Germany accepts first gay refugee from Chechnya

A young man from Chechnya has appealed to the German Embassy in Moscow with a request to provide him with protection from the persecution because of his homosexual orientation. After an interview, officials of the German diplomatic mission granted him an entry visa "for urgent humanitarian reasons," an official of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) reports.

The homosexual from Chechnya has become the first gay refugee to whom Germany provided protection in connection with the repression against LGBT community members in Chechnya.

On June 6, the young man left Russia for Germany, the German newspaper "Tagesspiegel" reports.

"We are glad that we can help in especially difficult situations," states the spokesman for the German MFS as quoted by the "Tagesspiegel". The diplomat has noted that Germany issues humanitarian visas on very rare occasions, but the authorities of the country took seriously the problem of persecution of gays in Chechnya.

In total, the German Embassy in Moscow has received five similar appeals. Three applicants were assigned an interview date.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on May 17, two homosexuals from Chechnya found refuge in Lithuania. On May 30, it became known that the first homosexual refugee from Chechnya arrived in France.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.