner (D-CA), Michael E. Capuano (D-MA), Steven R. Rothman (D-NJ, Maxine Waters (D-CA), William R. Keating (D-MA), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Steve Israel (D-NY), Anna G. Eshoo (D-CA), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Jim Langevin (D-RI), Hansen Clarke (D-MI), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT), Janice Hahn (D-CA), Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Peter Welch (D-VT), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Sander Levin (D-MI), John Garamendi (D-CA), Charles B. Rangel (D-NY), Jim Himes (D-CT), John Lewis (D-GA), Betty McCollum (D-MI), Judy Chu (D-CA), Brian Higgins (D-NY), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), John Olver (D-MA), Wm. Lacy Clay (D-MO), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Laura Richardson (D-CA), Linda T. S�nchez (D-CA), Mike Doyle (D-PA), Lois Capps (D-CA), Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Brad Sherman (D-CA), John F. Tierney (D-MA), Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Eliot L. Engel (D-NY), Ed Markey (D-MA), Chaka Fattah (D-PA), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Bobby L. Rush (D-IL), Danny K. Davis (D-IL), and Donna F. Edwards (D-MD).