1708966 (Refugee)

The applicant, a woman from Colombia, sought a protection visa in Australia. Her claim for protection was based on a fear of being killed by members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) or similar armed groups, stemming from her refusal to cooperate with their demands related to her employment in early 2016. The delegate refused her application, and this decision was affirmed by the Tribunal.

The core legal issues before the court 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, or alternatively, under section 36(2)(aa), which concerns the risk of significant harm as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal to a receiving country. The court also considered the relevance of country information and the applicant's credibility in light of her delayed application and failure to attend an interview.

The court affirmed the decision not to grant the protection visa. It found that the applicant had not satisfied the criteria for being a refugee under section 36(2)(a) and had not established a real risk of suffering significant harm under section 36(2)(aa). The Tribunal took into account the provided country information regarding the ongoing activities of armed groups in Colombia, but ultimately was not satisfied that the applicant's fear was well-founded or that she faced a real risk of significant harm. The applicant's failure to attend a scheduled interview was also a factor in the assessment.