An Algerian refugee sex offender has been allowed to stay in France after claiming to be “transgender,” despite being sentenced to four years in prison in 2019.
In the midst of the debate on lax immigration policy following the rape and murder of 19-year-old Philippine by a Moroccan illegal immigrant, the recent decision by the Council of State concerning the Algerian refugee sex offender has caused controversy.
On Monday, September 30th, the Council of State (Conseil d’État), one of France’s highest administrative bodies, validated the renewed refugee status of the Algerian national.
The Council of State’s decision was motivated by the fact that the 31-year-old man is currently undergoing ‘transition’ to womanhood; he fears persecution if he returns to his country of origin, his lawyer told Le Figaro. The threat would be serious enough to justify granting him protection through refugee status.
This man’s case has been occupying the French authorities for some time now. Present on French soil for 14 years, he was sentenced in 2019 to four years’ imprisonment for sexual assault on a minor under the age of 15.
In November 2020, although he had already applied for refugee status, the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons objected on the grounds that refugee status can be refused or withdrawn from a person who has been convicted of a serious crime or offence, and whose presence constitutes a threat to French society.
In April 2023, the man lodged an appeal with the National Asylum Court (Cour nationale du droit d’asile, or CNDA) which overturned the Office’s decision to refuse him refugee status. The CNDA justified its decision on the grounds of the applicant’s ‘good behaviour’, as he had “voluntarily” taken steps to integrate into the labour market and seek treatment, which had enabled him to obtain a reduced sentence.
The Council of State has now upheld this decision, on the grounds that “criminal offences alone cannot legally justify a decision refusing or terminating refugee status.”
The issue of his sexual orientation and apparent transgender identity were obviously at the heart of the final decision. The applicant’s statements were deemed to be particularly “spontaneous and substantiated,” making it possible “to establish his sexual orientation and trans identity,” according to the CNDA. A medical certificate was provided to support the idea that there was no serious risk of re-offending.
The Defender of Rights, an independent administrative authority founded in 2008, has mentioned the fact that for several years, applications for asylum on grounds of sexual orientation have been steadily increasing. On the other hand, applications for reasons of religious persecution are receiving much less attention from the authorities. Similar cases of people lying about their identity or sexual orientation in order to secure refugee status have been observed in Europe.