Applicant S1689-2003 v MIMIA

[2005] HCATrans 463

[2005] HCATrans 463

IN THE HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Office of the Registry
  Sydney  No S155 of 2005

B e t w e e n -

APPLICANT S1689 OF 2003

Applicant

and

MINISTER FOR IMMIGRATION AND MULTICULTURAL AND INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS

Respondent

Application for special leave to appeal

Publication of reasons and pronouncement of orders

GUMMOW J
KIRBY J

TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

AT CANBERRA ON MONDAY, 1 AUGUST 2005, AT 2.53 PM

Copyright in the High Court of Australia

GUMMOW J:   The applicant is a citizen of Bangladesh who claims to be entitled to refugee status due to a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of political opinion.

The Refugee Review Tribunal affirmed the decision of a delegate of the Minister to refuse to grant the applicant a protection visa.  Although the Tribunal accepted that the applicant had been engaged in some political activity in Bangladesh, it rejected significant factual claims the applicant had advanced respecting specific acts of violence he had suffered.  Further, the Tribunal considered that due to the applicant’s low political profile and support for a powerful political party, the applicant faced only a remote, and not a real, chance of persecution upon his return to Bangladesh.  For these reasons the Tribunal was unable to conclude that the applicant was entitled to refugee status.

The applicant applied to this Court for orders nisi for constitutional writs following the decision of this Court in Muin v Refugee Review Tribunal (2002) 190 ALR 601. That application was remitted to the Federal Court. On 20 February 2004, Emmett J dismissed the application for orders nisi as disclosing no relevant grounds for judicial review. An application for an extension of time in which to apply for leave to appeal was refused by Moore J upon the applicant’s failure to appear at the hearing. His Honour gave detailed reasons in which he traced the history of the matter. It is from that decision that the applicant now seeks special leave to appeal.

We have considered the applicant’s written case and the reasons for decision of the Tribunal and in the Federal Court.  There is no reason to doubt the correctness of the decision of Moore J, and the applicant’s written case raises no question appropriate to the grant of special leave.  Accordingly, special leave to appeal is refused.

Pursuant to r 41.10.5 we direct the Registrar to draw up, sign and seal an order dismissing the application for special leave.  I publish the disposition signed by Kirby J and myself.

AT 2.55 PM THE MATTER WAS CONCLUDED