Case history: Sherlyn Montoya
On 4 April 2017, LGBTI rights defender and transgender woman, Sherlyn Montoya, was found dead in the surroundings of Tegucigalpa and her body displayed signs of torture.
Sherlyn Montoya was a member of Asociación LGBT Arcoíris (LGBT Rainbow Association), an organisation which works on equality and justice for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) community in Honduras. The human rights defender was also a member of the Grupo de Mujeres Transexuales – Muñecas de Arcoíris (Transsexual Women’s Group – Rainbow’s Dolls), which is part of Arcoíris and is dedicated to promoting dialogue and advocacy for issues concerning transgender women.
On 4 April 2017, LGBTI rights defender and transgender woman, Sherlyn Montoya, was found dead in the surroundings of Tegucigalpa and her body displayed signs of torture.
Sherlyn Montoya was a member of Asociación LGBT Arcoíris (LGBT Rainbow Association), an organisation which works on equality and justice for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) community in Honduras. The human rights defender was also a member of the Grupo de Mujeres Transexuales – Muñecas de Arcoíris (Transsexual Women’s Group – Rainbow’s Dolls), which is part of Arcoíris and is dedicated to promoting dialogue and advocacy for issues concerning transgender women.
On 2 April 2017, Sherlyn Montoya went missing. She was last seen at approximately 9.00pm near a gas station in the surroundings of Tegucigalpa. On 4 April 2017, she was found dead near the place she went missing. The body of the human rights defender displayed signs of torture and the perpetrators are still unknown.
LGTBI rights defenders in Honduras are being subjected to increasing levels of violence. Since 2015, several LGTBI rights defenders working in the country have been killed; Juan Carlos Cruz Andara, Angie Ferreira, Violeta Rivas, Gloria Carolina Hernández Vásquez (also known as Génesis Hernández), Jorge Alberto Castillo and Paola Barraza, with several more suffering physical assault, intimidation and threats.
In November 2016, Front Line Defenders reported two assassination attempts against Dayanara Castillo and Jlo Córdoba who are also LGBTI rights defenders in Honduras. Killings and violence against members of the LGBTI community in Honduras continue to occur in spite of precautionary measures granted to many of them by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in 2013. Many members of Asociación LGBT Arcoíris, including its director, Donny Reyes, are also beneficiaries of precautionary measures granted by the IACHR.
According to Muñecas de Arcoíris, since 1994 there have been 269 killings of LGBTI people in Honduras, 97 of which were of transgender people. The precise number is impossible to determine due to social stigma, since families and public institutions often refrain from acknowledging or informing that these killings were motivated by the sexual orientation or gender identity of the victims.
Front Line Defenders strongly condemns the killing of Sherlyn Montoya, and expresses its concern at the climate of extreme violence facing defenders of LGTBI rights in Honduras.
Front Line Defenders urges the authorities in Honduras to:
1. Carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the killing of Sherlyn Montoya, with a view to publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards;
2. Take all necessary measures, in consultation with the LGBTI rights defenders or their representatives, to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity and security of all members of Asociación LGTB Arcoíris and other LGBTI organizations in Honduras;
3. Strongly condemn the killing of human rights defender Sherlyn Montoya;
4. Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Honduras are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.
