Afghan atheist wins asylum for religious reasons
An Afghan citizen has secured UK asylum for religious reasons despite being an atheist.
The case, believed to be the first of its kind, was submitted to the Home Office under the 1951 Refugee Convention on the basis that if the man returned to Afghanistan he would face persecution on the grounds of religion; or in this case his lack of religious belief.
The case was made by Kent Law Clinic, a pro bono service provided by students and supervised by qualified practising lawyers from the University of Kent’s Law School. The man involved fled to the UK from a conflict involving his family in Afghanistan and was allowed to stay in the UK until 2013, a university spokeswoman said.