G. (M.Y.) (Re), Convention Refugee Determination Decisions
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Immigration and Refugee Board |
| Publication Date | 13 June 1990 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | [1990] C.R.D.D. No. 278 No. T90-01357 |
| Type of Decision | 278; T90-01357 |
| Cite as | G. (M.Y.) (Re), Convention Refugee Determination Decisions, [1990] C.R.D.D. No. 278 No. T90-01357, Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, 13 June 1990, available at: https://www.refworld.org/cases,IRBC,3ae6b65824.html [accessed 31 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
G. (M.Y.) (Re), Convention Refugee Determination Decisions [1990] C.R.D.D. No. 278 No. T90-01357
Immigration and Refugee Board of CanadaConvention Refugee Determination Division
Toronto, Ontario Panel: D. Winkler Decision: June 13, 1990 Sri Lanka (LKA)--Positive--Males--Agents of persecution Arbitrary arrest and detention--Change of circumstances in home country--Credibility--Detention--Discrimination--Ethnic persecution--Exclusion clauses--Freedom of movement--Human rights violations--Inhuman treatment--Persecution for nationality--Persecution for political opinion--Persecution of family members--Religious persecution--Social group persecution Terrorism--victims of conflict. Appearances: Allen Cooper, for the claimant(s). J. 0jalami, Refugee Hearing Officer. Team C, Case Officer.
REASONS FOR DECISION
These are the reasons for the determination of the Refugee Division that the Claimant, xxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxx, is a Convention Refugee within the meaning of the Immigration Act. The reasons xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx on June 13, 1990. The Claimant was represented by Allen Cooper. The Refugee Division was assisted by John Ojalami, a Refugee Hearing Officer. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx which I shall give from the Bench with respect to the claim of xxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxx's claim to refugee status. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx is a 30 year old unmarried Hindu Tamil citizen of Sri Lanka who was born in the Jaffna district, having an older sister and an older brother and two younger brothers. The family appears to have been moderately wealthy. The Claimant's father is a businessman of considerable financial means, having owned a xxxxxx and farm lands, and he also owned a house in xxxxxx city. The Claimant came to Canada on November xxx, 1989, and claims to be a Convention Refugee because of his well-founded fear of persecution in his homeland for all the five reasons set out in the definition of Convention Refugee in the Immigration Act of Canada. The hearing into his claim was held pursuant to Section 69.1 of the Immigration Act of Canada at 180 Dundas Street, June xx, 1990. The Claimant was present for his hearing and was represented by Mr. Allen Cooper, a Barrister and Solicitor from North York, and the Refugee Division was assisted by Refugee Hearing Officer, Mr. John Ojalami. The evidence adduced at the hearing consisted of the oral testimony of the Claimant under oath and extensive documentation submitted by Counsel and the Refugee Hearing Officer. I do not intend to summarize this evidence, but to refer very briefly to those aspects of it upon which the decision has been xxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx based. Because of the unrest in Sri Lanka and his brother's departure as a refugee to West Germany in 1979, the Claimant's father sent the Claimant to study in India in 1980. After completing his A levels in Sri Lanka, he was sent to Bombay. The Claimant's father was afraid that the Claimant might be persuaded to join some of the militant groups that were beginning because of the general dissatisfaction of the youth with the educational system, particularly, the standardization policy for Tamils. After repeating his A levels in Bombay, the Claimant entered xxxxxxxxx (xxxxxxxx) College and did a Bachelor of Science in xxxxxxx, and then moved to the central institute of xxxxxxxxx education where he did a Masters of Science, and on receiving his results there, he registered for the Ph.D. program. He received an acceptance and a certificate allowing the renewal of his visa on an annual basis. One year later--his visa had been renewed annually since 1980. In 1988, his visa was suddenly rejected--the application for a visa was suddenly rejected. The reason given was that since the militant Sri Lankans are fighting the Indian Peace Keeping Forces who have come to Sri Lanka, the Indian government would not permit the Claimant to remain and study there, so that he had to return to Sri Lanka to renew his visa. Effectively, this meant that he was forced to discontinue a three year research project about halfway through it, this research being the effect of heavy xxxxx pollution on xxxxxx life. Now, in 1983, as a consequence of the communal riots in the north, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Engam (xxxxxxxx) had in July planted a land mine which explode and Singhalese soldiers died. This occurred fairly close to the xxxxxx house - the family's Jaffna house. Because of the terrorizing in general that occurred in that period, the searching of houses and looting and raping of women and generally insecure conditions, the Claimant's mother and sister decided to flee from their xxxxxx home and go to India for safety as refugees. The trawler that they left by was under attack by the Sri Lankan navy, was shelled, bombarded, and finally, sunk. The Claimant's mother and sister were killed instantly. The Claimant's father telegraphed the news to him. He returned as soon as possible for funeral observances, although the bodies of the two women were never recovered. On October xx, the Claimant prepared to return again to India to resume his studies, and he was shopping in Jaffna where he was arrested as part of a mass routine arrest of Tamil youths. He was taken to xxxxxx camp and was taunted by the soldiers shouting that he was a Tiger, this spoken in Singhalese. He was punched and kicked to the point where he was rendered unconscious. He woke