By Amin Kawa
August 12, 2024
Credits @FFHR.CZ
Most Afghan refugees in Iran report enduring violence and torture from Iranian police and discriminatory behavior from the public. They see the treatment they receive as a stark contrast to the cultural and historical connections, human rights, and principles of good neighborliness they expected.
They emphasize that they are suffering from compounded mistreatment and torture. Last week, Iranian security forces restrained an Afghan teenager with hearing impairment, with an officer placing his knee on the boy’s neck and breaking it in front of his mother. Afghans both inside and outside the country have likened this incident to the treatment of George Floyd by U.S. police.
The acting Afghan representative at the United Nations has condemned this behavior as contrary to globally accepted principles and migration laws. Some Afghan legal experts view xenophobia and inhumane treatment by Iranian police as a tragic result of the absence of the rule of law and legal commitment to human rights.
Last week, social media and news outlets spread a video showing Iranian security forces torturing a teenage Afghan refugee in front of his mother. In the footage, a security officer kneels on the teenager’s neck while several others firmly hold his hands and feet, ignoring the boy’s mother’s screams and pleas.
The following day, another video featuring the family of Sayed Mahdi Mosawi, who had been violently arrested by Iranian security forces, circulated widely on social media and news platforms. In this video, Mahdi’s brother and mother discuss his physical condition and detention.
Mahdi’s brother explains that Mahdi is deaf and mentally disabled. He recounts that the police tried to put Mahdi into a car without requesting any documentation. Due to his hearing impairment, Mahdi did not understand the situation, leading the police to mistakenly believe he was being defiant. He also notes that one of Mahdi’s hard-to-obtain hearing aids was damaged under the police’s feet.
He states, “He has a fever and is in shock… He is not himself. The doctor has connected him to an IV and given him medication to help him recover.”
Mahdi Mosawi’s mother adds, “My son is innocent. He has physical problems… An infidel wouldn’t do what they did to my son.”
Meanwhile, most Afghan refugees in Iran express growing concern over their deteriorating living conditions. They report fleeing to Iran to escape Taliban retribution, ongoing unemployment, and increasing poverty, only to face inhumane police behavior and discriminatory, degrading treatment from ordinary Iranian citizens.
Afghan refugees in Iran say they fear going outside and rely on their Iranian employers to buy essential items and bread for them. They claim the Iranian police arrest and forcibly deport individuals “with or without documentation,” and some Iranians humiliate and assault them.
Najibullah Shoja, a media worker who moved to Iran after the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan, describes the refugee situation as dire. He reports being unable to even obtain bread and avoids leaving his residence due to fear of the Iranian police.
Mr. Shoja adds, “I work for an Iranian company. This Iranian brings me bread. The situation is so bad that bakeries won’t sell bread to Afghan refugees and make excuses about needing a bank card. An Iranian advised me not to go outside until the situation calmed down. He said that in the Khawar Shahr area of the Khatun Abad region, people beat refugees with whatever they had in hand. As soon as they find out someone is a refugee, they attack.”
This refugee, who has also experienced insults and humiliation from Iranian shopkeepers, shares his bitter experience of being demeaned. He says, “A few days ago, I went to a repair shop to fix my mobile phone. I told the shopkeeper that there was an issue with my Apple ID. The shopkeeper took the phone from my hand and asked, ‘Are you Afghan?’ I replied, ‘Afghanistani!’ He said, ‘How cheeky you are! Can an Afghan afford an iPhone?'”
Mr. Shoja adds that about 10 other Iranians were present, and they too made derogatory comments. He says he explained that he had come legally and had a visa, but they all reacted with “racist behavior” and asked the guard to throw him out of the shop.
This refugee says that one of these individuals followed him and said, “If you don’t want us to take your phone, money, and everything you have, get lost right now!” A lump in my throat made it hard to speak, but I managed to reply, “Alright…!” while the man continued his abusive language.
At the same time, five other sources have confirmed that they are in extremely difficult situations in Iran and cannot leave their homes. They say that xenophobia has intensified in Iran, and the police disregard whether one has a visa or not, insulting and deporting refugees with obscene language.
