2400687 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for review of a delegate of the Minister for Home Affairs' decision to refuse a protection visa to a national of Turkey. The applicant claimed to fear persecution upon return to Turkey due to his support for the Gülen movement and his past actions of harbouring a senior member of that movement. The applicant also initially claimed to be homosexual, fearing persecution on that basis, but later explicitly stated he was not homosexual.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of membership of a particular social group, specifically the Gülen movement, and whether he would be unable to obtain protection from the Turkish state. The court was required to assess the applicant's credibility, particularly in light of his retracted claim of homosexuality and his oral evidence concerning his involvement with the Gülen movement and the threats he faced.

The court considered the applicant's oral evidence, documentary evidence, and country information. It found that the applicant's claims regarding his association with the Gülen movement, his reasons for leaving Turkey, and the threats he faced from shipmates and the captain were credible. The court accepted that the applicant's past association with the Gülen movement, including harbouring a senior member, placed him at risk of serious harm from the Turkish authorities, who considered the movement a terrorist organisation. The court also noted that the applicant's former brother-in-law, a senior member of the movement, had been arrested and tortured, and had subsequently sought asylum in another country.

The court concluded that the applicant had established a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of membership of a particular social group and that the Turkish state would not be able to offer him protection. Consequently, the decision under review was set aside and remitted to the delegate of the Minister for Home Affairs for a decision in accordance with the law.