The transfemicide of Aylín Hernández in Chiapas: calls for investigation as gender-based violence

Aylin Hernández Gómez was a 34-year-old trans woman. She was found murdered in Chiapas with signs of strangulation and sexual violence.

August 15, 2019

By ME Ludueña and Milena Pafundi from Mexico City. Aylin Hernández Gómez was a 34-year-old trans woman. She was found murdered next to the road leading to the area known as Las Canastas in San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas. Her body, found wrapped in a sheet, showed signs of strangulation and sexual violence. The Attorney General's Office informed sources connected to the case that it is being investigated as a femicide. “In Chiapas, we have a protocol for femicide cases. We are going to closely monitor this process to ensure that it is followed, because we don't have protocols for crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity. And we know that in other murders of trans women, the investigations were not conducted as femicides,” an activist who requested anonymity and is part of the Network for the Inclusion of Sexual Diversity in Chiapas, the Citizen Observatory for the Rights of the LGBTTTI+ Population, and the Human Rights Research and Litigation group told Presentes. The cases he refers to where femicide protocols were not applied are those of Itzel Duran, a 19-year-old trans woman murdered in 2016, and Nataly Briyith, murdered in Tuxtla in 2018. “We provided support in these cases, and their gender identity was never recognized,” the activist said. Aylin was originally from the northern part of Chiapas, from the municipality of Jitotol, three hours from San Cristóbal. Like many trans women, she survived by working as a sex worker due to a lack of other job opportunities. “Sexual diversity organizations believe that the murder occurred within the context of sex work. The fact that her body was wrapped in a sheet of the type used in hotels leads us to suspect this. But the Prosecutor's Office is not seeing the motive for the crime as being linked to that situation; they are seeing it as a crime within the context of a relationship,” the same source said.

No arrests

Aylin did not live in the town where she was murdered. “She came to San Cristóbal de las Casas every now and then. She frequented the places where trans people gathered. Like many other trans women, they come to the city to have fun and work, to live their trans lives here,” said a source who asked to remain anonymous for security reasons. What is known so far is that Aylin was at a bar with other colleagues. “Suddenly, she left the bar, without giving any sign of contact, she just left. She had lost her cell phone the day before. So when she left, they were left without any communication, not knowing what had happened,” another source recounted.

Alert in Chiapas due to gender-based violence

These days the state of Chiapas is on alert: in addition to the transfemicide of Aylin, this month there have been two deaths of cisgender women. One of them was murdered yesterday by her partner after being raped. In Chiapas, there is no report documenting the number of hate crimes committed. The Network for the Inclusion of Sexual Diversity in Chiapas is working on the first document that will report this data. This network supports various cases defending the rights of trans women. “We’ve had cases of violence against trans women linked to sex work, who are also extorted by municipal and state police. Because their gender expression doesn’t match their official documents, they don’t have job opportunities. And they can’t access employment. Some here work in entertainment or as stylists,” said a member of the network. In Chiapas, obtaining a legal document reflecting a change of identity is not easy: it’s a long and arduous legal process, which can be addressed through legal channels. But legislators have not yet brought the issue to the state Congress, except for a presentation by a congresswoman that didn’t move forward. “They don’t want to legislate on the issue,” the activist says. ]]>

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