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In 2008, three police officers raped, beat, and illegally detained Luis Alberto Rojas Marín simply for being gay. After his case was dismissed by the judiciary in 2009, he appealed to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR). He had his hearing there this month. This is the first time the institution has accepted a case of torture against a person for being gay.

“Get in the car, you son of a bitch,” was the phrase that Luis Alberto Rojas Marín heard in the early morning of February 25, 2008, on the Industrial Highway in the district of Casa Grande, located in the province of Ascope, in the Libertad region of Peru.

Luis Alberto didn't know at that moment that those words would mark the beginning of a living hell. As he walked toward the hamlet where he lived with his family, a very bright light shone on him. He heard a car stop, and immediately afterward, the insults began. With the help of two municipal officers, policeman Luis Quispe Cáceres put Luis Alberto in a car and took him to the Casa Grande police station.

At the police station, two other officers (Juan Isaac León Mostacero and Dino Horacio Ponce Pardo) were waiting for him. They beat him and interrogated him, asking about his brother's whereabouts. Luis Alberto had no idea where his brother was or why they were looking for him.

"Do you like dick, faggot?" were the insults the three officers hurled at him. Luis Alberto was only 26 years old at the time, very thin, and no taller than 1.70 meters. They tore his underwear and, while grabbing his shoulder-length hair, began to sexually abuse him with a police baton.

What was his crime? Being a gay man. His arrest was arbitrary, illegal, and unjustified.

#IACHR Hearings Case of Luis Alberto Rojas Marín #Peru "The prosecutor told him: if you are homosexual, how am I supposed to believe that you were raped?"

— IACHR (@IACHR) December 1, 2016

 
Eight years after the events, Luis Alberto Rojas Marín feels he is one step closer to obtaining justice and reparations. After his case was dismissed by the Judiciary in 2009, he appealed to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).

His hearing was on Thursday, December 1st. It was the first time the IACHR had admitted a case of torture against a person for being homosexual.

The victim's lawyer, Brenda Álvarez, from the Center for the Promotion and Defense of Sexual and Reproductive Rights (Promsex), told Presentes that "( during the hearing ) it can be seen that the Peruvian State is building an argumentative line that focuses on considering that Luis Alberto did not exhaust the judicial avenues in the internal process in the search for justice."

In other words, the Peruvian State investigated the incident and, finding insufficient evidence, closed the case. From this perspective, the State did not violate any of its international obligations in the case of Luis Alberto Marín.

"Could it be that others raped you and you want to accuse the police?"

It should be noted that after the abuse, Luis Alberto went to the Ascope Prosecutor's Office. The response was just as humiliating as the beatings and insults he received from the police. “But you're gay. Could it be that others raped you and you want to accuse the police? If you're homosexual, how am I supposed to believe you? Besides, there are no laws for homosexuals,” Prosecutor Reina Elizabeth Ruiz Guio told him.

Since this is the first time this entity has received a complaint of this type from Peru, it is setting a precedent.

The rights recognized in the American Convention on Human Rights that are alleged to have been violated in the case of Luis Alberto are: the right to judicial guarantees, to due diligence in the investigation, to freedom and to privacy.

What comes after the hearing at the IACHR?

Luis Alberto's defense will have to submit its arguments in writing, and the IACHR will possibly issue its merits report in June 2017. This report is expected to acknowledge the State's responsibility for the abuses and torture committed against Rojas Marín and to include a series of recommendations and actions to be taken.

However, given Peru's position in this case, Brenda Álvarez believes it is most likely that they will propose an amicable settlement. This would not be the ideal way for Luis Alberto to receive the justice and reparations he needs. If the State does not accept its responsibilities, they will take the case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

“For us, this case is paradigmatic because it will allow the IACHR to clarify the obligation of due diligence that must be implemented in countries in relation to crimes committed against LGBTIQ people,” Álvarez told Presentes .

This case would not only restore Luis Alberto's right to reparations, but it could also set a precedent by promoting the design of special mechanisms to investigate crimes and offenses from a sexual diversity perspective. "Just as there is a gender perspective when examining cases of violence against women, crimes and attacks on the rights of LGBTQ+ people should also have one," Álvarez argues, adding that homophobia and stereotypes must be eliminated in access to justice.

Luis Alberto Rojas Marín is 34 years old today and raises and sells pigs. He still lives in the hamlet of Lache, in La Libertad. He is not currently in the best health, but he has made a remarkable recovery from the ordeal he experienced in 2008.

He hopes the State will acknowledge that he was raped as punishment for his sexual orientation, and that the State will believe him. He hopes the State will stop questioning his account and testimony. Luis Alberto expects justice and reparations.

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