El Sawane v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2008 FC 148

Date: 20080204

Docket: IMM-1892-07

Citation: 2008 FC 148

Toronto, Ontario, February 4, 2008

PRESENT:     The Honourable Mr. Justice Campbell

BETWEEN:

SALWA CHAFIC EL SAWANE

and LAWRENCE HUSSEIN KANAAN

                                                                                                                                           Applicants

                                                                           and

THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION

            Respondent

REASONS FOR ORDER AND ORDER

[1]               The present Application concerns a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) of the evidence of the Principal Applicant, a Lebanese woman, who claims protection from her violent husband in Lebanon.

[2]               Two features of the rejection of the Principal Applicant’s claim are the PRRA Officer’s statement of law that “aggrieved parties must make a complaint” (Decision, p. 31) and, with respect to the violence that the Applicant suffered at the hands of her husband prior to fleeing to Canada, the Applicant failed to make a complaint (Decision, p. 27; p. 30).

[3]               I find that the PRRA Officer’s statement of law is not correct because it does not express that whether an applicant suffering violence can be expected to make a complaint depends on a contextual analysis of her real life situation (see Garcia v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) [2007] F.C.J. No. 118 (QL) at para. 19-20). I also find that the RPD’s statement of fact is erroneous; indeed, it is not disputed that, according to the Principal Applicant’s evidence, she did report the violence to the police on two occasions.

[4]               As a result, I find that the PRRA decision is rendered in reviewable error.

ORDER

            Accordingly, I set the decision aside and refer the matter back for re-determination before a differently constituted panel.

“Douglas R. Campbell”

FEDERAL COURT

NAMES OF COUNSEL AND SOLICITORS OF RECORD

DOCKET:                                          IMM-1892-07

STYLE OF CAUSE:                          SALWA CHAFIC EL SAWANE and LAWRENCE

                                                            HUSSEIN KANAAN v. THE MINISTER OF

                                                            CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION

PLACE OF HEARING:                    TORONTO, ONTARIO

DATE OF HEARING:                      FEBRUARY 4, 2008

REASONS FOR ORDER

AND ORDER BY:                            CAMPBELL J.

DATED:                                             FEBRUARY 4, 2008  

APPEARANCES:

D. CLIFFORD LUYT                                                             FOR THE APPLICANTS

CATHERINE VASILAROS                                                    FOR THE RESPONDENT

SOLICITORS OF RECORD:

D. CLIFFORD LUYT

BARRISTER AND SOLICITOR                                           

TORONTO, ONTARIO                                                         FOR THE APPLICANTS

JOHN H. SIMS, QC                                                              

DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA                 FOR THE RESPONDENT