Date: 20040719
Docket: IMM-4782-03
Citation: 2004 FC 1007
Toronto, Ontario, July 19th, 2004
Present: The Honourable Mr. Justice O'Reilly
BETWEEN:
OSAGIE AMIUWU
Applicant
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
Respondent
REASONS FOR JUDGMENT AND JUDGMENT
[1] Mr. Osagie Amiuwu came to Canada from Nigeria where, he says, he was threatened for his refusal to participate in the rites and rituals of a secret cult called Azigidi. He claimed refugee status based on his fear of reprisals from cult members. A panel of the Immigration and Refugee Board found that Mr. Amiuwu had failed to prove his claim. In particular, the Board found no evidence that the Azigidi cult exists. Further, it concluded that state authorities were capable of protecting Mr. Amiuwu from the harm he feared.
[2] Mr. Amiuwu argues that the Board erred and asks me to order a new hearing. I cannot find grounds for intervening in the Board's decision and must, therefore, dismiss this application for judicial review.
I. Issues
1. Did the Board err when it concluded that the absence of documentary evidence about the Azigidi cult proved that the cult does not exist?
2. Did the Board err when it relied on other decisions dealing with state protection from cult violence in Nigeria?
II. Analysis
1. Did the Board err when it concluded that the absence of documentary evidence about the Azigidi cult proved that the cult does not exist?
[3] The Board reviewed documentary evidence on cults and secret societies. It found no mention of the Azigidi secret society. The Board's Research Directorate tried to find information on the cult but failed. The Board also provided counsel for Mr. Amiuwu an opportunity to obtain evidence but he turned up nothing.
[4] Mr. Amiuwu argued that it was unrealistic for the Board to expect a secret society to be described in documentary evidence. However, the Board was entitled to rely on the documentary evidence before it which named dozens of secret societies and cults in Nigeria, but not the Azigidi. This is particularly so, given that Mr. Amiuwu claimed that the Azigidi secret society was powerful and extended throughout the country. It was for the Board to decide what weight to give the documentary evidence, including the significance of any omissions from it: Adu v. Canada (Minister of Employment and Immigration), [1995] F.C.J. No. 114 (T.D.) (QL). I can find no error in its approach.
2. Did the Board err when it relied on other decisions dealing with state protection from cult violence in Nigeria?
[5] It is clear that the Board must deal with the particular facts and issues before it and cannot simply import determinations from other decisions. However, it is proper for the Board to rely on general conclusions, based on documentary evidence, that it made in previous comparable circumstances. It must, however, ensure that its reliance on findings in another case is "limited, careful and justified": Badal v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2003 FCT 311, [2003] F.C.J. No. 440 (T.D.) (QL), para. 25. That is what the Board did here.
[6] The Board referred to two previous decisions - one from this Court, the other by the same Board member - in which substantially the same documentary evidence as had been presented in this case showed that Nigeria was actively and earnestly addressing cult violence. It was not improper for the Board to cite those decisions or follow the same analysis, given that essentially the same issue arose in all three of the cases.
[7] Accordingly, I must dismiss this application for judicial review. Neither party proposed a question of general importance for me to certify and none is stated.
JUDGMENT
THIS COURT'S JUDGMENT IS that:
1. The application for judicial review is dismissed.
2. No question of general importance is stated.
"James W. O'Reilly"
F.C.J.
FEDERAL COURT
NAMES OF COUNSEL AND SOLICITORS OF RECORD
DOCKET: IMM-4782-03
STYLE OF CAUSE: OSAGIE AMIUWU
Applicant
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND
IMMIGRATION
Respondent
PLACE OF HEARING: TORONTO, ONTARIO
DATE OF HEARING: JULY 13, 2004
REASONS FOR JUDGMENT
AND JUDGMENT BY: O'REIILLY J.
APPEARANCES BY:
Mr. Kingsley I. Jesuorobo
FOR THE APPLICANT
Ms. Catherine Vasilaros
FOR THE RESPONDENT
SOLICITORS OF RECORD:
Kingsley I. Jesuorobo
Barrister and Solicitor
Toronto, Ontario
FOR THE APPLICANT
Morris Rosenberg
Deputy Attorney General of Canada
FOR THE RESPONDENT
FEDERAL COURT
Date: 20040719
Docket: IMM-4782-03
BETWEEN:
OSAGIE AMIUWU
Applicant
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
Respondent
REASONS FOR JUDGMENT
AND JUDGMENT