27 October 2017
Green Party Co-Leader has written to the Home Office over the proposed deportation of Abderrahim.
Abderrahim, a 25 year old gay Moroccan man, faces deportation after his application for asylum in May failed.
Jonathan Bartley though has written to Amber Rudd, Home Secretary, urging her to intervene and ensure Abderrahim is granted asylum because it is clear his life will be at risk if he returns to Morocco.
Full letter below:
Dear Amber Rudd
I was concerned to recently learn of the situation of Abderrahim, a 25 year old gay Moroccan man who faces deportation from the UK.
It is my understanding that, after applying for asylum earlier this year in May, his case has been rejected by the Home Office, and has also lost a subsequent appeal. I would urge you to reconsider this decision and grant Abderrahim asylum in the UK.
Morocco penalises homosexualtiy with up to three years in prison, with eminent figures like the minister of state for human rights recently calling homosexuals ‘awsakh’ – meaning scum, or dirt. This is not a safe environment for a gay person.
Deporting Abderrahim to Morocco will threaten his safety and liberty, and he will be put in this danger purely because of his sexuality, along with his desire to support other oppressed members of his country’s LGBT+ community.
In the UK, we are rightfully proud of our traditions of democracy, freedom of association, and liberty to live a free and dignified life regardless of one’s sexuality. This is a time to draw on those traditions, and extend them to a person in need.
We should show compassion, and grant Abderrahim asylum in our country. More than this, we should recognise Abderrahim’s efforts to support other LGBT+ people in Morocco, and applaud him for them, rather than needlessly condemning him to persecution.
Abderrahim has shown great courage, and is evidently deserving of asylum in the UK. I urge you to reconsider your decision, and approve his asylum application.
Yours sincerely,
Jonathan Bartley,
Co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales
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