Rahewa Yeimane-Berhe v. John Ashcroft, Attorney General

Rahewa Yeimane-Berhe, a native and citizen of Ethiopia, petitions for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals (“Board” or “BIA”), affirming a decision of the Immigration Judge (“IJ”), who denied her application for asylum, withholding of removal, and voluntary departure, and ordered her removed to Ethiopia. The IJ’s decision was based on a finding that Yeimane-Berhe was not credible and did not have good moral character solely because she submitted a document that the IJ concluded was counterfeit. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252 , and we grant the petition.

BACKGROUND

Yeimane-Berhe is an Ethiopian of the Amhara ethnicity. In July 1992, when Yeimane-Berhe was a university student, she joined the All Amhara People’s Organization (“AAPO”), which is a group dedicated to the prevention of human rights abuses committed by the Ethiopian government against people of the Amhara ethnicity. As a member of the group, Yei-mane-Berhe distributed flyers, held recruiting meetings, wrote slogans for demonstrations, and participated in protests against the government.

The AAPO attempted to hold a demonstration in 1993, but the government would not allow it. The…