FILED U.S. COURT OF AP P EALS E LEV EN T HC IRC U IT April 29, 2008 THOMAS K. KAH

N CLERK [ DO NO T P UB L I S H] I N THE UN I TE D STATE S C OU RT OF APPE ALS F O R T H E E L E V E N T H C IR C U IT

________________________ N o. 07- 12428 N on -A rgum entC al endar

________________________ A ge nc y N os . A 97- 923- 540 A 97- 923- 541 R A N D H Y A N A S O F I A U G A Z , P I E R C U T I L L I , P e titio n e r s , v ersu s U .S . A T T O RN E Y G E N E R A L , R e s p o n d e n t.

________________________ P e t i t i on f orR e vi e w of

aD e c i s i on of

the B o a r d o f I m m ig r a tio n A p p e a ls

_________________________ ( A p r i l29, 2008) B efo re A N D E R S O N , H U L L an d K R A V IT C H , C i rcu i tJu d g es. P E R C U R I A M: R a ndhy A na s of

i aU ga z , ana t i ve a nd c i t i z e n of P e ru, pe t i t i ons thi s c our tf orUg az also reque sted withholding of removal and relief under the United N ations 1 Convention Ag ainst Torture. She doe s not seek review of thedenial of this re lief; there foreshe has aba ndoned theseclaims. Sepulveda v. U .S. Att’y Gen., 401 F .3d 1226, 1228 (11 Cir. th 2005). We do not discuss these claims further. Her husband, Pier Cutilli , was admitted on May 2, 2002, under theVisa Waiver Pilot 2 program, with per

mission t o remain until August 1, 2002. He procee ded as a derivative applicant on Ug az’s asylum application. 2 r e vi e w of

the B oa r d of

I m m i gr a t i on A ppe a l s ’ ( “ B I A ” ) a f f i rm a nc e of

the I m m i gr a t i on J udge ’ s ( “ I J ” ) de ni a l of a s y l um , 8 U . S . C . § 1158. A f t e rathor ough 1 re vi ew of the re cord, w e gra ntthe pet i t i on and v ac at e a nd re m and for further p r o c e e d in g s . I . B a c kgr ound U g az w as ad m i tt ed i n t o th e U n i t ed S t at es o n Ju l y 1 , 2 0 0 3 , as a noni m m i gr a ntvi s i t orf

orbus i ne s s , w i th a uthor i z a t i on t o r e m a i n unt i l A ugus t1, 2003. S he r e m a i ne d be y ond thi s e xpi r a t i on pe r i od a nd the D e pa r tm e ntof 2 H o m e la n d S e rv ic e s s e rv e d U g a z w ith aN o tic e to A p p e a ra n d aN o tic e o f R e f e rr a l, c h a r g in g h e ra s r e m o v ab le u n d e rI N A § 2 3 7 ( a ) ( 1 ) ( B ) , 8 U .S .C . § 1 2 2 7 ( a ) ( 1 ) ( B ) . U ga z appl i e d f

ora s y l um , a l l e gi ng tha the rw ork a s apr of e s s i ona l t e l e vi s i on j ou rnal i stand h eraf

fi l i at i on w i th the po l i t i ca l party, A l i anzaP op ul ar R e vol uc i ona r i aA m e r i c a na( “ A P R A ” ) , r e s ul t e d i n pe r s e c ut i on. A cc ordi ng t o the as yl um appl i ca t i on and U gaz’ s t es t i m on y a tthe re m ov al h eari n g , U g az h i red an i n d i v i d u al n am ed C esar A q u i n o t o h el p w i th a j o u rn al i sm i nve s t i ga t i on i nt o tuba l l i ga t i on pr ogr a m . A qui no a l l e ge dl y w orke d w i th the3

