CCPR/C/115/D/2366/2014 area several times and spoke to local inhabitants in order to gather information. He discovered that the local Awami League leader N.J. and his son were controlling the sale of illegal drugs in the area and were connected to a notorious group of thugs led by J. In response to the report he had published on 2 July 2011, the author received a phone call on 26 July 2011 from J, who threatened to kill him. Thereafter, upon consultation with his editor and the leaders of the Crime Reporters Association of Bangladesh, the author filed a statement (a “General Diary”) concerning the threats at the Mirpur Model police station on 27 July 2011. The President and the General Secretary of the Association also issued a press statement to condemn the threat and to request legal action by the police.2 However, the police took no action and the author received another threatening phone call from J, who stated that he would kill the author if there were any further press statements about “their activities”. After this threat, the author decided to maintain a low profile and not to write anything about “them” for the time being. 2.5 According to the Personal Information Form, the author wrote a story on widespread acts of extortion committed by police officials. After the story was published on 12 August 2011 in The Daily Kaler Kantho, the author received a phone call from the officer in charge of Paltan police station, who apparently threatened to teach the author a lesson for accusing the police of corruption. On 20 September 2011, the author left Bangladesh for the United States to attend a conference. He arrived in Canada on 2 October 2011. Thereafter, his family in Bangladesh contacted him to inform him that Awami League thugs had raided the family home in Shawrapara and had threatened to kill the author if they found him. As a result, the author’s wife hired a lawyer in Bangladesh. The lawyer discovered that the police wanted to question, and possibly prosecute, the author because he had written an article on acts of extortion committed by police officials. The author was advised by the President of the Crime Reporters Association of Bangladesh not to return to Bangladesh until it was safe. On 14 October 2011, the police visited the author’s home in Shawrapara and searched for him, without a warrant. The lawyer retained by the author’s wife then learned from the police that the author was being sought in connection with his reports on extortion committed by police officers. The lawyer could not assure the author that he would receive any legal protection. The Form states that because of this situation, the author filed an application for refugee status in Canada on 19 October 2011. 2.6 Concerning the exhaustion of domestic remedies, the author states that the Immigration and Refugee Board of the Refugee Protection Division denied his application for asylum on 17 September 2013 and that his application for judicial review of this decision was denied on 31 January 2014. The author further asserts that on 12 March 2014, the Canada Border Services Agency denied his application for an administrative stay of removal. The author claims that he is ineligible to file an appeal before the Refugee Appeals Division of the Board. He further claims that although he filed an application for Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) on 14 March 2014, he is not eligible for this 2 4 The author provides a letter dated 27 February 2014 from the General Secretary of the Crime Reporters Association of Bangladesh, who states that the author was a former senior crime reporter for The Daily Kaler Kantho and was a former member of the Association as well. The letter also states that the author sought asylum in Canada because he was “a very sincere journalist who did not compromise to any situation” and because of the insecure situation of Bangladesh. The letter further states that if the author returns to Bangladesh he might encounter difficulties, including threats to his life or torture by law-enforcement officials, members of political groups or criminals. The General Secretary appeals to the Government of Canada to ensure the author’s safety, as he could be either killed or kidnapped if he were to return to Bangladesh.