QUESTIONS ASKED BY ASYLUM OFFICER OF A CHIN-CHRISTIAN FROM BURMA: March 2025

Tell me about your international travel. Did you ever return to the country that you say is so dangerous?

Did you ever work for the military, the police, or the government? If so, maybe you assisted in the persecution of others

Are you able to repeat your declaration? Or, is it too long and you can't remember it?

If you walk down the street in silence, how does anyone know you are a Chin?

What was your last address, outside of USA?

Tell me about all of your employment for the past 10 years? Tell me about all of your addresses for the past ten years? If you say you worked for X in the city of Yangon, in 2023, but you say you lived in Mandalay in 2023, then, have you contradicted yourself?

Form DS-160 is an application for a visa? Lots of questions and lots of answers? You don't know what errors are in that form, do you? Today, you will be giving me answers that are inconsistent with your earlier answers?

Why did you apply for asylum? Did you suffer harm in the past? What was the motive of the bad guys? What words did they say?

How many times were you harmed? If you live under a dictatorship, do you suffer harm each day?

Do you know what the rules are, for asylum? Who gets asylum, and who doesn't? If an "ordinary criminal" steals from you, do you get asylum? Does Chins suffer more crime than other groups?

Where were you, at the moment of your arrest? 

A bad man hit you? Did you report that to the police? Why not?

Did you have a "household family list"? Where is it today?

Does the government know your blood type?

Did you suffer physical harm? Are there other kinds of harm? Such as emotional harm? Anxiety? Worry? Fear? 

Is there anything else? Really? what?

Month/year/city.   Is the asylum officer always interested in month/year/city and who the bad guy was?

If you don't know, why don't you say, "I am not sure. Perhaps it was in June or July of 2024.  My birthday was in November, it happened a few months before that."

Some people in Chin State have cell phones? They can write a letter, hold it up to their chests, have their photo taken, showing the letter? then, they can send the photo to you, in TEN MINUTES? Why can't  you do this five times?

If  you were the officer, would you believe you? \

Does the officer know more about Burma than you do?

Is that embarrassing to you? 

 ASYLUM OFFICER QUESTIONS January 25, 2025 of an activist from Burma:

Did anyone help you do your asylum application? how did he help you?

How was your declaration prepared? was it read back to  you in your native language?

can you repeat all of the information on page one of Form I-589, without looking at it?

When did you enter USA? what was your last address in your country

DS-160   What is Form DS-160?

it is an application for a visa? it asks if you have ever been arrested? it asks about your employment?

about your future plans? such as, "I will visit in USA for about 20 days, and then return to my country"?

Did anyone help you answer the questions in your visa application? How many of your answers are correct? why did you give wrong information in your visa application? Did you do a FOIA request for your DS-160? I have a copy of it, but you don't?

You had a face-to-face interview at US Embassy, to get your visa? You told the officer that you would return to your country after about 20 days? but that was a lie? You lied, successfully to that officer. Does that give you confidence that you can lie successfully to me?

Why did you miss the one-year deadline?

How did you learn about asylum? How did you learn about how to apply for asylum?

Why did you apply for asylum? Did you have any problems in your country?

why do you fear your government? why do you fear your fellow citizens?

How do they know you are Chinese?

How does anyone in Burma know your political opinion?

How did you express your opinion while you lived in Burma?

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL: tell me about all of your international travel!

is there anything else?

have you done anything, here in the USA, to bring yourself to the attention of your government?

Do you know anyone, who criticized the Burma government, who then returned to Burma, and was arrested upon return?

 Questions asked of an activist from Burma by asylum officer, on January 5, 2025:

Are you in good health, and able to talk to me today?

Have you ever lived outside of Burma? Tell me about all of your international travel!

Were you ever offered permanent resident status anywhere?

Did you "assist" in the persecution of others? Did you work for the Burmese government? Did you help them put innocent persons in prison?

Have you ever been accused of a crime?

Even if it was under duress, [even if at gunpoint], did you give assistance to a rebel group? did you give "material support" to a group? What is "material support"? 

Did anyone help you to fill out Form I-589? How did they help? Did they speak to you in your native language? 

How was your personal statement prepared? I see that it is in English. Who wrote it? How was it prepared? Was it read back to you in your native language?

What is your name? religion? ethnic group?

If you walk down the street in India, do they know you are Burmese? How do they know? How is your skin color different? How are your facial features different? Did you wear lungi? Did the Indians ever wear that? Did you wear flip flops? did Indians ever wear that?

If you speak Mizo, is your accent different?

Your son was born in India? he has an Indian birth certificate? But is he stateless?

What was your last address in Burma? what was  your last address before you arrived in USA?

What is Form DS-160? it is an application for a visa? you answered all the questions? you told the truth?