Political Opinion

If you are a member of a political party and the aggressor or persecutor is a member of an opposing or different political party, you may qualify for asylum on account of your political opinion.

Political opinion can sometimes take other forms, such as:

Domestic violence –

If you are persecuted for attempting to leave your abusive spouse or if you are attacked or abused after stating your political view, it may be possible to show that the persecution is tied to your political opinion. As example, your traditional spouse might beat you if you refuse to comply with his or her expectations, such as wearing a veil. Even vocally opposing domestic violence could be a political opinion if the relevant country authorizes or tolerates such behavior. It must be noted that in June of 2018, Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, overturned legal precedent concerning victims of domestic violence as a basis for asylum, thus perhaps closing the door on this avenue for asylum.

Feminism –

In certain countries, women are persecuted because they are feminists. One example may involve a woman raped while educating other women about birth control in a male-dominated country. Another example could involve women attacked or beaten for attending school in a country where the dominant belief is that woman should not be educated.

Union activity –

If you believe you have been persecuted (or you fear persecution) for belonging to a union, you can claim that the persecution was on account of your political opinion. In many countries, persecutors retaliate against people for joining unions and consider this equivalent to a political opinion.

Imputed political opinion –

There are instances when a persecutor harms someone because of a perception or belief about that person, even without a legitimate justification for this belief. If you were persecuted or fear persecution based on the persecutor thinking you possess a particular political opinion, you may be eligible for asylum – even if you do not actually hold that opinion. The central question is whether the persecutors were motivated to harm you based on the belief that you held a certain political opinion.