A wife-beating Sudanese thug told officials he could play the didgeridoo and was Aboriginal now – and that was enough to let him stay in Australia

A Sudanese criminal with a long criminal record claimed he identified as Aboriginal and could play the didgeridoo in a successful bid to stay in Australia.

Despite his criminal history, the 35-year-old man, known only as RCWV, had his visa reinstated due to Immigration Minister Andrew Giles’ Direction 99 ruling.

The criminal pleaded to remain in Australia in a letter to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), claiming he had been adopted by an indigenous tribe in regional NSW.

He told the AAT he “considers Australia home” because of his connection to Aboriginal culture, including the fact that his partner and two sons, aged nine and five, are Indigenous.

The tribunal heard that RCWV had been accepted by an Aboriginal tribe in Orange, in the Central Tablelands.

He now participates in daily life in the indigenous community, creates indigenous art and has even learned to play the didgeridoo.

The tribunal heard that in the eight years bBetween 2012 and 2020, RCWV had 26 convictions, including drugs, domestic violence, stalking and harassment.

The offenses became progressively worse over time, starting with possession of a prohibited drug.

He was later charged with aggravated dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, careless driving and destruction of property.

He was convicted in 2019 and 2020 for stalking, intimidation and assault of his partner.

Despite the attacks, his partner told the tribunal she was willing to move to Sudan with their children to be with him if he was deported.

But he was still granted a visa after the tribunal ruled on his ties to Australia and self-declared Aboriginality backed his application to stay.

“We spoke regularly with other members of the tribe and were regularly invited to family gatherings and other important events,” he told the AAT in the letter.

‘Through those events and catch-up moments I have built a strong bond with him [his partner’s] family and other cousins, aunts, uncles, elders and other members of [her] family.

‘During those years I also learned a lot about Aboriginal culture, learned to paint Aboriginal art and have also played digeridoo in the past.’

RCWV said he was “officially welcomed and accepted” into the Indigenous community at a smoking ceremony in 2017, following the birth of his first son.

“This ceremony was attended by many members of the family, including many elderly people,” he said.

“There were no objections to our incorporation into the tribe by any member of the family.”

RCWV told the tribunal that since his ceremony, when his name was formally recorded in a book for the community, he has “identified himself as an Aboriginal and considers Australia my country.”

Despite his partner’s deep ties to Australia through her ancestry, she told the AAT she did not want her children to be separated from their father as her own father was part of the Stolen Generation.

‘[She] has already made inquiries at the Sudanese embassy in Australia to obtain information regarding a move to Sudan,” the tribunal heard.

‘If [she] When she moves to Sudan, she is physically separated from her parents and from her indigenous culture in Australia.

“I am very concerned that they would become separated from important cultural connections in Australia, and that their ability to learn and interact with their indigenous culture would be significantly compromised if they moved to Sudan.

“I think the children would suffer serious harm if they were taken to Sudan.”

The woman has significant mental and physical health problems and finds it difficult to raise her sons without her partner, the tribunal heard.

She said she worries that if RCWV were deported and something happened to her, her children would be placed in state care.

RCWV arrived in Australia from Sudan with his family at the age of 20. He has PTSD after claiming he saw two of his siblings die in Sudan, and that he was a child soldier.

Some of his memories were discussed in the tribunal, including by a forensic psychologist who assessed him.

But it was ultimately found that “despite the inconsistencies, it is consistent that the applicant was exposed to childhood trauma and does indeed suffer from PTSD.”

He did not meet several criteria to have his visa revoked as directed by Mr Giles 99, due to his long criminal history and moderate risk of reoffending.

But the tribunal found his ties to Australia and self-declared Aboriginality supported his request to stay and approved his bid.

The Albanian government turns against AAT

In the wake of the row over rapists and pedophiles being allowed to remain in Australia under the government’s controversial directive, the Prime Minister has now turned against the AAT.

Anthony Albanese criticized the tribunal, arguing it did not take a sensible approach to Mr Giles’ directions.

“The Albanian government has always said that visa decisions should be based on two clear principles,” he said.

‘Firstly, the protection of the Australian community. Second: common sense.

‘A number of recent AAT decisions have not demonstrated common sense.’

Mr Giles revealed during Question Time that Labor is introducing ‘a new, revised ministerial direction to ensure clear principles’ in response to the crisis.

He also confirmed that he and his department are in the process of ‘reviewing recent AAT decisions’.

Senator Murray Watt, who previously represented Mr Giles in the Senate Estimates, argued that the AAT decisions were ‘not consistent with government policy’.

“And frankly, I don’t think these AAT decisions are in line with community expectations either,” Watt said.

But the coalition has hit back at the government’s attempts to distance itself from the crisis, noting that the AAT decisions were made with direct consideration of Direction 99.