1901299 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of China, sought review of the decision not to grant her a protection visa. She claimed to be a devout Catholic who feared persecution due to her membership in an underground Catholic church, which is not recognised by the Chinese government. The applicant also stated that her fears were heightened by her divorce, as her ex-husband had reverted to Buddhism to avoid issues, leaving her to face potential government persecution alone. She had returned to China once since arriving in Australia to check on her son, who had also reverted to Buddhism.

The legal issues before the court concerned whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, specifically whether she had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of religion under section 5J of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). This required determining if there was a real chance of persecution in China for reasons of her religious beliefs, and if effective protection measures were available to her. The court also considered whether her intermittent, low-level attendance at an underground church and the fact that her ex-husband and son had renounced their Catholic faith to avoid issues, indicated that she would not face persecution.

The court affirmed the decision not to grant the protection visa. It found that the applicant had not established a well-founded fear of persecution. The court noted that while the applicant claimed to be a devout Catholic, her evidence of intermittent, low-level attendance at an underground church, and the fact that her immediate family members had renounced their faith to avoid issues, did not support a finding of a real chance of persecution. The court implicitly considered that the applicant had not demonstrated that she could not avoid persecution by modifying her behaviour or relocating within China, and that the state was unable or unwilling to offer protection.

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