1619268 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the case of an applicant seeking a Protection visa, who claimed to be a Nigerian national and a Christian activist. The applicant asserted that he had fled Nigeria due to threats from the extremist group Boko Haram, which targeted Christians, and that he had personally experienced threats and harassment as a result of his religious activities. The core dispute revolved around whether Australia owed protection obligations to the applicant under Australian law.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was to determine whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of his religion, as contemplated by the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) and relevant policy guidelines. This involved assessing the credibility of the applicant's claims of persecution by Boko Haram and considering whether he had taken all reasonable steps to avail himself of protection in other countries, specifically Ghana, within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region.

The Tribunal, applying Ministerial Direction No. 56, considered departmental policy guidelines and country information. While acknowledging the applicant's evidence of his Christian activism in Nigeria and the general threat posed by Boko Haram to Christians, the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant had demonstrated he had taken all possible steps to enter and reside in Ghana. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that Australia did not have protection obligations towards the applicant. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a Protection visa.