National Documentation Packages (NDPs) are lists of public documents that provide information on country conditions. Updates occur on a regular basis. NDPs are updated cyclically based on publicly available information. In periods of rapid change and/or uncertainty, updates may be delayed to allow sufficient time to build a body of relevant information.
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Jurisprudential Guides Notes
Jurisprudential Guides Notes
On
July 28, 2022, the Chairperson identified the following Refugee Appeal Division decision as being a
Jurisprudential Guide:
-
Decision TC1 05038 – The proper interpretation of the ‘generalized risk’ exception to protection found at subparagraph 97(1)(b)(ii) of the Act, in claims for protection involving allegations of gang-targeting or other acts of criminality.
On
December 22, 2020, the Chairperson identified the following Refugee Appeal Division decision as being a
Jurisprudential Guide.
-
Decision MB8-00025 – This Jurisprudential Guide addresses, in applying Article 1E of the Refugee Convention, whether members should consider allegations of risk in a country of residence if they conclude that a refugee claimant has the rights and obligations which are attached to the possession of nationality in that country.
On
July 6, 2018, the Chairperson identified the following Refugee Appeal Division decision as being a
Jurisprudential Guide.
-
Decision TB7-19851 – Nigeria – This Jurisprudential Guide addresses internal flight alternatives in major cities in south and central Nigeria for claimants fleeing non-state actors.
Revoked
The country documentation referenced in each of these decisions has been included in s.16 of the updated National Documentation Packages published on July 10, 2018.
On
July 20, 2017, the Chairperson identified the following Refugee Appeal Division decision as being
Jurisprudential Guides.
-
Decision TB7-01837 – Pakistan – Whether the treatment experienced by Ahmadis in Pakistan amounts to persecution, whether state protection is available and whether there is a viable internal flight alternative.
-
Decision MB6-01059/60 – India – Availability of an internal flight alternative in India for claimants from Punjab.
Revoked
-
Decision TB6-11632 – China – Analysis of the efficacy of the Chinese national computer network known as the Golden Shield Project and its impact on whether a person wanted by the authorities can exit China via an airport using a genuine passport.
Revoked
The country documentation referenced in each of these decisions has been included in s.16 of the updated National Documentation Packages published on July 20, 2017.
Back
31 March 2020
GUATEMALA
List of Documents
1.
General Information and Maps
Source:
United Nations. Cartographic Section.
Date of Document:
May 2004
Accessed Date:
16 November 2012
Title:
Belize - Guatemala. L'Encyclopédie en ligne.
Accessed Date:
16 November 2012
Title:
Guatemala. The World Factbook.
Source:
United States. Central Intelligence Agency.
Date of Document:
22 April 2019
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Asylum-Seekers from Guatemala
Source:
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Date of Document:
January 2018
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Title:
Guatemala. Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2019.
Source:
United States. Department of State.
Date of Document:
11 March 2020
Accessed Date:
20 March 2020
Title:
Guatemala. Amnesty International Report 2017/2018: The State of the World's Human Rights.
Source:
Amnesty International
Date of Document:
28 February 2018
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Title:
Guatemala. World Report 2019: Events of 2018.
Source:
Human Rights Watch
Date of Document:
January 2019
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
Title:
Activities of the Office of the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights in Guatemala. Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights.
Source:
United Nations. Human Rights Council.
Date of Document:
28 January 2019
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
Title:
Guatemala. Freedom in the World 2018.
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
Title:
Situation of Human Rights in Guatemala: Country Report
Code:
OEA/Ser.L/V/II. Doc. 208/17
Source:
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
Date of Document:
31 December 2017
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Title:
Concluding observations on the fourth periodic report of Guatemala
Source:
United Nations. Human Rights Committee.
Date of Document:
7 May 2018
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
Title:
National report submitted in accordance with paragraph 5 of the annex to Human Rights Council resolution 16/21: Guatemala
Code:
A/HRC/WG.6/28/GTM/1
Source:
United Nations. Human Rights Council.
Date of Document:
4 September 2017
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Title:
Joint Shadow Report Submitted by Guatemalan Civil Society Organisations to the Committee Against Torture 2014-2018
Source:
World Organisation against Torture et al.
Date of Document:
15 November 2018
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
3.
Identification Documents and Citizenship
Title:
Guatemala. U.S. Visa: Reciprocity and Civil
Source:
United States. Department of State.
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
Title:
Rights and obligations of permanent residents in Guatemala; reasons why a permanent resident may lose their status; whether it is possible to resume it and the procedures to do so
Source:
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
Date of Document:
13 September 2012
Accessed Date:
28 May 2014
Keywords:
citizenship; freedom of movement; identity documents; legislation; marriage
Title:
Requirements and procedures to obtain Guatemalan citizenship through marriage, including whether Guatemala allows for dual citizenship with Colombia (2009-January 2011)
Source:
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
Date of Document:
14 February 2011
Accessed Date:
16 November 2012
Keywords:
citizenship; identity documents; legislation; marriage
4.
Political Activities and Organizations
Title:
Republic Of Guatemala. Election for Congreso De La Republica (Guatemalan Congress of the Republic) of 6 September 2015.
Source:
International Foundation for Electoral Systems. Election Guide.
Accessed Date:
7 March 2016
Keywords:
election; political organizations; statistics
Title:
Republic Of Guatemala. Election for President of 25 October 2015.
Source:
International Foundation for Electoral Systems. Election Guide.
Accessed Date:
7 March 2016
Keywords:
election; political organizations; statistics
Title:
I. Political Transformation. Transformation Index 2018 Country Report: Guatemala.
Source:
Bertelsmann Stiftung
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Title:
Guatemala: Political and Socioeconomic Conditions and U.S. Relations
Source:
United States. Congressional Research Service.
Date of Document:
20 March 2019
Author:
Maureen Taft-Morales
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
5.
Gender, Domestic Violence and Children
Title:
Concluding observations on the combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of Guatemala
Source:
United Nations. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.
Date of Document:
22 November 2017
Accessed Date:
10 April 2019
Title:
USAID/Guatemala Gender Analysis 2018. Final Report
Date of Document:
14 September 2018
Author:
Ana Landa Ugarte et al.
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Guatemala. Social Institutions and Gender Index 2019.
Source:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Accessed Date:
5 February 2019
Title:
Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention. Eighth and ninth periodic reports of States due in 2015: Guatemala.
Date of Document:
11 January 2016
Accessed Date:
26 April 2019
Title:
Domestic violence, including legislation, state protection, and services available to victims
Source:
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
Date of Document:
14 May 2012
Accessed Date:
16 November 2012
Keywords:
crime; domestic violence; femicide; gender-based violence; indigenous groups; institutional efficacy; judicial efficacy; legal system; legislation; police corruption; police efficacy; police/security forces; sexual violence; social services; statistics; warrants
Title:
Human Trafficking for Sexual Exploitation Purposes in Guatemala
Source:
International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala; United Nations Children's Fund
Accessed Date:
2 March 2017
Title:
Human Rights Violations Against Transgender Women in Guatemala
Source:
Organización Trans Reinas de la Noche et al.
Date of Document:
February 2018
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
7.
Criminality and Corruption
Title:
Guatemala. 2019 Crime and Safety Report.
Source:
United States. Overseas Security Advisory Council.
Date of Document:
27 February 2019
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Guatemala: Tier 2 Watch List. Trafficking in Persons Report 2018.
Source:
United States. Department of State.
Date of Document:
June 2018
Accessed Date:
1 October 2018
Title:
Guatemala. 2019 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report. Volume I: Drug and Chemical Control.
Source:
United States. Department of State.
Date of Document:
March 2019
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Saving Guatemala's Fight Against Crime and Impunity. Latin America & Caribbean Report Nº 70.
Source:
International Crisis Group
Date of Document:
24 October 2018
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Against the Odds: CICIG in Guatemala
Source:
Open Society Foundations
Date of Document:
March 2016
Accessed Date:
25 April 2017
Title:
Review of implementation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption. Executive Summary.
Code:
CAC/COSP/IRG/I/4/1/Add.33
Source:
Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption
Date of Document:
19 November 2015
Accessed Date:
3 March 2017
Title:
Mafia of the Poor: Gang Violence and Extortion in Central America. Latin America Report N°62.
Source:
International Crisis Group
Date of Document:
6 April 2017
Accessed Date:
24 April 2017
Title:
Gangs in Central America
Source:
United States. Congressional Research Service.
Date of Document:
29 August 2016
Author:
Clare Ribando Seelke
Accessed Date:
3 March 2017
Title:
Home Sweet Home? Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador's role in a Deepening Refugee Crisis
Source:
Amnesty International
Date of Document:
14 October 2016
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Guatemala Elites and Organized Crime
Date of Document:
1 September 2016
Author:
Edgar Gutiérrez; Steven Dudley
Accessed Date:
3 March 2017
Title:
Easy Prey: Criminal Violence and Central American Migration. Latin American Report N°57.
