1608577 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered the case of a Malaysian national seeking a protection visa. The applicant's primary claim for protection was based on an alleged fear of persecution in Malaysia due to his political views, specifically his participation in an anti-government protest in 2015. The applicant also claimed membership in the particular social group of "returnees" and raised complementary protection claims. The delegate of the Minister had previously refused the visa application.

The AAT was required to determine whether there was a real chance that the applicant would suffer persecution in Malaysia, now or in the reasonably foreseeable future, for the essential and significant reason of his political views. The Tribunal also had to consider the applicant's claim as a member of the particular social group of returnees and his complementary protection claims. Crucially, the AAT needed to assess the credibility of the applicant's claims and whether his fear of harm was genuinely held.

The Tribunal adopted the country information relied upon by the Minister's delegate and supplemented it with additional country information from DFAT and DIBP reports concerning Malaysia, including the treatment of returnees. The AAT noted that if it found the applicant's claims lacked credibility, it might conclude that the applicant did not have a genuinely subjective fear of harm, and therefore, it would not be required to assess other aspects of his claims. The Tribunal also affirmed that a real chance of persecution must relate to all areas of the receiving country, and that effective protection measures available in the receiving country would negate a well-founded fear of persecution. The Tribunal found that the applicant's claims were not credible and that his fear of harm was not genuinely held, leading to the affirmation of the delegate's decision.