South America
New Peruvian president’s views on LGBTQ, intersex issues unclear
Dina Boluarte succeeded Pedro Castillo after self-coup, impeachment
It has been a volatile week in Peru.
The country has a new president, Dina Boluarte, after former President Pedro Castillo’s attempted self-coup. But since Boluarte was sworn in, unrest and violent protests have erupted and continued unabated around the country. Many are therefore wondering if Peru’s first female president will remain in office for much longer.
Castillo on Dec. 7 announced he was dissolving Congress.
Castillo made this announcement on the same day that Congress was scheduled to hold a vote on his impeachment. While it wasn’t clear if there were enough votes to impeach the embattled former president; Castillo was swiftly voted out of office after his announcement with 101 votes in favor, six against and 10 abstentions.
Boluarte, who was Castillo’s vice president, was immediately sworn in. She is Peru’s sixth president in five years, and her ascendance has come to signify the ongoing political instability that has become characteristic of the Andean nation.
Castillo supporters, mostly poor and indigenous Peruvians, have since taken to streets in every big city in Peru to demand Castillo’s reinstatement, Congress’ dissolution and new elections. These protests have led to violent clashes with police that have left at least seven dead and dozens more injured.
Lima’s Pride March Collective, composed of many of the city’s LGBTQ and intersex organizations, has released a statement condemning “excessive force” by Peruvian police against protesters. The statement also calls for dialogue between the Executive Branch and civil and political leaders of the protests.
Despite Boluarte being a former member of Castillo’s government, she is viewed as a traitor among Castillo supporters. Hashtags such as #DinaRenunciaYa and #DinaAsesina have been trending on Twitter, the latter hashtag accusing the president of being responsible for the death of the protesters.
Castillo, meanwhile, who is currently being held by police, is calling his detention a “kidnapping” and is accusing Boluarte of being a “usurper.” He is not alone in not recognizing the new president. The governments of Mexico, Bolivia, Argentina and Colombia have all come out in support of Castillo and have refused to recognize Boluarte as Peru’s new president.
In response to the ongoing protests, Boluarte proposed moving up the next general election to April 2024. It was previously scheduled for 2026. But protesters are not satisfied and demonstrations across the country have not ceased as of Wednesday. Boluarte’s government as a result has declared a 30-day state of emergency for the entire country.
Promsex, one of Peru’s most prominent LGBTQ and intersex rights groups, addressed Peru’s new president in a statement posted to Twitter.
“We demand that the Executive Branch guarantee the safety of all people, including that of law enforcement personnel, and that there be no more deaths in the democratic and legitimate exercise of the right to protest,” said Promsex.
Castillo, who took office in July 2021, during his campaign expressed his opposition to marriage rights for same-sex couples. Castillo further stressed that LGBTQ and intersex issues would not be “a priority” for his government.
Congressman Guido Bellindo, an indigenous man who was briefly a member of Castillo’s Cabinet, in a 2019 Facebook post praised former Cuban President Fidel Castro and specifically his 1963 comments in which he said “the (Cuban) revolution does not need hairdressers and work will make them men. The ‘new man’ cannot be a faggot. The socialist society cannot allow this type of degenerates.”
For now, it seems that Boluarte will remain in power. Little is known, however, about the former vice president and many of her political stances. Boluarte, however, differs from both Castillo and Peru Libre, the political party from which she and the former president were both elected.
Boluarte has said she is against “a generalized nationalization of the economy and government intervention in the media.” She has also previously commented that although she is a leftist, she strives not to be sectarian or totalitarian.
Boluarte’s views on most social issues, let alone LGBTQ and intersex rights, are also unknown. This lack of clarity has led some activists to worry.
Boluarte in 2020 had an altercation with Marina Kapoor, a transgender activist.
Kapoor says Boluarte repeatedly called her “sir” and referred to her using male pronouns. In 2021, when Boluarte was appointed Social Development and Inclusion Minister, Kapoor came forward with the allegations of this mistreatment by saying: “If you say, Mrs. Boluarte, that you are going to defend women … what did you do with me then, did you not violate me?”
Boluarte has never apologized for the incident.
Colombia
Colombia anunció la inclusión de las categorías ‘trans’ y ‘no binario’ en los documentos de identidad
Registraduría Nacional anunció el cambio el 28 de noviembre
Ahora los ciudadanos colombianos podrán seleccionar las categorías ‘trans’ y ‘no binario’ en los documentos de identidad del país.
Este viernes la Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil anunció que añadió las categorías ‘no binario’ y ‘trans’ en los distintos documentos de identidad con el fin de garantizar los derechos de las personas con identidad diversa.
