Honduran LGBT Rights Activist Assassinated

Resistance member and LGBT activist Walter Trochez, 25, was killed in a drive-by shooting Sunday in downtown Tegucigalpa, Honduras's capital and largest city.

Trochez has been active in protesting the military coup that deposed President Jose Manuel Zelaya, and, according to journalist Doug Ireland, "had been very active recently in documenting and publicizing homophobic killings and crimes committed by the forces behind the coup, which is believed to have been the motive for his murder. He had been trailed for weeks before his murder by thugs believed to be members of the state security forces."

Two weeks earlier, while he was monitoring the treatment of transgender prostitutes working in the Comayaguela district, Trochez was captured by masked police and beaten until bloody, according to a Spanish-language website. He brought a complaint about the police action to City Hall, where he was mocked for his homosexuality. His complaint was accepted but no action was taken.

Also, according to sources, LGBT people have been confronted by police in various skirmishes recently. Two activists died after being shot in those confrontations.

Ireland's piece is here. Spanish-language reports from alternative news source Kaoslenlared.net are here.