1605765 (Refugee)

The applicant, a national of Papua New Guinea, sought a protection visa in Australia. She claimed to fear harm from members of her late husband's clan, alleging they accused her of killing him by sorcery and wished to prevent her from inheriting from his estate. The dispute concerned whether she met the criteria for a protection visa under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The decision was made by Frances Simmons, a Member of the Tribunal.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of membership of a particular social group, specifically women accused of witchcraft and facing threats from their late husband's clan in Papua New Guinea. The Tribunal also considered the complementary protection criterion, which applies if there are substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal from Australia, the applicant would suffer significant harm.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant's fear was based on deeply held beliefs in witchcraft within Papua New Guinea, coupled with a dispute over her late husband's estate. It considered the evidence of threats, verbal abuse, and physical harassment she had experienced following her husband's death, and her fear of further harm from his ex-wife and her relatives. The Tribunal applied the principles outlined in the Migration Act regarding well-founded fear of persecution and significant harm, taking into account relevant policy guidelines and country information.

The Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa under section 36(2)(a) of the Migration Act. The matter was remitted for reconsideration with the direction that the applicant satisfies this criterion.