Opinion ID: 792148
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Hamdan's Asylum Application4

Text: 3 In his asylum application, Hamdan claimed to have been mistreated in Kuwait and Jordan because of his race, nationality, membership in a particular social group, and political opinion. In particular, Hamdan alleged that the Jordanian police beat him because he was a Palestinian who was critical of the Jordanian government's mistreatment of Palestinians and also because he was a member of a particular social group that was persecuted, namely, Palestinian refugees from Kuwait living in Jordan. 4 During his asylum hearing, he stated that he was a member of a political organization (which he did not identify by name) that held rallies to create an awareness of the mistreatment of Palestinians in Jordan. Hamdan alleged that he was detained by Jordanian authorities on five occasions in 1991 due to his membership in the unidentified group. Hamdan testified that during his first detention, Jordanian authorities interrogated him for three hours and slapp[ed] and kick[ed] him. He also claimed to have been beaten during his second detention. 5 He testified that his treatment was less severe during the other three detentions; however, he claimed that on those occasions the Jordanian officers threatened him with torture and warned him upon his release from detention that they would continue to monitor[][his] activities. Hamdan claimed that he left Jordan in 1993 for the U.S. because he feared further persecution from the Jordanian government. Hamdan also testified that he suffered from depression and paranoid schizophrenia. His attorney claimed that the medical records demonstrated that his psychological disorders would cause him to react to external stimulus in a fashion that is more severe than maybe other individuals would under the same circumstances. . . . He argued that Hamdan's exaggerated response would be an injury to him above and beyond the actual physical beatings. 5 On December 30, 1999, the immigration judge (IJ) denied Hamdan's request for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the CAT. The IJ found that state department reports established that since the end of 1991, Palestinians living in Kuwait were no longer routinely assaulted by vigilante groups. As for Palestinians in Jordan, the judge assumed for the purposes of his analysis that Hamdan's testimony was credible and that Hamdan had in fact been mistreated while detained. Nonetheless, the judge concluded that the experiences Hamdan described did not constitute past persecution. The judge credited Hamdan's testimony that he felt vulnerable in Jordan due to his depression and his subjective fear of persecution should he be forced to return to Jordan. However, the judge noted that Hamdan must also demonstrate an objective, well-founded fear of persecution in Jordan and, on this issue, he determined that Hamdan had failed. Finally, the judge adopted state department reports which opined, It would be impossible to argue . . . that Palestinians are a persecuted majority in Jordan, and found that Palestinian refugees from Kuwait living in Jordan were not members of a designated social group eligible for asylum. 6 Hamdan appealed the decision of the IJ to the BIA; however, before the Board issued a decision, Hamdan's mother was granted citizenship in the United States, making him immediately eligible to apply for adjustment of status to that of a permanent resident. See 8 U.S.C. § 1255(i)(1)(B). Because a successful application for adjustment of status would allow Hamdan to remain in the U.S. indefinitely and obviate any need for him to continue with his asylum application, he filed a motion with the BIA seeking a remand to the IJ which would allow him to apply for adjustment of status. See id. The BIA granted Hamdan's motion and remanded his case to the same IJ who had adjudicated his asylum application. 7