El registrador nacional, Hernán Penagos, informó que hizo la inclusión de estas dos categorías en los documentos de: registro civil, tarjeta de identidad y cédula de ciudadanía.
Según la registraduría: “La inclusión de estas categorías representa un importante avance en materia de garantía de derechos de las personas con identidad de género diversa”.
Estas categorías estarán en el campo de ‘sexo’ en el que están normalmente las clasificaciones de ‘femenino’ y ‘masculino’ en los documentos de identidad.
En 2024 se inició la ejecución de diferentes acciones orientadas implementar componentes “‘NB’ y ‘T’ en el campo ‘sexo’ de los registros civiles y los documentos de identidad”.
Las personas trans existen y su identidad de género es un aspecto fundamental de su humanidad, reconocido por la Corte Constitucional de Colombia en sentencias como T-236/2023 y T-188/2024, que protegen sus derechos a la identidad y no discriminación. La actualización de la Registraduría implementa estos fallos que ya habían ordenado esos cambios en documentos de identidad.
Por su parte, el registrador nacional, Penagos, comentó que: “se trata del cumplimiento de unas órdenes por parte de la Corte Constitucional y, en segundo lugar, de una iniciativa en la que la Registraduría ha estado absolutamente comprometida”. Y explicó que en cada “una de las estaciones integradas de servicio de las más de 1.200 oficinas que tiene la Registraduría Nacional se va a incluir todo este proceso”.
Brazil
Black transgender singer from Brazil wins three Latin Grammy Awards
Liniker performed at Las Vegas ceremony
A Black transgender singer and songwriter from Brazil on Nov. 13 won three Latin Grammy Awards.
Liniker, who is from Araraquara, a city in São Paulo State, won for Best Portuguese Language Song for her song “Veludo Marrom,” Best Portuguese-Language Urban Performance for her song “Caju” from her sophomore album of the same title, and Best Portuguese Language Contemporary Pop Album for “Caju.”
She accepted the awards during the Latin Grammy Awards ceremony that took place in Las Vegas. Liniker also performed.
“I’ve been writing since I was 16. And writing, and poetry, have been my greatest form of existence. It’s where I find myself; where I celebrate so many things I experience,” said Liniker as she accepted her first Latin Grammy on Nov. 13. “And being a composer … Being a trans composer in Brazil — a country that kills us — is extremely difficult.”
Liniker in 2022 became the first openly trans woman to win a Latin Grammy.
Chile
Chilean presidential election outcome to determine future of LGBTQ rights in country
Far-right candidate José Antonio Kast favored to win Dec. 14 runoff.
The results of Chile’s presidential election will likely determine the future of LGBTQ rights in the country.
While Congresswoman Emilia Schneider, the first transgender woman elected to Congress, managed to retain her seat on Sunday, the runoff to determine who will succeed outgoing President Gabriel Boric will take place on Dec. 14 and will pit two diametrically opposed candidates against each other: the far-right José Antonio Kast and Communist Jeannette Jara.
Schneider, an emblematic figure in the LGBTQ rights movement and one of the most visible voices on trans rights in Latin America, won reelection in a polarized environment. Human rights organizations see her continued presence in Congress as a necessary institutional counterweight to the risks that could arise if the far-right comes to power.
Kast v. Jara
The presidential race has become a source of concern for LGBTQ groups in Chile and international observers.
Kast, leader of the Republican Party, has openly expressed his rejection of gender policies, comprehensive sex education, and reforms to anti-discrimination laws.
Throughout his career, he has supported conservative positions aligned with sectors that question LGBTQ rights through rhetoric that activists describe as stigmatizing. Observers say his victory in the second-round of the presidential election that will take place on Dec. 14 could result in regulatory and cultural setbacks.
Jara, who is the presidential candidate for the progressive Unidad por Chile coalition, on the other hand has publicly upheld her commitment to equal rights. She has promised to strengthen mechanisms against discrimination, expand health policies for trans people, and ensure state protection against hate speech.
For Schneider, this new legislative period is shaping up to be a political and symbolic challenge.
Her work has focused on combating gender violence, promoting reform of the Zamudio Law, the country’s LGBTQ-inclusive nondiscrimination and hate crimes law named after Daniel Zamudio, a gay man murdered in Santiago, the Chilean capital, in 2012, and denouncing transphobic rhetoric in Congress and elsewhere.
Schneider’s continued presence in Congress is a sign of continuity in the defense of recently won rights, but also a reminder of the fragility of those advances in a country where ideological tensions have intensified.
LGBTQ organizations point out that Schneider will be key to forging legislative alliances in a potentially divided Congress, especially if Kast consolidates conservative support.
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