CCPR/C/125/D/2439/2014 country. It thus found no reason to postpone the asylum proceedings for authentication of the documents that the author had received from his family. 9 2.6 On an unknown date, the family of the author informed him about two summonses to appear in court in the Islamic Republic of Iran and a judgment passed in absentia on 27 July 2013, by which he was sentenced to six years in prison, 74 whiplashes and a fine. 10 2.7 On 1 March 2014, the Iranian public prosecutor summoned the author to appear in court on 12 March 2014; otherwise, he would be sentenced in absentia. According to the author, the grounds for that summons appear to be his conversion to Christianity and his cooperation with Christians. The summons also allegedly mentions that the author will not be able to appeal such a judgment. 2.8 On 3 May 2014, the father of the author was summoned in connection with the author’s conversion.11 2.9 On 26 June 2014, a Danish pastor confirmed that the author had been part of the church community between May and November 2013. 2.10 On 15 October 2014, the author requested the reopening of his asylum case, invoking new facts and producing new documents as to his original ground for asylum and his conversion. On 25 November 2014, the Refugee Appeals Board dismissed his request. The complaint 3.1 The author claims that, if returned to the Islamic Republic of Iran, he risks persecution on account of his conversion to Christianity and his active life as a Christian, in violation of article 7 of the Covenant. The Iranian authorities will not protect him from threats exerted by civilians. 3.2 The author notes that he posted pictures of his baptism ceremony on Facebook, without thinking about the consequences. This triggered hate messages and threats from people who accused him of being an infidel. His sister was dismissed from her job and his brother was denied access to university. His parents told him not to come back because he would be killed by the Iranian authorities, who were looking for him. His father was questioned twice by the authorities in relation to the author and his whereabouts and was also subjected to “physical abuse”. The Iranian security police told his father that the author would be executed if they found him because he had renounced Islam. 3.3 The time of his conversion and his lack of detailed knowledge of Christianity, including Christian holidays, should not be used as an argument against the author. At the time of questioning by the Refugee Appeals Board, he had been a Christian for only a few months and, according to country of origin information, Christian converts often lack detailed knowledge of certain parts of Christianity. On the basis of his generally active Christian life with regular church services and Bible studies, combined with his statements 9 10 11 Without mentioning any exact date, the Board’s decision states that “after his entry to Denmark, the applicant’s family sent him two notices to appear before the court and a conviction in absentia sentencing him to, inter alia, eight years’ imprisonment”. See footnote 18 below. (1) A judgment of 24 July 2013 issued in absentia and pronounced on 27 July 2013, sentencing the author to five years’ imprisonment for the importation of 478 satellite dishes and one year’s imprisonment, 74 lashes and a fine of 500,000 Iranian tomans for possession of indecent and forbidden images and other equipment, including playing cards and backgammon games; (2) a notice to appear served on the author on 1 March 2014 to appear before the Islamic Revolutionary Court in the Islamic Republic of Iran on 12 March 2014 regarding a matter of “turning his back on Islam, conversion from the holy religion Islam to Christianity, association and collaboration with groups which spread Christianity”; and (3) a notice to appear served on the author’s father on 3 May 2014 to appear before the Islamic Revolutionary Court in the Islamic Republic of Iran on 14 May 2014. The author’s name is listed as the reason for his father’s appearance before the court. In the translation of the judgment, it is mentioned that the author was charged with selling satellite dishes and that during a search by the Iranian police, the authorities found not only the satellite dishes, but also pornographic material. It is also mentioned that the author had a right to appeal within 20 days. The author attaches two documents in Farsi claiming that they are the pictures of these two summonses, received from his sister. 3