CCPR/C/117/D/2387/2014 history in Canada, which began in 1998 when the author was 18, and has continued for over 13 years. The author has 12 criminal convictions, several of which relate to violent crimes involving bodily harm and the use of a firearm, and are punishable with long prison terms. 4 He committed his most recent offence, armed robbery, while he was on conditional release from immigration detention. The author was described by the State party’s court handing down a criminal judgment as having clearly shown disregard for human life. 4.2 On the basis of his extensive criminal activity, the author was found to be inadmissible to Canada on 28 January 2002, following his January 1998 convictions for assault causing bodily harm and obstruction of a peace officer, and on 20 February 2008, following his September 2007 conviction for aggravated assault. On the basis of the inadmissibility report, the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada issued a removal order on 7 April 2008. The author filed an appeal against the removal order with the Board’s Immigration Appeal Division. The appeal was dismissed on 8 April 2009, as section 64 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act provides that if the individual concerned has been found to be inadmissible on grounds, inter alia, of serious criminality, he or she has no right to appeal to the Division. 4.3 In recognition of his status as a refugee, and in compliance with article 33 (2) of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, the opinion of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration was sought as to whether the author should not be allowed to remain in Canada because he constitutes a danger to the public. The Minister’s delegate determined that the author constitutes a present and future danger to the public in Canada owing to his serious criminality. In addition, the delegate considered the documentary evidence, including the author’s additional submissions, and concluded that there was insufficient evidence to demonstrate that the author faced any personal risk to his life or a risk of torture or of cruel or unusual treatment or punishment upon his return to Somalia. Despite that finding, the Minister’s delegate also undertook an exercise to find the balance between danger and risk, and found that the danger the author poses to the public greatly outweighs any minimal risk the author could face in Somalia. Moreover, the humanitarian and compassionate considerations relating to the author’s particular circumstances are insufficient to overcome that finding. The author was notified of his removal order on 15 June 2012 and has been in immigration detention since 1 November 2012.5 His application for leave to seek judicial review of the danger opinion, including the risk assessment, was denied by the Federal Court on 30 November 2012. 4.4 The State party submits that the author’s communication is inadmissible on three counts. Firstly, the author has failed to exhaust all available domestic remedies because he did not apply for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, and did not file an application for leave to seek judicial review of the Immigration Appeal Division’s decision. Second, the author’s communication is inadmissible under article 2 of the Optional Protocol because he has not substantiated, on even a prima facie basis, that he faces a real and personal risk of death, torture or ill-treatment in Somalia, specifically in Mogadishu, where he is to be returned. Recent country reports indicate that Al-Shabaab is no longer in control of Mogadishu, having withdrawn its forces from parts of the city that it controlled in August 2011.6 The State party recalls that general allegations of human rights abuses and poor country conditions are not sufficient to establish that the author would be personally at risk upon return. Rather, reliable and authoritative reports confirm that some personal characteristic is needed to expose a Somali civilian to a real risk. The author does not fall into the “risk profile categories” identified in the protection guidelines drawn up by 4 5 6 4 The author has been convicted of assault causing bodily harm and obstructing a peace officer (1998); possession of property obtained by crime and failure to appear in court (2004); failure to comply with recognizance (August and November 2005, February and May 2006); making harassing telephone calls (2006); aggravated assault (2007); and armed robbery (2011). The author has benefited from regular detention reviews by the Immigration and Refugee Board, the most recent of which was held on 11 February 2015. See, for example, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Home Office, “Country information and guidance: Somalia: security and humanitarian situation in south and central Somalia” (Dec. 2014), and United States of America, Department of State, “Country reports on human rights practices for 2013: Somalia”, available from www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2013/af/220158.htm. GE.17-03930