Pakistani asylum seeker needs protection by Australian Government

Faiz Ali KHAN

Background information

Biodata

Name Faiz Ali KHAN
Date of birth 16/2/1970
Place of birth Swat Valley, Pakistan
Family Married with 6 children between ages 3 and 18
Employment Farm Supervisor, Cape Schanck Farm, Colonial Leisure Group (CLG)
Kitchen Hand, Portsea Hotel, CLG
Lives Rye, Victoria

Chronology

Date Event
10/6/2012 Arrived in Australia as holder of valid Subclass 988 – Maritime Crew visa
20/6/2012 Deserted ship
17/7/2012 Lodged Protection visa to Department of Immigration & Citizenship
21/2/2013 Protection visa refused
March 2013 Lodged review application to Refugee Review Tribunal
August 2013 Commenced working at Cape Schanck Farm, operated by CLG
3/12/2013 Refugee Review Tribunal affirms Department decision to refuse Protection visa
23/12/2013 Lodged an appeal to the Federal Circuit Court
13/10/2014 Federal Circuit Court dismissed the appeal
10/11/2014 Lodged application to the Minister for Immigration to intervene due to changing circumstances in Pakistan
12/5/2015 CLG gain approval from Department of Immigration to sponsor Faiz in his current role as Farm Supervisor
7/8/2015 Minister for Immigration declined to intervene
20/8/2015 Lodged application for extension of time to appeal to the Federal Court
17/12/2015 Federal Court dismissed the application
7/1/2016 Faiz and a representative of CLG met with Office of the Hon Greg Hunt MP. The Minister’s office provided a supporting letter on 8/1/16
12/1/2016 Lodged second request to the Minister for Immigration
8/2/2016 Minister for Immigration declined to intervene

Relevant points

Since 1994, Faiz was active with the Awami National Party (ANP) in Pakistan. He ran for the Pakistani parliament in 1997, however, was unsuccessful. Faiz remained active with the ANP. The Taliban are in opposition with the ANP due to their anti-Taliban stance. In 2010, Faiz became a member of the Jirga in the Swat area and supported the Pakistani army in their efforts to remove the Taliban from Swat. In 2009, Faiz’s house was burned down as a result of conflict between the army and the Taliban. In September 2010, Faiz states that the Taliban shot his mother dead and Faiz was shot in the leg.

The Department of Immigration accepted that there was a real chance of serious harm to Faiz in the Swat District, and in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) stating:

“I accept that the applicant has a local profile due to his ANP membership and his involvement with the peace committee. Based on country information as discussed above, I conclude that there is a real chance that the applicant could face serious harm from the Taliban on account of his actual or imputed political opinion if he were to return to Swat district, or anywhere in the KPK, in the reasonably foreseeable future.”
The Tribunal also accepted that there was a risk of serious harm stating:
“However the Tribunal has accepted there to be a real chance that the applicant will be targeted for serious harm by the Taliban and other militant extremists in his village of Khatyar and the Swat region more generally.”

However, both the Department and the Tribunal, refused the application on the grounds that it would not be unreasonable for Faiz, his wife and six children to relocate within Pakistan, namely to Islamabad, Rawalpindi or Lahore. Faiz’s representative at the time, failed to advance substantial arguments against the reasonableness of relocation, merely stating that it would “not be ideal”. This significantly downplayed the immense difficulties Faiz would face relocating within Pakistan. The Department and Tribunal are only obliged to consider those arguments expressly put to it. Faiz cites a number of reasons why it is not reasonable to relocate, including limited access of Internally Displaced Persons to live in other provinces, general suspicion toward people from his area due to Taliban activity there, his Pashtun ethnicity, cost of living for family of 8 people, insecurity throughout the country, diagnosed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and difficulties accessing treatment.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade states as follows regarding the general security situation in Pakistan:

“We strongly advise you to reconsider your need to travel to Pakistan due to the unpredictable security situation, including the high threat of terrorist attack, kidnapping and sectarian violence.”

Faiz holds grave fears for his safety should he return to Pakistan. He cannot return to his home town due to the risk of serious harm, a risk which was accepted by the Tribunal and the Department.

Two of Faiz’s cousins have been killed in Pakistan. Two of Faiz’s brothers have fled to the Middle East and his brother in-law and two other cousins have fled to the USA.

Faiz has been diagnosed by two psychologists in Australia with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Life in Australia

Faiz has been working at Cape Schanck Farm, on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, since August 2013. According to CLG, he “has become the most valuable member of the Cape Schanck farm team”.

Chris Morris, Executive Chairman of CLG and Founder and Chairman of Computershare Ltd, states that the circumstances of Faiz’s case are “upsetting” and that he has become “a critical employee of the farm”. He states further that CLG are “willing to guarantee his employment into the future”.

Friendship with Ross Matthews – Distress regarding prospect of Faiz being deported

Ross Matthews is the manager of Cape Schanck Farm on the Mornington Peninsula where vegetables, fruit, nuts, berries and farm free range chickens for eggs are produced to supply Melbourne restaurants.

Ross first became involved with a group of men seeking protection visas in 2013, when the owner family of CLG wanted a more practical way to help the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre in Melbourne.

CLG employed Faiz and for the last 2 ½ years Ross has been mentoring him as the assistant manager on the farm. Ross’ has the following to say regarding his friendship with Faiz:

When he started at the farm I knew immediately that he was going to be an invaluable member of my team and he has led me to understand that no matter what tragedies there are in our lives we can always find positive ways to overcome them and build a better future for ourselves and our families.
I have supported Faiz unconditionally in his fight to remain in Australia. I have read his case history, watched videos of his destroyed home in Pakistan and shared with him stories of his wife and children who remain there. His children learn English and are being educated to equip themselves for a future in an English speaking country.
Knowing Faiz’s personal experiences, the way he has integrated himself into Australian life and his determination to work hard, I cannot understand why Australian authorities do not think that Faiz is an asset to our Country.

Request to the Minister, the Honourable Peter Dutton MP

Faiz has made two requests to the Minister which have fallen on deaf ears. The Minister was not prepared to consider that the changing prospects of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Pakistan warranted re-consideration of Faiz’s protection claims. Faiz merely requests that he be permitted to lodge a further application for a Protection visa, in which evidence of the difficulties of relocating to Pakistan will be put forward.

CLG have been approved to sponsor Faiz for a work visa and desperately want him to continue his work at the Cape Schanck farm. However, Faiz is legally prevented from lodging his application while he remains in Australia. In this regard, he requests that the Minister allow him to lodge the application while he remains in Australia if not the application for the Protection visa.

He now faces the prospect of being deported to Pakistan due to difficulties associated with entering third countries.