A High Court in Ireland has ruled that it was neither unreasonable nor irrational for a tribunal to reject the claim of a Ghanaian man who asserted he was openly gay and had faced persecution back home.

Mr. Justice Barry O’Donnell dismissed the appeal of the divorced father-of-three, who was challenging the International Protection Appeal Tribunal's decision to deny him refugee status and subsidiary protection.

The judge pointed out that the international protection process had raised doubts about the credibility of the applicant's accounts of persecution and his claim of being gay.

Mr. Justice O’Donnell acknowledged the sensitivity involved in assessing assertions about sexual orientation but affirmed that such assessments are necessary. The tribunal, he noted, had made a conscientious effort to evaluate the claim against appropriate standards.

The tribunal recognized the severe discrimination and homophobia that gay men may encounter in Ghana, where violent homophobic attacks are prevalent.

However, the applicant's narrative, which included a marriage and three children followed by a divorce in 2017 and a subsequent relationship with a man in 2018, raised questions. The tribunal found his account of living openly as a gay man in a context of widespread intolerance to be "unexpected and unusual."

The applicant had arrived in Ireland in February 2020, seeking international protection. After an interview with the International Protection Office 26 months later, he was denied refugee status, subsidiary protection, and leave to remain in June 2022.

This decision was upheld by the tribunal in November 2022, leading to the judicial review proceedings at the High Court.

The man contended that the tribunal had erred legally by deeming his account not credible and had relied on assumptions about the experiences of gay men. He also argued that the tribunal had violated fair procedure principles by making credibility findings without giving him a chance to respond.

Despite these claims, the tribunal defended its decision as lawful, fair, and reasonable. Mr. Justice O’Donnell concluded that the tribunal's findings were not based on conjecture or stereotype but on a thorough examination of the facts, with the applicant provided ample opportunity to clarify his situation. The tribunal's decision was upheld as lawful.

TWI NEWS

With additional files from the Irishtimes.com

GA/SARA

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