A self-confessed 28-year-old Kenyan lesbian has had her application for asylum in Sweden rejected because the country’s migration board does not believe that she is a lesbian.
Lucy Murugi fled from her homeland Kenya two years ago after her family turned their backs on her and only got help from her cousin who helped her get a visa and accommodation in Stockholm.
Speaking to Swedish journalists, Lucy said that she applied for asylum but was rejected by the Swedish Migration Board 14 months later because she failed the interviews that form the basis for the credibility of the assessment.
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But according to Lucy, the Migration Board’s questions were almost incomprehensible to her.
“I did not understand anything. No one told me what to expect. What I would do or say, or at least give me some guidelines,” she said.
Lucy now fears going back to Kenya where homosexuality is criminalized and punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
She further alleges that her life is in danger because her name has been released as a lesbian in the infamous Ugandan Tabloid Red Pepper among 200 other African homosexuals.
Asked what it feels like not to be believed, Lucy said: “It feels horrible and disappointing. It breaks down one. You realize that you made a mistake somewhere and when you try to fix it so you will rarely get a second chance.”
Additional Reporting by Expressen
