Germany grants asylum to lesbian who faced persecution in Uganda

Germany has spared a lesbian from deportation back to her home country, Uganda, where members of the LGBTIAQ+ community face life imprisonment.

According to AllAfrica, refugee status was granted to the 41-year-old by the German government on Monday, after a deportation trial in Bavaria.

The judge ruled that the asylum seeker would face violent prosecution if she was deported to Uganda, where non-heteronormativity is heavily criminalised.

The federal office for migration and refugees confirmed at the trial that the woman qualified for refugee status.

Civil rights groups said the positive outcome of the trial could set the tone for LGBTIAQ+ people seeking asylum from persecution in countries where these identities were outlawed.