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Dianne Wampler  12/04/2006 05:30:55 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Dianne Wampler

Cable 
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C O N F I D E N T I A L        ANKARA 06558

SIPDIS
CX:
    ACTION: CONS
    INFO:   PA ECON DCM AMB RSO

DISSEMINATION: CONS
CHARGE: PROG

APPROVED: DCM:NMCELDOWNEY
DRAFTED: CONS:CSCHOI,CONS: RC
CLEARED: CONS: EJORGENSEN, CONS: SJSHIPSHOCK POL:JWEINER

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RR RUEHC RUCNIRA RUEHAD RUEHAK RUEHGB RUEHKB
RUEHBUL RUEHMK RUEHNC RUEHVI RUEHDE RUEHFT RUEHIT RUEAIIA
RUEKDAI
DE RUEHAK #6558/01 3351341
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 011341Z DEC 06
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0146
INFO RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 0328
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 0057
RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD 0816
RUEHKB/AMEMBASSY BAKU 1432
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL 0543
RUEHMK/AMEMBASSY MANAMA 0204
RUEHNC/AMEMBASSY NICOSIA 6619
RUEHVI/AMEMBASSY VIENNA 1615
RUEHDE/AMCONSUL DUBAI 0194
RUEHFT/AMCONSUL FRANKFURT 3886
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 1729
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKDAI/DIA WASHDC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 006558 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR HTWOOSTER, POSTS FOR IRAN WATCH 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/01/2016 
TAGS: AF IR IZ PGOV PINR PREL TU
SUBJECT: IRAN'S UNEVEN HANDLING OF REFUGEE CLAIMS 
 
REF: SECSTATE 80055 
 
Classified By: DCM NANCY MCELDOWNEY FOR REASONS 1.4(B) AND (D) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary: The Iranian government's approach in dealing 
with Afghan refugees is markedly different from the way it 
handles Iraqi refugees, according to our consular contacts. 
Refugees from Afghanistan face greater official and societal 
obstacles than those from Iraq.  The Iranian government has 
also taken measures to better monitor how the UN High 
Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) deals with refugee 
processing. End Summary. 
 
--------------------- 
POLICY CHANGE FOR GOI 
--------------------- 
 
¶2. (C) Consular officers spoke with UNHCR employees Ms. 
Maryam Khomami who was the head of the Afghan Repatriation 
Committee of UNHCR and with Ms. Niousha Masoumi Fakhar who 
works in the public relations department of UNHCR.  Both are 
based in UNHCR offices in Iran. 
 
¶3.  (C) According to these women, the Government of Iran 
(GOI) completed repatriation of all registered Afghan 
refugees in October 2006 and is no longer accepting asylum 
claims from Afghans. The GOI has repatriated all registered 
Afghan refugees who wished to return to Afghanistan.  The 
Iranian regime is using more aggressive measures against 
economic migrants from Afghanistan living in Iran.  Iraqi 
refugees, on the other hand, continue to be welcomed. 
 
¶4. (C) Both sources noted that since the fall of the Taliban 
regime in Kabul, the GOI no longer approves refugee status 
for Afghans and has stopped accepting refugees from 
Afghanistan.  In October 2006, the GOI closed the province of 
Zabol to resettlement.  The GOI attitude towards Afghan 
refugees now is that they are illegal aliens seeking economic 
opportunities.  If they are found, they will be immediately 
deported back to Afghanistan. 
 
¶5. (C) The GOI has also become harsher when dealing with 
Afghan refugees whom the GOI previously allowed to settle in 
Iran.  Ms. Masoumi Fakhar gave the example of a client who 
previously was able to attend university in Iran and obtain a 
medical degree.  Now, two years later, he is not able to 
practice medicine because the laws have changed and he does 
not have the right to work.  Still, he has found a way to 
survive by setting up an informal arrangement with a hospital 
to work during the graveyard shift. 
 
¶6. (C) To find illegal aliens, the GOI performs random checks 
at work places, mainly construction sites.  Oftentimes, their 
Afghan accent will expose them.  As an example of how the 
GOI,s patience for illegal Afghan migrants has run out, Ms. 
Masoumi Fakhar recalled how one boy, who was a registered 
refugee, was found without his registration card.  He was not 
allowed to go home to get his card nor was he allowed to see 
his mother before being deported.  The GOI simply decided 
that he was not registered and there was no appeal process. 
The mother is now asking to be repatriated to Afghanistan to 
be reunited with her son. 
 
¶7. (C) The GOI also does not like the fact the UNHCR 
processes refugees for foreign resettlement because it is 
against the idea of sending Muslims to live in non-Islamic 
countries.  While the GOI grudgingly allows aliens to depart 
for foreign resettlement, its attitude is that Muslim 
refugees should seek resettlement in Muslim countries where 
their faith will be able to deepen. 
 
