Thein

MEMORANDUM **

Petitioner Win Thein, a native and citizen of Burma, petitions for review of the denial by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) of his applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). As the BIA summarily affirmed the decision of the Immigration Judge (IJ), we review the decision as if it were that of the BIA. See Al-Harbi v. INS, 242 F.3d 882, 887-88 (9th Cir.2001).

Although the IJ made comments suggesting that she did not believe Thein’s testimony, the government conceded that no specific adverse credibility ruling was made. Therefore, we deem Thein’s testimony to be credible. See, e.g., Navas v. INS, 217 F.3d 646 , 652 n. 3 (9th Cir.2000).

The IJ erred in concluding that Thein did not have a well-founded fear of future persecution on the basis of political opinion as the record compels such a finding. Thein demonstrated both a genuine subjective fear of persecution and an objective basis for that fear, by adducing credible, direct, and specific evidence in the record supporting his reasonable fear of persecution. See Singh v. INS, 134 F.3d 962, 966 (9th Cir.1998); Ghaly v. INS, 58 F.3d 1425, 1428 (9th…