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Asylum
granted to lesbian refugee A young woman from the island of Grand Comoros (Ngazidja, near Madagascar) who suffered detention, rape and torture because she refused a forced marriage and fled her family home to live with her lesbian lover, has been granted refugee status in Britain. "Shakila" M’Roivili, 21, was training to be a hairdresser, and involved in a relationship with a woman she’d met at work, when her mother told her she had arranged for her to marry an older man. Shakila refused, and left home to live with her lover in the hotel where she worked. Their relationship was discovered by a co-worker, who informed the local imam. The imam went to Shakila’s parents, and then to the police. Although lesbianism isn’t mentioned in the Grand Comoros criminal code, the women were physically attacked by the imam and then arrested but not charged with any offence. Shakila’s lover fled to Madagascar, but Shakila spent two and a half months in prison without charge, and without appearing before a court. She suffered regular assaults by the police, and was raped at least once. Finally, someone told her uncle what was happening to her. He sold his land to raise her bail money, then bought her an escape ticket from a local agent. She had no idea where she was going but, in March 2003, she flew to Britain. The agent abandoned her at Heathrow airport. She had no money and spoke no English, although she speaks French as her second language. A student befriended her, giving her a bed for the night and information about where to go to claim asylum. The day after she arrived, she made her way to Luna House in Croydon to make her claim, but her problems escalated. The authorities refused to believe that she really had nowhere to stay and no money, since they could not accept that the woman who had put her up had done it simply as an act of kindness. They sent her out into the March night with two pounds in her pocket. "I was frightened, and considered sleeping in the Underground," she told Diva. Eventually, a man who spoke French and a black woman took pity on her, and gave her the money she needed to get to Woolwich police station, where she was assigned a room in a hostel. For the next four months, she fought to get clean, safe accommodation – somewhere with a bed that wouldn’t hurt her bad back, and with food that didn’t upset her stomach. The Home Office refused her asylum claim, saying that, because it isn’t actually illegal to be a lesbian in Grand Comoros, she’d be safe if she went home. Her lawyer wouldn’t represent her unless she paid £700, because he didn’t think she’d win her appeal. The Refugee Council washed its hands of her and cancelled her accommodation. Eventually, Shakila found herself with 30 others, spending three weeks sleeping rough outside the Refugee Council’s offices. A Muslim charity provided blankets and water, but the Council removed them. Finally, a group from the Detainees’ Support and Help Unit arrived with supplies, and a list of lawyers who would take up their cause. By 3 September, Shakila had a lawyer, found for her by the Crossroads Women’s Centre. The next day, she was in Court to tell her story. For the first time, she admitted that she’d been raped in detention, although the Court refused to believe her. On 17 October, the Home Office conceded that, as a member of a "particular social group" (ie, a lesbian), Shakila had a right to claim asylum under the European Convention on Human Rights. In December 2003, Shakila M’Roivili was granted asylum in Britain. Speaking to Diva before the decision, she said: "Even here in England, this is a country with rights. But each time I say I’m a lesbian, people take it badly, which shocks me." Asked what she’d do if she were allowed to stay, she said she’d continue her hairdressing training, then work as a beautician, and maybe find a new partner.
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