2400191 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviewed a decision concerning a protection visa application made by a woman from the Solomon Islands. The applicant claimed to fear persecution and significant harm upon return to her home country due to a tribal land dispute, gender-based violence, and the risk of sex slavery. The Tribunal considered the applicant's claims in light of the relevant provisions of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth).

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa under section 36(2)(a) of the Act, by being a refugee with a well-founded fear of persecution, or under section 36(2)(aa), by facing a real risk of significant harm as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of removal. This involved assessing whether the applicant's claimed fears were genuine, well-founded, and for a prescribed reason, and whether effective protection measures were available in the Solomon Islands.

The Tribunal found that the applicant's claims lacked the necessary detail to establish a well-founded fear of persecution or a real risk of significant harm. While the applicant described general threats of rape, abuse, and sex slavery affecting women in her tribe due to a land dispute, she failed to provide specific particulars regarding the tribes involved, the origins of the dispute, the timing and circumstances of the alleged harm to herself or others, or the identity of individuals or authorities who could have provided assistance. The Tribunal noted that it is the applicant's responsibility to substantiate her claims, and it is not required to make the case for her.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa, as she did not satisfy the criteria under section 36(2)(a) or (aa) of the *Migration Act 1958*. The Tribunal also noted that there was no suggestion the applicant qualified under section 36(2)(b) or (c) as a family member of a protection visa holder.