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News > Peru

Peru Locks up Trans Women in Sex Crime Wards, Report Says

  • A sign reads,

    A sign reads, "Trans people are not dangerous, they are in danger," during a protest in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, May 5, 2020. | Photo: Twitter/ @jorgeapolaya

Published 20 October 2020
Opinion

Peru's National Penitentiary Institute considers trans people and gays to be sexually depraved.

A report revealed that in one of the most dangerous and overcrowded prisons in Peru, trans women are confined to the wards of those who commit sexual crimes.

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The report 'Living the Days: Situation of the female transgender population in Lurigancho Prison' revealed that most of the transgender women held in this dangerous prison were charged with theft. 

However, they are confined to 'Ward 3', which is destined for rapists, pedophiles, and stalkers. Gay men are also locked up in that pavilion.

"Peru's National Penitentiary Institute (INPE) considers trans people and gays to be sexually depraved," trans researcher and activist Gianna Camacho condemned.

"Trans women are not safe. They are forced to strip naked in front of everyone because neither the bathroom nor the showers have doors," she added.

Forty percent of the trans women interviewed said they had suffered physical violence from other inmates. In the Lurigancho Prison, the authorities lock up the country's most dangerous criminals, the poorest convicts, and inmates who have no family or lawyer.

"Peru could not confront its 20 years of neoliberalism that impedes security and access to rights for all its citizens," explained the report made by the 'Unicxs Project' and the Cayetano Heredia University.

While trans women have all been able to access health services, they argue that the care they receive tends to be very bad. Besides, given that there is no mental health services, they suffer from mood swings and depressions.

The research should have covered three prisons in the country but it had to be reduced to the Lurigancho Prison because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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