3.13. Persons living with disabilities and/or with severe medical issues

COMMON ANALYSIS
Last update: October 2025

This profile refers to people with disabilities as well as those who have severe medical issues, including mental health issues.

Step 1: Do the reported acts amount to persecution?  

The lack of personnel and adequate infrastructure to appropriately address the needs of individuals with (severe) medical issues fails to meet the requirement of Article 6 QD/QR regarding the existence of an actor that inflicts persecution or serious harm, unless the individual is intentionally deprived of healthcare9.

Some acts to which persons falling under this profile could be exposed are of such severe nature that they would amount to persecution. Private ‘rehabilitation’ centres exist in Somalia for mentally ill people. Such centres are run by sheikhs and ‘treatment’ includes reading of the Koran, with incidents of physical and psychological abuse being reported. Women with disabilities may also be subjected to GBV and forced marriage (see profile 3.11.5. Child marriage and forced marriage).

The severity and/or repetitiveness of other acts that persons living with disabilities and/or with severe medical issues could be subjected to, such as discrimination and mistreatment by society, and whether they occur as an accumulation of various measures, should be considered. People suffering from mental issues face huge stigma from the Somali society.

Step 2: What is the level of risk of persecution?  

The individual assessment of whether there is a reasonable degree of likelihood for the applicant to face persecution in the whole of Somalia, including South-Central Somalia, Puntland and Somaliland, should take into account risk-impacting circumstances, such as:

• Nature and visibility of the mental or physical disability: Individuals living with noticeable physical or mental disability would be at higher risk.

• Support network: Individuals that face their family’s or community’s negative perception would be at higher risk. Lack of other support networks should also be considered a risk factor.

• Minority groups: Cultural biases may limit the health care services available to minority clan members.

Step 3: Is there a ground for persecution?  

Where well-founded fear of persecution is substantiated, for an applicant under this profile, this may be for reasons of membership of a particular social group. For example, persons with a noticeable physical disability may be considered as having an innate characteristic and a distinct identity connected to their stigmatisation by the surrounding society.