Saint Lucia: Situation and treatment of sexual minorities, including social attitudes; availability of state protection (November 2011-April 2013)

1. Overview

1.1 Legislation

Several sources indicate that homosexual activity is illegal in Saint Lucia (Canada 18 Apr. 2013; US 19 Apr. 2013, 12; Pink News 21 Mar. 2011). According to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA), male to male and female to female sexual relationships are illegal (ILGA May 2012, 60). However, in an interview with ILGA, the Co-executive Director of United and Strong, a national organization advocating for Saint Lucian lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people (LGBT) (St. Lucia Star 8 Mar. 2012), stated that "[a]lthough lesbians face the same stigma and discrimination as their male counterparts, there is nothing in the laws which states anything against sex between two women" (ILGA 3 June 2011). Inter Press Service (IPS) also reports that Saint Lucia punishes "male homosexuality while allowing, or simply making no pronouncement on lesbianism" (17 May 2011).

According to Section 133 of Saint Lucia's Criminal Code of 2004:

A person who commits buggery commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for -

life, if committed with force and without the consent of the other person;

ten years, in any other case.

Any person who attempts to commit buggery, or commits an assault with intent to commit buggery, commits an offence and is liable to imprisonment for five years.

In this section "buggery" means sexual intercourse per anus by a male person with another male person. (Saint Lucia 2004, Sec. 133)

Section 132 of the Criminal Code states that

Any person who commits an act of gross indecency with another person commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for ten years or on summary conviction to five years.

Subsection (1) does not apply to an act of gross indecency committed in private between an adult male person and an adult female person, both of whom consent.

For the purposes of subsection (2) -

an act shall be deemed not to have been committed in private if it is committed in a public place; and

a person shall be deemed not to consent to the commission of such an act if -

the consent is extorted by force, threats or fear of bodily harm or is obtained by false and fraudulent representations as to the nature of the act;

the consent is induced by the application or administration of any drug, matter or thing with intent to intoxicate or stupefy the person; or

that person is, and the other party to the act knows or has good reason to believe that the person is suffering from a mental disorder.

In this section "gross indecency" is an act other than sexual intercourse (whether natural or unnatural) by a person involving the use of the genital organs for the purpose of arousing or gratifying sexual desire. (ibid., Sec. 132)

The Co-executive Director of United and Strong was quoted by St. Lucia Star as saying that it has been pointed out that the "law in relation to buggery is not enforced, therefore there can be of no harm," however,

[t]he fact that the law is there, there is no formal redress for homosexuals. It basically means that when you go to the police for something, it exposes you. Right now it is the police officers on their own deciding not to enforce this law. Homosexuals ask themselves, what if the police officers decide to [arrest] me because this law exists?. (St. Lucia Star 8 Mar. 2012)

Further information on the implementation of the laws could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

1.2 Societal Attitudes

The US Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012 reports that there was "widespread social discrimination" against LGBT community in the "deeply conservative society" of Saint Lucia (US 19 Apr. 2013, 12). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a lawyer, who is also a board member of the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities (CVC), a coalition of community leaders and NGOs which provides services for groups vulnerable to HIV infections (CVC n.d.), stated that sexual minorities generally face "intolerance, fuelled by religious beliefs that sodomy is an unnatural act and a sin" (Lawyer 22 Apr. 2013). The Co-executive Director of United and Strong also indicated that lesbian and bisexual women face day-to-day stigma, discrimination, harassment and risk losing their jobs (ILGA 3 June 2011). However, according to Section 131 of the Labour Code of 2006,

An employer shall not dismiss an employee or institute disciplinary action based on -

an employee's race, sex, religion, colour, ethnic origin, national extraction, indigenous origin, social origin, political opinion or affiliation, trade union affiliation or activity, disability, sexual orientation, serious family responsibility or marital status. (Saint Lucia 2006, Sec. 131)

Freedom House reports that "[h]omosexuals are occasionally the target of hate crimes" (Freedom House 2012). The Co-executive Director of United and Strong, who was quoted by St. Lucia Star, pointed out that there are attacks against homosexuals that "go unnoticed" (St. Lucia Star 8 Mar. 2012). The Co-executive Director described the situation in Saint Lucia:

Abuses have taken place. We have had deaths of gay men that are still unsolved or unresolved. We had the death of Verne Romulus, the death of Germaine Nestor, the death of Marcellus Augustin, we had the death of Ethelbert 'Romeo' Evelyn in Dennery. These were openly gay people and these cases were not cases where they were just killed. These killings were brutal, with multiple stab wounds and beatings. There have been gay people who have been beaten in the street. Society targets the highly effeminate guys and the butch looking women. Some have been raped. They get verbally abused on a daily basis. And what works against them is the fear of reporting these incidents. People are internalizing things, instead of seeking help. (ibid.)

