Whether an asylum applicant had a well founded fear of persecution if he returned home, is always a question of fact and degree, and could not be made a question of law. Even so where there was a clear risk of repeated rather than single beatings if the applicant returned, it was likely that the fear would be well founded. The tribunal had accepted the applicant’s account of his torture, but referred to it as being arrested and released, making no reference to being beaten, starved, slashed with a bayonet, made to lie in iced water, being hung out of a window through broken glass until he lost consciousness. This amounted to persecution.
References: Times 29-Jun-1999, [1999] EWCA Civ 1654
Links: Bailii
Jurisdiction: England and Wales
This case cites:
- Cited – Regina v The Immigration Appeal Tribunal and Another ex parte Rajendrakumar CA 11-Oct-1995 ([1996] Imm AR 97, , [1995] EWCA Civ 16)
The three Tamil applicants had left the area of Sri Lanka controlled by the Tamil Tigers and gone to live in Colombo. It was asserted that in Colombo they had a well-founded fear of persecution because they were young male Tamils and were therefore . . - Cited – Kagema v Secretary of State for Home Department CA 15-Aug-1996 (, [1996] EWCA Civ 582, 1997 Imm AR 137)
The word ‘persecution’ must be given its ordinary and natural meaning when considering an application for asylum based on a fear of persecution.
Aldous LJ said: ‘Mr Ashford-Thom, who appeared for the Secretary of State, submitted that the word . . - Cited – Brutus v Cozens HL 19-Jul-1972 ([1973] AC 854, , [1972] UKHL 6, HL/PO/JU/4/3/1219)
The House was asked whether the conduct of the defendant at a tennis match at Wimbledon amounted to using ‘insulting words or behaviour’ whereby a breach of the peace was likely to be occasioned contrary to section 5. He went onto court 2, blew a . . - Cited – Lavarevic v Secretary of State for the Home Department CA 1997 ([1997] Imm AR 251)
. . - Cited – Adan v Secretary of State for the Home Department HL 6-Apr-1998 (Times 06-Apr-98, Gazette 07-May-98, , , [1999] 1 AC 293, [1998] 2 WLR 702, [1998] UKHL 15, [1998] 2 ALL ER 453)
A fear of persecution which was justified only historically, was insufficient to justify an asylum claim. The applicant must show justification for contemporary fears. The applicant had been granted exceptional leave to remain in the UK, but wanted . .
These lists may be incomplete.
Last Update: 07 September 2020; Ref: scu.146569
