1810391 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for review of a delegate of the Minister for Home Affairs' decision to refuse the applicant, a Kenyan national, a protection visa. The applicant arrived in Australia in July 2015 and applied for the visa approximately two months later. The delegate's refusal was based on credibility concerns. The applicant sought review of this decision, providing further material and appearing before the Tribunal.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for one of the five prescribed reasons under section 5J(1) of the Migration Act 1958, or alternatively, whether there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal to Kenya, the applicant faced a real risk of suffering significant harm.

The Tribunal considered the applicant's claims that he was threatened by his cousin, who allegedly had links to Al-Shabaab, after procuring nude photographs of the cousin for an Australian acquaintance. The applicant asserted he could not obtain assistance from Kenyan police due to alleged government corruption and that he would be located by his cousin even in major cities. However, the Tribunal found that the applicant had not established a well-founded fear of persecution under section 36(2)(a) of the Act. Furthermore, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant had not demonstrated substantial grounds for believing he would suffer significant harm upon return to Kenya, nor had he satisfied the criteria for a protection visa under section 36(2)(aa) or any other limb of section 36(2).

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision to refuse the grant of a protection visa to the applicant.