1922089 (Refugee)

The applicants, a mother and daughter, sought protection visas from Australia. Their claims for protection were based on the applicant mother's alleged adverse political profile, threats and verbal abuse from family and neighbours due to her brother's membership in the Fijian military, and a fear of harm upon return to Fiji. The second applicant, the daughter, did not make separate claims. The case was heard by Justin Meyer.

The court was required to determine whether the applicants had a well-founded fear of persecution in Fiji for one of the five prescribed reasons. If this criterion was not met, the court also had to consider whether there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of their removal from Australia to Fiji, the applicants faced a real risk of suffering significant harm.

The court affirmed the decision not to grant the protection visas. It found that the applicants' identity and nationality were established by their Fijian passports. While acknowledging the applicants' claims regarding threats and fear of harm due to their family member's military service and an alleged adverse political profile, the court concluded that these claims did not meet the threshold for a well-founded fear of persecution. Furthermore, the court determined that the applicants had not established a real risk of suffering significant harm as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of their removal from Australia. The court also noted that there was no suggestion that the applicants satisfied the criteria for being a family member of someone who held a protection visa.