C a th o lic C h u r c h a n d P r ie s t L a n c ie r , a n d w a s in v o lv e d w ith s o c ia l p r o g r a m s w ith in P e ru ’s c o rr e c tio n a l f

a c ilitie s . A q u in o p u t U g a z in to u c h w ith w o m e n f o rh e rs to ry . U gaz a nd C ut i l l i att ended m ee t i ng s w i th these w om en, w i th C ut i l l i ac t i ng as her as si st anti n the i nv es t i gat i on . T hrou gh A qu i no , U gaz m etm any peopl e w ho had part i ci pat ed i n the com m un i stm ov em ent s of the S L , and T up ac A m aru. D ue t o h er d e m o c r a tic b e lie f

s , s h e a tte m p te d to d is c o u r a g e th e s e in d iv id u a ls f r o m th e ir a f f ilia tio n w ith th e g u e r illag r o u p s . U gaz l at erdi sc ov er ed thatA qu i no had con nect i on s w i th the S L . U gaz began re ce i vi ng threa t eni ng ph on e c al l s f rom i nd i vi du al s w ho i dent i fi ed them se l ves a s m em bers of the S L , w ho t ol d h ert o st op t al ki ng abou tthem . T he ca l l er s t ol d U gaz thather per ce pt i on of them had t o chang e, or she a nd her husband w ou l d b e j ud ged b y th e m . U ga z c ha nge d he rc e l l phone num be ra nd w e ntt o the pol i c e r e ga r di ng the ca l l s, bu tbo th she and the po l i ce i ni t i al l y bel i eved thatthe ca l l er s had “ m ade a m is ta k e a n d th a t is w h y I c h a n g e d m y c e ll p h o n e .” H o w e v e r , s h e c o n tin u e d to r e c e iv e c a lls a f

te rc h a n g in g h e rn u m b e r . I n D e c e m b e r2 0 0 1 , U g a z r e c e iv e d ac a ll i ns truc t i ng he r , “ f

e m a l e dog, s huty ourm outh. ” I n M a r c h 2002, U ga z r e c e i ve d a ca l l i n w hi ch she w as t ol d thatthey w er e goi ng t o “ cl ose [ her] beak. ” U gaz re ce i ved threa t eni ng ph on e c al l s both ather hou se and o n h erce l l ph on e, p a r tic u la r ly a t n ig h t. U g a z in f o rm e d h e re m p lo y e rth a t s h e f e lt h e rlif e w a s a t r is k .4

O n M ar ch 25 , 20 02 , atapprox i m at el y 10 p . m . , as U gaz a nd C ut i l l i w er e dr i vi ng hom e f

r om he rw ork, the y w e r e s t oppe d by thr e e m a s ke d i ndi vi dua l s , w ho p u lle d th e m o u t o f

th e irc a ra n d b e g a n h ittin g C u tilli. U g a z tr ie d to d e f e n d C u tilli, b u t w a s “h it s o b a d [ s h e ] c o u ld n ’t m o v e .” T h e a tta c k e r s w a rn e d th e m th a t “th is w as on l y the begi nn i ng of a pun i shm entfor i nt er fe ri ng i n w hatw as n’ t[her ] b u s in e s s .” A f

te rth e a tta c k e r s le f

t, b y s ta n d e r s im m e d ia te ly to o k U g a z a n d C u tilli t o the hos pi t a l . U ga z a nd C ut i l l i f i l e d apol i c e r e por tr e ga r di ng the a tt a c k. S he a nd C ut i l l i the n m a de the de c i s i on t o tr a ve l t o the U ni t e d S t a t e s , “ i n s e a r c h of peac e. ” U gaz a nd C ut i l l i re m ai ned i n the U ni t ed S t at es for one ye arbefore U gaz re turned t o P eru i n M ayof 20 0[3] . D uri ng U gaz’ s absence , U gaz’ s m other cont i nu ed t o rec ei ve ph on e c al l s i nq ui ri ng i nt o U gaz’ s w here abou t s. U gaz e x p la in e d th a t w h ile in th e U n ite d S ta te s , h e rh o p e w a s th a t “e v e ry th in g s h o u ld pa s s by , f

i ni s h, a nd i tw oul d be f

or gott e n a nd i tw oul d be oka y t o go ba c k. ” S he r e turne d t o P e ru “ thi nki ng tha te ve ry thi ng ha d e nde d, ” buttha ta s s oon a s the gue r i l l a s f

ound outs he w a s ba c k, the thr e a t e ni ng c a l l s r e s um e d. O n J une 10, 2003, s he r e c e i ve d ac a l l dur i ng w hi c h s he w a s t ol d, “ di e l i ke dogs a l l the e ne m i e s of the r e v o lu tio n .” S h e c a lle d C u tilli, w h o h a d r e m a in e d in th e U .S ., a n d to ld h im n o t to re turn t o P eru. O n the eveni ng of June 20 , 20 03 , a r ock w rapp ed i n the S L ’ s f l ag5

and con t ai ni ng a m es sa ge threa t eni ng her w i th d ea th, w as throw n throu gh her w in d o w . F e a r f

u l, U g a z r e tu rn e d to th e U n ite d S ta te s a n d r e q u e s te d a s y lu m . I n s uppor tof

he rappl i c a t i on U ga z s ubm i tt e d the f ol l ow i ng r e c or ds . T he 2 0 0 4 U . S . D ep artm en to f S t at e’ s C o u n try R ep o rt s o n H u m an R i g h t s P ract i ces, i n d i c a t i n g th a tth e SL w a s r e s p o n s i b l e f o rk i l l i n g s a n d o th e rab u s e s ; th e SL co n t i n u ed t o k i l l ci v i l i an s as w el l as m i l i t ary an d p o l i ce o ffi ci al s, w i th 1 2 0 t erro ri st i nci dent s f

rom Ja nu ary t o D ec em ber, the vastm aj ori ty of w hi ch occurre d i n rural a r e a s tha thi s t or i c a l l y s uf f e r e d f r om S L vi ol e nc e . T he r e por tf ur the rs t a t e d tha tthe S L c ont i nue d t o be al e a di ng vi ol a t orof the r i ght s of

i ndi ge nous pe opl e , c oe r c i ng i nd i geno us peas ant s i nt o j oi ni ng i t s r anks and d em andi ng w art axes , and that j ou rnal i st s a nd m edi a out l et s w er e i nt i m i dat ed du ri ng the ye ar , w i th 2 re po rt er s ki l l ed, and 1 21 re po rt ed ca se s of har as sm ent , i ncl ud i ng verbal or ph ys i ca l vi ol ence a nd thr e a t s . F ur the rm or e , one r e por t e rr e c e i ve d de a th thr e a t s a f t e rdi s s e m i na t i ng a n in te rv ie w w ith th e S L le a d e r s . T he r e c or d a l s o c ont a i ne d c opi e s of the hos pi t a l ’ s m e di c a l r e c or ds f r om the ni ghtof the M a r c h 25 a tt a c k. T he r e c or ds i ndi c a t e tha tU ga z s uf f e r e d i nj ur i e s f

r om

“ [ p] hy s i c a l a ggr e s s i on by unknow n pe r s ons . ” H e ri nj ur i e s i nc l ude d br oke n f r ont t e e th, a nd de e p brui s i ng a nd ruptur e d bl ood ve s s e l s i n he rr i ghta rm a nd r i ghtl e g, pr oduc e d by aha r d, bl untobj e c t . C ut i l l i ’ s i nj ur i e s i nc l ude d tw o br oke n r i bs a nd b ru i si n g atth e an t eri o r th o rax an d th e l o w er 1 / 3 o f th e ri b cag e. T h e rep o rtal so6

st at ed thatC ut i l l i suff

er ed deep brui si ng and b roken b l oo d v es se l s i n h i s f ac e, f o r e a rm s , r ig h t w r is t a n d b o th le g s , p r o d u c e d b y ah a r d , b lu n t o b je c t. U ga z a l s o s ubm i tt e d the c e r t i f i e d c opy of

the pol i c e r e por t , da t e d M a r c h 26, 2002: T haton M ar ch 25 , 20 02 , aprox[i m at e] t i m e 22: 00 , w hen she w as r e turni ng f

r om c ha n[ n] e l 4 w h[ e r e ] s he w orke d. . . . i n the c om pa ny of he rboy f r i e nd. . . . [ s he w a s ] i nt e r c e pt e d [ o] n the c orne r . . . . 3 [ m e n] goto[ utof

] the c a r . . . . s tr i ki ng the know n one s i n di f f e r e ntpa r t s of th e b o d y , c a u s in g 2 f

r a c tu r e d r ib s a n d m u ltip le tr a u m a , try in g to defe nd the cl ai m antso they w ou l d st op the beat i ng , she w as al so hu rt i ts e e m s by the buttof

agun pr ovoki ng the br e a ka ge of tw o s upe r i or f r o n t te e th . B e f

o r e le a v in g q u ic k ly in to th e irc a r , th e y w a rn e d . . . . thatthi s w as on l y the begi nn i ng of a pun i shm entfor a n i nt er fe re nce i nt o som ethi ng thatw as no ne of [her] bu si ness , m ent i on i ng thatthey w e r e te rr o r is t e le m e n ts o f th e S L . . . . A nothe rpol i c e r e por t , da t e d J une 20, 2003, de s c r i be d “ [ a ] tt e m pt e d t e rr or i s m , ” a nd U ga z ’ s r e por ttha t“ ar oc k w a s thr ow n a nd as ubve r s i ve pr opa ga ndaf r om [ t ] he [ r ] e vol ut i ona ry pa r ty c a l l e d S e nde r o L um i nos o. . . w a s a r ound the r oc k, br e a ki ng h er p ri n ci p al fro n tw i n d o w . ” S h e al so rep o rt ed recei v i n g a d eath th reatt en d ays e a r lie rb y te le p h o n e , d u r in g w h ic h th e c a lle rs a id “th e e n e m ie s o f th e r e v o lu tio n d ie l i ke do gs. ” U gaz’ s m other r ec ei ved tw o m ore c al l s a ft erU gaz r eturned t o the U ni t ed S t at es i n Jun e 200 3; on e i nq ui ri ng i nt o U gaz’ s w here abou t s, and ano ther i n w hi ch the ca l l ersa i d n othi ng and h un g u p. U gaz has re m ai ned i n the U ni t ed S t at es si nce June 30 , 20 03 . S he expl ai ned thatshe had no tre l ocat ed t o ano ther partof P eru7

be c a us e the t e rr or i s t s w e r e a l l ove rthe c ountry , though m os t l y i n rur a l s i t e s . S he st at ed th atsh e co u l d n o tretu rn t o P eru b ecau se sh e i s a th reatt o h er fam i l y, be c a us e “ [ t ] e rr or i s m c ont i nue [ d] w he n I w a s the r e , ” a nd “ [ s ] ubve r s i ve pr opa ga nda w as al l ov erthe pl ac e. ” T he I J de ni e d U ga z ’ s appl i c a t i on f ora s y l um , f

i ndi ng tha tU ga z ’ s t e s t i m ony di d n otm ee tthe bu rden of es t abl i shi ng el i gi bi l i ty, and thati tw as no tdet ai l ed e nough t o s ugge s ttha tthe r e w a s ac onc e r t e d e f f or tby the S L t o i nf

l i c tha rm on U ga z a nd C ut i l l i . T he I J f ound U ga z ’ s t e s t i m ony w a s s om e w ha ti m pl a us i bl e , a nd th a t th e e v e n ts d id n o t c o n s titu te p a s t p e r s e c u tio n . U gaz app ea l ed t o the B IA , w hi ch di sm i ss ed the appeal , fi nd i ng thatU gaz fa i l ed t o d em on stra t e e i ther pas tpers ec ut i on or a w el l -f ou nd ed fe arof future pe r s e c ut i on on apr ot e c t e d gr ound, a s the c a l l s a nd the be a t i ng di d notr i s e t o the l ev el o f p astp ersecu t i o n . A l th o u g h th e B IA d et erm i n ed th atth e IJ’ s ad v erse cr edi bi l i ty f

i nd i ng w as cl ea rl y e rr on eous, the B IA al so concl ud ed thatU gaz f ai l ed to e s tab lis h an e x u s b e tw e e n th e p h o n e c a lls , th e b e a tin g , a n d ap r o te c te d g r o u n d . T he B I A f

ur the rf ound tha tU ga z ’ s vol unt a ry r e turn t o P e ru i n A pr i l 2003 unde rm i ne d the r e a s onabl e ne s s of he rc l a i m , a s di d he rf

a i l ur e t o appl y f

ora s y l um du ri ng her i ni t i al on e- ye arst ayi n the U ni t ed S t at es . U gaz now pet i t i on s thi s c ou rt f o rr e v i e w. I I . A n a ly s is8

B e c a u s e th e B I A d id n o t e x p r e s s ly a d o p t th e I J ’s d e c is io n , w e r e v ie w o n ly the B IA ’ s dec i si on . R ui z v. G on za l es , 47 9 F . 3d 76 2, 76 5 (11 th C i r. 20 07 ) ( i nt ernal c ita tio n s o m itte d ) . “A f a c tu a l d e te rm in a tio n b y th e B I A th a t a n a lie n is s ta tu to r ily in e lig ib le f o ra s y l u m o rwi th h o l d i n g i s r e v i e we d u n d e rth e s u b s t a n t i a l e v i d e n c e t e s t . ” Al N a jj a rv. A s hc r of

