1. Laws covering sexual activity
| Same-gender sex: |
|---|
| males | Legal |
females | Legal |
|---|
| Age of consent: |
|---|
| males | |
females | |
|---|
| straight | |
|---|
"The constitution of Mexico grants its citizens individual freedom in all respects that do not transgress the rights of others. On the other hand, every state has its own penal code that establishes which behaviours amount to criminal offences and sets the punishment for them. None of the state penal codes considers homosexual conduct in itself a criminal offence. A noticeable exception occurs in the penal code of the Federal District (site of Mexico City), in which, in Article 201, imprisonment of 3 - 8 years applies to anyone "who facilitates or procures the corruption of a minor under 18 years of age... [by] inducing to the practice of begging, alcoholism........to the practice of prostitution, homosexualism..." (Penal Code 1995). [NB: the discriminatory elements of Article 201 were repealed in December 1998 - see below]
Even though, apart from this exception, homosexuality does not feature in the criminal law, the larger cities have bylaws and police rulings that are frequently used by corrupt officers to prey upon homosexuals. For instance, these rulings give police the right to "arrest anyone who behaves and uses language that contravenes public decency" or "anyone who makes gestures that are offensive to other people..... who disturbs public order... who invites, permits or engages in prostitution or carnal commerce" (Asamblea de Representantes). The main factor that determines the decision to arrest is the judgement of uneducated, under paid, and corrupt policemen. Anything they choose can be used by police officers to arrest someone, especially a "gay attitude". Their real purpose is to threaten, blackmail, and finally obtain money for letting the gay man go free."
"In contrast to the attitudes of the authorities towards male homosexuality, in general, an absolute silence is preserved regarding lesbianism"
(Juan Luis Alvarez-Gayou Jurgenson - Chapter on Mexico in "Sociolegal Control of Homosexuality").
Guadalajara Mayor Seemingly Bans Gays: 23-Apr-97 "Although gay sex is legal in Mexico, Guadalajara Mayor Cesar Coll Carabias recently issued a new police code punishing "practices implying a deviant sex life" with a fine of 21-30 days’ minimum wage or 25-36 hours in jail. An identical fine was established for people "offending public morality or practicing obscene exhibitionism in public places." Coll is a member of Mexico’s least gay-friendly party, the National Action Party, or PAN." (RW/2726)
MEXICO REPEALS LAST ANTI-GAY LAW: Mexico’s Chamber of Deputies voted 473 to 0 with two abstentions Dec. 12 to delete a Penal Code paragraph that made "homosexualism" an aggravating factor in the corruption of minors.
The word was replaced with the phrase "sexual practices" thus placing heterosexual and homosexual corruption on equal footing.
Legislators also added a paragraph specifying that education about sexuality or sexually transmitted diseases cannot be considered as corruption of minors.
"With this achievement, Mexico eliminates the last vestiges of discrimination based on sexual orientation from its legal framework," said lesbian Congresswoman Patria Jimenez, for whom reform of the law had been a pet project. "We consider this a triumph that fills us all with pride." (RW#244 - Dec 28, 1998) (See "Mexico: Urgent Action On Penal Law Reform" for more background on this success). |
3. Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Vilification Legislation
NO SATISFACTION FOR BANNED LESBIANS: "26-Jun-96: Two lesbians who were removed from a Mexicana Airlines flight in Guadalajara for holding hands are unhappy with Mexicana’s response to their complaints. In a letter to the Oakland, Calif., couple, Mexicana spokesperson Reni Soukup said another passenger had complained that "the intimacy shown was not appropriate for public conveyance" and that the captain had a responsibility to secure the aircraft and assure the comfort and security of all the passengers." (RW/2348)
Mexico City’s Legislative Assembly banned discrimination against gays Sept. 2:
Beginning Oct. 1, Penal Code Article 281 will prohibit discrimination "based on age, sex, pregnancy, marital status, race, language, religion, ideology, sexual orientation, skin color, nationality, social origin or position, work or profession, economic status, physical features or health."
The penalty for violation of the law will be one to three years in prison and/or a fine equal to 50 to 200 days’ salary and/or 25 to 100 days of community service.
The law prohibits provocation or incitement of hate or violence, and bans bias in employment and public accommodations and services. "With this article the rights of vulnerable groups are recognized as they have been in the most democratically advanced nations," said city councillor David Sanchez Camacho. (INTERNATIONAL NEWS #281 - Sep 13, 1999 © Rex Wockner) |
6. Parenting
7. Asylum
| Three gay men are known to have been granted asylum in 1994/6 by Canada (1) and the US (2) (IGLHRC AP) |
9. Street Violence, "Social Cleansing", Police Harassment, etc
1992: "On August 10, a 22-year-old gay activist became the latest victim in a wave of anti-gay violence in the state of Chiapas in southern Mexico. Martin Balesca Dominguez was severely beaten and stabbed many times by unidentified attackers, who left him for dead near the town of Arriaga. The victim, a member of the AIDS organisation Piscis de Arriaga, is in critical condition in a local hospital, according to the latest information from Colectivo Sol, Mexico's largest lesbian and gay group.
A dozen other gay men and nine prostitutes have been assassinated in Chiapas in the past year, most of them shot with high calibre weapons. None of the cases has yet been solved by local police, who consider these murders to be crimes of passion or vengeance within the gay community, despite clear signs of professional marksmanship and the striking similarity among the cases. Local gay leaders report increased harassment by police as a result of the publicity surrounding the violence.
Violence against homosexuals and transvestites has been rampant in other parts of Mexico as well. On June 18, a young transvestite was beaten to death on the streets of Oaxaca. Three gay men were murdered in Mexico City on July 13, including Dr. Francisco Estrada, founder and president of Grupo Ave de Mexico, an AIDS prevention organization. And two gay men were found bound and shot to death in Guadalajara on August 9. The response of the Mexican government has been to set up a special investigative commission, but local police are still detaining, and apparently seeking to place the blame upon gay men that the gay community are convinced are quite unconnected with the crimes." (IGLHRC)
Gay leader assassinated: "on Feb. 6 1993 Neftali Ruiz became the latest victim in a wave of anti-gay violence in the state of Chiapas in southern Mexico. Ruiz was murdered in the town of Tuxtla Gutierrez when an unknown person in a moving vehicle fired two bullets using a high calibre weapon that struck him. The murder is regarded by the gay and lesbian community in Mexico as an assassination as Ruiz had been a public figure involved in demanding police investigation into prior murders of gay men, and was himself a witness to one of the murders." (IGLHRC urgent action—ILGA bulletin 2/93)
25 Feb 1994: Former Policeman Arrested & Charged with Murder of Transvestites: "Ignacio Flores Montiel, former coordinator of police forces for the State of Chiapas, was arrested on January 26 and accused of trafficking arms, kidnapping, and murder. According to reports published in Mexican newspapers, gay men and transvestites were among Flore Montiel’s numerous victims. The Mexico City based Circulo Cultural Gay (CCG)(Gay Cultural Circle) has long suspected him of directing some of the brutal murders in Chiapas, most of them carried out with the high caliber bullets used by the police." (IGLHRC Press Release)
April 7, 1994 : Governor of Chiapas Bows to Gay Pressure—Reopens Investigation Into Murders: "Representatives from Lesbian and Gay groups attended a series of meetings this week with Mexican officials in order to pressure them to move forcibly towards solving a series of murders of transvestites in Mexico’s southern state of Chiaspas. The two days worth of meetings ended yesterday that the Governor of Chiaspas would would appoint Jorge Gamboa, a private attorney based in Tuxtla Guiterrez, as independent investigator charged with reopening the cases.
