1921170 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for a protection visa by a woman from Ethiopia. The applicant claimed she had a well-founded fear of persecution due to her Amhara ethnicity and her family's perceived opposition to the government. She also cited her membership in the Orthodox Christian faith. The applicant asserted that if returned to Ethiopia, she faced a real risk of arrest, harassment, and imprisonment by government authorities.

The court was required to determine whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for one of the five prescribed reasons under section 5J(1) of the Act, and if there was a real chance of persecution upon return to Ethiopia. Alternatively, the court had to consider whether there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal, the applicant would suffer significant harm as defined in section 36(2A) of the Act.

The court considered the applicant's claims, including her statutory declarations detailing past harassment and threats from government forces, the disappearance of her husband and son, and the general difficulties faced by Amharic people seeking help from the government. The court also took into account country information and guidelines prepared by government departments. The delegate's decision, which was under review, had found that while the applicant's family may have supported a particular political party, there was no evidence of an enduring profile of interest against individual family members or the family as a whole. The delegate noted that the applicant had resided in Addis Ababa until 2017 without being arrested, detained, or questioned, and concluded, based on country information, that she did not face a real chance of serious harm.

The Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision, finding that the applicant did not possess a profile of interest with the Ethiopian authorities that would lead to persecution. The Tribunal concluded that the applicant did not face a real chance of persecution or significant harm if returned to Ethiopia. Consequently, the protection visa application was refused.