Taipei Holds Vigil for Victims of Anti-Trans Violence

TaiwanPlus News

A small group of supporters and four LGBTQ+ rights groups have gathered in Taipei to raise awareness of anti-transgender violence, while commemorating victims from around the world. Attendees said Taiwan has no legal basis to prosecute gender-based hate crimes.

Transcript

00:00A moment of reflection on this windy night in Taipei.

00:06People here showing support for hundreds of transgender people killed or who died from

00:11suicide due to confirmed or alleged anti-transgender campaigns around the world.

00:23One speaker here marking Transgender Remembrance Day

00:27chokes up when recounting the death of Sian Norquist,

00:30an African-American transgender man who went through countless forms of torture

00:34before New York authorities found his body this February.

00:39His death caught widespread attention, but not all have been remembered this way.

00:43Gracia Sandoval.

00:47Rosario Sansone.

00:50On this night, 372 names are called out, many from Latin America and South Asia.

00:57Yet none of their deaths were reported by media.

01:00But there are now sparking discussion here in Taiwan.

01:04Some here say while Taiwan was the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage

01:08and is relatively LGBTQ plus friendly,

01:11violence against transgender people is often unreported or misreported.

01:16And there is no legal basis for prosecuting potential hate crimes.

01:19For example, in North America, they have the famicide,

01:22殺女罪.

01:23And if the trans-sex marriage women were killed,

01:26the police would be accused of殺女罪.

01:28And we can see that in Colombia and other parts of Asia,

01:31they have also established that殺女罪

01:33is called trans-feminicide, which is called trans-feminicide.

01:35But in Taiwan, it may be seen as an ordinary crime.

01:38And it may be seen as an anti-sex marriage.

01:40It may be seen as an anti-sex marriage.

01:41It may be seen as an anti-sex marriage.

01:42It means Taiwan has no official data on violence or murder cases

01:52involving transgender people.

01:54And because the law still requires psychological evaluations

01:57and surgery to remove reproductive organs

02:00before someone can change their gender on their ID,

02:03some victims end up being recorded under the wrong gender

02:06when cases are investigated.

02:12This vigil has been held in Taiwan since 2014.

02:31And with each occasion, more sad stories come to light.

02:35But as people continue coming out to commemorate the victims,

02:38events like this offer many here some comfort and hope

02:41while they continue pushing for change.

02:44Howard Zhang and Irene Lin for Taiwan Plus.

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