2305761 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for a protection visa by a Fijian national. The applicant claimed he would face persecution if returned to Fiji due to his past membership in the SODELPA youth wing and opposition to the previous government. The decision under review affirmed the refusal of the protection visa.

The court was required to determine whether there was a real chance that the applicant would be persecuted for one of the five prescribed reasons under section 5J(1)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), or if there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of his removal to Fiji, he would suffer significant harm under section 36(2)(aa) of the Act.

The Tribunal found that the applicant’s claims of persecution were not substantiated. It did not accept that a claimed incident of police detention in 2007 occurred due to political activity, nor did it accept that the applicant genuinely feared returning to Fiji for the reasons he advanced. Crucially, the Tribunal noted the significant change in Fiji's political landscape, with the applicant's former party now in power. Considering this and the applicant's limited and historical involvement in political activity, the Tribunal concluded there was no real chance of the applicant suffering serious harm if returned to Fiji, rendering the prospects of persecution remote.

Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied that Australia had protection obligations towards the applicant as a refugee under section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). The decision under review was affirmed.