Media reports indicate that three gay men, who were on holiday in Saint Lucia, became victims of a homophobic attack in 2011 (CNN 15 Mar. 2011; Pink News 21 Mar. 2011; St. Lucia Star 8 Mar. 2012). CNN reports that, according to one of the victims, the "attackers used an anti-gay slur and threatened to kill" them (CNN 15 Mar. 2011). Both sources report that one of the victims suffered minor injuries and was treated at a hospital (ibid.; Pink News 21 Mar. 2011). Police arrested one man in connection with the incident (ibid.; CNN 15 Mar. 2011). Sources report that the government of Saint Lucia apologized to the three tourists for the attack (ibid.; Pink News 21 Mar. 2011). Further information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

Several sources report that advocates for LGBT rights in Saint Lucia received death threats (St. Lucia Star 8 Mar. 2012; Caribbean360 4 Feb. 2011; GlobalGayz 24 Sept. 2012). Two sources indicate that the office of United and Strong was burnt down in 2011 (ibid.; St. Lucia Star 8 Mar. 2012). According to the St. Lucia Star, in March 2012 the incident was still "under investigation" (ibid.). GlobalGayz, a website that provides information about LGBT issues, including travel, culture, religion and human rights, in different countries (GlobalGayz n.d.), reports that "investigations have not determined the motive or cause of the fire" (ibid. 24 Sept. 2012). Further information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

2. State Protection

Country Reports 2012 states that in Saint Lucia there is no legislation that "protects persons from discrimination based on sexual orientation" (US 19 Apr. 2013, 12). The lawyer also indicates that there is no legislation that protects the rights of sexual minorities; however, she noted that Saint Lucia's Labour Code includes "'sexual orientation' as a prohibited ground of unfair dismissal by an employer against an employee" (Lawyer 22 Apr. 2013). According to the lawyer, "there are no specific or identifiable actions taken by the Government of Saint Lucia to protect the rights of sexual minorities" (ibid.). Moreover, "[i]t is unusual that matters related to the rights of sexual minorities are argued in a Court of Law due to fear by litigants of the 'backlash' of being identified as LGBT" (ibid.). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

Country Reports 2012notes that, according to civil society representatives, "LGBT persons were reluctant to report incidents of violence or abuse out of fear of retribution or reprisal due to their sexual orientation" (US 19 Apr. 2013, 12). The lawyer also stated that crimes are not reported because of fear of abuse by the police (Lawyer 22 Apr. 2013). The lawyer further noted that police are "generally not sensitive to issues related to sexual minorities" and are "generally considered to be homophobic and are very often mentioned as perpetrating acts of violence and other acts of discrimination against sexual minorities" (ibid.). For additional information on state protection please refer to Response to Information Request LCA103854.E.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Cable News Network (CNN). 15 March 2011. A. Pawlowski. "St. Lucia 'Saddened' by Attack on Tourists." [Accessed 10 Apr. 2013]

Canada. 18 Apr. 2013. Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada. "Travel Report: Saint Lucia." [Accessed 19 Apr. 2013]

Caribbean360. 4 February 2011. "Being Gay in St Lucia." [Accessed 18 Apr. 2013]

Caribbean Vulnerable Communities (CVC). N.d. "About CVC." [Accessed 23 Apr. 2013]

Freedom House. 2012. "St. Lucia." Freedom of the World 2012. [Accessed 19 Apr. 2013]

GlobalGayz. 24 September 2012. Richard Ammon. "Gay Life in Saint Lucia." [Accessed 10 Apr. 2013]

_____. N.d. Richard Ammon. "Welcome to GlobalGayz - Gay Travel, Culture and LGBT Human Rights." [Accessed 24 Apr. 2013]

International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA). May 2012. State-sponsored Homophobia: A World Survey of Laws Criminalising Same-sex Sexual Acts Between Consenting Adults. [Accessed 15 April 2013]

_____. 3 June 2011. "ILGA: in Saint Lucia" [Accessed 10 Apr. 2013]

Inter Press Service (IPS). 17 May 2011. Dalia Acosta. "Cuba: Homophobia in the Caribbean Varies Widely." (Factiva)

Lawyer. 22 April 2013. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Pink News. 21 March 2011. Jessica Geen. "Caribbean Island St Lucia Apologises for Attack on Gay Tourists." [Accessed 18 Apr. 2013]

Saint Lucia. 2006. Labour Code. Sent by a lawyer to the Research Directorate.

_____. 2004. Criminal Code. [Accessed 19 Apr. 2013]

St. Lucia Star. 8 March 2012. Nicole McDonald. "Gays Say 'We Are Here to Stay!'" [Accessed 10 Apr. 2013]

United States (US). 19 April 2013. Department of State. "Saint Lucia." Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012. [Accessed 19 Apr. 2013]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Attempts to contact representatives of the following organizations were unsuccessful: ARC International, Caribbean Forum for Liberation and Acceptance of Genders and Sexuality; Caribbean Vulnerable Communities; International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission; The Larcher Group; Minority Rights Group International; Saint Lucia - Attorney General's Office of Saint Lucia, Ministry of Home Affairs and Gender Relations, Ministry of Legal Affairs.

Internet sites, including: Advocates for Human Rights; AIDS Action Foundation, Saint Lucia; Amnesty International; ARC International; Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police; BBC; Caribbean Association for Feminist Research in Action; Caribbean Community; Caribbean Media Corporation; Caribbean News Now; Caricom News Network; Commonwealth Ministers; Day Against Homophobia; Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court; ecoi.net; The Europa World Year Book; Factiva; Human Rights Watch; Implementation Agency for Crime and Security; International Federation for Human Rights; International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission; Lucians Helping Lucians; Panos Caribbean; Saint Lucia - Government of Saint Lucia, High Commission for Saint Lucia in London, Ministry of Legal Affairs, Royal St. Lucia Police Force; St. Lucia Crisis Centre; St. Lucia News Online; United Nations - Human Rights Council, Refworld; United and Strong; The Vincentian; The Voice.