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MSPs and MPs Urged to Support LGBT Asylum Seekers

LGBT Youth Scotland today urged MSPs  and Scottish MPs to take action in support of LGBT asylum seekers after it emerged that Jojo Jako Yakob, a young gay Syrian man who is seeking asylum in the UK is currently being held at Polmont Young Offenders Institution. His ordeal was highlighted in a  Scotland on Sunday feature last Sunday (click the link to read the article).

His is the most high-profile Scottish case to date of a number of known cases of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people who have fled persecution in their home countries and sought safety in the UK.

Last week, the story of young gay Iranian Mehdi Kazemi made the headlines across the UK; he sought asylum in the UK after his boyfriend was executed in Iran simply for being gay. The Home Office subsequently rejected his asylum application and he fled to the Netherlands, where he is now due to be sent back to the UK. Over the last few days, the Home Secretary has announced that his case will be reviewed.

LGBT Youth Scotland is very concerned about these individual cases, even more so because there are a number of cases where the UK Government’s policy and conduct in relation to asylum seekers, and LGBT asylum seekers in particular raises serious questions.

We are aware of other cases where LGBT young people who fled persecution on grounds of their sexual orientation or gender identity in their home countries are at risk of being deported to face an uncertain fate; there is some indication that some applications have been rejected because the applicant had no same-sex partner at the time of their application or presented no evidence of using LGBT services or involvement in LGBT activism in countries where LGBT people are persecuted, imprisoned and killed. These criteria are clearly unacceptable and as a society, we may be denying vulnerable people their human rights.

LGBT Youth Scotland today asked MSPs to take action on this matter by urging the First Minister to make representations to the UK Government about this and Scottish MPs to lobby to ask the Home Secretary to take immediate action to halt deportations of LGBT people to countries where they face persecution.