12. Although the Committee takes note of the progress made in respect of legislative and regulatory measures relating to the rights of lesbians and gay, bisexual and transgender persons (LGBT), the Committee is concerned by reports from non-governmental organizations which indicate that people are discriminated against on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment and in other areas. The Committee also wishes to express its consternation at the violent death of at least five transsexual women in 2012 under circumstances that could be regarded as indicative of a pattern of violence based on gender identity (art. 2, para. 1, art. 6, para. 1, art. 7 and art. 26).

The State party should step up its efforts to combat discrimination against LGBT persons in all areas of life, to offer effective protection to such persons and to ensure that any and all acts of violence motivated by the sexual orientation or gender identity of the victim are investigated and that the perpetrators of such acts are prosecuted and punished. In particular, the State party should:

(a) Use all means at its disposal to investigate the murders of transgender persons that occurred during the reporting period, to bring them to trial and to impose appropriate punishments upon them;

(b) Introduce a statistical system that will make it possible to compile disaggregated data on this type of violence;

(c) Develop awareness-raising programmes to combat homophobia and transphobia.

Link to the full text of the report: Concluding Observations-CCPR-Uruguay-2013-eng