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Refugee Application No. 1822451 - decision

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This case concerns a review application before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal regarding a decision by a delegate of the Minister for Home Affairs, made on 23 July 2018, to refuse the applicant's request for a protection visa under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The applicant, a citizen of Fiji, applied for a protection visa on 15 April 2018, asserting fears based on political opinion due to an altercation with Fijian government officials in 2015 concerning bauxite mining operations affecting communal farmland, environmental degradation, and associated climate change impacts.

During the Tribunal hearing on 19 September 2022, the applicant expressed concerns about the potential economic hardship and threats to subsistence due to the environmental impacts from mining and climate-related effects on agriculture and fisheries near his village. He also raised broader concerns about political corruption, police brutality, and general insecurity in Fiji, particularly if he returned as a failed asylum seeker.

However, on 21 September 2022, the Tribunal, presided over by Member Genevieve Hamilton, affirmed the original decision not to grant a protection visa. The Tribunal found that the applicant did not have a well-founded fear of persecution on political grounds, noting that after the 2015 incident with government officials, he had not experienced further persecution or targeting. The Tribunal concluded the environmental and climate-change-related hardships, although genuinely challenging, did not amount to persecution or pose a real risk of significant harm as defined under the Migration Act.

Consequently, the Tribunal found no basis for Australia's protection obligations under either refugee or complementary protection criteria and affirmed the original refusal decision.


Refugee Application No. 1822451

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

Households employing domestic workers, for activities like cooking, cleaning and subsistence farming, for their own use.

People who have left their homes, whether through force, voluntarily, or a mixture of both

Activities that involve the cultivation of crops and raising of livestock for food, fibre, and other products essential for human life and industry.

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

People whose sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression differs from the majority or societal norms

This sector includes firms and individuals offering specialised expertise in fields such as law, accounting, consulting, science and engineering.

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

Activities that provide lodging, food, and entertainment services to guests, including hotels, restaurants, and resorts.

Activities of industries that extract natural resources, such as mining, oil, and gas, for commercial use.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

Activities that relate to the production of goods and services from forests.

Actions and measures to adapt and increase resilience of societies and the economy to climate change.

Activities of government agencies and institutions that provide public services, enforce laws and manage public resources.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

People who are less able to respond to the effects of climate change due to having limited financial or physical assets