Gay Colombian man seeks political asylum

By Timothy Pratt

Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2001 | 10:38 a.m.

The name of the gay club in Cali, Colombia, was "Exile." It was packed with executives from airlines such as Lufthansa and employees of an upscale hotel called the Pacifico Royal.

Suddenly, about a dozen men with ammunition belts over their fatigues and carrying automatic weapons burst onto the dance floor. "You ... deserve to die," one yelled.

Within minutes police arrived and a shootout followed, leaving two policemen dead. Several patrons were injured and two members of the armed band were captured.

Gonzalo Quiceno, 29, now living in Las Vegas, says being in the club that night six years ago is what started him thinking about living in the United States, about getting away from the anti-gay sentiment he encountered in Colombia since his teenage years.

Two years ago he followed up on that impulse by illegally slipping across the Mexican border and making his way to Las Vegas.

Now he is seeking political asylum based on his sexual orientation.

"When I found out that I had the right to seek protection in the United States, I knew I had to try," Quiceno said.

Pradeep Singla, staff attorney for the New York-based Lesbian and Gay Immigration Rights Task Force, said it's a matter of life and death for people in Quiceno's position.

"People who are seeking asylum are coming here to save their lives, not for jobs," Singla said.

Political asylum was made possible, Quiceno's attorney Peter Ashman said, in the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 -- the forerunner of modern immigration law.

But homosexuals could not seek asylum under immigration law. In fact, homosexuals were barred from entering the country until 1990, when Congress struck the prohibition from the Immigration and Nationality Act. The same year a gay Cuban man was granted asylum because his life was in danger.

Four years later Attorney General Janet Reno declared the Cuban's case a legal precedent. Since then, the number of groups dedicated to assisting homosexual political asylum seekers has grown, though it is not known how many such cases are filed each year.

"The Immigration and Naturalization Service does not release records on the number of political asylum cases linked to sexual orientation," Singla said. His organization was founded in 1994 in New York and has since grown to 15 chapters nationwide.

Singla said about 3,000 requests for information on the issue reach his organization each year.

Quiceno sought information from the group in 1999, when he arrived in the United States.

He said he had tried to hide his sexual identity from his family and society in his hometown. But he said he still suffered abuses, including having his car rammed one night by several men who followed him after he left a gay club.

Quiceno said he made his way to Las Vegas after researching cities nationwide that process asylum cases based on sexual orientation. He said he found out that Las Vegas processes a relatively low number and thought his case could be heard more quickly here.

About 500 asylum cases are heard here annually, Ashman said, and he guessed that fewer than 10 percent relate to sexual orientation.

The Colombian applied first with the southwestern region's Immigration and Naturalization Services asylum officer in Anaheim, Calif., and was denied. He then had the right to have his case heard by an immigration judge.

But the process in Las Vegas hasn't been as quick as he had hoped. Quiceno, who has been working at a local car dealership using a special work permit for asylum seekers, filed a petition 18 months ago and is waiting for the case to be heard.

Quiceno has arranged to have his case heard in New York, where he has an aunt and where he says he can receive support from other homosexual asylum seekers and advice from organizations like Singla's. He is scheduled to leave Saturday.

"This whole process is very tough psychologically speaking, and I can use all the help I can get," he said.

Quiceno has a hearing scheduled for Oct. 25 in Manhattan.

"I know that this country gives you the right to appeal. Sooner or later, one of these judges will do what's right," Quiceno said.