First applications to be admitted to the country on humanitarian grounds are received in Cape Town

APE TOWN - South Africa has received its first applications for asylum from gay men who fear persecution in their home countries, it was reported there on Friday (November 5, '99).

A Ugandan doctor and two Pakistani men are seeking asylum on the grounds that their safely is in jeopardy in their own countries says the report.

The applications will be a test case for South Africa, which has one of the most gay-friendly constitutions in the world.

"I didn't want to flee but at least I am safe here," said Doctor Steve Kabiku of Uganda, where homosexuality is illegal and where President Yoweri Museveni said recently gays have to be arrested.

"I am not a criminal," he said. "I just want to live my life in peace."

The Pakistani men were forced to flee their country after a family member discovered they were a couple and threatened to inform the police, the report says.

Homosexuals in Pakistan, a Muslim country, can face execution by stoning, it says.

A new South African law, to come into effect in May (2000), specifies that sexual orientation is a valid reason for extending political asylum.

An unnamed Home Affairs official says it is "technically possible" for the application to succeed.

"One of the grounds (for granting asylum) is a well-founded fear of persecution in their home country. I can't comment on the merits of these cases, but we will consider each one to see if this applies," he said.

The asylum seekers arrived in South Africa last month and have been granted temporary permits to remain until their applications are heard.

National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality spokesperson Evert Knoesen says it is unlikely that these first applications, if successful, will result in a flood of similar requests.

"Canada and the United States have been granting asylum on the basis of sexual orientation for years. There hasn't been a flood there and we don't see why there should be here," he says.

The Coalition this year successfully challenged a section of South Africa's immigration law which allowed only married heterosexuals to obtain permanent residency for their foreign partners.

©AFP

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