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Tuesday, 21 October 2014
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  • JAMAICA: UNCHECKED HOMOPHOBIC VIOLENCE

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    (Kingston, October 21, 2014) – LGBT Jamaicans are vulnerable to both physical and sexual violence and many live in constant fear, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. They are taunted, threatened, fired from their jobs, thrown out of their homes, or worse: beaten, stoned, raped, or killed.
    The 86-page report, “Not Safe at Home: Violence and Discrimination Against LGBT People in Jamaica,” documents 56 cases of violence in which victims reported they were targeted because of their actual or perceived sexual identity. Human Rights Watch found that police investigations are often inadequate or lacking altogether, in some cases due to homophobia within the police force. Discriminatory laws contribute to the specific vulnerability of LGBT people. The Jamaican government should strike down antiquated “buggery laws” -- which outlaw anal sex and all male homosexual conduct -- and take measures to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Jamaicans from discrimination and violence.
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