Jinsuo Gong v. Eric Holder, Jr.
Opinion
Opinion
MEMORANDUM
Petitioner Jinsuo Gong petitions for review of a final order of removal of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 , and we grant the petition.
Gong seeks asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT) on the basis that he fears persecution for trying to prevent the local government in China from appropriating his land without providing fair compensation. An immigration judge (IJ) denied relief, and the BIA dismissed Gong’s appeal, finding that (1) Gong had established no nexus between the harm he suffered and any protected ground, and (2) even if a presumption of a well-founded fear of future persecution had arisen, the Government had rebutted that presumption by establishing a fundamental change in country circumstances.
We review the BIA’s findings for substantial evidence. See Kamalyan v. Holder, 620 F.3d 1054, 1057-58 (9th Cir.2010); Navas v. INS, 217 F.3d 646, 661 (9th Cir.2000). Because the BIA assumed that Gong’s testimony was credible, we do the same. See Barraza Rivera v. INS, 913 F.2d 1443, 1450 (9th Cir.1990).