1904506 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of Ghana, sought a protection visa in Australia. The applicant claimed to be a member of a particular social group facing persecution in Ghana due to involvement in a visa scandal concerning the 21st Commonwealth Games. Specifically, the applicant alleged that Ghanaian officials and agents deceptively provided Australian visas to individuals, including the applicant, in exchange for money, and that those who were deported or who discovered the corruption were now facing threats and potential harm from powerful individuals seeking to protect their reputations. The applicant feared arrest and death if returned to Ghana, asserting that the Ghanaian authorities would be unwilling or unable to provide protection.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant faced a real chance of persecution in Ghana for one of the reasons specified in section 5J(1)(a) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), or whether there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal, the applicant would suffer significant harm under section 36(2)(aa) of the Act. The Tribunal was also required to consider the applicant's claims and evidence in light of the provisions concerning the timely submission of claims and evidence, particularly sections 5AAA and 423A of the Act, which allow for unfavourable inferences to be drawn if claims or evidence are not presented without reasonable explanation.

The Tribunal found that the applicant was a Ghanaian citizen. In its analysis, the Tribunal considered the applicant's claims against Ghana as his country of nationality and receiving country. The Tribunal concluded that the applicant's claims and the evidence presented were insufficient to establish a real chance of serious harm in Ghana or substantial grounds for believing that significant harm would be suffered as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal. The Tribunal noted that the applicant did not satisfy the criterion in section 36(2) of the Act, specifically on the basis of being a member of a particular social group or facing significant harm.

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