An Iraqi man who asked for asylum in the UK has been given permission to stay after convincing a court that going back to Iraq would put him in danger because of his political opinions. The man, a Kurd known only by the initials HR, has a speech disability and said he suffered for years in Iraq because of it. He told the court he was mistreated, insulted, and abused because of how he speaks.
He explained that these painful experiences helped shape his political views, including his criticism of the government in the Kurdish region of Iraq. He made it clear that if sent back, he could not be expected to hide or change his opinions just to stay safe.
The UK Home Office, led by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, argued that the man could simply delete his Facebook posts, which criticized the Iraqi authorities, and safely return home. But the Upper Tribunal in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber disagreed, saying his political views were real and deeply held, and he should not be forced to hide them to avoid harm.
The court heard that HR had joined many protests in Iraq. In December 2017, he was beaten during a protest and hurt his right ear. Five years later, after another protest, he was arrested and held for 24 hours, during which he was mocked and humiliated over his disability.
He also shared critical posts online, and told the court that some of his friends had “disappeared” because of similar social media activity. Fearing for his life, he left Iraq in August 2022 on a tourist visa to Turkey, and two months later, he applied for asylum in the UK.
At first, the Home Office rejected his request, saying Iraqi authorities were not interested in him and he could just remove his online posts. But the First-tier Tribunal disagreed, ruling that his political opinions were sincere, shaped by the discrimination he had faced, and that it was unfair to expect him to keep quiet about them.
The Home Office appealed, saying there wasn’t enough evidence to prove he was at risk, and also claimed he was unlikely to keep protesting about disability rights since some support existed in Iraq. They also pointed out that there were no expert reports proving the protests had actually happened.
However, the Upper Tribunal rejected these arguments, noting that they hadn’t been raised in the first hearing. Judge Christopher Hanson said the lower court had made no mistakes in finding that the man could face persecution if sent back.
The judge said the most important point was that HR has a political opinion, and if he expresses that opinion after returning to Iraq, it could put him in danger from the authorities. He emphasized that the man cannot be expected to hide what he believes just to avoid being harmed.
