1702427 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the case of a Malaysian national seeking a protection visa in Australia. The applicant claimed to have left Malaysia due to the government tracking members of Bersih, a movement advocating for clean and fair elections, and expressed a fear of apprehension and fines for his political involvement. He asserted that Malaysian authorities were unable to protect him and that relocating within Malaysia offered no solution.

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 under section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), or alternatively, whether he was entitled to complementary protection under section 36(2)(aa) of the Act. This involved assessing the credibility of the applicant's claims and considering available country information regarding the situation in Malaysia.

The Tribunal found that the applicant's evidence was vague and evasive, and he had not attended an interview with the original delegate or provided additional information prior to that decision. While acknowledging the applicant's claims of being a Bersih member and fearing harm, the Tribunal concluded that there were not substantial grounds to believe that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of his removal to Malaysia, he faced a real risk of suffering significant harm. The Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant met either the refugee criterion or the complementary protection criterion.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa, finding that Australia did not have protection obligations towards him under the relevant provisions of the *Migration Act 1958*.