Case summaries
The Administrative Court lawfully decided that the applicant was not entitled to refugee status since, in the present case, a possible risk of being subjected to acts of persecution was not connected to the reasons for persecution. The group of "businessmen in Colombia" cannot be regarded as a "particular social group" within the meaning of Art. 10.1 (d) of the Qualification Directive.
The case concerned an appeal lodged before the Supreme Court against a decision of the High National Court to reject a claim for refugee status based on membership of a particular social group (this particular group was determined by economic status).
In assessing claims based on political opinion, a broad approach needed to be adopted to ensure that the object and purpose of the 1951 Refugee Convention was met. Political opinion could be actual or imputed and had to be assessed in the context of the society that the applicant had fled. Political opinion should not be restricted to issues relating to party politics nor, in the context of persecution non-state actors of persecution, was it helpful to identify those who were on the side of the forces of “law and order”.