The meetings with the governor and state attorney of Chiapas were organized by the Mexico City based Circulo Cultural Gay and attended by representatives of the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and the International Lesbian & Gay Association (ILGA). Circulo Cultural Gay has been investigating the assassinations of at least 15, and possibly as many as 25, transvestites and gay men. The killings happened between June of 1991 and February of 1993, most of them in Tuxtla Guiterrez. Many of the victims were killed with the same high caliber bullets used by the police, their bodies sometimes showing signs of torture." (IGLHRC press release)
18 Jun 94: "Anti-Gay Violence in Sinaloa, Mexico: Activists from Tranvestis de Culiacan have documented a disturbing pattern of violence against gay men and transvestites in the Mexican State of Sinaloa.....
Twelve gay men were killed in 1992. The majority of these crimes remain unsolved. Many of the victims were severely beaten or stabbed repeatedly. In some cases the murders were linked to robberies or extortion campaigns, but often there was no readily identifiable motive for the crime. Although Tranvestis de Culiacan [the group which documented the murders] report only one murder in 1993, the group has already documented four murders during 1994. IGLHRC has also been given credible evidence documenting a series of raids on the private homes of transvestites. The raids are conducted without appropriate arrest or serach warrants. The language and attitude of the police officers suggest that the raids are meant to harass the transvestites in retaliation for their public protests over police misconduct. Of further concern to IGLHRC is testimony that transvestites detained by the police are sometimes subject to forced HIV testing. In one especially troubling raid, fourteen transvestites were detained for several days and forced to take HIV antibody tests. They were never given the results. (IGLHRC press release)
MEXICAN COMMISSION BLASTS INVESTIGATION OF MURDERS: 06-Oct-94: "In July 1992 five gay men were murdered in Mexico City: Rene de la Torre Gonzalez, Javier Rivero Melendez, Francisco Palomera Pimentel, Nicolas Amerena Lagunes and Francisco Estrada Valle. Valle was the leader of the AIDS-education group AVE de Mexico. Last month, Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission denounced the investigation of the killings as negligent, recommended investigators be disciplined, and called for a new investigation." (RW/917)
Police launch wave of repression in Chihuahua: "gay men and transvestites in Chihuahua began to suffer an intense campaign of harassment and repression beginning sometime in October 1994... Groups operating in Chihuahua have documented a wide range of rights violations conducted by law enforcement officers. These rights violations included verbal harassment, threats, physical attacks, beatings, mass police sweeps (including raids on bars and private homes), extortion, property damage, arbitrary arrests, illegal detentions and torture while in custody. (IGLHRC ERN—ILGA bulletin 2/95 p. 15)
GAY MEXICAN POLITICIAN MURDERED: 25-Jun-97: "Delfino Martinez Galvez, openly gay head of Mexico’s Green Ecology Party, was found shot dead June 16 in a bathtub at his party’s offices in Ometepec, Guerrero, NewsPlanet reported. The World Wide Web site said police have not identified any motive or suspects in the case." (RW/2831)
POLICE ABUSE TIJUANA TRANSVESTITES: 09-Mar-98: "Transvestites and transsexuals in Tijuana, Mexico, are under renewed assault from the city police department’s Special Forces, reports the local newspaper Frontera Gay. The paper cited "constant arrests of young men dressed as women or simply wearing makeup, abuse during arrest, two and three hours trips [around the city] in police vehicles, body searches that include ripping off clothes, insults, and sexual harassment for the enjoyment and diversion of the officers. They hunt [transgendered people] like rabbits, on the sidewalks in front of nightclubs and on the streets of the city," the paper said. Those taken into custody are charged with offenses to public morality, prostitution, drug possession or theft.
"These abuses signal the ominous intention of the police to divide gays into ‘acceptable’ and ‘unacceptable,’ ‘discreet’ and ‘shameless,’ with prejudice against the most vulnerable groups within the community," Frontera Gay said.
"Veronica," a drag performer at the club Noa Noa, has been arrested three times in six months. The most recent time, she was driven around the city for three hours then taken to the Special Forces headquarters on International Avenue and ordered to strip "so we can check that you don’t have drugs hidden up there." The officers proceeded to slap her rear and paw her face and chest, Frontera Gay said. One officer ordered her, "Dance so we can see how good you are in your show." Finally, they told her, "If you suck us off, we’ll let you go and won’t take you before the judge."