t , 257 F . 3d 1262, 1283 ( 11th C i r . 2001) ( i nt e rna l quot a t i ons a nd c i t a t i ons om i tt e d) . W e m us ta f f i rm the B I A ’ s de c i s i on “ i f i ti s s uppor t e d by reaso n ab l e, su b st an t i al , an d p ro b at i v e ev i d en ce o n th e reco rd co n si d ered as a w hol e . ” I d. a t1284 ( i nt e rna l quot a t i ons om i tt e d) . U nde rthi s t e s t , “ w e vi e w the r e c o r d e v id e n c e in th e lig h t m o s t f a v o r ab le to th e a g e n c y ’s d e c is io n a n d d r a w a ll r e a s onabl e i nf

e r e nc e s i n f

a vorof tha tde c i s i on. ” A de f

e m i v. A s hc r of

t , 386 F . 3d 1 0 2 2 , 1 0 2 7 (1 1 th C ir. 2 0 0 4 ) ( en b an c) . A cc o rd in g ly, “ to co n clu d e th e B IA ’s d e c is io n s h o u ld b e r e v e r s e d , [ th is c o u r t] m u s t f in d th a t th e r e c o r d n o t o n ly s u p p o r ts the c onc l us i on, butc om pe l s i t . ” R ui z 479 F . 3d a t765 ( i nt e rna l quot a t i ons o m itte d ) . T h e A tto rn e y G e n e r a l o rS e c r e ta ry o f H o m e la n d S e c u r ity h a s d is c r e tio n to g r a n ta s y l u m i f

th e a l i e n me e t s th e d e f

i n i t i o n o f “ r e f u g e e , ” a s d e f

i n e d b y 8 U . S. C. § 1 1 0 1 (a)(4 2 )(A ). 8 U . S . C . § 1 1 5 8 (b )(1 )(A ). A refu g ee i s d efi n ed as: an y p erso n w h o i s o u t si d e an y co u n try o f su ch p erso n ’ s n at i o n al i ty, or , i n the c a s e of

ape r s on ha vi ng no na t i ona l i ty , i s out s i de a ny c o u n try in w h ic h s u c h p e r s o n la s t h ab itu a lly r e s id e d , a n d w h o is u n ab le o ru n w illin g to r e tu rn to , a n dis u n ab le o ru n w illin g to a v a il9

hi m s e l f orhe r s e l f

of the pr ot e c t i on of

, tha tc ountry be c a us e of pers ec ut i on or a w el l -f

ou nd ed fe arof pers ec ut i on on ac coun tof ra ce , r e l i gi on, na t i ona l i ty , m e m be r s hi p i n apa r t i c ul a rs oc i a l gr oup, or pol i t i c a l opi ni on. 8 U . S . C . § 1101( a ) ( 42) ( A ) . T he a s y l um appl i c a ntc a rr i e s the bur de n of pr ovi ng st atut ory ‘ ‘ re fugee’ ’ st atus, and there by es t abl i shi ng as yl um el i gi bi l i ty. A l N ajj ar , 2 5 7 F .3 d a t 1 2 8 4 . W h e n th e a g e n c y d o e s n o t m a k e a n e x p lic it a d v e r s e c r e d ib ility d e t e rmi n a t i o n , w e c o n s i d e rth e p e t i t i o n e r ’ s t e s t i mo n y t o b e c r e d i b l e . M e j i av . U . S. A tty . G e n ., 4 9 8 F .3 d 1 2 5 3 , 1 2 5 7 ( 1 1 th C ir . 2 0 0 7 ) .

“ T o e s t abl i s h a s y l um [ e l i gi bi l i ty ] ba s e d on pa s tpe r s e c ut i on, the appl i c a nt m us tpr ove ( 1) tha ts he w a s pe r s e c ut e d, a nd ( 2) tha tthe pe r s e c ut i on w a s on a c c ount of apr ot e c t e d gr ound. ” S a nt a m a r i av. U . S . A tt ’ y G e n. , 2008 W L 1787731, a t*5 ( 1 1 th C ir . A p r . 2 2 , 2 0 0 8 ) ; S ilv av . U .S . A tty . G e n ., 4 4 8 F .3 d 1 2 2 9 , 1 2 3 6 ( 1 1 th C i r . 2006) . T o e s t abl i s h e l i gi bi l i ty f ora s y l um ba s e d on aw e l l - f ounde d f e a rof f utur e pe r s e c ut i on, the appl i c a ntm us tpr ove “ ( 1) as ubj e c t i ve l y ge nui ne a nd obj ec t i vel y r ea sonabl e f ea r of per se cut i on thati s ( 2) on ac coun tof a prot ec t ed g ro u n d . ” Id . at* 5 (i n t ern al an d q u o t at i o n m ark s o m i tt ed ). A sh o w i n g o f p ast pers ec ut i on cr ea t es a r ebut t abl e pre sum pt i on of a w el l -f ou nd ed fe arof future p e r s e c u tio n . S e p u lv e d av . U .S . A tty . G e n ., 4 0 1 F .3 d 1 2 2 6 , 1 2 3 1 ( 1 1 th C ir . 2 0 0 5 ) . A l tho ug h n ei ther the IN A no r the re gu l at i on s def i ne “ pers ec ut i on , ” thi s c ou rt has s t at ed that“ pers ec ut i on i s a n extre m e c on ce pt , re qu i ri ng m ore than a few i s ol a t e d i nc i de nt s of

ve rba l ha r a s s m e ntori nt i m i da t i on, a nd tha tm e r e ha r a s s m e nt10

doe s nota m ountt o pe r s e c ut i on. ” S a nc he z J i m i ne z v. U . S . A tt ’ y G e n. , 492 F . 3d 12 23 , 12 32 (11th C i r. 20 07 ) ( qu ot i ng S epul veda, 40 1 F . 3d at12 31 ). T he re cord m ustbe consi dere d cum ul at i vel y, and esc al at i ng ph ys i ca l as saul t s a nd verbal ha r a s s m e ntm a y qua l i f

y a s pe r s e c ut i on. S e e M e j i a , 498 F . 3d a t1257- 58; D e l ga do v. U . S . A tty. G en. , 48 7 F . 3d 85 5, 86 1-62 (11th C i r. 20 07 ). N ot abl y, the B IA di sa gree d w i th the IJ ’ s f i nd i ng thatU gaz’ s t es t i m on y w as i m pl a us i bl e . I n a ddi t i on, the B I A r e j e c t e d the I J ’ s de t e rm i na t i on tha tU ga z ha d not s how n tha ti tw oul d be i m pos s i bl e t o r e l oc a t e w i thi n P e ru. T hus , the onl y i s s ue before us i s w hether s ub st ant i al evi dence s up po rt s the B IA ’ s f i nd i ng s thatU gaz f a i l e d t o e s t abl i s h pa s tpe r s e c ut i on oraw e l l - f ounde d f e a rof f utur e pe r s e c ut i on on a c c ountof

apr ot e c t e d gr ound. U po n revi ew , w e c on cl ud e thatthe re cord com pel s the concl usi on thatU gaz su ffered p astp ersecu t i o n o n acco u n to f a p ro t ect ed g ro u n d . A ssu m i n g , as w e m u st i n the abse nce of an expl i ci tadvers e c re di bi l i ty f i nd i ng , thatU gaz’ s t es t i m on y w as c r e di bl e , the e vi de nc e de m ons tr a t e s tha tU ga z r e c e i ve d num e r ous thr e a t e ni ng t el epho ne ca l l s over a n i ni t i al 18 -m on th p er i od , and she suff er ed a vi ol entph ys i ca l a tta c k r e s u ltin g in b o d ily in ju r ie s . A f

te rU g a z le f

t P e ru , h e rm o th e rc o n tin u e d to r e c e i ve thr e a t e ni ng c a l l s . A nd upon U ga z ’ s r e turn t o P e ru, the c a l l s c ont i nue d a nd ar o c k , w r ap p e d in th e S L f la g , w a s th r o w n th r o u g h h e rliv in g r o o m w in d o w . A lth o u g h th is c o u r t s ta te d in S ilv ath a t th e r e c e ip t o f a n o n y m o u s th r e a ts11

