S-P

Citations

• 21 I. & N. Dec. 486

Syllabus

S-P-, 21 I&N Dec. 486 (BIA 1996) ID 3287 (PDF) (1) Although an applicant for asylum must demonstrate that harm has been or would be inflicted on account of one of the protected grounds specified in the \refugee\ definition, persecution for \imputed\ reasons can satisfy that definition. (2) In mixed motive cases, an asylum applicant is not obliged to show conclusively why persecution has occurred or may occur however, in proving past persecution, the applicant must produce evidence, either direct or circumstantial, from which it is reasonable to believe that the harm was motivated in part by an actual or imputed protected ground. (3) In situations involving general civil unrest, the motive for harm should be determined by considering the statements or actions of the perpetrators abuse or punishment out of proportion to nonpolitical ends treatment of others similarly situated conformity to procedures for criminal prosecution or military law the application of antiterrorism laws to suppress political opinion and the subjection of political opponents to arbitrary arrest, detention, and abuse. (4) Asylum was granted where the applicant was detained and abused by the Sri Lankan Government, not only to obtain information about the identity of guerrilla members and the location of their camps, but also because of an assumption that his political views were antithetical to those of the Government.