Yong Seuk Lee v. U.S. Attorney General , 487 F. App'x 485 ( 2012 )

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[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
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No. 12-10843
Non-Argument Calendar
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Agency No. A087 510 448
YONG SEUK LEE,
llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Petitioner,
versus
U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL,
llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Respondent.
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Petition for Review of a Decision of the
Board of Immigration Appeals
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(August 16, 2012)
Before WILSON, PRYOR and JORDAN, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Yong Lee, a native and citizen of South Korea, appeals the order that
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affirmed the denial of his applications for asylum and withholding of removal
under the Immigration and Nationality Act and relief under the United Nations
Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment. 8 U.S.C. §§ 1158(a), 1231(b)(3); 8 C.F.R. § 208.16. Lee argues that
he has a well-founded fear of future persecution and torture based on the
compulsory military service that he faces if he is removed to South Korea. We
deny Lee’s petition.
Lee challenges the finding that his application for asylum was untimely, but
that issue is not before us. Although the immigration judge found Lee’s
application untimely, the Board declined to address that issue. We review only the
decision of the Board. Bedoya-Melendez v. Att’y Gen., 680 F.3d 1321, 1323 n.1
(11th Cir. 2012).
Substantial evidence supports the finding of the Board that Lee lacks a well-
founded fear of future persecution or torture. The record does not compel a
finding that Lee’s service in the South Korean military would constitute
persecution. Although Lee presented evidence that his father had been mistreated
by senior officers in the military because he had been short, frail, and older than
his fellow soldiers, Lee is three inches taller than his father and in good health,
and Lee failed to submit any evidence that he would be “singled out” for
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persecution based on any protected ground. Forgue v. Att’y Gen., 401 F.3d 1282,
1286 (11th Cir. 2005). Lee subjectively feared persecution and economic hardship
based on his inability to speak Korean fluently, his lack of social connections
within the country, and the Korean custom of designating careers during
childhood, but Lee introduced no evidence that established his fears were
objectively reasonable. See Matter of Siburn, 18 I. & N. Dec. 354, 358 (BIA
1983) (“The showing of a ‘well-founded fear of persecution’ requires that the alien
present some objective evidence which establishes a realistic likelihood of
persecution in his homeland; an alien’s own speculations and conclusional
statements, unsupported by independent corroborative evidence, will not
suffice.”). South Korea can require Lee to submit to military service, and Lee
failed to present any evidence that the South Korean military is internationally
condemned. See Mohammed v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 547 F.3d 1340, 1346–47 (11th
Cir. 2008). Although Lee argues that he will be imprisoned should he refuse to
serve in the military, that punishment is a lawful sanction imposed on all Korean
citizens and would not amount to persecution or torture. See id.; 8 C.F.R.
§ 108.18(a)(3). Because Lee cannot satisfy the standard to obtain asylum relief or
the more stringent standards imposed for withholding of removal or relief under
the Convention, Zheng v. U.S. Atty. Gen., 451 F.3d 1287, 1292 (11th Cir. 2006),
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we deny Lee’s petition.
PETITION DENIED.
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