Is Rwanda a safe place to send LGBTQ+ asylum seekers from the UK?
LGBTQ+ rights groups are concerned that gay, bisexual, and transgender refugees could face persecution if they are sent to Rwanda under Britain’s policy to deport some asylum seekers to the East African nation.
Britain says asylum seekers who enter the country illegally could be flown to Rwanda, where they will be allowed to seek asylum or ask to be returned to their home countries.
The policy has been condemned by the U.N. refugee agency and rights groups, while the European Court of Human Rights intervened to stop the first plane from departing last week.
LGBTQ+ rights groups have expressed concern about the risk of discrimination and a lack of legal protections in Rwanda, though Britain’s Home Office (interior ministry) said there is no “real risk” of mistreatment in the African country.
