1818850 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for review of a delegate of the Minister for Immigration's decision to refuse a Protection (Class XA) Subclass 866 visa to the applicant, a male citizen of Malaysia. The applicant claimed he left Malaysia due to threats from a loan shark to whom he owed money, fearing he would be killed if he returned without repayment.

The core legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa under s.36(2)(a) or s.36(2)(aa) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). This required determining if the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution on a Convention ground or if he would suffer significant harm if returned to Malaysia, considering the availability of state protection and internal relocation.

The Tribunal considered country information regarding loan sharking in Malaysia, noting it is common but that Malaysian authorities are reasonably effective in combating it. It found no indication that the applicant would not receive assistance from the police if requested, nor that the authorities would be unable or unwilling to protect him. Furthermore, the Tribunal concluded that Malaysian citizens are free to relocate internally. The applicant's evidence was found to be often unresponsive, vague, imprecise, and disjointed, and he failed to provide corroborating documents. The Tribunal emphasised that the onus is on the applicant to specify and establish their claims.

The Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision to refuse the visa.