A report released by the Institute of Race Relations, says Lesbian‚ Gay‚ Bisexual‚ Transgender or Intersex persons (LGBTI) are twice more likely to be attacked in Eastern Cape than in any other province.
It is followed by KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo as the worst provinces in terms of LGBTI people being exposed to assault‚ verbal or physical abuse from family‚ or sexual abuse and rape.
According to the report, four out of ten LGBTI South Africans know of someone who has been murdered for being, or suspected, of being part of the LGBTI community.
The institute’s Senior Researcher, Gerbrand van Heerden says, “LGBT people in the Eastern Cape province are twice as likely as the ‘national province’ to be punched in the heads, kicked or beaten. They are also twice as likely to be physically abused from a family member, and then LGBT people in the Eastern Cape are twice as likely to be sexually abused or raped as the national average. So these statistics are quite concerning as we have one of the most progressive constitution in the world.”
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