Veronica refused and was convicted of "scandal in the public way." She opted for a 350 peso fine ($42) rather than 36 hours in jail, and was released. Numerous other transvestites interviewed by Frontera Gay related nearly identical stories. Tijuana is located 15 miles south of downtown San Diego, Calif. (RW/3043)
POLICE RAID MEXICAN GAY BAR: City police raided the gay bar Tare in Mexicali, Mexico, Dec. 11 and insulted, beat and jailed 14 patrons, according to activists.
The police said neighbors had complained that the patrons were drinking in the street—a charge the customers deny. The men were released after the owner of the bar paid a hefty 3,800 peso (US$389) fine on their behalf. The Mexicali Gay Pride Committee denounced the raid and warned: "In earlier times, the Mexicali gay/lesbian community was disorganized and accepted arbitrary police abuse but now it’s very different—we are organized and we say, ‘Enough!’ "We will not accept any more violations of our human rights, we will not accept city regulations that impede our organizing conferences and social events, and we will not accept that city or state police officers continue harassing us in our meeting places."
(RW/243 - Dec 21, 1998)
ANTI-GAY CRIMES UP IN MEXICO: "At least 164 homosexuals were murdered in Mexico because of their sexual orientation between 1995 and 1998, the Citizens’ Commission Against Homophobic Hate Crimes reported July 28. The actual number of killings may be three times higher than what has been documented, said Carlos Monsiviais, co-author of a report that was delivered to the Mexico City Human Rights Commission. In three of the 1998 murders the victims were castrated, the report said. Anti-gay crimes are rarely solved because of societal homophobia, Monsiviais said. He also blamed the Catholic Church and right-wing organizations for fomenting anti-gay hatred. "More than anything else, these hate crimes are characterized by society’s complete indifference," Monsiviais said. (International News #275 - Aug 02, 1999 © Rex Wockner) |
10. HIV/AIDS Human Rights Issues
MEXICO TO DOCUMENT DISCRIMINATION: 22-Sep-94: "Mexico’s National Commission on Human Rights has established a task force to document violations of the rights of people with HIV and AIDS. "They gave us two weeks to document all the cases in Tijuana," activist Emilio Velasquez said last week. "It’s illegal to discriminate against HIV-positives but in fact there are no fines or sanctions, so I hope a result of this will be that they institute sanctions." (RW/898)
MEXICAN GOVERNMENT REACHES OUT TO GAY AIDS GROUPS: 20-Oct-94: "The Mexican government hosted a skills-building conference for 48 non-governmental AIDS organizations Oct. 3-5 in Mexico City. Gay-community-based AIDS leaders from most of Mexico’s 31 states attended."They (the National AIDS Commission, CONASIDA) used to think they were not obligated to support NGOs," said Jose Navarro of AIDS Project Tijuana. "It’s well-known that the NGOs in Mexico do a better job than the government agencies, which are just overpaid bureaucrats. "But finally they are reaching out," Navarro said. "The meetings had mostly to do with strengthening our organizations. We had to pay our plane fare but CONASIDA paid everything else." (RW/936)
MEXICAN CATHOLIC CHURCH LAUNCHES ANTI-CONDOM CAMPAIGN: 17-Sep-97: "Mexican Catholic leaders have launched an aggressive anti-condom campaign in response to a pro-condom ad blitz by the government. Church officials are claiming that condoms have a "40 percent failure rate" and have threatened to sue Health Secretary Juan Ramon de la Fuente and the national anti-AIDS committee, CONASIDA, which produced the ads. Mexico City Archbishop Norberto Rivera is demanding that condom packets be labeled: "This product may be hazardous to your health." The government ads are appearing on billboards, subway cars, radio and television." (RW/2879) |
|
The Americas
©2010 Blakout Networks. All Rights Reserved. Terms & Privacy.
![[ Google! Maps ]](/images/maps_res_logo.gif "[ Google! Maps ]"){kind=logo}
