ALBANIA-BISEXUAL-FAILURE TO CONSIDER RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION X (Re), 2019 CanLII 100191 (CA IRB)
The appellant, a citizen of Albania, claimed to be a bisexual man facing persecution in Albania due to widespread homophobia. However, the Refugee Protection Division (RPD) found the appellant not credible, citing reasons such as the use of false documents, delays in departure and claiming asylum, and attempts to defraud Canadian immigration authorities.
The Refugee Appeal Division (RAD) referred the case back to the RPD for redetermination by a different panel, as required by paragraph 111(1)(c) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). The RAD found that the RPD had failed to consider religious persecution as a potential ground for the appellant’s claim, which was a reviewable error. The appellant had documented his conversion from Islam to Catholicism in his Basis of Claim (BOC) and had described being attacked by family members who discovered his religious conversion and sexual orientation.
The RAD concurred with the appellant’s counsel that the RPD’s failure to consider religion as a ground for refugee protection necessitated a new hearing. The RAD referred the case back to the RPD for redetermination by a differently constituted panel.