1905578 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for a protection visa by a Malaysian citizen. The applicant claimed to fear harm from her ex-fiancé and his associates, alleging physical assault, threats, and the use of compromising images to control her. She also stated that her family had issues with their business, leading to threats against them and herself, and that she feared her parents might harm her due to damaged pride. The applicant arrived in Australia in August 2018 and sought to work legally. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviewed the decision not to grant the protection visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, specifically under section 36(2) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). This involved determining if she would suffer significant harm if returned to Malaysia, and whether any such risk was personal to her rather than a general risk faced by the population. The Tribunal was required to consider the provisions of Ministerial Direction No. 84, the Refugee Law Guidelines, Complementary Protection Guidelines, and country information assessments.

The Tribunal considered the applicant's claims, including her revised statement that her initial application was prepared by another person. It noted that under section 36(2B) of the Act, Australia does not have complementary protection obligations if it would be reasonable for the applicant to relocate within their country of origin to an area where they would not face a real risk of significant harm, or if they could obtain protection from authorities in that country. The Tribunal found that the applicant had not satisfied the criterion in section 36(2).

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