Source:
International Crisis Group
Date of Document:
28 July 2016
Accessed Date:
3 March 2017
Title:
Homicides in Guatemala: Analyzing the Data
Date of Document:
20 April 2017
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Title:
Closed Doors. Mexico's Failure to Protect Central American Refugee and Migrant Children.
Source:
Human Rights Watch
Date of Document:
31 March 2016
Accessed Date:
3 March 2017
Title:
What Is Behind the High Cost of Crime in the Northern Triangle? Recent Trends in Crime and Victimization. The Costs of Crime and Violence: New Evidence and Insights in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Source:
Inter-American Development Bank
Date of Document:
February 2017
Author:
Rogelio Granguillhome Ochoa
Accessed Date:
3 March 2017
Title:
Cause or Consequence? Reframing violence and displacement in Guatemala.
Source:
Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre
Date of Document:
September 2018
Author:
Ananda S. Millard and Gloria Lara-Florian
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
8.
Military Service - (No items in this section)
9.
Judiciary, Legal and Penal Systems
Title:
ILAC Rule of Law Assessment Report: Guatemala
Source:
International Legal Assistance Consortium
Date of Document:
29 May 2018
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Running out the Clock. How Guatemala's Courts could doom the Fight against Impunity.
Source:
Human Rights Watch
Date of Document:
13 November 2017
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
10.
Police and Security Forces
Title:
Requirements and procedures for lodging a report with the police; avenues of recourse for filing complaints against the police for corruption or misconduct; requirements and procedures to obtain a copy of the police report (2013-March 2015)
Source:
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
Date of Document:
14 April 2015
Accessed Date:
21 April 2016
Keywords:
abduction; crime; legal system; legislation; organized crime; police corruption; police/security forces; police/security forces complaints
Title:
Guatemala SSR Background Note
Source:
International Security Sector Advisory Team
Date of Document:
26 January 2018
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Title:
Guatemala. Freedom of the Press 2016.
Accessed Date:
24 April 2017
Title:
Guatemala. International Religious Freedom Report for 2017.
Source:
United States. Department of State.
Date of Document:
29 May 2018
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
13.
Nationality, Ethnicity and Race
Title:
Guatemala. The Indigenous World 2018.
Source:
International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs
Date of Document:
April 2018
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples on her visit to Guatemala
Source:
United Nations. Human Rights Council.
Date of Document:
10 August 2018
Accessed Date:
24 April 2019
Title:
Observations on the State of Indigenous Human Rights in Guatemala. Prepared for: The 28th Session of the UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review.
Source:
Cultural Survival
Date of Document:
March 2017
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
Source:
World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples
Date of Document:
January 2018
Accessed Date:
9 April 2018
14.
Exit/Entry and Freedom of Movement - (No items in this section)
15.
Labour, Employment and Unions - (No items in this section)
Title:
Circumstances under which victims of domestic violence and gang violence are granted protection; protection offered to claimants who do not meet Refugee Convention grounds, but instead claim a risk to their life or a risk of torture, or cruel ...
Source:
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
Date of Document:
18 October 2018
Accessed Date:
13 March 2019
Title:
Removal proceedings pursuant to Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) Sec. 237(a)(1)(A) of an accepted refugee and permanent resident, due to a finding of misrepresenting a material fact in an asylum claim; whether a decision to find someone ...
Source:
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
Date of Document:
23 January 2019
Accessed Date:
13 March 2019
The following changes have been made to the previous package dated 30 April 2019:
Title:
Guatemala. Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2018.
Source:
United States. Department of State.
Date of Document:
13 March 2019
URL:
https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/guatemala/
Accessed Date:
19 March 2019
Disclaimer
National Documentation Packages (NDPs) include country-of-origin information that is publicly accessible at the time of publication and available within time constraints. While the Research Directorate strives to maintain the
NDP with current information, the research is not exhaustive and country conditions can change rapidly. Members of the public are invited to
suggest documents they feel are relevant to the
NDP.
NDPs are not, and do not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Rather, they are intended to support the refugee determination process. The assessment and weight to be given to the information in the
NDPs are the responsibility of independent
IRB members (decision-makers) after considering the evidence and arguments presented by the parties.
All sources are fully cited, including a hyperlink, to facilitate the location of the information. The
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The information presented in
NDPs solely reflects the views and perspectives of the sources cited and does not necessarily reflect the position of the
IRB or the Government of Canada.