ASYLUM IS A GAY ISSUE: WOMEN who are LESBIAN/BI, RAPE SURVIVORS, LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS NEED URGENT SUPPORT

While lesbian/gay/bi/HIV+ communities in the UK are winning greater civil, legal and economic rights, the situation for those who flee homophobia and persecution in other countries has got a lot worse. Increasingly repressive legislation and media witch-hunts have resulted in many so-called “failed asylum seekers” including vulnerable and traumatized women and children, being detained and deported.back to rape, other torture and even death. In July over 30 women (mostly from Uganda) in Yarl’s Wood Removal Centre, went on hunger strike in a desperate attempt to draw their situation to public attention – most are rape survivors, some are HIV+ and several are lesbian or bisexual. All have suffered appalling legal representation, which means that evidence which would entitle them to asylum is not presented. This coupled with racism, sexism and hostility from the Home Office means their cases are unjustly refused.

Wages Due Lesbians is calling for urgent support for the women whose cases are illustrated here – please contact us if you can write letters of support, lobby MPs or other prominent people, give financial help, get publicity or help in other ways.

“Now is the time for prominent lesbian and gay people, including politicians and those from high profile organisations to defend the civil, human and legal rights of those of us seeking asylum --- being an immigrant and fleeing persecution is a "gay issue". Those who don't support asylum seekers are upholding a different standard of “equality” depending on whether someone has the right passport, skin colour, accent . . .”.

Ms X was abducted by the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda who killed her parents when she was six years old then trained her as a child soldier. For years she was repeatedly raped and then sold to a “sponsor”, who also raped her and brought her to the UK. On a visit to Uganda she was arrested and imprisoned for kissing another woman in a nightclub. The Home Office refused her claim and she lost her appeal after her lawyer refused to proceed without payment. Ms X has a young child whom she has not seen since being detained and is now on constant suicide watch after several suicide attempts, including trying to hang herself in the Yarl’s Wood laundry room.

Ms Q was diagnosed as being HIV+ and claimed asylum as the treatment upon which her life depends is not available in Uganda . Although she won her case on human rights grounds, the Home Office successfully appealed, claiming the treatment she needed was available and free in Uganda . Ms Q’s husband, father and siblings (all diagnosed HIV+) have died because they did not get the treatment they needed. Her sister is raising ten children, of whom five are orphans, but has no income. Recent press coverage has exposed how aid money meant to be funding HIV/AIDS treatment in Uganda has “disappeared”. Experts have also challenged the authenticity of the Ugandan official statistics on the availability and effectiveness of its treatment programmes.

Ms Y left Zimbabwe in 1994 after being physically abused and persecuted by her parents and neighbours for being a lesbian. Three times she was detained in South Africa as an illegal immigrant, once for almost a year. Trying to escape harassment as a lesbian, she started a relationship with a man by whom she became pregnant. But he became violent and attacked her so viciously she still has a knee injury which stops her walking properly. Ms Y’s asylum claim was refused because the Home Office does not believe she is from Zimbabwe and want to return her to South Africa . Despite proof of her identity, she has been detained for three months.

As a teenager, Ms Z was expelled from her girls’ school in Zimbabwe accused of being a lesbian; she was abused and threatened with sexual violence and ostracized by the community. A group of men attacked her for being lesbian and beat her until she lost consciousness. She escaped to South Africa but while living with her partner in the Eastern Cape suffered homophobic abuse, including stone throwing and other violence. Later in Johannesburg , the attacks culminated in a brutal gang rape by a group of men, after which she tried to return to Zimbabwe. But after being attacked again there, Ms Z fled to the UK . Before making her asylum claim, Ms Z was threatened with removal and taken to the airport to be put on a plane to Zimbabwe . While at the airport she was suffered racist verbal abuse from officers and was so terrified of returning that she cut her wrists. She was then held down and strip-searched in front of male officer/s.

Ms P has been detained for four months. She fled Uganda after being raped by soldiers looking for her husband who was in the LRA, and again when she was detained there. She was raped again by the man who brought her to the UK . She is HIV+. The Home Office and the Adjudicator dismissed her account claiming the availability of free HIV/AIDs treatment in Uganda .

WDL works closely with Legal Action for Women (LAW: law@crossroadswomen.net) which recently published “For Asylum Seekers and their Supporters – A Self-help Guide Against Detention and Deportation”. Since launching the Guide, LAW has been working together with Black Women’s Rape Action Project and Women Against Rape with over 80 women in detention.