[NAME] [FIRM] [ADDRESS] [PHONE NUMBER] [FAX NUMBER] UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR IMMIGRATION REVIEW IMMIGRATION COURT [CITY, STATE] __________________________________________ ) In the Matter of: ) ) File No.: A __________ __________ ) ) In removal proceedings ) __________________________________________) INDEX TO DOCUMENTATION OF COUNTRY CONDITIONS REGARDING PERSECUTION OF LGBTQ INDIVIDUALS IN SAINT LUCIA TAB SUMMARY GOVERNMENTAL SOURCES 1. [Excerpt] Saint Lucia, Criminal Code, Revised Edition (2005), Chapter 3.01. Sec. 133 Buggery, available at: http://www.govt.lc/media.govt.lc/www/resources/legislation/Criminal%20Code.pdf • “(1) A person who commits buggery commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for— (a) life, if committed with force and without the consent of the other person; (b) ten years, in any other case. (2) 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 5 years. (3) In this section “buggery” means sexual intercourse per anus by a male person with another male person.” (p. 95) 2. [Excerpt] Saint Lucia, Criminal Code, Revised Edition (2005), Chapter 3.01. Sec. 132 Gross Indecency, available at: http://www.govt.lc/media.govt.lc/www/resources/legislation/Criminal%20Code.pdf TAB SUMMARY • “(1) A person who commits an act of gross indecency with another person commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for 10 years or on summary conviction to 5 years. (2) 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 . (4) 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.” (p. 94) 3. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, U.S. Dep’t of State, Saint Lucia Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2019 (Mar. 11, 2020), available at: https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/SAINT-LUCIA-2019-HUMAN- RIGHTS-REPORT.pdf • “. there was widespread societal discrimination against LGBTI persons. The few openly LGBTI persons faced daily verbal harassment and, at times, physical abuse, including reported attacks on public transport and an alleged stabbing at a street party. Civil society groups reported LGBTI persons were forced to leave public buses and were denied jobs or left jobs due to a hostile work environment.” (p. 9-10) • “Significant human rights issues included . criminalization of consensual same-sex sexual activity between adults . .” (p. 1) • “Consensual same-sex sexual activity is illegal under indecency and anal intercourse statutes. Indecency statutes carry a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, and anal intercourse carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The law does not extend antidiscrimination protections to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons based on sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or sex characteristics.” (p. 9) • “Civil society groups received reports of LGBTI persons being denied jobs or leaving jobs due to a hostile work environment.” (p. 12) • “The law does not prohibit discrimination regarding gender identity.” (p. 11) 4. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, U.S. Dep’t of State, Saint Lucia Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2018 (Mar. 13, 2019), available at: https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/SAINT-LUCIA-2018.pdf • “. there was widespread societal discrimination against LGBTI persons. The few openly LGBTI persons faced daily verbal harassment and, at times, physical threats. Civil society groups reported LGBTI persons were denied access to rental homes or forced to leave rental homes and were denied jobs or left jobs due to a hostile work environment.” (p. 10) • “Human rights issues included . criminalization of consensual same-sex activity between adults . .” (p. 1) • “Consensual same-sex sexual activity is illegal under indecency statutes, and some consensual same-sex sexual activity between men is also illegal under anal intercourse laws. Indecency statutes carry a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, and anal TAB SUMMARY intercourse carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The law does not extend antidiscrimination protections to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons based on sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics.” (p. 10) • “Civil society groups received reports of LGBTI persons being denied jobs or leaving jobs due to a hostile work environment.” (p. 12) • “The law and regulations prohibit discrimination regarding race, color, sex, religion, national extraction, social origin, ethnic origin, political opinion or affiliation, age, disability, serious family responsibility, pregnancy, marital status, or HIV/AIDS but not sexual orientation or gender identity.” (p. 12) 5. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, U.S. Dep’t of State, Saint Lucia Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2017 (Apr. 20, 2018), available at: https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Saint-Lucia.pdf • “. there was widespread societal discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons in the deeply conservative society. The few openly LGBTI persons faced daily verbal harassment. Civil society groups received reports that LGBTI persons were denied access to rental homes or forced to leave rental homes and were denied jobs or left jobs due to a hostile work environment.” (p. 11) • “The most significant human rights issues included . criminalization of same-sex sexual activity . .” (p. 1) • “Consensual same-sex sexual activity is illegal under indecency statutes, and some same- sex sexual activity between men is also illegal under anal intercourse laws. Indecency statutes carry a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, and anal intercourse carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. No legislation protects persons from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.” (p. 11) • “Civil society groups received reports of LGBTI persons being denied jobs or leaving jobs due to a hostile work environment.” (p. 13) • “The law and regulations prohibit discrimination regarding race, color, sex, religion, national extraction, social origin, ethnic origin, political opinion or affiliation, age, disability, serious family responsibility, pregnancy, marital status, or HIV/AIDS but not sexual orientation or gender identity.” (p. 13) 6. Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Responses to Information Requests, Saint Lucia: Domestic Violence, Including Legislation, State Protection and Support Services Available to Victims (Dec. 9, 2015), available at https://irb- cisr.gc.ca/en/country-information/rir/Pages/index.aspx?doc=456260 • “The lawyer stated that victims of domestic violence who are LGBT would face problems turning to the police and would be treated ‘as criminals’ instead of being offered protection” (p. 2) INTER-GOVERNMENTAL SOURCES 7. UN Human Rights Council, Summary prepared by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in accordance with paragraph 15 (c) of the TAB SUMMARY annex to Human Rights Council resolution 5/1 and paragraph 5 of the annex to Council resolution 16/21: Saint Lucia (Aug. 7, 2015), available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583301394.html • “. there continued to be acts of violence committed against persons because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Also, persons who defended the rights of LGBT persons were often subjected to verbal attacks.” (p. 4) • “Bullying was also common and homophobia directed toward males particularly extreme.” (p. 7) • “JS3 considered that the criminalization of sexual acts between consenting same sex adults served as an impediment in accessing necessary healthcare and that LGBT persons continued to confront unacceptable levels of discrimination and stigma when visiting health clinics.” (p. 8) NON-GOVERNMENTAL SOURCES 8. Freedom House, Freedom in the World: 2019 St. Lucia Country Report (2019), available at: https://freedomhouse.org/country/st-lucia/freedom-world/2019 • “. the law does not provide full protection to LGBT people. same-sex sexual relations can draw up to 10 years in prison, and LGBT people are subject to significant societal prejudice.” (p. 10) • “Persistent challenges include . .discrimination against LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people.” (p. 2) • “The LGBT community is marginalized, and this affects the ability of LGBT people to engage fully in political processes.” (p. 5) 9. [Excerpt] International Lesbian, Gay, Bixsexual, Trans and Intersex Association, State-Sponsored Homophobia, Criminalising States Updates: Saint Lucia (2019), available at https://ilga.org/downloads/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2019_light.pdf • “Also, In 2011, three gay American tourists were subject to hate crime based on their sexual orientation where the perpetrators used anti-gay slurs during the attack. Following the attack, the minister for tourism expressed his ‘sincere apologies’ to the victims.” (p. 420) • “In 2011, the country’s first LGBT human rights office—which had recently been opened by United and Strong a registered NGO based in St Lucia that focuses on SOGI issues—was maliciously [alleged] burned