{UAH} Kenyan Gay Rugby Player Kicked Out of UK

Edmund/ WBK,

The immigration authorities here are becoming tougher on gay asylum seekers. About 5 years ago, anyone who claimed he was fleeing Kenya or Uganda because of homosexuality was automatically granted asylum. The problem is that this opened the floodgates and sure enough thousands of people started using that route, many of them later proven not to be gay at all. They now demand a higher standard of proof of being gay, and also evidence of persecution. It is really sad for them, because I know these guys are not safe in Kenya but in their situation is worse in Uganda where they face attacks and harrassment and many have been lynched.

Bobby

Kenyan Gay Rugby Player Kicked Out of UK

• By ANTHONY OWINO on 3 June 2019 - 6:46 pm
  
  A file photo of Ken Macharia TWITTER BURNHAM AND HIGHBRIDGE WEEKLY NEWS

FacebookTwitterWhatsAppFacebook MessengerEmail

• Ken Macharia, a gay 39-year-old Kenyan-born rugby player who has been living in the U.K. since 2009 has been ordered back to Kenya.

  Macharia, whose plight prompted more than 100,000 people to sign a petition calling on the Home Office (UK's Immigration department) to halt his removal, has been told he must now leave the country "without delay".

  According to The Home Office letter to Macharia, he does not qualify for leave "on any basis".

  In November 2018, Macharia was granted bail from the Colnbrook Immigration Centre, after being detained for two weeks,  but was told his deportation was still "imminent". 

  

  His work visa expired in 2016, leading him to seek asylum in the UK because his sexuality led him to fear persecution if he returned to Kenya. 

  He has been through a legal appeals process, which has dragged on for several years until the deportation announcement today.

  Macharia arrived in the UK on a student visa in 2009 as a mechanical design engineer.

  While living near his mother in Bristol, Kenneth became a member of the BristolBisons, the city's LGBTQ+ inclusive rugby team. 

  Acting as the team's first aider, photographer and avid supporter, he swiftly became a core member of the group. 

  The decision comes  in light of a ruling last month where the High Court upheld a law banning homosexuality in Kenya.

  
  File photo of Ken Macharia with his teammates

• 
  

--
Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Ugandans at Heart (UAH) Community" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ugandans-at-heart/CAMs%3D6-zJaN1GXPUAreodYi2U4tyr2gaYVAshPE_RvKQZvu%2BA_A%40mail.gmail.com.