1604829 (Refugee)

The applicant, an Afghan national of Hazara Shia ethnicity, sought protection in Australia. He claimed to have fled Afghanistan with his family to Pakistan due to fighting in his home district of Jaghori, Ghazni province, and feared persecution by the Taliban and other Sunni extremist groups. The dispute concerned whether the applicant met the criteria for protection under the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) and the Refugees Convention. The decision was made by a member of the Tribunal.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had established a well-founded fear of persecution for a Convention reason, specifically his ethnicity and religious affiliation, such that Australia would have protection obligations towards him under section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). This required the Tribunal to assess the current country information regarding the safety of Hazara Shia individuals in Afghanistan and to determine if the applicant faced a real chance of serious harm.

In reaching its decision, the Tribunal gave considerable weight to reports from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). These reports indicated that everyday Shia Muslims were not systematically targeted based on their religion, and that Sunni-Shia sectarian violence was infrequent, though occasional incidents occurred. DFAT also noted that while Hazaras faced some societal discrimination, their conditions had significantly improved since 2001, and they were not systematically targeted in insurgent attacks based on ethnicity alone, nor were they at a greater risk of violence than other ethnic groups, with the exception of kidnappings. The Tribunal also considered information regarding the limited capacity and influence of ISIS in Afghanistan. Based on this evidence, the Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant was a person in respect of whom Australia had protection obligations.

The Tribunal remitted the matter for reconsideration with the direction that the applicant satisfies section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth).