Shoafera v. Immigration and Naturalization Service

Nigist Shoafera entered the United States from Ethiopia in January 1990. The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) began deportation proceedings, and Shoafera filed an application for asylum and withholding of deportation in February 1992. In proceedings before an immigration judge (IJ), Shoafera testified she feared persecution if she returned to Ethiopia on account of her Amharic ethnicity. Shoafera testified that she was beaten and raped by Belay, a man from the Tigrean ethnicity who held a position in her kebele, a government organization similar to a residential commune. Documentary evidence from a local hospital corroborated Shoafera’s testimony. Shoafera testified that she convinced her brother to report the assault and that the government arrested Belay but then released him after one month. Shoafera testified that, when Belay was released, she fled to another kebele because she learned Belay was looking for her. Shoafera and her sister testified that Belay raped Shoafera because of her Amharic ethnicity and because Belay felt empowered by his Tigrean ethnicity. Shoafera also testified she feared persecution if she returned to Ethiopia because Belay had gained significant political power, and she submitted other documentary evidence about the ethnic discord between Amharic and Tigrean groups. The IJ found Shoafera ineligible for asylum, finding that Shoafera had not established that Belay raped her on account of her Amharic ethnicity. Shoafera appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), which affirmed the IJ decision. Shoafera appealed to the Tenth Circuit, renewing her asylum application.