1925108 (Refugee)

The applicant, a white South African, sought a protection visa, claiming he and his family could not safely return to South Africa due to widespread violence, racial hatred, and discriminatory Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) policies. He alleged that white South Africans were targeted for crimes, including home invasions, assaults, and murder, and that the police were unable or unwilling to provide effective protection. The applicant also claimed that BEE policies would prevent him and his sons from obtaining employment, leading to significant economic hardship. The decision under review affirmed the refusal of the protection visa.

The court was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa under the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), specifically whether he had a well-founded fear of persecution for a Convention reason or faced a real risk of significant harm if returned to South Africa. This involved assessing the applicant's claims of race-based persecution and the availability of effective state protection in South Africa.

The Tribunal found that while the applicant genuinely feared returning to South Africa and had experienced violence and crime, his fears did not amount to persecution for a Convention reason. The Tribunal reasoned that the violence and crime he described, while serious, were not systematic or discriminatory conduct directed at him personally due to his race. Furthermore, the Tribunal concluded that while private security measures might be necessary, these would not be greater than those already employed by the general South African population, indicating that effective protection measures were available. Consequently, the Tribunal found no real chance of persecution or significant harm, and therefore no protection obligations were owed to the applicant.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the main applicant or the secondary applicants a protection visa.