Religious Persecution and Refugee Status
A request for asylum on the ground of religious persecution relies on refugee status as defined by the Law of Georgia on Refugees: religion is expressly listed among the five grounds of persecution. Status is granted to a foreigner or stateless person outside the country of origin who has a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of religion and is unable or unwilling to return. The religious ground covers persecution both by state and, where the state cannot or will not provide protection, by other actors, and it may be combined with other grounds — nationality, political opinion, or membership of a particular social group.
The specifics of religious persecution lie in the fact that well-founded fear is often generated by reactions to the manifestation of faith: the form of worship, religious symbols, active participation in a community, or a change of belief become factors that increase the risk of persecution. The statutory forms of persecution include physical and mental violence as well as discriminatory legal and judicial measures, so the request must reflect the factual manifestations of religious belonging precisely.
Sur Place Claims and Subsequent Applications
The law expressly recognizes that the need for international protection may be based on a significant change of circumstances in the country of origin of a person present in Georgia or on acts that the person commits after leaving the country. A conversion, public statements of faith, or activity undertaken abroad can therefore ground a claim that did not exist at the moment of departure. Conversely, where a person has repeatedly applied for international protection, status may be refused without violating the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees of 1951 if the risk of persecution arises from circumstances that the person deliberately and artificially created after leaving the country of origin.
Forms of Persecution and Serious Harm
An act is persecution where, by its nature or repetitiveness, it is so serious that it constitutes a serious violation of fundamental human rights, or where it is an accumulation of acts of equal gravity. The forms include acts of physical or mental violence, including sexual violence; discriminatory legal, administrative, or judicial acts; disproportionate or discriminatory criminal prosecution or punishment; refusal of a court to redress an infringed right; prosecution for refusal to perform acts in time of conflict; and acts related to gender or minority age. Serious harm comprises a death sentence or threat of execution, torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and a serious individual threat to life from indiscriminate violence, armed conflict, or massive human rights violations.