1810829 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the protection visa application of an Iraqi national. The applicant claimed to fear serious harm from Shia militias in Iraq due to his past occupation as an oil company employee, his father and brother's similar occupations, and threats and extortion attempts directed at his family. He also alleged that his wife and children were killed in a targeted bombing by a militia. The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, either under the refugee provisions or under the complementary protection provisions of the Migration Act 1958.

The Tribunal's reasoning focused on the applicant's claims of fear of harm from Shia militias, specifically Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq (AAH). While the delegate accepted the applicant's claims regarding the death of his wife and children, they did not find the bombing to be targeted, attributing it to generalised sectarian violence. The delegate also found that the applicant had ceased his relevant occupation sufficiently long ago to not face a real chance of harm on that basis. However, the Tribunal considered additional evidence provided by the applicant, including a statutory declaration detailing recent threats and extortion attempts against his brother by AAH members, who perceived the applicant as wealthy and his brother as associated with him. The Tribunal also noted that the applicant's family members had relocated to Erbil due to threats and harassment, considering Basra unsafe.

Applying the principles of complementary protection under section 36(2)(aa) of the Migration Act, the Tribunal was satisfied that there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of being removed from Australia to Iraq, the applicant faced a real risk of suffering significant harm. This conclusion was based on the credible and detailed nature of the applicant's claims, particularly the recent threats and extortion attempts against his brother, and the general instability and lawlessness in Basra, where militia groups were active and engaging in revenge attacks. The Tribunal found that it was not reasonable for the applicant to relocate within Iraq, given the pervasive nature of the threats and the displacement of his family. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the matter for reconsideration with a direction that the applicant satisfies section 36(2)(aa) of the Migration Act.