Monday, December 8, 2024 - The United Nations has accused the government of President William Ruto of blocking Western countries like Canada from resettling LGBTQ+ refugees, leaving them languishing in dangerous refugee camps and safe houses in Kenya.
According to an investigative
series by the Canadian Press, the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees revealed that the Kenyan government has stopped
processing most refugee claims based on sexual orientation or gender identity,
despite both being grounds recognized for such claims.
“Since 2021, UNHCR has observed
that such claims have been increasingly kept on hold without a decision being
made,” wrote a spokesman for the Geneva-based agency.
The situation got worse in 2023,
with Kenya nearly halting the registration of LGBTQ+ claimants, who they
require to legally work, access benefits and health care, or open a bank
account.
Critically, the restrictions
have affected refugees who have completed Canadian immigration security and
health checks and been issued formal Canadian travel documents, some multiple
times.
The government’s blocking of
exit permits has led some to flee Kenya for even more precarious conditions in
South Sudan, in the hopes of reaching the West.
Ibrahim Kazibwe, founder of the
Community Empowerment and Self-Support Organisation in Nairobi, said refugees
are increasingly being told that they won’t get an interview for as long as
five years if they have claimed asylum based on being a sexual or gender
minority.
The UN’s global head of refugee
resettlement said his agency has tried negotiating with the Kenyan government
to drop its restrictions and abide by international obligations, calling it “a
very real issue” for LGBTQ+ people.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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