1808191 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for review of a delegate of the Minister for Home Affairs' decision to refuse protection visas to a family of four Iraqi citizens. The applicant, a Shi'a Muslim academic and former journalist who had worked for various media organisations and universities in Iraq, claimed he feared harm upon return due to his critical views of the Iraqi government, his past work, and threats he had received. His wife and two children were included in the application as members of the same family unit.

The court was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, specifically whether he was a refugee under section 36(2)(a) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) or, alternatively, whether he faced a real risk of significant harm upon removal to Iraq under section 36(2)(aa). The court also had to consider the eligibility of the other family members based on their relationship to the applicant.

The Tribunal found the applicant to be a credible witness whose evidence was consistent with his previous statements and supported by independent documentation. It accepted that he had a history of employment in academia and media in Iraq, and that academics in Iraq faced threats of assassination and kidnapping. The Tribunal also noted the applicant's continued expression of views critical of the Iraqi government on social media. While the Tribunal was not satisfied that the wife and son met the criteria for protection in their own right, it found they were members of the same family unit as the applicant and his daughter. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the matter for reconsideration, directing that the applicant and his daughter satisfy section 36(2)(a) of the Act, and that the other applicants satisfy section 36(2)(b)(i) on the basis of their family unit membership.