CAT/C/71/D/913/2019
the Swedish Migration Agency and the Swedish Migration Court denied her and her
daughter’s asylum applications in 2018.
Issues and proceedings before the Committee
Consideration of admissibility
8.1
Before considering any complaint submitted in a communication, the Committee must
decide whether it is admissible under article 22 of the Convention. The Committee has
ascertained, as it is required to do under article 22 (5) (a) of the Convention, that the same
matter has not been and is not being examined under another procedure of international
investigation or settlement.
8.2
The Committee recalls that, in accordance with article 22 (5) (b) of the Convention, it
shall not consider any complaint from an individual unless it has ascertained that the
individual has exhausted all available domestic remedies. The Committee takes note of the
information provided by the complainants indicating that they had exhausted all domestic
remedies. The Committee also takes note of the information provided by the State party that,
on 30 December 2009, the complainants unsuccessfully applied for asylum and for residence
permits, or a re-examination of the issue of residence permits, citing impediments to
enforcement of the expulsion order on 30 May 2012, 2 July 2013 and 18 July 2014, and that
those decisions were not appealed. The Committee notes that, on 21 February 2016, the
complainants’ expulsion order became statute-barred. The Committee also notes that, in the
present case, the State party has not contested the complainants’ assertion that they have
exhausted all available domestic remedies in relation to the asylum applications. The
Committee therefore finds that it is not precluded from considering the communication under
article 22 (5) (b) of the Convention as far as it relates to the complainants’ deportation.
8.3
The State party submits that the communication is inadmissible as manifestly
unfounded. The Committee considers, however, that the arguments put forward by the
complainants raise substantive issues, which should be considered on their merits.
Accordingly, the Committee finds no obstacles to admissibility, declares the communication
admissible and proceeds with its consideration of the merits.
Consideration of the merits
9.1
The Committee has considered the complaint in the light of all the information made
available to it by the parties concerned, in accordance with article 22 (4) of the Convention.
9.2
In the present case, the issue before the Committee is whether the return of the
complainants to the Russian Federation would constitute a violation of the State party’s
obligation under article 3 of the Convention not to expel or to return (refouler) a person to
another State where there are substantial grounds for believing that he or she would be in
danger of being subjected to torture.
9.3
The Committee must evaluate whether there are substantial grounds for believing that
the complainants would be personally in danger of being subjected to torture upon return to
the Russian Federation. In assessing that risk, the Committee must take into account all
relevant considerations, pursuant to article 3 (2) of the Convention, including the existence
of a consistent pattern of gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights. However, the
Committee recalls that the aim of such a determination is to establish whether the individual
concerned would be personally at a foreseeable and real risk of being subjected to torture in
the country to which he or she would be returned. It follows that the existence of a pattern of
gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights in a country does not, as such, constitute a
sufficient reason for determining that a particular person would be in danger of being
subjected to torture on return to that country; additional grounds must be adduced to show
that the individual concerned would be personally at risk. Conversely, the absence of a
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