Independent expert on sexual orientation and gender identity comments on asylum issues following 10-day visit to the UK
The United Nation's independent expert on sexual orientation and gender identity expressed concern over violence and harassment directed toward LGBT people in the UK, including LGBT refugees and asylum seekers, following a recent visit to the country.
Image credit: WikipediaVictor Madrigal-Borloz, the UN expert, carried out a 10-day visit to the UK in April and May.
In a press release issued on Thursday, Madrigal-Borloz highlighted the UK Government's political discourse on refugees and asylum seekers as being one of several areas where there was cause for concern.
Madrigal-Borloz also highlighted the negative impact of the Government's asylum policy on LGBT rights and noted that the Illegal Migration Bill would be contrary to refugee law.
The expert's extensive 18-page statement, available here, outlines his full findings on LGBT rights in the UK and it includes the following brief section regarding asylum seekers:
Asylum
79. The UK's Home Office presented current and envisaged asylum policies of the UK to the Independent Expert, including provisions on the inadmissibility of claims that could effectually amount to an asylum ban, contrary to international refugee law standards to which the UK has agreed to be legally bound. In this instance, notwithstanding the autonomy of the Independent Expert under his mandate, he is in full agreement with the UN High Commissioner on Refugees in his recent statements and interventions in relation to the current and proposed legislation restricting access to asylum procedures in a fashion that would be contrary to refugee law. LGBT persons could be specifically affected by any such ban, and for instance forced to return to countries that criminalize persons on the basis of their sexual orientation and gender identity, or in which there are extremely hostile environments in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity.
80. In England, the Independent Expert met with LGBT asylum seekers and organizations providing support services to them once they arrived in the UK. One of those organizations shared information in relation to 10 cases of alleged abuses against LGBT asylum seekers in accommodations for asylum seekers and refugees (including in hotels, houses, and barracks), patterns that were also consistent with the lived experiences shared by asylum seekers in testimony with the Independent Expert.
81. In Wales, another organization supporting LGBT asylum seekers noted that their beneficiaries in some cases had not been asked about their sexual orientation and gender identity, indicating a need to improve and sensitize the language of reception agencies in order to be more accessible and clear to help LGBT people self-identify as such. Without dedicated housing for LGBT asylum seekers, trans asylum seekers were also being housed with persons of different genders, which exposed them to increased risk of sexual violence and other abuses.
The UN expert will publish a full report on his visit to the UK by June 2024 at the latest.
Leila Zadeh, executive director of the LGBTQ+ asylum support charity Rainbow Migration, wrote on Openly in March that the Illegal Migration Bill is causing huge anxiety among LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum in the UK.
Zadeh said the Bill sends a message to LGBTQ+ asylum seekers that they are not welcome in the UK.
"[T]he new legislation lists a series of 'safe' countries where people can be sent to have their claims processed there instead of in the UK. However, many of these countries are unsafe for LGBTQ+ people. … The proposed bill will also make it easier for this government to lock people up in immigration detention for up to 28 days with no possibility of applying to the tribunal for bail or judicial review. This could lead to thousands of people being locked away in prison-like conditions, including LGBTQ+ people, who are at additional risk of harm in detention," Zadeh wrote.