Docket: IMM-1412-11
Citation:
2011 FC 1352
Montréal, Quebec,
November 24, 2011
PRESENT: The Honourable Mr. Justice Harrington
BETWEEN:
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TOCHUKWU PETER ANWUOBI
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Applicant
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and
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THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP
AND IMMIGRATION
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Respondent
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REASONS FOR ORDER AND ORDER
[1]
One
can well understand why Mr. Anwuobi is reluctant to return to his homeland of Nigeria. After all,
his wife, his father and his mother were all viciously murdered by one Tompolo
and his vicious gang which operates in Nigeria’s Niger
Delta. However, one of the basic principles of refugee law is that
international aid need not be made available if the applicant has a viable
internal flight alternative. In this case, the Refugee Protection Division of
the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada found that such an internal flight
alternative existed for Mr. Anwuobi, namely Enugo State, hundreds of
kilometres from where the Tompolo gang operates. This is the judicial review of
that decision.
[2]
Mr.
Anwuobi was found to be credible. The only issue is whether the Board’s finding
that Enugo State
represented a viable internal flight alternative was reasonable.
[3]
In
Rasaratnam v Canada (Minister of Employment
and Immigration), [1992] 1 FC 706, 140 NR 138, the Federal Court
of Appeal set out the following two-pronged test:
a. the Board
must be satisfied on the balance of probabilities that there is no serious
possibility of the claimant being persecuted in the place proposed; and
b. the
conditions there must be such that it would not be unreasonable, upon
consideration of all the circumstances, for the claimant to seek refuge there.
[4]
The
burden remains with the claimant.
[5]
The
RPD was of the view that the Tompolo gang would not pursue Mr. Anwuobi outside
its own operating area.
[6]
The
Niger Delta is an area of recurring violence between members of different
ethnic groups, gangs, and militia groups and security forces sent to restore
order. Violence often occurs within the context of the control of crude oil.
Individuals remain vulnerable to attack by criminal gangs.
[7]
Although
Mr. Anwuobi’s father was a thorn in the Tompolo gang’s side and accepting as
credible the gang’s threat to kill all the members of the family, the RPD was
of the view that that threat was dissipated over time and distance. Mr. Anwuobi
ought to be relatively safe once he left the area. Country conditions support
this view, particularly the U.K. Border Agency Operational Guidance Note for
Nigeria of 14 April 2009, which deals with the Niger Delta, and an
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada Response to Information Request of 6
December 2010 dealing with Mr. Tompolo, which stated that no information could
be found that he exercises any influence outside the Niger Delta.
[8]
The
Enugo State was
considered a viable alternative because Mr. Anwuobi was born, raised and
attended college there. As he was a successful businessman in Niger Delta,
there was no reason why he could not reconstitute himself in Enugo State.
[9]
Although
it was submitted on Mr. Anwuobi’s behalf that the RPD decision was highly
speculative, with respect, the speculation rests with Mr. Anwuobi. He
speculates that he would be tracked down and speculates that Mr. Tompolo has
both the will and the wherewithal to do so. Although his subjective fear is
understandable, the objective analysis by the RPD stands up to scrutiny. The
decision was reasonable and so shall not be set aside.
ORDER
THIS COURT
ORDERS that:
1.
The
application for judicial review is dismissed.
2.
There
is no serious question of general importance to certify.
“Sean Harrington”
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