I länder som Afghanistan och Somalia är kvinnor rättsligt underordnade män och har sällan möjlighet att erhålla statligt skydd mot könsrelaterad förföljelse. I dessa länder är kvinnors skydd och överlevnad i stor utsträckning beroende av att det i sitt hemland har tillgång till ett manligt nätverk. En kvinna som saknar ett manligt nätverk i hemlandet löper stor risk att utsättas för könsrelaterad förföljelse vid ett återvändande till hemlandet. Enligt den svenska utlänningslagen beaktas kön som en förföljelsegrund som ska kunna grunda rätt till uppehållstillstånd i Sverige. Trots den svenska lagbestämmelsen nekas kvinnor som åberopat skyddsgrunden könsrelaterad förföljelse sin rätt till asyl i Sverige. I vissa fall avslås ansökan med hänvisning till att kvinnan vid ett återvändande ska vända sig till manligt nätverk för skydd mot könsrelaterad förföljelse.                                                                         Syftet med uppsatsen är att genomföra en kritisk analys av Migrationsverkets och Migrationsdomstolens praxis att hänvisa kvinnliga asylsökande till manligt nätverk i hemlandet.  För att uppnå studiens syfte har jag studerat asylbeslut som avser kvinnor från Somalia och Afghanistan. Studien visar på att kvinnors tillgång respektive avsaknad av manligt nätverk i hemlandet har betydelse för rättsinsatsernas skyddsbedömning. Min ambition med denna framställning är att i dialog med postkolonial teori kring den subalterna kvinnans dubbelutsatthet och rättighetsdiskursens begränsade effekt att motverka diskriminering problematisera rättsinstansernas hänvisning till det manliga nätverket. / In countries such as Afghanistan and Somalia, women are legally subordinate to men. Due to womens subordinated role, women are depended on their access to a male network in order to secure their protection and survival in their home country. An asylum seeking women without a male network is at high risk of being subjected to gender related persecution when being sent her country of origin.  The Swedish Aliens Act Utlänningslag states that fear of gender-based persecution is considered as a base for asylum claim. However, it has shown that asylum seeking women claiming fear of gender-related persecution are denied their right to asylum in Sweden. In some cases the Swedish Migration Board direct the applicant to seek protection within her male network in the applicant’s country.                The aim of this thesis is to conduct a critical analysis of the Swedish Migration Board and Migration Court's practice of referring female asylum seekers to their "male network". I have studied asylum decisions made by Swedish Migration Board and Migration Court's regarding women from Somalia and Afghanistan. The study shows that women's access and lack of male network in their country of origin is crucial for the Swedish judicial assessments in establishing whether the women is considered to be in need of protection. My goal with this study is to problematize this issue by implementing a postcolonial theory of the subaltern women’s two folded oppression and the limited effect of the legal discourse to eliminate discrimination.

Migration in general and the assessment of the need of protection concerning people from Afghanistan in particular, has in recent years risen on the migration agenda, especially after the Taliban regime's expanded control in the country. This thesis aims to investigate what guidelines that are in place for assessing female Afghan asylum seekers who applies for asylum in Sweden based on gender related persecution. Through a legal dogmatic analysis, three determinations from the Swedish Migration Agency and three determinations from three of Sweden's migration courts have been examined. The purpose has been to examine the guidelines of the determinations, analyze the values applied by the Swedish Migration Agency and the Migration Courts in the determinations, and whether the current application of the law is legally secure based on Frändberg and Von Essen's definition of legal security. The results show that there are shortcomings in the Swedish Migration Agency's as well as the Migration Courts' assessments, which is consistent with previous research. The results as well as previous research shows knowledge gaps about what requirements that should be expected from the applicants in terms of reliability, credibility, and evidence.

Le Canada accepte des demandes d’asile sur la base de l'orientation sexuelle depuis plus de 20 ans. Quoi qu’il en soit, cette recherche permet de douter du fait que les demandes sur la base de l’orientation sexuelle déposées par des femmes soient traitées de façon adéquate. Pour garantir l’accès à la protection des femmes appartenant à des minorités sexuelles, une analyse du risque de persécution fondé sur l'orientation sexuelle doit incorporer des considérations de genre ainsi que divers autres facteurs d’ordre social et culturel. À partir d’une étude de cas de demandes du statut de refugié déposées par des femmes sur la base de l’orientation sexuelle et rejetées par la Commission de l'immigration et du statut de réfugié entre 2010 et 2013, cette recherche identifie des procédés décisionnels problématiques qui font obstacle au droit d’asile de ces femmes. Les résultats de cette étude révèlent qu’une analyse intersectionnelle, laquelle prend acte des formes variées et multiples de l’oppression dans un contexte social donné, est d’importance cruciale pour une évaluation éclairée et non tronquée des risques de persécution pour les minorités sexuelles féminines. À la lumière de ces résultats, ce mémoire propose qu’une analyse intersectionnelle accompagne une nécessaire formation pour les membres de la Commission de l'immigration et du statut de réfugié du Canada sur des questions particulières à des minorités sexuelles. / Canada has accepted refugee claims on the basis of sexual orientation for more than 20 years; however, research suggests that claims brought by women on the basis of sexual orientation have not always received fair adjudication. To ensure equitable access to protection for sexual minority women, an analysis of their risk of persecution must incorporate gender and other social and cultural factors that influence their experiences. Based on a case study of claims brought by women on the basis of sexual orientation between 2010 and 2013, which were subsequently rejected by the Canadian Immigration and Refugee board, this research identifies decision making that poses obstacles to sexual minority women’s access to refugee protection. The findings from this case study demonstrate that an intersectional analysis, which considers various forms of oppression within a particular social context, is crucial to a complete and informed assessment of the risk of persecution for sexual minority women. In light of these findings, this paper proposes that an intersectional analysis accompany continued training for Immigration and Refugee Board members on issues particular to sexual minorities.