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In Cameroon, two transgender women were gang raped naked on a street.
According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), an international human rights organization, on the 10th (local time), transgender Shaqro and Patricia were gang-raped in Douala, Cameroon’s economic capital, around 1 am on the 8th.
At the time, the assailants dragged the two people out of the taxi, swearing and threatening to kill them, and beat them for about 30 minutes until the police arrived. The video of the assault was also circulated on social network services (SNS).
HRW noted that the indiscriminate assault on Shaqro and Patricia occurred just weeks after they were released on parole by a court decision.
Previously, the two men were sentenced to five years in prison at the first trial in May after being put on trial under Cameroon’s prohibition of homosexuality, but were released last month ahead of an appeal.
Shakiro explained the situation at the time, saying, “I was kicked and beaten by several people while naked.”
Cameron’s transgender women Patricia and Shakiro. Reuters: Patricia and Shakiro.
The two have a male body, but their gender identity is transgender. They are said to have been arrested on the grounds that they were wearing women’s clothing.
LGBTI activists said that Cameroon’s homosexual punishment law fosters hatred of LGBTI people, and that the authorities ignore their responsibility to protect them and ignore hate speech and violence.
Meanwhile, according to the International Gay and Lesbian Association (ILGA), at the end of last year, 69 countries among UN member states penalize agreed-on homosexual acts. In six countries, including Brunei, Iran, Mauritania, Nigeria (12 northern states), Saudi Arabia and Yemen, the death penalty could be imposed for homosexual sexual activity.
By Kim Eun-bin, staff reporter kim.eunbin@joongang.co.kr
