CCPR/C/114/D/2288/2013
Appeals Board of Denmark suspended the deadline for the author’s removal from the State
party, in accordance with the Committee’s request.
Factual background
2.1
The author is of Urhobo ethnicity and professes the Christian faith. She claims that
she lived in Warri, Nigeria, until 2007, and attended primary and secondary school for 12
years. When she was 17 years old, her mother was killed by militant extremists and the
family house, together with other houses in the area, was burnt down. She does not know
why her mother was killed; she had no contact with her father and she has no relatives in
Nigeria. After her mother’s death, she moved to Lagos, where she lived on the street with
other homeless people. She used to sell snacks at the airport and got just enough money to
survive. One day in September 2009, she met a married couple, Mr. P.B. and Ms. B.O.
Since they offered to her help to get a good education and have a better life, she gave them
her telephone number.
2.2
The author submits that three months later, Mr. P.B. called her and asked her to pick
up some documents and money at his brother’s (Mr. I.) house in Benin City, Nigeria, and
take them to the Danish Embassy in Nigeria. She alleges that the papers were filled out in
English and Danish and that she did not know their content. At the Embassy, the author
filled in her name and address and paid a sum of money in the local currency. On 11 March
2010, she received a telephone call informing her that her visa was ready. She alleges that it
was only at that moment that she learned that she had obtained a residence permit to work
as an au pair in Denmark. She contacted Mr. P.B.’s brother, Mr. I., who gave her an
aeroplane ticket, paid for by Mr. P.B., to travel to Denmark.
2.3
On 6 April 2010, the author arrived in Denmark with a genuine Nigerian passport.
The author states that after her arrival, she was raped by Mr. P.B., who also threatened to
kill her if she told his wife about the rape. After a month, she was told by Ms. B.O. that she
would not be looking after their children, but rather would have to work and make money
to repay them, since she owed them €50,000 for bringing her to Denmark. The author
further alleges that: she was forced to work as a prostitute in different brothels in Jutland;
she surrendered DKr 118,000 to Ms. B.O.; and Ms. B.O. beat her with a stick several times
and threatened to kill her if she told anyone in Nigeria what she, Ms. B.O., made her to do
in Denmark.
2.4
On 17 August 2010, the author reported Ms. B.O. and Mr. P.B. to the police in
Silkeborg, Denmark. They were prosecuted and detained. During the criminal proceedings,
the author appeared as a witness against them. She alleged that she did not contact the
police in the beginning because she was afraid that Ms. B.O. would have her arrested and
sent back to Nigeria.
2.5
The author claims that around September or October 2010, she received a telephone
call from Mr. P.B.’s brother (Mr. I.), who lived in Nigeria. He referred to the imprisonment
of Mr. P.B. and told her that she would be killed if she came back to Nigeria. After that, she
decided to change her telephone number to avoid receiving further threats.
2.6
On 1 or 12 November 2010, the author applied for asylum to the Danish
Immigration Service (at Sandholm Asylum Centre). She explained her experiences since
her arrival in Denmark and claimed that she was afraid of being killed by Mr. P.B. and Ms.
B.O. or their relatives in Nigeria. During the asylum proceedings, she claimed that, inter
alia, she was threatened several times by Mr. P.B. and that Ms. B.O. threatened to kill her
and send people after her both in Europe and in Nigeria if she did not pay the €50,000. She
also stated that: she still felt persecuted by them because her complaint to the Danish police
and her testimony against them had resulted in their imprisonment for seven months; they
had all her personal data, including photographs of her; Mr. P.B.’s brother in Nigeria had
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