Costa Rica  - IOM Costa Rica, working with the Center for Research on Women’s Issues of the University of Costa Rica, is this week bringing together government officials, academia and NGOs specializing in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) rights, and NGOs working with migrant population, to discuss the specific vulnerabilities faced by LBGT populations when they migrate.
 
The forum titled: Migration, Violence and Sexual Diversity: Challenges for Protection will encourage participants to discuss the current national and international judicial framework for the protection of the human rights of migrant LGBT populations, and work towards recommendations to public institutions as well as civil society working on migration and LGBT issues.
 
The number of women, unaccompanied minors, lesbians, gays and bisexuals and transgender migrants transiting through the Mesoamerican region has grown in the past decade. There is no specific data related to the number of LGBT migrants as there is no registry regarding migration and sexual preferences or identity.  But reports compiled by organizations working with LGBT populations in the region show an increase in hate crimes and violence towards persons that are sexually diverse.
 
“This important segment of the migrant population in our region is on the move under conditions of extreme vulnerability and face a higher risk of extortion, kidnapping, labour exploitation, human trafficking, sexual violence, HIV, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, gender-based violence and even death,” says Ana Hidalgo of IOM San José.
 
LGBT migrants have also reported being victims of physical violence and have been beaten and/or sexually assaulted as a form of punishment.  They also report suffering insults and humiliation and other types of abuse, simply because of their sexual orientation.
 
Governments in the region lack information and therefore provide inadequate responses to combat and eradicate these crimes, which lead to forced migration (either internally or across borders) of LGBT populations, usually through irregular channels.
 
In the country’s first dialogue on the subject, held last month and organized by IOM San José and the Inter-American Institute on Human Rights (IIDH), participants highlighted the need to make these dialogues a part of national and international public agendas and policies. They also stressed the importance of publicizing the services provided by specialized NGOs and institutions to LGBT migrants.

“Even though more and more social actors are advocating for migrant and LGBTI rights in the region, few studies and statistics corroborate the specific vulnerabilities and needs for protection and assistance of migrants that are part of the LGBT community,” notes Hidalgo.
 
Francia Michelle, 26, from Chinandega, Nicaragua is a transgender migrant; she explains how this made her more vulnerable to a series of risks and dangers based on social stigma and prejudice, including becoming a victim of human trafficking for domestic servitude.
 
“You have to be there to see and experience the look people give you when you hand in your identity card or passport.  When they realize that the picture, my picture, does not resemble my personal image, they stare at me and I become very nervous.  In some places, officials will even shout out my legal name to embarrass me,” she says.
 
Her story reflects the experience of many LGBT migrants who are forced to leave their countries because of persecution due to sexual orientation, and the obstacles they face when searching for employment.
 
After migrating within Central America, Michelle is back in Nicaragua, in her community of origin, working as an activist on LGBTI issues.  IOM helped her to reintegrate and she is now managing a small convenience store and is currently enrolled in English lessons.
 
IOM Nicaragua is working with a group of some 25 young LGBT migrants who left in search of better economic and social opportunities and have returned to their country.  The IOM project includes group discussions, individual psychosocial support sessions and assistance for reintegration into the local labor market.  So far, IOM Nicaragua has assisted six individuals who are successfully employed and reintegrated into their communities.
 
These activities are part of the IOM regional project "Protection and Assistance to Vulnerable Migrants in the Mesoamerica Region" funded by US Department of State Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM).  
 
For more information please contact

Carolina Urcuyo
IOM San José
Tel: + 506.22.12.5308
Email: curcuyo@iom.int