German Interior Ministry Aims to Offer Better Protection for Queer Refugees
According to a press release issued by the Ministry, the decision that will become effective on October 1, 2022, will obligate migration services and authorities to not assume the sexual orientation or gender identity of migrants during the asylum procedures, AtoZSerwisPlus.de reports.
Minister Faeser noted that queer migrants shouldn’t feel forced to live a double life where they must hide their sexual orientation or gender identity.
“That’s why I have the decision-making practice of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees checked and revised. In the future, when examining the risk to queer refugees in their countries of origin in the asylum procedure, it can always be assumed that sexual orientation or gender identity is lived openly,” Faeser said.
The minister also pointed out that through this training, decision-makers in Asylum Procedures are trained and handle with empathy cases of queer people seeking protection in Germany.
Part of the assessment if a person is at risk of being persecuted if they return to their home country, a two-stage check is completed during the asylum procedure, with the first level of assessment predicting how the person will behave if they return while the second level predicts how state or non-state actors will react to this category.
This two-stage assessment will be adapted in the revised service instructions for those from the community of LGBTQI*. However, the first stage, indicating how the person will behave once they return, is no longer provided. When authorities predict the risk of return, it must always be assumed that the sexual orientation or gender identity is lived openly.
The service instructions make sure to clarify that LGBTIQ* People seeking protection under no circumstances should be living a discreet life in their country of origin. This also applies if the applicants say they are hiding their sexual orientation or gender identity.
The BAMF trains and sensitises decision-makers frequently, also involving non-governmental organisations. In addition, specially trained decision-makers are involved in gender-specific persecution.
The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) has revealed that asylum seekers in Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Malta, The Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the UK are dealing with double discrimination.
According to ILGA, in Denmark, activists have witnessed cases of trans asylum seekers being harassed by medical service providers, while NGOs in Spain have warned that the community members experience discrimination, violence, and lack of access to social and healthcare services.
