1800844 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the protection visa applications of a primary applicant and her daughter, the secondary applicant, both citizens of Pakistan. The dispute concerned whether the applicants faced a real chance of persecution or significant harm, specifically through honour killing, due to the primary applicant's divorce and the birth of her daughter out of wedlock.

The Tribunal was required to determine if the applicants met the criteria for a protection visa under section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), which involves having a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. This included assessing whether the primary applicant's circumstances, including her divorce and subsequent pregnancy and marriage, placed her and her daughter at risk of honour killing, and whether they could access effective protection in Pakistan.

The Tribunal applied the principles of refugee law and complementary protection, considering the relevant guidelines and country information. It examined the primary applicant's claims regarding threats from her ex-husband and her current husband's family, as well as the potential for honour killing and the legal ramifications under Islamic law for adultery and out-of-wedlock conception. The Tribunal also considered the secondary applicant's claim of harm due to her birth out of wedlock.

Ultimately, the Tribunal remitted the matter for reconsideration, finding that the applicants satisfied the criterion set out in section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth).