1614025 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the applications of two individuals seeking protection visas. The applicants claimed they had a well-founded fear of persecution if returned to Indonesia due to the first applicant's past involvement with a criminal gang in Kalimantan. They asserted that leaving the gang meant a death sentence and that Indonesian authorities were unable or unwilling to provide protection.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicants had a well-founded fear of persecution for one of the five prescribed reasons under section 5J(1) of the Migration Act 1958, or alternatively, whether there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of their removal to Indonesia, they faced a real risk of suffering significant harm under section 36(2)(aa) of the Act. The Tribunal was required to assess the credibility of the applicants' claims and consider relevant country information and policy guidelines.

The Tribunal found that the first applicant's claims of involvement with a gang and the associated threats were not sufficiently substantiated to establish a well-founded fear of persecution. The Tribunal noted that the applicant's stated reason for leaving the gang was to seek a better life and that the claims of direct harm and an inability to relocate within Indonesia were not persuasive. Furthermore, the Tribunal found no evidence to support the assertion that the applicants would face persecution based on race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that the applicants did not satisfy the criteria for a protection visa under either section 36(2)(a) or section 36(2)(aa) of the Act.

The Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision not to grant the applicants protection visas.