Gay asylum seeker who faced deportation to country with 'corrective rape' wins battle to stay in UK

The woman believed if she returned to Namibia with her British partner she could face homophobic 'corrective' rape

A gay woman trying to avoid deportation to an African state where homophobic men perform “corrective” rapes has won a legal battle in her bid to stay in the UK.

The woman wanted to remain in the UK because she believed it wouldn’t be reasonable to expect her to return to Namibia with her British partner, a woman referred to in court documents a “G”.

However, in March 2019, the then- Home Secretary Sajid Javid rejected the bid.

The woman – known as BK – had previously made an asylum claim to stay in Britain based on her sexuality which was rejected in May 2013.

Javid refused to treat the new submission as a fresh claim.

BK then instructed lawyers to go to the Court of Session in Edinburgh in a bid to quash the decision.

In a judgment published yesterday, Lady Carmichael wrote: “There has been no proper consideration of the harshness of the consequences for G of requiring her to move to Namibia in order to continue the relationship with the petitioner.”

Lawyers for the Home Office argued that the Government acted lawfully.

Lady Carmichael ordered that the Home Secretary should now reconsider the submissions brought by BK.