1611148 (Refugee)

The applicant sought a protection visa, claiming he feared persecution in Ghana due to his family's opposition to government land policies, which had led to false legal cases and physical attacks. The dispute involved a mining company and Ghanaian authorities. The applicant also raised concerns about the potential emotional distress of being separated from his children who were in Australia.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa under section 36(2)(a) of the Migration Act 1958, which requires a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of political opinion, or alternatively, under section 36(2)(aa), which concerns complementary protection where there is a real risk of significant harm as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal from Australia.

The Tribunal found that the applicant did not have a well-founded fear of persecution in Ghana, as the issues arising from his father's 2014 dispute had been resolved. Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied that Australia had protection obligations under the Refugee Convention. Regarding complementary protection, while the Tribunal accepted the applicant would suffer distress from separation from his children, it concluded this emotional distress did not constitute "significant harm" as defined by section 36(2A) of the Act, as it did not involve acts perpetrated by others intended to inflict severe pain or suffering or extreme humiliation.

Accordingly, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa, as he did not satisfy the criteria under either section 36(2)(a) or 36(2)(aa).