Valko, a Bulgarian national, did not agree with the Bulgarian government's positions on many matters. He regularly joined peaceful marches and demonstrations in front of the government buildings in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. While participating in one such demonstration in Sofia in September 2020, the government authorities used water cannons, rubber bullets, tear gas and batons to control the 3000 protesters. Many protesters were injured; some received quite serious injuries. After that particular protest, the government warned that it would seek out protesters and punish them no matter where protesters might hide - nowhere in Bulgaria was safe. In the weeks that followed, a few protesters were rounded up by the police, beaten and then released. Valko participated in subsequent protest events in December 2020, February and June, 2021. On each occasion, water cannons etc. were used by the government authorities to intimidate and injure the peaceful protesters. The government renewed its commitment to track down the "traitors" and punish them for protesting, and as usual, a handful of protesters across Bulgaria, were subsequently beaten by police.A more pressing concern, however, was a pro-government vigilante group that would occasionally kidnap a protestor from a rally and torture the protestor just for the "fun" of it. The vigilante group never killed any protestors, but did inflict injury. In November 2021, Valko arrived at Toronto's Pearson International Airport on a direct flight from Sofia and claimed refugee protection in Canada as a "person in need of protection". He said that he was fleeing Bulgaria for fear of being tortured because of his political opinion.

Would Valko's claim to be a "person in need of protection" succeed? Explain your reasoning.