LGBT people “may face some discrimination” in Rwanda, the Government has said, but insisted that the African nation will be safe for asylum seekers.
In a policy statement on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill – published by the Home Office ahead of its first vote in the Commons later on Tuesday – the Government said that migrants flown to the country will still be safe despite concerns over its human rights record and attitude towards LGBT people.
The Government has faced criticism over the scheme with opponents expressing concern about safety of asylum seekers under Paul Kagame’s administration, which some have branded authoritarian.
The policy statement accompanying the proposed legislation said: “Most reports of any alleged human rights violations in Rwanda relate to Rwandan nationals who are critics of the government.
“There is no evidence in the sources consulted that asylum seekers or refugees are considered by the government to be of interest on grounds of their political opinion based on the countries they are from.”
The same document also said that while LGBT people “may face some discrimination in practice in Rwanda”, the country’s “legal protection for LGBTI rights is generally considered more progressive than that of neighbouring countries”.
“The constitution of Rwanda includes a broad prohibition of discrimination and does not criminalise or discriminate against sexual orientation in law or policy.”
It also says that the Government is “aware that refugee protests over cuts to food rations which took place at Kiziba refugee camp in 2018 resulted in refugee fatalities”.
But it said that the incident was an “isolated case and there is no information on similar incidents since 2018”.
The publication of the documents comes ahead of a crunch vote, as Rishi Sunak and his Home Secretary James Cleverly try to win over would-be rebels in a bid to avoid an embarrassing Commons defeat at second reading.