2314397 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of Timor-Leste, sought review of a decision to refuse her protection visa. The dispute centred on whether Australia had protection obligations towards her under s 36(2)(a) or s 36(2)(aa) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The Tribunal considered the applicant's claims of being targeted by investors who lost money in a multilevel marketing scheme in Timor-Leste, alleging threats, property damage, and a lack of protection from authorities.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant possessed a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, or whether there were substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of her removal from Australia, she would suffer significant harm. This required an assessment of the credibility of her claims, the nature of the alleged harm, and the availability of effective protection in Timor-Leste.

The Tribunal found that the applicant's identity as a citizen of Timor-Leste was established. However, it concluded that the claims presented were not substantiated to the required standard for a protection visa. The Tribunal noted that the applicant's claims appeared to have been fabricated by the author of her application and that new claims were introduced at the hearing. Furthermore, the Tribunal determined that the alleged harm did not meet the threshold for persecution or significant harm, and that the applicant had not established membership in a particular social group that would warrant protection. The Tribunal also considered that the applicant had not demonstrated that effective protection measures were unavailable in Timor-Leste.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa, finding that she did not satisfy the criteria under s 36(2) of the Act.