2009252 (Refugee)

These proceedings concerned two applications for review of decisions made by a delegate of the Minister for Home Affairs to refuse to grant protection visas to the applicants, who were mother and son citizens of Iraq. The applicants claimed they feared being killed by the [A] Tribe upon return to Iraq due to the first applicant's husband having reported an alleged murder to the police and subsequently receiving threats, having his home raided, and his granddaughter being injured.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were to assess the credibility of the applicants' claims, determine the weight to be given to documentary evidence, and consider the relevant country information regarding the safety of Iraq. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine whether the applicants had established a well-founded fear of significant harm amounting to persecution for a Convention reason, and whether they met the criteria for complementary protection.

The Tribunal applied established principles regarding the assessment of evidence in protection visa claims, noting that the onus rests on the applicant to provide sufficient detail to establish their case, and that claims must be coherent, plausible, and not run counter to known facts. While acknowledging the importance of giving the benefit of the doubt to credible applicants, the Tribunal also stressed that this should only occur after all available evidence has been obtained and checked, and the applicant's general credibility is established. The Tribunal considered extensive country information regarding Iraq's recent history, including sectarian violence, the rise of Da'esh, and ongoing political instability, to contextualise the applicants' claims.

The Tribunal remitted the decisions under review.