2105789 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of China, sought review of a decision by the Minister to refuse to grant a protection visa. The applicant claimed to fear harm from loan sharks to whom he owed a substantial debt incurred to cover his mother's medical expenses. He alleged that he and his family had received threats. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) affirmed the Minister's decision.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had established a well-founded fear of persecution for a Convention reason, specifically on the basis of membership of a particular social group, namely debtors of loan sharks in China. This required the Tribunal to assess the applicant's credibility and consider the available country information regarding the risk of harm from loan sharks in China and the effectiveness of police protection.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had not established a well-founded fear of persecution. This conclusion was based on several factors, including the applicant's failure to appear at the hearing, provide any supporting material, or communicate further with the Tribunal after lodging his application for review. In the absence of any evidence from the applicant to substantiate his claims, the Tribunal relied on the country information before it. While acknowledging that loan sharking exists in China, the Tribunal found that the provided country information did not demonstrate a systemic failure of protection by the authorities or a level of risk that would meet the threshold for a well-founded fear of persecution for a Convention reason.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review.