RIETI, Italy (AP) 鈥 Ella Anthony knew it was time to leave her native Nigeria when she escaped an abusive, forced marriage only to face angry relatives who threatened to turn her in to police because she was gay.
Since , Anthony fled a possible prison term and headed with her partner to Libya in 2014 and then Italy, where they both won asylum. Their claim? That they had a well-founded fear of anti-LGBTQ+ persecution back home.
While many of the hundreds of thousands of migrants who arrive in Italy from Africa and the Mideast are escaping war, conflict and poverty, an increasing number are fleeing possible prison terms and death sentences in their home countries because of their sexual orientation or gender identity, advocates say.
And despite huge obstacles to win asylum on LGBTQ+ grounds, Anthony and her partner, Doris Ezuruike Chinonso. are proof that it can be done, even if the challenges remain significant for so-called 鈥渞ainbow refugees鈥 like them.
鈥淐ertainly life here in Italy isn鈥檛 100% what we want. But let鈥檚 say it鈥檚 80% better than in my country,鈥 Chinonso, 34, said with Anthony by her side at their home in Rieti, north of Rome. In Nigeria, 鈥渋f you鈥檙e lucky you end up prison. If you鈥檙e not lucky, they kill you,鈥 she said.
鈥淗ere you can live as you like,鈥 she said.
Most European countries don鈥檛 keep statistics on the number of migrants who claim anti-LGBTQ+ persecution as a reason for seeking refugee protection under international law. But non-governmental organizations that track the phenomenon say the numbers are rising as 鈥 a trend being highlighted on Friday's observance of the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia.
To date, more than 60 countries have anti-LGBTQ+ laws on the books, most of them in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia.
鈥淭he ultimate result is people trying to flee these countries to find safe haven elsewhere,鈥 said Kimahli Powell, chief executive of Rainbow Railroad, which provides financial, legal and logistical support to LGBTQ+ people needing asylum assistance.
In an interview, Powell said his organization had received about 15,000 requests for assistance last year, up from some 9,500 the year before. One-tenth of those 2023 requests, or about 1,500, came from that year that allows the death penalty for 鈥渁ggravated homosexuality,鈥 and up to 14 years in prison for 鈥渁ttempted aggravated homosexuality.鈥
Nigeria also criminalizes consensual same-sex relations between adults and the public display of affection between same-sex couples, as well as restricting the work of groups that advocate for gay people and their rights, according to Human Rights Watch. In regions of Nigeria where Sharia law is in force, LGBTQ+ people can face up to 14 years in prison or the death penalty.
Anthony, 37, said it was precisely the threat of prison that compelled her to leave. She said her family had sold her into marriage, but that she left the relationship because her husband repeatedly abused her. When she returned home, her brother and uncles threatened to turn her into police because she was gay. The fear and alienation drove her first to attempt suicide, and then take up a trafficker鈥檚 offer to pay for passage to Europe.
鈥淎t a certain point, I couldn鈥檛 take all these sufferings,鈥 Anthony said through tears. 鈥淲hen this man told me that I should abandon the village, I immediately accepted.鈥
After arriving in Libya, Anthony and Chinonso paid traffickers for the to Italy, where they both claimed asylum as a member of a group 鈥 LGBTQ+ people 鈥 who faced persecution in Nigeria. According to refugee norms, applicants for asylum can be granted international protection based on being a 鈥渕ember of a particular social group.鈥
But the process is by no means easy, straightforward or guaranteed. Privacy concerns limit the types of questions about sexual orientation that migrants can be asked during the asylum interview process. Social taboos and a reluctance to openly identify as gay or transgender mean some migrants might not volunteer the information immediately. Ignorance on the part of asylum interviewers about anti-gay laws in countries of origin can result in unsuccessful claims, according to the EU Agency for Asylum, which helps EU countries implement asylum norms.
As a result, no comprehensive data exists about how many migrants seek or win asylum in the EU on LGBTQ+ grounds. Based on estimates reported by NGOs working with would-be refugees, the numbers in individual EU countries ranged from two to three in Poland in 2016 to 500 in Finland from 2015-2017 and 80 in Italy from 2012-2017, according to a 2017 report by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights.
An EU directive grants special protection for people made vulnerable due to sexual discrimination, prescribing 鈥渟pecial procedural guarantees鈥 in countries that receive them. However, it doesn鈥檛 specify what those guarantees involve and implementation is uneven. As a result, LGBTQ+ asylum seekers don鈥檛 always find protected environments once in the EU.
鈥淲e鈥檙e talking about people who are unfortunately victims of a double stigma: being a migrant, and being members of the LGBTQIA+ community,鈥 said lawyer Marina De Stradis.
Even within Italy, the options vary widely from region to region, with the better-funded north offering more services than the less-developed south. In the capital Rome, there are only 10 beds specifically designated for LGBTQ+ migrants, said Antonella Ugirashebuja, an activist with the Arcigay association.
She said the lack of special protections often impacts female migrants more negatively than male, and can be especially dangerous for lesbians.
鈥淟esbians leaving Africa often, or more frequently, end up in prostitution and sexual exploitation networks because they lack (economic) support from their families,鈥 she said. 鈥淭he family considers them people to be pushed away, to be rejected ... Especially in countries where this is punishable by law.鈥
Anthony and Chinonso consider themselves lucky: They live in a neat flat in Rieti with their dog Paddy, and dream of starting a family even if Italy doesn鈥檛 allow gay marriage.
Chinonso, who was studying medicine in Nigeria, is now a social and health worker. Anthony works at the deli counter in a Carrefour supermarket in Rome. She would have liked to have been able to continue working as a film editor, but is happy.
鈥淚t gave me the opportunity to grow,鈥 she said.
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AP journalist Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed to this report.
