Out Spotlight CVXIX

Today's Out Spotlight is well known Honduran gay rights activist Walter Tróchez. He had been active recently in documenting and publicizing homophobic killings in the troubled Central American country that was his homeland.

A member of the National Resistance Front that was against the coup d'etat that forced President Manuel Zelaya out of office on 28 June 2009, he documented and publicized homophobic killings and crimes committed by the forces behind the coup d'etat. He was already known for his human rights work with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in Honduras.

His work included dissemination of information about human rights in Honduras, reported on the human rights of LGBT people during the coup, and advocated for HIV/AIDS prevention and combating religious fundamentalism.

Like others in Honduras, he faced significant abuse for his political and human rights activism and his sexual orientation, which escalated after the coup. On July 20, 2009, he was detained by authorities for participating in a peaceful, sit-down protest across from the Congress of the Republic. During his detention, he was brutally beaten and denigrated because of his sexual orientation

In an open letter written in November, Trochez sharply criticized the anti-gay "crimes promoted by the Honduran religious hierarchy in collusion with oppressive groups such as the Armed Forces, the National Security Secretariat, private enterprise, pro-life groups, and Opus Dei."

He told Amnesty International he had escaped a kidnapping attempt on December 4,2009 after suffering several hours of beatings and threats by masked men after he participated in a march against the coup. They had interrogated him about individuals opposed to the de facto authorities who seized power following the 28 June coup d'état.

He was reportedly harassed and threatened frequently by police and soldiers because of his anti-coup activism on behalf of the LGBT community. He had been trailed for months by thugs believed to be members of the state security forces.

During his kidnapping, four armed men forced Trochez into their van before repeatedly beating him in the face with a pistol butt and threatening that "even if you give us the information we're going to kill you, we have orders to kill you".
After finally managing to open the van door, he fell out on the street and ran into a deserted wasteland where he hid until his captors drove off

Trouchez was assassinated days later on December 13, 2009 in a drive-by shooting in downtown while walking home through the center of Tegucigalpa, Honduras's capital and largest city. According to sources, he was shot in the chest by a gunman and taken to hospital where he later died.

Walter Trochez was 27 years old.

"Amnesty International's fears that Walter's killing may be a sign of worse abuses to come in the athmosphere of political instability and fear that has prevailed since the copu d'état in June," said Amensty spokesperson Kerrie Howard. "Walter's killers must be brought to justice, and the de facto authorities must ensure all reports of reprisals against protestors and campaigners are fully investigated and subject to the full weight of the law."

"As a revolutionary I will be today, tomorrow and forever in the first ranks of my people, all the while knowing that I may lose my life." Walter Trochez, November 16,2009


Those killed since the coup include:

1.Vicky Hernández Castillo, transgender, June 29, 2009
2.Valeria, (Darwin Joya), transgender, June 30, 2009
3.Martina Jackson (Martín Jackson), transgender, June 30, 2009
4.Fabio Adalberto Aguilera Zamora, gay, July 4, 2009
5.Héctor Emilio Maradiaga Snaider, gay, August 9, 2009
6.Michelle Torres, (Milton Torres), transgender, August 30, 2009
7.Enrique Andrés García Nolasco, gay, September 2, 2009
8.Jorge Samuel Miranda Mata (Salome), transgender, September 20, 2009
9.Carlos Reynieri Salmerón (Sadya), transgender, September 20, 2009
10.Marión Lanza, transgender, October 9, 2009
11.Montserrat Maradiaga (Elder Noe Maradiaga), transgender, October 10, 2009
12.Juan Carlos Zelaya, transgender, October 26, 2009
13.Rigoberto Wilson Carrasco, transgender, November 2, 2009
14.José Luís Salandía, gay, November 2, 2009
15.Anonymous man, gay, November 4, 2009
16.Walter Tróchez, gay, December 13, 2009