Honduras: LGBT human rights defender beaten and assaulted in police custody
Donny Reyes is the Treasurer of Arcoiris, the Rainbow Association for Lesbians, Gays, Transvestites and Bisexuals in Honduras. He was arrested outside his office, taken into police custody, beaten and assaulted. No one has yet been charged.
Further Information
Posted 16/11/2007 On 18 March 2007, at 03.00AM, Donny Reyes was accompanying a female colleague to a taxi outside the Arcoiris offices. Six police officers approached and demanded ID papers. Donny Reyes showed them his identity card but they ordered him into the car. He refused. They beat him saying, “We have to clear these queers from here” and forced him into the car.At Comayagüela police station, Donny Reyes was put in a cell with 57 prisoners and a police officer reportedly said, “Look, I’ve brought you a little princess; you know what to do”.
The prisoners beat and stripped Donny Reyes. He was then gang raped by four men. In the morning the police officers offered the prisoners freedom for a bribe of 200 lempiras (US$10). Donny Reyes reported the incident to the Public Prosecutor’s office but to date there has been no progress and the principal witness has been the target of a recent assassination attempt.
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