Gay HIV+ man faces deportation from U.S.

[ccharles000]

(Falls Church, Va.) A Pakistani man with HIV is fighting deportation from the United States and seeking asylum.

The man, who wishes to be identified only by his initials, S.K., fears persecution based on his sexual orientation and HIV status if he is returned to his homeland.

Under Pakistani law, being gay is punishable by death. LGBT people are forced to live in secrecy and constant fear of exposure, a legal brief said.

An Immigration judge disputed the risk and denied S.K.’s application for asylum.

The judge held that S.K., who has HIV and was in a committed relationship with a man in Minnesota, could avoid persecution by hiding his sexual orientation, marrying a woman, and having children.

The Board of Immigration Appeals originally upheld the Immigration Judge’s decision and is now reviewing the case a second time.

http://www.365gay.com/news/080508-gay-deportation/

[David Dunham]

1. The lower court judge should be fired.

[closeupready]

5. I agree. There are tons of documented cases where gays in Pakistan have been executed,

tortured, raped, imprisoned and otherwise abused. No question he should receive asylum.

[Ian David]

2. All he needs to do is infect a woman and some children with AIDS. Simple. n/t

[Occulus]

7. Perhaps he SHOULD.

Call the judge's bluff.

"Hey, bigoted asshole- YOU TOLD ME TO."

edited for the dense: :sarcasm:

[GOPNotForMe]

3. What a horrible person that "Judge" is! A total disgrace to judges everywhere.

I really hope S.K.'s lawyers are able to bring some justice and safety to him...

[sui generis]

4. I worked in Karachi for a while

I had three bodyguards provided courtesy of the Pak army (pre-Musharraf), and in various conversations with them at various points it turned out that it wasn't "gayness" as much as unwillingness to marry and bear children. A "married" person fooling around is somehow not as terrible as a young person who might defy kin and tradition (and therefore authority and culture) to make his or her own choices.

After a while the next obvious questions were "are you married"? followed by "knowing" looks, but not the least bit of disrespect. I think the other part of that in most cultures is that "gayness" is perceived as "weakness", and impoverished cultures HATE weakness or anything that can be associated or construed as weakness.

Having said all that, there is no doubt in the world the man's life would be in danger back in Pakistan.

I want to go after that immigration judge. Who's with me? Our tax dollars pay for people like that to hurt people like us? Not gonna happen - this ain't Pakistan and that judge is getting his rocks off thinking about sending someone off to be killed for being gay. Perhaps a few snail mail well written letters from some of us, copied to the local paper might put this judge in the proper light.

If it were up to me, I'd send the judge to Pakistan, for a day.

[Zuiderelle]

6. I'm with you!

Let's send him to Pakistan for a day, with a sign on his back saying "I'm Homosexual"