R.F.H v The Minister for Justice and Equality & Anor (Approved)

THE MINISTER FOR JUSTICE AND EQUALITY AND THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION APPEALS TRIBUNAL

1.������ The applicant seeks to set aside the decision of the second respondent made on 18th November, 2019 declaring that the applicant should not be given refugee status; nor that he was entitled to subsidiary protection under the International Protection Act 2015, which was based on the finding made by the second respondent that there was no reasonable risk that if the applicant were to be returned to Iraq he would face a well-founded fear of persecution or serious harm.�

4.������ The basic elements of the applicant�s story were not greatly in dispute and indeed, were largely accepted by the second respondent at the hearing of the appeal from the recommendation of the International Protection Officer.

5.������ The applicant is 31 years of age, having been born on 1st March, 1989.� He is an Iraqi national and resided in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.� He arrived in Ireland, via Dublin Airport, on 3rd June, 2018.� He stated that he was from the town of Arbat in Kurdistan.� Before he left for Ireland, he had worked for a telecoms company and as a receptionist in an organisation for economic development.� He had also worked as a taxi driver.

6.������ In or about 2012/2013, he had opened his first public Facebook account; on which he had placed a number of postings which were critical of the government in Kurdistan.� As a result of these postings, he came to the attention of the authorities.� He was taken in by the security services, known as the Asayish, in 2014.� He was interrogated for some time about the content of his postings.� He was released when he agreed to shut down his Facebook account, which he did while in custody.