Yun

Petitioner Yun Chen (“Chen”) petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeal’s (“BIA”) decision affirming the Immigration Judge’s (“IJ”) determination that he is ineligible for asylum and withholding of removal because of the lack of a nexus between the punishments he fears if returned to China and the protected ground of resistance to China’s coercive population control program. The BIA concluded that Chen’s one year “labor education” sentence was punishment not for his underage marriage, but for his failure to appear to answer charges that he assaulted a family planning officer who interfered with his wedding. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252 .

I

The IJ found Chen credible and gave full weight to his testimony, which together with his application materials tell this tale:

Chinese family planning laws prohibit men under 22 and women under 20 from marrying. Chen and his girlfriend Fang applied for a marriage license but were denied because they were 17. They decided to proceed with the ceremony, but family planning officials came to stop it. The officials declared that they would seize the couple’s wedding furniture, decorations, and other belongings…