Meirong Hao v. Gonzales

MEMORANDUM **

Meirong Hao, a native and citizen of China, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) affirmance of an Immigration Judge’s (“IJ”) denial of her applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review the BIA’s denial of asylum for substantial evidence and may reverse only if the evidence compels a contrary conclusion. INS v. Elias-Zacarias, 502 U.S. 478, 481 , 112 S.Ct. 812 , 117 L.Ed.2d 38 (1992). We deny the petition.

Substantial evidence supports the BIA’s finding that petitioner failed to establish past persecution or a well-founded fear of future persecution on account of an enumerated ground. Because petitioner was arrested for harboring a fugitive, and there is no evidence that she was arrested based on a political opinion or membership in a particular social group, she fails to present evidence compelling the conclusion that she was persecuted on account of an enumerated ground. See id. at 482-84 , 112 S.Ct. 812 (holding that guerrilla group’s attempt to recruit alien did not establish persecution based on political opinion);…