Docket: IMM 2514-03
Toronto, Ontario, June 9th, 2004
Present: The Honourable Mr. Justice von Finckenstein
BETWEEN:
ANIBAL HUMBERTO GUZMAN
ELSA BEATRIZ ROMERO
FLAVIA ALEJANDRA GUZMAN (By her litigation guardian)
ANDREA MANUELA GUZMAN (By her litigation guardian)
Applicants
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
Respondent
REASONS FOR ORDER AND ORDER
(Delivered orally from the bench and subsequently written for precision and clarification)
[1] This is an application for judicial review of the pre-removal risk assessment dated January 30, 2003, in which it was determined that the applicants and his family would not be subject to a risk of persecution, torture, risk to life or risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment if returned to Argentina.
[2] The Applicant made basically one submission, namely that the PRRA officer violated the rules of procedural fairness by consulting 'extrinsic evidence', namely IRB research papers on Argentina and the Country Report on Human Rights Conditions for Argentina issued by the U.S. State Department.
[3] No evidence was presented that these documents are not publicly available. In fact these documents can be obtained in the IRB documentation centres.
[4] The country reports on human rights conditions issued by the State department are available on line.
[5] It has been well established:
a. that the research documents prepared by the IRB which available at IRB documentation centres are not extrinsic materials.
b. and that procedural fairness does not require disclosure by the PRRA officer (or the predecessor PDRCC officer) of such documents to the Applicant prior to a determination being reached. See Mancia v. Canada (M.C.I.) [1998] 3 F.C. 461, Chowdhury v. Canada (M.C.I.) 2002 FCT 389 and Khaman v. Canada (M.C.I.) [2001]FCT 1090 .
[6] Given that country reports on human rights conditions issued by the State Department are available on line, i.e. are publically available, they must be considered in the same vein as IRB research papers.
[7] Consequently there has been no breach of procedural fairness in this case. Accordingly this applications will be dismissed.
ORDER
THIS COURT ORDERS that this application is hereby dismissed.
"K. von Finckenstein"
J.F.C.
FEDERAL COURT
NAMES OF COUNSEL AND SOLICITORS OF RECORD
DOCKET: IMM-2514-03
STYLE OF CAUSE: ANIBAL HUMBERTO GUZMAN
ELSA BEATRIZ ROMERO
FLAVIA ALEJANDRA GUZMAN (By her litigation guardian)
ANDREA MANUELA GUZMAN
(By her litigation guardian)
Applicants
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND
IMMIGRATION
Respondent
PLACE OF HEARING: TORONTO, ONTARIO
DATE OF HEARING: JUNE 9, 2004
REASONS FOR ORDER
AND ORDER : VON FINCKENSTEIN J.
DATED: JUNE 9, 2004
APPEARANCES:
Jegan Mohan For the Applicants
Neeta Logsetty For the Respondent
SOLICITORS OF RECORD:
Mohan & Mohan
Barristers & Solicitors
Toronto, ON For the Applicants
Morris Rosenberg
Deputy Attorney General of Canada For the Respondent
FEDERAL COURT
TRIAL DIVISION
Date: 20040609
Docket: IMM-2514-03
BETWEEN:
ANIBAL HUMBERTO GUZMAN
ELSA BEATRIZ ROMERO
FLAVIA ALEJANDRA GUZMAN (By her litigation guardian)
ANDREA MANUELA GUZMAN (By her litigation guardian)
Applicants
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND
IMMIGRATION
Respondent
REASONS FOR ORDER
AND ORDER