Ricky Nababan v. Eric H. Holder Jr.

MEMORANDUM *

Ricky Belfast Nababan, a native and citizen of Indonesia, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’s (BIA) order dismissing his appeal from an immigration judge’s (IJ) decision denying his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review legal conclusions de novo and factual findings for substantial evidence. Ochoa v. Gonzales, 406 F.3d 1166, 1169 (9th Cir.2005). We deny the petition for review.

The BIA did not apply the wrong legal standard or fail to properly address Nababan’s asylum claim. The BIA acknowledged the IJ’s conclusion that Nababan failed to demonstrate a well-founded fear of future persecution. After supplying its own analysis as to Nababan’s grounds for asylum (i.e., race, religion, and social group), the BIA concluded there was “no reason to disturb” the IJ’s denial of Nababan’s application for asylum. Therefore, the BIA’s opinion reflects that the BIA properly considered the issues raised by Nababan’s asylum claim. See Lopez v. Ashcroft, 366 F.3d 799 , 807 n. 6 (9th Cir.2004) (“[T]he [BIA] does not have to write an…

Dissenting.

I dissent. Nababan came to the United States at the age of fourteen. After spending his formative years in the U.S. and receiving a U.S. education, he is now being returned to a country where he will face hostility and persecution based on his westernization and religion. Thus, I cannot agree with this decision.

I agree with the majority that the BIA applied the correct legal standard for withholding of removal. I also agree that the BIA addressed Nababan’s asylum claim. My dissent is based on four other errors committed by the BIA in this case.

First, I take issue with the BIA’s conclusion that Nababan could avoid future persecution by relocating within Indonesia. This conclusion is not, as the majority contends, supported by substantial evidence. Instead, the record, including the State Department’s 2005 Human Rights Country Report for Indonesia and the International Religious Freedom Report for Indonesia, shows that Christians experience discrimination and persecution throughout Indonesia. The BIA was inattentive to the record in this case. Thus, I would remand to the BIA for it to consider the entire record. Smolniakova v. Gonzales, 422 F.3d 1037, 1045-46 (9th…

NOT FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FILED

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT DEC 07 2009

MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK

U.S. COURT OF APPEALS

RICKY BELFAST NABABAN, No. 08-71063

Petitioner, Agency No. A078-020-278

v.

MEMORANDUM *

ERIC H. HOLDER Jr., Attorney General,

Respondent.

On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals

Argued and Submitted November 5, 2009 Pasadena, California

Before: PREGERSON, BYBEE, and M. SMITH, Circuit Judges.

Ricky Belfast Nababan, a native and citizen of Indonesia, petitions for

review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’s (BIA) order dismissing his appeal

from an immigration judge’s (IJ) decision denying his application for asylum,

withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture

(CAT). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252. We review legal conclusions

* This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3. de novo and factual findings for substantial evidence. Ochoa v. Gonzales, 406

F.3d 1166, 1169 (9th Cir. 2005). We…