The Federal Opposition is refusing to support legislation that could protect two young Kenyan women who fear they will be mutilated if they are deported from Australia.

The women came to Australia on tourist visas for last year's World Youth Day and have asked to stay, saying they will be persecuted if they are sent home.

For eight years, the Refugee Council of Australia (RCA) has been fighting for the Government to enshrine in law protection rights for women who faced genital mutilation in their own country.

Immigration Minister Chris Evans says he is still waiting to receive the women's appeal, but has put legislation before the Parliament that would prevent the women being deported.

The laws known as "complementary protection" have been introduced but not yet debated in Parliament.

If the laws were passed, advocates for the women believe they could provide crucial protection for 21-year-old Teresia Muturi.

But the Opposition is poised to reject it, saying it could pave the way for an influx of false asylum claims.

Facing mutilation

Kenyan woman Ms Muturi told the ABC Radio's AM program she would be circumcised against her will if she was sent home to Kenya.

Ms Muturi claims her mother is part of an outlawed sect in Kenya which practices genital mutilation.

She says she has been sold to an older man for some cash, cows and goats and will be forced to undergo the circumcision ritual to become a full woman.

Her application to stay has been rejected by the Refugee Review Tribunal.

Independent Senator Nick Xenophon is alarmed by the situation.

"How could you not be concerned about a case like this?" he asked.

"I think it's important that the Minister [Senator Evans] exercises his discretion to offer these two young women protection.

"I think it's interesting that the proposed laws that the Federal Government has put up in the Parliament - in terms of complementary protection which would give protection to these women - haven't yet been passed. But it seems that they would probably fulfil that criteria under the new law.

"So I think there is a strong case for the minister to exercise his discretion, given that the Federal Parliament is currently considering legislation that would give protection for cases such as this."

Opening the floodgates?

Opposition immigration spokeswoman Sharman Stone does not support the bill.

She believes it could open the door to a number of false asylum claims.

"It could be an honour killing, it could be a genital mutilation like this, it could be a whole range of other quite complex and one-off situations where the person doesn't meet the refugee convention criteria. That's what this is all about," she said.

"If you come into Australia right now and seek protection or asylum, the first port of call is to check if the person meets the refugee convention criteria.

"If they don't, but there's still clearly a serious problem for this person returning home in terms of their safety, then the minister can exercise his or her discretion, and that's been going on for literally decades in the Federal Government."

'Narrow' refugee laws

However Paul Power from the Refugee Council of Australia says the issue of genital mutilation is not addressed clearly enough in Australia's refugee laws.

"Because the refugee definitions are narrow and also sometimes fairly narrowly applied, there are situations - not large numbers but each one significant in themselves - of people facing the prospect of torture or some form of persecution on return to their homeland," he said.

"What's tended to happen in Australia has been that most people in these situations have been given protection but the Department of Immigration decision-makers, the members of the refugee review tribunal actually don't have the capacity or aren't given the legal authority to decide that someone needs protection on grounds outside the refugee convention."

Regardless of the fate of the complementary legislation, the Minister for Immigration currently has the final say about Ms Muturi's request for asylum.

Ms Muturi cannot be deported until he makes his final decision. A spokesman from Senator Evans' office says they cannot say how long that will take.