Date: 20041001
Docket: IMM-8042-03
Citation: 2004 FC 1318
BETWEEN:
Octavio Luis CORDERO LOPEZ
Lorena RAIOLA BLUNDA
Luigi Alessandro CORDERO RAIOLA (Minor)
Applicants
- and -
MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP
AND IMMIGRATION
Respondent
REASONS FOR ORDER
PINARD J.
[1] This is an application for judicial review of a decision by the Refugee Protection Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board (the IRB) dated September 23, 2003, that the applicant and his dependants are not "Convention refugees" or "persons in need of protection" as defined under sections 96 and 97, respectively, of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, S.C. 2001, c. 27.
[2] The applicant Octavio Luis Cordero Lopez (the applicant), his wife and their child allege that they fear persecution in Venezuela by members of the National Guard. They also allege that they are persons in need of protection.
[3] The IRB's decision is mainly based on the fact that the applicant gave two different versions of the story supporting his fear of persecution and also because he spent three years in the United States before claiming refugee status in Canada.
[4] The record confirms these facts. Regarding the different versions, the IRB properly considered the applicant's explanations and simply determined that they were inadequate. It is important to note that the IRB, having seen and heard the applicant and his wife in person, was in a better position to assess the seriousness and the sincerity of their explanations.
[5] Regarding the stay in the United States, it is settled law that the applicant's failure to claim refugee status when he was in a country offering protection is a factor which goes to the heart of the claim and must be considered in assessing the credibility of his subjective fear (Ilie v. Canada (M.C.I.), [1994] F.C.J. No. 1758 (F.C.T.D.)(QL)).
[6] In this case, the applicant resided in the United States between May 1999 and May 2002; his son was born in the United States and has American citizenship; as for his wife, she had lived in the United States since May 1996. The family therefore lived in that country for three years without ever claiming refugee status there under the pretext that a lawyer was of the opinion that the time period to do so had expired. In my view, the panel's assessment of the subjective fear was entirely reasonable under the circumstances.
[7] For all of these reasons, this Court's intervention is not warranted and the application for judicial review is dismissed.
"Yvon Pinard"
JUDGE
OTTAWA, Ontario
October 1, 2004
Certified true translation
Kelley A. Harvey, BA, BCL, LLB
FEDERAL COURT
SOLICITORS OF RECORD
DOCKET: IMM-8042-03
STYLE OF CAUSE: Octavio Luis CORDERO LOPEZ, Lorena RAIOLA BLUNDA, Luigi Alessandro CORDERO RAIOLA (Minor) v. THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
PLACE OF HEARING: Montréal, Quebec
DATE OF HEARING: August 17, 2004
REASONS FOR ORDER: Pinard J.
DATE OF REASONS: October 1, 2004
APPEARANCES:
Octavio Luis Cordero Lopez THE APPLICANT REPRESENTING HIMSELF
Diane Lemery FOR THE RESPONDENT
SOLICITORS OF RECORD:
Morris Rosenberg FOR THE RESPONDENT
Deputy Attorney General of Canada
Montréal, Quebec