Young man suffered homophobic attack in Lima: the police ignored him

Due to the violent attack and the poor performance of the police, activists have called for a sit-in in front of the Miraflores police station.

February 18, 2020

By Vero Ferrari

On Saturday, February 15, in the early morning hours, Enrique Li Gonzales (27) was attacked by Juan Carlos Marchena Iparraguirre (24), who pinned him to the ground, repeatedly slammed his head against the pavement, and disfigured his face with a sharp weapon. Enrique was walking with a friend in the Miraflores district, one of Lima's main commercial areas, when Marchena began insulting him, calling him a "fucking bastard," saying things like "you should die" and "I'm going to kill you." When Enrique confronted him, Marchena slashed his face and then fled with his companion.

Enrique and his friends managed to detain them until the district's security patrol arrived, followed by the police, who allowed the aggressor to leave due to a lack of "evidence," while the assaulted young man was taken to the hospital. After receiving treatment, Li went to the police station to file a report, but they refused to take his statement, claiming the staff was off duty. They told him to return on March 5th and also refused to issue a supplemental report because they wanted to register the incident as a "street fight" and not a homophobic attack; they also tried to convince him not to file a report. He returned on Sunday and was finally able to file the report after receiving support from the Ombudsman's Office and due to media pressure surrounding the case.

A protest against poor police conduct

“We cannot allow acts like these to continue happening. LGBTQ+ people are human beings just like all of you, and we deserve to be respected and to live a dignified and fulfilling life,” Enrique stated on his social media. “I will proceed to take all appropriate legal action, including requesting security camera footage from the day of the attack, which will clearly prove the homophobic assault I suffered. This man, Juan Carlos Marchena Iparraguirre, will face the full force of the law,” he added.

Due to the violent attack and the police's misconduct, activists have called for a protest in front of the Miraflores police station on Tuesday, February 18th at noon. Regarding this, lawyer and lesbian activist María Ysabel Cedano told Presentes that, in the case of the attack against Enrique, “according to the Penal Code and Legislative Decree No. 1323, it must be clear that this is not a misdemeanor, this is a crime. This is attempted homicide and aggravated serious bodily harm. This is a hate crime. We are fed up with facing hate attacks, sexism, racism, and classism every day, which is why we will be there with him tomorrow, because it is a matter of life and death, and I hope it won't just be the LGBTIQ+ community because hate, discrimination, and impunity are issues affecting the majority.”

]]>

We are Present

We are committed to a type of journalism that delves deeply into the realm of the world and offers in-depth research, combined with new technologies and narrative formats. We want the protagonists, their stories, and their struggles to be present.