A HOMOSEXUAL woman facing the death sentence in Nigeria because of her sexuality is challenging the Home Office’s refusal to grant her asylum in the UK.
The Home Office has accused Nigerian-born Aderonke Apata of adopting a “stereotypical lesbian appearance” to help support her claim to stay in Britain, and have also claimed that she can not be a lesbian as she has children.
Apata, appeared in London’s High Court on Tuesday to challenge the Home Office’s decision.
The 47-year-old gay rights advocate and award-winner came to Britain from Nigeria in 2004 seeking asylum on religious grounds.
Coming from a Christian family, she married a Muslim man in what she says was a sham arrangement to cover up her long-term relationship with a woman.
Apata claimed her husband’s family turned against her when they suspected she was gay, and took her to a Sharia court, where she was sentenced to death for adultery. Her brother and three-year-old son, according to Apata, were killed by mobs.
In court, the Home Office argued that Apata can not be considered a lesbian because she has children and has previously been in heterosexual relationships.
Apata’s her barrister, Abid Mahmood, said these claims were “highly offensive” and “stereotypical views of the past”.
Mahmood told the hearing: “Some members of the public may have those views but it doesn’t mean a government department should be putting these views forward in evidence.”
The Home Secretary’s barrister, Andrew Bird, argued that Apata was “not part of the social group known as lesbians” but had “indulged in same-sex activity”.
He added: “You can’t be a heterosexual one day and a lesbian the next day. Just as you can’t change your race.”
GATHERING: Gay rights activist protest for Aderonke Apaka’s right to stay in the UK outside the Royal Courts of Justice [PHOTO CREDIT: Gay Star News]
Prosecutors have also reportedly accused the 47-year-old of changing her style to support her claim. The short-haired asylum seeker apparently looked “feminine” in Africa, with longer hair, and her “stereotyped lesbian appearance was adopted after the initial decline of asylum in the UK”.
It has also been said that her gay rights activism – which she has won an award for – started after she was first refused grant of asylum and has been used as a “last ditch attempt” to remain in the country.
The asylum seeker’s barrister said: “There is evidence of the genuineness of her case, that she will be picked out as a lesbian if she is returned.”
Homosexuality is punishable by up to 14 years in prison in Nigeria under laws passed in January 2014 and there has been a spike in violence against gay people.
Apata was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress in 2005 and attempted suicide when she was in prison facing deportation. Her fragile mental health forms part of the case that she would suffer if returned to Nigeria.
Deputy High Court judge John Bowers QC is expected to hand down a ruling by the end of the month, according to The Independent.
Speaking after the hearing, Apata said: “The Home Office has treated me badly from day one. Staying in Britain means staying safe, staying with my partner and continuing my campaigning.”
Coutesy:Voice