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In Mexico, the crime of transfemicide is not included in the penal codes of the country's 32 states, nor in the federal code. On March 10, the National Human Rights Commission issued a recommendation to the legislatures of all states to consider gender identity as an aggravating factor in the crime of femicide. Furthermore, on February 29, the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) ruled that murdered trans women must be considered victims of femicide and that this does not exempt state legislatures from their obligation to establish specific measures to punish transfemicide.

Furthermore, the Nayarit Congress voted to create the aggravating circumstance of 'transfeminicide' within the chapter on femicide and attempted femicide in its penal code, with a maximum sentence of 60 years. This makes Nayarit the first state in the country to criminalize this offense through a reform. However, it has not yet taken effect because it has not been published in the state's official gazette.

In Mexico, trans femicides remain unpunished. Very few are investigated under the femicide protocol, and even fewer reach the courts or result in a sentence. Furthermore, the aggravating circumstance of hate crime based on 'sexual preference'—the term used to describe sexual orientation and gender identity—is not considered in the 13 penal codes that include this provision in the chapter on homicide.

In recent years, trans activists have advocated for the violent deaths of trans women to be investigated as femicides; others seek the criminal category to punish those who commit these crimes; and there are also those who question whether a criminal category can guarantee justice for Mexican trans women when the Mexican State does not guarantee human rights in a comprehensive and progressive manner to this population.

“Behind every death, violent or not, of a trans woman there is a story of denial of rights.”

In Mexico, the recognition of the right to gender identity for transgender people is not guaranteed. Ten of Mexico's 32 states still need to guarantee this right administratively for adult transgender people, and only three states guarantee this right to minors, but only Jalisco does not discriminate based on age. 

The right to identity is a gateway to other rights such as health, education, employment, etc. Without this minimum guarantee, the quality and life expectancy of transgender people are compromised. 

Rocío Suárez, director of the Center for Support of Trans Identities (CAIT), explains that it is important to talk about transfeminicides beyond the penal logic in order to "know and understand the contexts that are made invisible, because behind every death, violent or not, there is a story of denial of rights and this denial of rights has implications for the quality of life of trans people." 

She adds, “Yes, there is a pressing demand to ensure these acts are punished, but focusing solely on a punitive approach leads us into a spiral of case-complaint, case-complaint. And we cannot dedicate ourselves exclusively to that. It is necessary to consider the structural causes, understand the contexts in which the trans women who are murdered live, and demand that the State implement mechanisms such as public policies to reduce this violence. We need actions that impact the quality and life expectancy of our trans sisters.”

The current situation of violence against trans women

In the first quarter of 2024, at least 14 trans women were murdered and 2 died in precarious conditions on the street, according to a count carried out by trans activists.

Since 2007, Rocío Suárez has been keeping a record of transfeminicides and social transfeminicides in Mexico and regrets to say that what we are witnessing corresponds to the average number of violent or non-violent deaths of trans women in the country.

“When we talk about classifying transfeminicide as a crime, activists shouldn't expect that the State will then generate statistics to certify our deaths. That's the crux of the matter: the State isn't working to generate actions to reduce violence and improve the life expectancy of trans people,” Suárez adds.

Impunity and prejudice prevail in the investigation of violent deaths of trans women.

The transfemicide of sex worker Paola Buenrostro , and the fight for justice led by activist Kenya Cuevas, marked a turning point in media coverage and the pursuit of justice for the violent deaths of trans women in Mexico. However, there are few cases of transfemicide with convictions and where the victim's gender identity is recognized.

The activists accompanying the case are responsible for ensuring that it is not erased and that it is investigated with a gender and human rights perspective, as they denounce that the justice authorities still do not apply the National Protocol of Action for Personnel of the Justice Administration Agencies of the Country, in cases involving Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity , published in 2017 by the Attorney General's Office (PGR).

In addition, it is important to consider that impunity prevails and is growing in Mexico, since only four out of every 100 crimes are investigated, according to an investigation by the organization México Evalúa.

In 2019, the Human Rights Commission of Mexico City (CDHCM) issued recommendation 02/2019, which reports on the systematic violence that trans women, direct and indirect victims of transfeminicide, experience from institutions and public servants during the process of accessing justice.