The Economist: "IT MAY have a laid-back image of reggae and Rastas, sun and sand. But for gays, Jamaica is closer to hell. The latest apparent victim of homophobia on the island was Britain’s honorary consul in Montego Bay, the tourist centre, strangled in bed at home on September 9th. A note denounced him as homosexual.
Openly gay people must contend with the constant fear of violence. The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), a pressure group, reports 33 cases of serious injuries from mob attacks on gays in 18 months. Two female couples were attacked and raped by men in recent weeks. Many attacks go unreported, partly because police do not always investigate them. In court a murder charge is likely to be reduced to manslaughter if the victim was gay and the defendant claims provocation, as happened with the killer of an Anglican priest stabbed in his vicarage in 2006."
Openly gay people must contend with the constant fear of violence. The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), a pressure group, reports 33 cases of serious injuries from mob attacks on gays in 18 months. Two female couples were attacked and raped by men in recent weeks. Many attacks go unreported, partly because police do not always investigate them. In court a murder charge is likely to be reduced to manslaughter if the victim was gay and the defendant claims provocation, as happened with the killer of an Anglican priest stabbed in his vicarage in 2006."
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