1918741 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviewed a decision to refuse protection visas to two applicants from Thailand. The applicants claimed they feared harm from a former employer who had engaged in illegal activities and had threatened them with violence and death after they refused to participate. They asserted that returning to Thailand would result in their death, as their former employer had connections and had allegedly bribed informants and authorities.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicants had a well-founded fear of persecution for one of the five prescribed reasons under section 5J(1) of the Migration Act 1958. If not, the Tribunal had to consider whether there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal to Thailand, either applicant faced a real risk of suffering significant harm, as defined by section 36(2)(aa) of the Act.

In its reasoning, the Tribunal noted that it had considered the applicants' claims in light of relevant guidelines and country information. However, the Tribunal found the applicants' claims and evidence to be vague, inconsistent, and unconvincing, particularly in light of the significant delay in their application for protection after arriving in Australia and working as unlawful non-citizens. The Tribunal also considered the definition of significant harm and the circumstances under which a person would not be taken to face a real risk of such harm, including the availability of effective protection measures and the possibility of reasonable relocation within the receiving country. The Tribunal concluded that the applicants did not satisfy the criteria for a protection visa, nor did they qualify as members of a family unit with a person who met those criteria.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicants protection visas.