1507242 (Refugee)

The applicant, who sought a protection visa, failed to attend a scheduled hearing before the Tribunal. The Tribunal, presided over by Senior Member Giles Short, proceeded to make a decision without the applicant's further participation, citing section 426A of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). The applicant's claim that a sore back prevented his attendance was not accepted as a sufficient reason for an adjournment, particularly as he had been advised to assume the hearing would proceed in the absence of notification of an adjournment.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, specifically whether he was a person in respect of whom Australia had protection obligations under the *Refugees Convention* as amended by the *Refugees Protocol*. This required determining if the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for one of the five prescribed reasons in Pakistan. A secondary issue was whether the applicant's absence from the hearing, and the Tribunal's decision to proceed without him, impacted the assessment of his claims.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant had not established a well-founded fear of persecution. While the applicant claimed to have received threats due to sectarian riots in Pakistan and expressed concerns about corrupt police, the Tribunal found these claims insufficient. The applicant's stated reason for leaving Pakistan was to obtain an education, and he had since completed a university degree and married an Australian citizen. The Tribunal concluded that the applicant had not satisfied the criteria under subsection 36(2) of the *Migration Act* for a protection visa.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa.