Case History: Francisco Mencia

On 11 October 2015, sometime before midnight, human rights lawyer Mr Francisco Mencia was attacked close to his home in Tegucigalpa and left for dead.The attack comes in the context of an extremely violent and repressive situation for defenders of LGBTI rights in Honduras.

Francisco Mencia is a human rights lawyer and defender of the LGBTI community in Honduras. He is a legal advisor to the Asociación por una Vida Mejor - APUVIMEH (Association for a Better Life), a human rights organisation which works with the LGBTI community and those affected by HIV/AIDS in Honduras. Two members of APUVIMEH were killed in September 2015 due to their human rights work.

Francisco Mencia has previously been subjected to death threats and had been raising funds to move house owing to these threats. On the night of 11 October 2015, he was attacked in such a violent manner that his colleagues have said that the motivation behind the attack was probably to kill him.

This attack is, sadly, only the latest in a long line of extreme violence against LGBTI rights defenders in Honduras. Front Line Defenders issued urgent appeals on the killings of five LGBTI rights defenders since 23 June 2015, as well on attacks and attempted killings. Front Line Defenders calls on Honduran authorities to take immediate and drastic action in order to protect the lives of LGBTI rights defenders in the country.