up to discover that he was bleeding profusely and vomiting and received no treatment for three days until a doctor was summoned. He had some permanent scarring as a consequence of his injuries, and this has been corroborated by medical evidence provided both by the Claimant himself and by his Counsel, who requested it after his arrival in Canada. As a result of his father paying 10,000 Sri Lankan rupees bribe to an officer, the Claimant was then released and he returned to India to his studies. In June, 1988, he returned, having no choice as his student visa was not renewed in India, and he was given some ten days to two weeks to return to his country of origin. He remained that summer helping his father in the xxxxxx, but feeling continuously unsafe, in August xx, 1988 when he was travelling for supplies to a central supply depot some xxxxx miles away from his father's xxxxxx, the mini bus in which he was travelling with some twenty other passengers was stopped by the Indian Peace Keeping Forces soldiers. Young Tamils--(xxxxxxxxx) people were taken to the camp. The Claimant basically was kept there--was transferred to a house that had been converted to an army camp detention centre, where for six or seven days, he was imprisoned, deprived of food, beaten, kicked, and suffered continual harassment and physical torture. As a consequence of this, he continued to suffer prolonged chest problems, pains, coughing blood, requiring medical treatment for some length of time. The circumstances of his release were that he--as a consequence of a particularly severe round of beating, he had a convulsion and was permitted to leave. He returned home, but shortly thereafter went to Colombo because he felt it was not safe to remain in his own area. He received medical treatment in Colombo, and finally, left some three months later xxxxxx October, 1989. The Claimant told his account of his circumstances and the situation in Sri Lanka with clarity, conviction, and openness. He answered questions readily and volunteered more information than was required of him. He responded to questions in a straightforward manner, even when some of them were emotionally difficult for him to do so, for example, recounting the death of his mother and sister. In a review of all the evidence adduced at the hearing, I must conclude that technically, given the substantial changes in the situation in Sri Lanka over the past few months, the withdrawal of the Indian Peace Keeping Forces, the retreat of the E.P.R.L.F., and the acquisition of power in the north by the Liberation Tigers, the Article C of the Geneva Convention in the United Nations Handbook Procedures and Criteria for determining refugee status, does, in fact, apply. Without reading it directly, I can simply say that this clause refers to the fact that when conditions drastically change in--if conditions should drastically change in one's country of origin where persecution was feared, it removes the individual's need to fear persecution there, and also causes his need to be recognized as a refugee no longer to exist. That is, of course, that is with the proviso that the previous persecution has not been so serious as to provide reasons for him to continue to fear persecution. It is my conviction that there is such an accumulation of events that have occurred in the Claimant's life that they amount to previous persecution and that they can, in themselves, sustain his fear. These reasons include the discrimination in education following the standardization policy, that is the discrimination in the education of Tamils, the sudden and untimely death of his mother and sister at the hands of the Sri Lankan navy, the arrests and detention and torture resulting in subsequent scarring, albeit, slight, and chronic pain and need for continuing medical attention, the chronic problems of pain and bronchitic problems that the Claimant continues to suffer. These latter problems, having been caused by the beatings in the back and chest of the Claimant. And finally, the psychological trauma of having his research terminated and his career aspirations cut short because of his inability to complete his degree simply because he is Tamil. The human rights violated must be taken into account. There were many. His right to freedom of movement, that he felt it was unsafe to live in Colombo and he could not live in India, the violation of his rights to pursue a career in his chosen field because he couldn't complete his degree for it. with respect to the agents of persecution, we see that the Claimant was, in fact, or feels himself even currently, to be caught between the militant Tamils on the one hand, the powerful L.T.T.E. in the north, and the Singhalese government on the other, whose army has previously arrested and tortured him and detained him, and whose--and a government that is Singhalese clearly discriminates against educated Tamils. And it is conceivable that this type of discrimination could be continued in the future should the Claimant return to his country of origin. In my consideration of all the evidence, then, I have concluded that the Claimant has been able to demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution in his homeland. I am persuaded that the Claimant's unwillingness to return or to seek the protection of his homeland is currently justified, and that should he do so, there is a reasonable chance that he would face persecution. Accordingly, by reason of his fear of persecution, which is well-founded for reason of his race and his membership in a particular social group, I determine xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx to be a Convention Refugee as it is set out in the Immigration Act of Canada. This concludes this hearing. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx at Toronto, Ontario this 13th day of June, 1990. 'D. Winkler"Copyright notice: This document is published with the permission of the copyright holder and producer Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB). The original version of this document may be found on the offical website of the IRB at http://www.irb-cisr.gc.ca/en/. Documents earlier than 2003 may be found only on Refworld.