According to these refugees, the only place in Tehran where migrants were previously not harassed was District 7, in the Shahrak-e Gharb area. However, these days, in the Golestan commercial center in Shahrak-e Gharb, all workers have been forcibly expelled, indicating an increase in violence and xenophobia.
Reactions to the Breaking of Sayed Mahdi Mosawi’s Neck by Iranian Police
The breaking of Sayed Mahdi Mosawi’s neck by Iranian police has sparked widespread reactions from Afghan citizens, human rights activists, and civil organizations. Some Afghan citizens in Germany protested in front of the Iranian embassy in Berlin, condemning the torture of this teenager.
The protesters carried placards and chanted slogans against the Islamic Republic’s anti-refugee policies, demanding an end to the mass deportation of refugees and calling on the international community to pay attention to the plight of refugees in Iran.
Naseer Ahmad Faiq, the acting Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the United Nations, also stated that the behavior of Iranian police towards Afghan refugees is against accepted global principles and migration laws. He called the torture of Sayed Mahdi Mosawi by Iranian police inhumane and un-Islamic.
Similarly, Sayed Tayeb Jawad, the former Afghan ambassador to Russia, shared a video showing Iranian police torturing Sayed Mahdi under their knees in front of his family, describing the event as barbaric and likening it to the treatment of “George Floyd” by U.S. police. He said that in a brutal move, Iranian police broke the neck of Sayed Mahdi, a hearing-impaired individual, revealing the ongoing tragedy of “forgotten Afghans.”
Mr. Jawad added, “The Taliban disrupt the livelihood, homeland, and educational rights of Afghan citizens, while the Islamic Republic of Iran crushes their spirits and places its knee on their fragile necks. Both regimes fail their citizens and humanity, but compassionate citizens on both sides unite to condemn barbarism.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Mohammad Amin Ahmadi, a former member of the Commission for Supervision of the Implementation of the Constitution of Afghanistan, described the torture of Sayed Mahdi Mosawi by Iranian forces as “the disastrous result of the lack of rule of law and legal commitment to human rights in law enforcement institutions in Iran and Afghanistan.”
Mr. Ahmadi wrote, “The police and government of Iran show no regard for their legal duties regarding the human rights of suspects, offenders, and illegal migrants, as they have not received training in this area. Regulations and guidelines have not been developed to protect the rights of suspects and illegal migrants.”
He further added that governments that do not take human rights education in their law enforcement institutions seriously and do not establish appropriate legal mechanisms for their observance and implementation, fail to establish the rule of law and always create disasters for themselves and others.
At the same time, two social media campaigns titled “Take Your Foot Off My Throat” and “The Right of the Refugee” have been launched. Social media users have described the actions of the Iranian police and the silence of the country’s citizens as a disgrace to humanity. These users have raised the legal demands of refugees in Iran.
Hussain Ali Adalat, a user, called the torture of Sayed Mahdi Mosawi tragic and painful, writing, “The torture and breaking of Mahdi’s neck in front of his mother by Iranian police has no human justification; it is only explained by statelessness, helplessness, and despair, and this could be the fate of other refugees.”
Some Iranians have also reacted to this incident, calling it racist. Zhila Baniyaghoub, an Iranian journalist, tweeted, “The foot placed on the neck of a disabled child is a foot on all human values. This child, who endures multiple physical pains, needs support, not violence.”
Ms. Baniyaghoub asked the authorities in Iran, “Have we become so alien to humanity that even a disabled child is deprived of it?… Raise your hat, racist! When violence against a disabled child doesn’t awaken your conscience. No to racism.”
Additionally, Sadegh Zibakalam, a professor at the University of Tehran, compared the access of refugees to human rights in Iran and Western countries. He said that refugees in Western countries have rights, but in Iran, refugees have no rights even after years.
Mr. Zibakalam tweeted, “Once again, the wave of arrests and deportation of unfortunate Afghans who, due to unfortunate circumstances, have sought refuge with us, has started by the security forces.”
It is worth mentioning that the protection of refugees is emphasized in the 1951 Refugee Convention, and its 1967 Protocol, as well as in commitments under organizations like the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Iran is a member of these conventions and organizations and must adhere to them. However, it seems that Iran is increasingly losing its commitment to these conventions.
Source: 8am.media
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