SZJWS v Minister for Immigration and Citizenship

[2008] HCASL 89

SZJWS
v
MINISTER FOR IMMIGRATION AND CITIZENSHIP & ANOR
[2008] HCASL 89
S409/2007

1. The applicant is a citizen of India.  On 8 July 2006 a delegate of the first respondent refused his application for a protection visa.  The applicant claimed to fear persecution on the basis of his political affiliations.  He claimed to have been arrested by police and imprisoned because of his membership of the Radical Students Union (RSU) and the People's War Group (PWG).

2. The Refugee Review Tribunal dismissed his application for review of the decision on 28 November 2006.  Although the Tribunal accepted that the applicant had had some limited involvement in student politics and political demonstrations, it did not accept that he had been a member of the RSU or the PWG, as his evidence on these matters was implausible, lacking in credibility and inconsistent.

3. Scarlett FM dismissed the application for review of the Tribunal's decision on 5 April 2007.  His Honour found that the Tribunal's findings were rational, adequately reasoned and based on its assessment of the applicant's credibility.  His Honour could not detect any jurisdictional error in the Tribunal's reasons.

4. The Federal Court (Tamberlin J) dismissed the applicant's appeal on 30 July 2007.  His Honour observed that the Tribunal had rejected the application because of the inconsistencies it found in the applicant's evidence and there was no jurisdictional error in this approach.  Allegations of bias on the part of the Tribunal and the Federal Magistrate were unfounded.

5. The applicant has not identified any question of law that would justify the grant of special leave to appeal.  The Tribunal's decision was based on its adverse credibility findings.  We see no reason to doubt the correctness of the decisions below.

6. Pursuant to r 41.10.5 we direct the Registrar to draw up, sign and seal an order dismissing the application.

W.M.C. Gummow
28 March 2008 S.M. Kiefel