The queer community in Kenya has condemned the government’s policy of discriminating against LGBTQ asylum seekers

The queer community in Kenya has launched a petition condemning the government's discrimination against LGBTQ asylum seekers.

This action comes in response to comments made by Refugee Affairs Commissioner John Burugu, who stated that Kenya would not consider persecution based on sexual orientation or gender identity as sufficient grounds for asylum.

The petition accuses Kenya's Department of Refugee Services of putting queer asylum seekers at greater risk of persecution, violence, and exploitation.

The Kenya 2021 Refugees Act does not explicitly recognize queer people among vulnerable individuals fleeing persecution. The law only recognizes refugees or asylum seekers as people who are persecuted based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership of a social group. 

LGBTQ asylum seekers face prolonged waiting periods, sometimes up to a decade, for decisions on their applications.

The petition has garnered over 200 signatures and will be presented to various Kenyan and international human rights bodies.

Petitioners are calling for immediate action to protect LGBTQ asylum seekers and ensure their rights are respected under international law.

The situation for LGBTQ asylum seekers in Kenya has reportedly worsened since 2017.

There are an estimated 1,000 LGBTQ refugees in Kenya, with many fleeing from neighboring countries like Uganda.

The Center for Minority Rights and Strategic Litigation, a Kenyan LGBTQ rights group, has criticized the government's stance, stating that it violates both national and international laws protecting refugees.

The petition aims to address discrimination, expedite application processes, and ensure representation for LGBTQ asylum seekers in global decision-making forums

Source: The Washington Blade.

You can sign the petition here.

LGBTQ Kakuma refugees decide to move to South Sudan camp in hope of repatriation

Nakafeero and friend.

Queer LGBTQ activists like Nakafeero and Elvis are taking their groups of Ugandan refugees to a camp in South Sudan (name withheld for security purposes), where there are real chances of being repatriated to a much more safer country.

As reported many of the LGBTQ refugees in the Kakuma camp in Kenya are feeling increasingly unsafe. They have gotten messages from a public official noting that the Kenyan government is not recognizing the LGBTQ status of any refugee in their camp and that being queer or trans is not seen as a valid reason for getting protection as refugees.

Here's an email Edward, a member of the Kakuma LGBTQ-community, got from a Kenyan commissioner: 

The refugee camp in South Sudan is not necessarily a safer place for the Ugandan refugees, but both the Canadian and US governments have officials in place who are organizing repatriation for refugees, including those LGBTQ.

Elvis, a friend and ally of Nakafeero, has already taken their group of around 10 refugees to the camp and they tell me that "another 20 mates have been confirmed resettled to Canada now totaling to about 50 at the moment as the rest of us await for the 🇺🇸 USA embassy upcoming this month."

Unlike the Kakuma camp, the South Sudan camp is seeing the end of its life. South Sudanese refugees are being moved out, and several governments are helping resettle the non-Sudanese ones. In other words: Our LGBTQ-refugees are hopeful that they too will be given refugee elsewhere.

The plan now is to move as many of the Ugandan LGBTQ-refugees from Kakuma in Kenya to South Sudan. That will take some time and cost some money. We will keep you posted on how that goes. In the meantime we still need your support, ensuring that the refugees have the necessities needed: food, sanitary products, medicine and so one.

We are also working on a school project for the kids in Kakuma and South Sudan. Both camps provide rudimentary schooling for the children, but children of LGBTQ-refugees are harassed by both adults and other kids, and going to school goes from being directly unpleasant to straight out dangerous. Because of this the plan is to home school the kids. I will let you know more about this soon.

Nakafeero, Elvis and their extended LGBTQ families in Kakuma and South Sudan continue to need your help. Any amount is welcome!

Nakafeero & Co's crowd funding.

Elvis & Co's crowd funding.

Per Koch
Oslo, Norway