The case concerned a 13-year-old Yazidi applicant from Iraq who had lived in Germany since the age of 9 and whose asylum application was rejected by BAMF-decision of 19 March 2019. On 29 March 2019, the applicant appealed against the decision before the Regional Administrative Court of Hannover and stated that, as an emancipated person, she could not and did not want to submit to any gender role models in Iraq, if returned.

The Regional Administrative Court of Hannover reiterated the legal requirements and the existing case law for refugee protection and considered that women and girls – such as the applicant – who opposed the existing legal, economic and social discrimination against women in Iraq because of their "westernized character" were regarded as different by the Iraqi society because of their clearly defined identity and therefore they formed a particular social group within the meaning of Section 3b(1) No 4b of the Asylum Act.

In this regard, the court stated that the concept of "westernization" was a clearly definable term in the context of asylum law, which meant essentially the individual adoption of socio-cultural, religious or ideological ideas and behaviors which were characteristic of secularist and democratically organized states, namely in Europe and on the (North) American continent as well as in Australia and New Zealand. Such ideas included, amongst others: the idea of a fundamental freedom, equal self-determination, including sexual self-determination, the right to make autonomous decisions without being bound by informal social norms and the acceptance of social plurality, in particular in socio-cultural, religious and sexual views.

As regards the requirement of persecution, the Regional Administrative Court of Hannover referred to its previous case law and held that in Iraq women were disproportionately denied access to education, they face economic discrimination in terms of access to the labour market, credit and equal pay, they did not necessarily have access to financial assets, social benefits or the public distribution system. They could be forced by militias to adopt a more conservative cultural norms and conventions and were exposed to domestic violence which was not effectively counteracted by the state actors. Therefore, the court held that “westernized” women and girls were exposed to a considerable risk of persecution.

The court also mentioned that even though the situation for (Yazidi) women and girls in the autonomous Region of Kurdistan may have improved recently, this did not mean that they were not at risk of persecution in the event of "westernization".

The Regional Administrative Court of Hannover further assessed that the “western lifestyle” had to significantly characterize the identity of the applicant in the form of a serious and lasting inner conviction. In the case of the applicant, the court concluded that she had developed a "westernized identity" over the past few years, which was of central importance to her and which she will not be able to discard upon return to Iraq.

Based on the above, the Regional Administrative Court of Hannover decided that the applicant should be recognised as a refugee because, due to her membership of the social group of “westernized” Iraqi women and girls, she would be at risk of persecution upon return to Iraq.