Parents of Sallent twins denounce false information and call for case not to be politicized

The parents of the Sallent twins case have broken their silence on the matter through a letter published in the newspaper La Vanguardia on Friday. 

In late February, one 12-year-old died by suicide after jumping from a third-story balcony after reportedly being bullied on racist and transphobic grounds, while their twin sister was critically injured but remains in stable condition, with hopes of recovery, after the pair jumped together. 

The child who died by suicide had reportedly expressed the desire in school to be called "Iván" instead of "Alana." 

The parents explained in the letter how they appreciated the efforts of those who are helping them at this moment, but they also denounced false information reported in the media about the case. 

"This avalanche of media, assuming facts that do not conform to reality, can cause uncomfortable situations: generating more pain for the family; contaminating the investigation carried out by the police and, finally, politicizing the tragedy," the letter reads. 

They also finished the letter with a message in full capital letters: "NO SE LLAMABA IVÁN. SE LLAMABA ALANA." ("THEIR NAME WAS NOT IVÁN. THEIR NAME WAS ALANA.")

Authorities are investigating the circumstances following the death, and Catalan police do not rule out that the children were bullied on racist and transphobic grounds. Education department sources initially ruled out that there was evidence of bullying, but hours later changed their stance on this. 

The letter also pointed out that the family will publish a press release when the time is right for them to do so. 

The grandfather of the twins, Gustavo Lima, assured that letters confirmed the 'bullying' they suffered at school. Speaking to the Argentine channel A24, Gustavo said that one of the twins explained that they were bullied in school for both their Argentine accent and for requesting that their classmates call them 'Iván' instead of 'Alana' as they intended to transition gender. 

However, despite the parents writing that their child's name was Alana, the female name given to her by her parents as opposed to Iván, the name they wanted to be referred to by, La Vanguardia report that the grandparents are certain that the twins' parents would have supported any decision to transition gender. However, according to the grandparents, the child never communicated their desire to change their name at home. 

La Vanguardia also report that in the commemorative mass for the children, the parents chose to have the name Iván included in the mass card as a gesture of respect for the child's wishes. 

The Catalan president, Pere Aragonès, admitted on Thursday that "every young person who takes their own life is a collective failure of society," and pointed out that "a lot more needs to be done" to prevent such tragedies from happening. 

Aragonès added that the mental health of young people worries the executive and said that support has been increased in this field.