¶8. (C) Prior to President Ahmadinejad's election, UNHCR was 
able to deal directly with the Iranian Interior Ministry 
(note: the office within the MOI that works with refugees is 
"BAFIA", headed by a Mr. Hossein. Ms. Masoumi Fakhar did not 
provide his  first name. End note.).  Since his election, 
however, they must send all communications to the Ministry of 
Interior via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  Ms. Masoumi 
Fakhar said that this is because the GOI decided that 
anything related to foreign relations would have to pass 
through the MFA, including refugee issues.  Diplomatic notes 
from UNHCR are passed through Ambassador Al Habi in MFA to 
the MOI.  Ms. Masoumi Fakhar said that in October 2006 there 
was a tri-partite meeting between the GOI, the Afghan 
government, and UNHCR in Geneva.  She said that the meeting 
was held because the GOI was finished with repatriation and 
needed to talk about its future dealings with aliens from 
Afghanistan. 
 
¶9. (C) The GOI,s attitude towards Iraqi refugees is quite 
different.  Iraqi refugees tend to be wealthier than Afghan 
refugees, and the Iraqi diaspora in Iran has not been a 
problem for the GOI.  The GOI still accepts refugees from 
Iraq and is sympathetic to their situation.  The Iraqi 
refugees live in a camp along the Iran-Iraq border in the 
Iranian province of Kurdistan.  Most of the Iraqi refugees 
are Kurdish.  They do not venture into the hinterlands of 
Iran, nor do they wish to.  In the GOI's view, Iraqi refugees 
come to escape the violence, not to seek employment. 
 
--------------------- 
REFUGEE LIFE IN IRAN 
--------------------- 
 
¶10. (C) Both contacts described the refugee process in Iran. 
Once arriving in Iran, refugees can only claim benefits if 
they register with the GOI.  During registration, the GOI 
determines if the aliens qualify for refugee status.  If they 
do not, then they must return to their home country 
immediately.  Because they are often unregistered, Afghan 
illegal aliens may not attend public schools or work.  Afghan 
aliens who registered before the freeze may attend schools 
and university for a fee.  The cost for a semester of 
university is approximately $500 a month ) a prohibitive 
amount for an Afghan refugee. 
 
¶11. (C) Afghans who illegally reside in Iran mostly come from 
Kabul, Bamiam, and Habrab.  The lure has been the 
availability of higher paying jobs in Iran.  Afghan refugees 
work mainly in construction, mining, and housekeeping. 
Earlier, Iranian companies could easily hire illegal aliens, 
but the GOI passed new legislation requiring all aliens to 
have a valid Iranian residence card in order to work. 
Nonetheless, companies and families looking for household 
help continue to hire illegal Afghan refugees. 
 
¶12. (C) The GOI has no provisions to assist Afghans who try 
to integrate into Iranian society.  It is difficult for an 
Iranian male to marry an Afghan female and almost impossible 
for an Iranian female to marry an Afghan male.  In the 
consular section, we have seen cases where 'mixed' marriages 
like this took place outside of Iran, since these marriages 
are not recognized and cannot be registered in Iranian 
identity books (the shenash nahmes).  Furthermore, children 
of 'mixed' marriage cannot be registered in their parents, 
identity books.  It is difficult for Afghans to become 
Iranian citizens.  When asked if it could ever happen, Ms. 
Masoumi Fakhar paused and said, "Maybe if an Afghan (male) 
were to become very devote and study theology in Qom, perhaps 
it that case it might be allowed." 
 
---------------------- 
IRANIAN PUBLIC OPINION 
---------------------- 
 
¶13. (C) The public perception of Afghan illegal aliens is 
that they are poor and dangerous.  Among construction firms, 
they are known as honest, hard-working employees.  Among the 
general population, though, Afghans face discrimination and 
are seen as "undesirables" who are taking away the jobs of 
Iranians.  Ms. Khomami compared the illegal Afghan 
immigration issue to the American debate about illegal aliens 
in the U.S. and said, "Afghans are taking jobs, but the jobs 
they take are the ones Iranians don't want to do." 
 
¶14. (C) Iraqi refugees have a better public perception, 
neither seen as violent nor troublesome.  Compared to 
Afghans, Iraqis are better educated and have more money. 
When UNHCR cannot find the funds to help Afghan refugees, it 
will turn to NGOs that work with Iraqis that are awash in 
cash. 
 
¶15. (C) COMMENT: Despite the closeness in history and 
language, Iran is closing its door to Afghanistan.  Recent 
legislation is aimed at making life impossible for illegal 
Afghan aliens.  For Iraqis, though, Iran presents itself as a 
sanctuary for those seeking to escape the violence in their 
streets.  End Comment. 
Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
WILSON