MEXICO CITY (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Mexico is seeing a surge of extreme violence toward LGBT+ people in its deadliest year in half a decade, a leading rights group said on Friday, citing cases of victims brutally stabbed and brazenly killed in public.

In 2019, 117 lesbian, gay, bi and trans people were killed in Mexico, up almost a third compared with 2018 and the highest number since 2015, according to LGBT+ advocacy group Letra S. Overall in Mexico, last year was the deadliest on record, but the increase among the gay and trans community was more severe, said Alejandro Brito, Letra S director.

“We’ve documented that victims are subjected to multiple forms of violence, before or even after they were murdered,” Brito said. “There is a cruelty towards the victims,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Lawmakers welcomed the data for highlighting the often underreported violence faced by LGBT+ people in Mexico.

“Hate crimes due to homophobia and transphobia are generally made invisible,” said Patricia Mercado, a senator with the opposition Citizens’ Movement party. “We have to continue working to prevent all forms of discrimination that can lead to a hate crime.” Read more via Reuters