alleged therefore do not reveal a prima facie case that his expulsion would expose him to the risk of torture. 4.17 The State party submits that the present communication is based on exactly the same facts as those presented to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration when he made his "danger opinion" and those presented on judicial review before the Federal Court Trial Division. As a consequence, since the national proceedings did not disclose any manifest error or unreasonableness and were not tainted by abuse of process, bad faith, manifest bias or serious irregularities, the Committee should not substitute its own findings on whether the author risks being subjected to torture in Afghanistan; it should not become a "fourth instance" that would re-examine the findings of facts by the internal authorities. 4.18 As a consequence, the State party is of the view that, on the basis of the criteria referred to in paragraph 4.13 above, there is no indication: (a) that the author was tortured or maltreated by or with the acquiescence of a public official in Afghanistan in the past; (b) that he is currently being sought by Afghan authorities; (c) that persons in his immediate circle were arrested or tortured because they are Tajiks; (d) that ethnic Tajiks are specifically targeted for mistreatment; and (e) that he has been involved in any high-profile activity that could draw the attention of the Taliban. 4.19 The State party therefore requests that, if the communication is declared admissible, it is declared without merits. Counsel comments On the admissibility 5.1 In a submission of 21 January 2000, counsel for the author made her comments on the observations of the State party. In connection with the exhaustion of internal remedies, counsel recalls that the author was granted permanent residence in 1992 and that he was later convicted of a criminal offence leading to the deportation order issued against him. Under the Immigration Act, a person can be deported from Canada and denied access to the refugee procedure if the Minister certifies the person as a "danger to the public in Canada". In this case, the only issue is whether or not the person is a danger to the public in Canada, not whether the person is at risk. As a result, when such a decision is taken, the person no longer has a right to appeal to the Appeal Division and is also denied a right to make a refugee claim.

Select target paragraph3