1809788 (Refugee)

The applicant, who arrived in Australia in December 2017 and applied for a protection visa in February 2018, sought to challenge a decision affirming the refusal of his visa. The applicant claimed he was being pursued by a criminal syndicate in Malaysia after reporting their activities involving the sale of explosives to the police. He asserted that this report led to the arrest of some gang members, resulting in significant losses to their business and a desire for revenge against him. The applicant further contended that moving within Malaysia would not offer safety due to the gang's widespread presence and that the police would be unable to protect him. The case was heard by Hollie Kerwin, a Member of the Tribunal.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, either under the refugee criterion or the complementary protection criterion. This required the Tribunal to assess the credibility of the applicant's claims regarding his fear of persecution in Malaysia, specifically whether he had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, and whether effective protection measures were available to him in Malaysia.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision to refuse the protection visa. The Member found that the applicant's core claims were not accepted, particularly his assertion that he had made a police report about the gang importing and selling explosives. The Tribunal found the applicant's evidence regarding this police report to be vague, brief, and lacking sufficient detail, despite opportunities to elaborate. Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant had made such a report. Without this foundational claim being accepted, the Tribunal did not accept that the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution by the syndicate. The Tribunal also considered the applicant's movements between Australia and another country between June and October 2017, his return to Malaysia, and his subsequent travel to Australia, noting that he did not apply for a protection visa during his earlier visits.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa.