By our reporter 3.9.2025
Gay rights activist Joel Mordi has kicked against the newly introduced UK immigration measures, which temporarily suspends new applications to its refugee family reunification scheme.
Refugees will henceforth face the same restrictions on bringing family to the UK as other migrants do, which namely includes earning at least £29,000 a year and being able provide suitable accommodation for relatives, as well as the family members in question having a basic level of English.
Speaking on the measures Mordi who in 2019 fled to the UK after organising Nigeria’s first LGBTQ+ protest said his family has been affected and he and his family remain targets of hate in Nigeria.
“My heart shattered into a million pieces, and I am still picking myself up. I haven’t had it easy myself, but I’ve put my situation to be back because my family are still in immediate danger. That is deeply concerning to say the least,” Mordi told ITV.
He described Nigeria as “not a safe place for people like myself” and recounted how his family members have been attacked with acid and his brother “beaten to a pulp” since he fled.
“It’s the worst that anyone could do and that is how deeply rooted hate goes,” he stated, adding the violence has had a “devastating impact”.
Mordi a poet is a recipient of the Princess Diana Legacy Award.
Joel Mordi