Via Andres Duque of Blabbeando:
Mexico City seems to have become the first municipality in Latin America to adopt a hate crimes measure that specifically includes crimes committed on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
The measure, which was approved on Thursday by an unanimous vote of 39-0 in the Federal District Legislative Assembly, adds a section to Article 138 of the city’s Penal Code which establishes that homicides and lesions [injuries?] will be considered as “hate crimes” when they are committed due to hate . . . A hate crime, the measure says, can be motivated by “ethnic or social origin, nationality or place of origin, color or any other genetic characteristic, sex, language, gender, religion, age, opinions, disability, health status, physical appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, occupation or activity of the victim.”
. . . “Hate” will now be considered as an aggravating circumstance when it comes to determining punishment.
Duque notes that Mexican LGBT advocates believe that homophobia might be at play in the murders of at least six gay men during the last year.
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