Anti-rights groups attacked LGBT march in Paraguay

With stones, shouts, insults, crosses and rosaries, anti-rights groups from Hernandarias attacked LGBT activists yesterday who were called to the Second Diverse March of Alto Paraná.

September 30, 2019

By Juliana Quintana

With stones, shouts, insults, crosses, and rosaries, anti-rights groups in Hernandarias attacked LGBT activists yesterday during the Second Diversxs Alto Paraná March. Members of Amnesty International and Diversxs Asunción traveled to support the march, which began at 3:00 p.m. The group marched from Niño Jesús Square to a rented property in the city.

Along the way, behind a 200-meter-long white sheet, various self-proclaimed “pro-life and pro-family” groups, outnumbering the protesters three to one, began throwing stones, rubble, and 12x1 grenade launchers directly at them. On social media, they uploaded videos with captions that read: “We covered up the shame of this city.”

Nataly Cabañas (22), Marcos Rojas, and an activist who preferred to remain anonymous were the most affected by the attack. “We were brutally attacked for exercising our constitutional right to demonstrate and assemble peacefully. Marcos suffered a broken nose from a rock thrown at his face. We hold Mayor Rubén Rojas directly responsible for these acts of violence,” Nataly Cabañas, who was hit in the leg by a tear gas canister while singing through a megaphone, told Presentes.

While Marcos was taken to the district hospital for diagnosis, tests, and X-rays, Nataly was treated by an ambulance. Additionally, a man identified as Javier Villasanti attempted to run over the protesters with a pickup truck before they could take refuge in a nearby business. Among other humiliations they endured, a “pro-life” member snatched one of the rainbow LGBT flags and set it on fire. This was met with jubilation and amusement by the anti-rights activists.

“There were about two patrol cars at first, but then more people arrived, belonging to fundamentalist groups. There were 150 people. We had to call the police, but they never provided the backup we requested,” Nataly said. When they arrived at the property, they waited three hours for a bus to pick them up and take them to the Somos Gay headquarters in Ciudad del Este. Before leaving, they managed to file a report at the 6th police station in the Las Américas neighborhood.

On Friday, the mayor of Hernandarias, Rubén Rojas (ANR), banned the march of LGBT activists from the town through a resolution, as the municipality declared itself “pro-life and pro-family.” “For us, this was absolutely instigated by the resolution of the mayor of Hernandarias, and we hold him directly responsible for generating this entire mob of hatred and intolerance toward the LGBTI community,” said Rosalía Vega, executive director of Amnesty International in Paraguay.

However, this is not an isolated incident. Since 2015 in Paraguay, cities like Luque have declared themselves “pro-life, pro-family” following the Mainumby case. From there, many other cities joined in, including the National Congress itself. “This is exacerbated by the lack of a law against all forms of discrimination in our country. Imagine, we are the only country in the Southern Cone that doesn't have a law allowing affected individuals to seek justice and redress from the State,” Rosalía continues.

From Asunción, Amnesty International contacted the Ministry of the Interior to request police reinforcements and agents from the Special Operations Group (GEO) because the city's police force was insufficient. They secured a bus to transport the trapped young people directly to Ciudad del Este. The activists from Asunción returned on the 10 PM bus, and those from Ciudad del Este went home.

“We demand that the Public Prosecutor’s Office investigate the violent attacks against LGBTI+ activists. We hold the mayor of Hernandarias, Rubén Amancio Rojas, responsible for promoting the violence unleashed by self-proclaimed pro-life groups on Sunday, September 29, against LGBTI+ activists who were exercising their constitutional right to free expression. We have filed an international complaint regarding the persecution carried out by the State, which fosters discrimination among Paraguayans,” Somos Gay wrote in an official statement .

This morning, the mayor, speaking on 730 AM radio, justified the attacks suffered by members of the LGBT coalition because they "incited violence with provocations." He stated that "Jesus gave him a mission on Earth" and that "in Asunción, they're allowing everything." He added, "The education you (the people of Asunción) are giving them is turning all the students into faggots." "Someone has to do something; the world is going to end if we continue like this. We're going against the laws of nature."

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