[ o v e ratw o m o n th p e r io d ], w ith o u t m o r e , d o e s n o t q u a lif y a s p e r s e c u tio n ,” S ilv ais di st i ng ui shabl e bec ause , i n thi s c as e, there w as t es t i m on y thatthe ca l l s r ef er ence d the pe t i t i one r ’ s pol i t i c a l a c t i vi ty . C f . S i l va , 448 F . 3d a t1237. F ur the rm or e , the p et i t i o n er i n S i l v a ex p eri en ced th reat en i n g p h o n e cal l s fo r o n l y tw o m o n th s, w here as U gaz r ec ei ved them ov era per i od of approx i m at el y 18 m on ths pri or t o h er i ni t i a l de pa r tur e f

orthe U ni t e d S t a t e s , i n M a y 2002. S i l va , 448 F . 3d a t1237. A nd th e c a lls r e s u m e d w h e n U g a z r e tu rn to P e ru . M or e ove r , the c e r t i f

i e d pol i c e r e por tr e ga r di ng the a tt a c k of M a r c h 25, 2002, s ta te s th a t th e a tta c k e r s to ld U g a z th e y w e r e m e m b e r s o f S L , th e c a lle r s r e p e a te d ly re fe re nced her pol i t i ca l vo ca l i za t i on s, and U gaz t es t i fi ed as t o the i dent i ty of her att ac kers . P hysi ca l vi ol ence , coup l ed w i th v erbal threa t s c an qu al i fyas pe r s e c ut i on. S e e M e

j i a , 498 F . 3d a t1257- 58; s e e a l s o D e l ga do, 487 F . 3d 855 (11th C i r. 20 07 ) ( grant i ng re l i ef w here the pet i t i on er s w er e s t op ped b y m as ked m e n w ho poi nt e d unl oa de d w e apons a tthe m a nd pul l e d the tr i gge r s , one of the pe t i t i one r s w a s l a t e ra tt a c ke d a nd be a t e n, a nd i n both i nc i de nt s , the a tt a c ke r s ga ve w arni ng s a s t o the consequences thatw ou l d fl ow fr om the pet i t i on er s’ po l i t i ca l o p in io n s ) . W e f i nd a ddi t i ona l s uppor tf orourc onc l us i on i n thi s c our t ’ s r e c e ntopi ni on i n S ant am ar i a, 20 08 W L 17 87 73 1, at*7 -8. In thatca se , thi s c ou rtconcl ud ed that the pet i t i on ersuff

er ed pastpers ec ut i on on ac coun tof a prot ec t ed grou nd w here ,We notethat th eIJ madefac tual f inding s re g ardingUg az’sa bil ity to re loc atewithin 3 Peru, or to seek citizenship i n Italy, where her husband is a citizen. The B IA, however, madeno su c h f inding s. Asour re view i s limit e d totheB IA’ s de c isi on , w ec on c ludetheprop er a venu eis to remand f

or the g overnment to address its burden. 12 ove ratw o- y e a rpe r i od, F A R C m e m be r s ( 1) y a nke d he routof ac a rby he rha i ra nd thr e a t e ne d he rw i th de a th ba s e d on he rpol i t i c a l a c t i vi t i e s ; ( 2) pa i nt e d thr e a t e ni ng gr a f f i t i on he rpr ope r ty e xpl i c i t l y r e f e r e nc i ng he rpol i t i c a l or ga ni z a t i on; ( 3) t ortured and k i l l ed a f

am i l y groun dskeeper as a penal ty f or no tre veal i ng her w here abou t s; and (4) beat , ki dn aped, and threa t ened S ant am ar i a w i th d ea th b ef ore she m anaged t o esc ape. In re ac hi ng thi s c on cl usi on , thi s c ou rtexpl ai ned that s e r i ous phy s i c a l i nj ury i s notr e qui r e d t o pr ove pa s tpe r s e c ut i on w he r e the pet i t i on erdem on stra t es re peat ed threa t s c om bi ned w i th o ther f orm s of s ever e m is tr e a tm e n t. I d . H ere, th e ev i d en ce co m p el s a fi n d i n g th atU g az d i d i n factex p eri en ce p ast p e r s e c u tio n o n a c c o u n t o f h e rp o litic a l o p in io n . T h is e n title s h e rto ar e b u ttab le pr e s um pt i on tha ts he ha s aw e l l - f ounde d f e a rof f utur e pe r s e c ut i on. O n r e m a nd, th e g o v e rn m e n tb e a r s th e b u r d e n o f r e b u tt i n g th i s p r e s u m p t i o n . Ac c o r d i n g l y , we 3 g r a n t th e p e titio n a n d v a c a te a n d r e m a n d f o rf u r th e rp r o c e e d in g s c o n s is te n t w ith th is o p in io n . V AC AT E D a n d RE MAND E D.