1614430 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the protection visa application of a man from Yemen. The applicant claimed he feared persecution due to his relationship with a woman outside his tribe, which contravened his conservative family's honour code. His father had threatened him with death if he did not marry within their tribe, and after the applicant's relationship became known, his father disowned him and his uncles threatened revenge against his father's family, leading to a promise that the applicant would marry one of their daughters.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, specifically whether he had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, or whether he would suffer significant harm if returned to Yemen under the complementary protection criterion. The Tribunal also had to consider the relevance of policy guidelines and country information assessments.

The Tribunal applied the principles of the *Migration Act 1958* concerning well-founded fear of persecution and complementary protection. It noted that significant harm includes threats to life, torture, and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. The Tribunal considered the applicant's claims regarding his family's threats and the potential for revenge from his uncles. However, the decision indicates that the applicant did not satisfy the refugee criterion under s.36(2)(a) of the Act. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa.