1724982 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of Vietnam, sought review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs to refuse to grant a protection visa. The applicant claimed to fear serious harm if returned to Vietnam due to the TNHH Formosa polluting incident, which had allegedly caused his mother to develop cancer and polluted food supplies, leading to financial difficulties. The applicant did not claim to have participated in any protest or anti-government activities.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for a reason specified in section 91R of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), specifically whether he would be persecuted as a member of a particular social group. This involved assessing whether the alleged harm was systemic and discriminatory, and whether the applicant's fear was objectively reasonable in the circumstances.

The Tribunal found that there was no evidence to suggest that the applicant would be persecuted as a member of a particular social group. While acknowledging the environmental and health impacts of the TNHH Formosa polluting incident, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant had not demonstrated how this incident would lead to persecution directed at him. There was no evidence of systematic and discriminatory conduct towards the applicant, nor any indication that the general difficulties arising from the pollution would amount to persecution for a Convention reason.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review, finding that the applicant had not established a well-founded fear of persecution.