Iraq Abuses UN Refugee Process to Imprison Iran Dissidents

The government of Iraq is abusing the UN refugee process, turning what should be a UN-sanctioned refugee camp into and open-air prison for Iran’s political opponents. This is just one of many deeply troubling signs that the future for human rights and democracy in Iraq is not by any means secured. Of course this is an uncomfortable critique as the US and its allies have just withdrawn their troops and the entire western world is hoping that all those lost lives and all those countless billions of dollars have not been for nothing, and that Iraq is really now on the right track. But the facts are that Iraq is in danger of becoming a proxy state for Iran, a religious dictatorship which routinely abuses human rights and is the worlds biggest state supporter of terrorism, not to mention suspected of producing nuclear weapons.

Those refugees cum political prisoners are 3400 members of an Iranian opposition group, the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (MEK) who received shelter in Iraq after tens of thousands of their fellows were summarily executed by Iran in the 80's. They have lived in Iraq for a quarter century and built a small city called Ashraf, north of Baghdad. The MEK helped disclose the secret Iranian nuclear facilities and were classified as protected persons by the US after 2003. But with the US withdrawal from Iraq, the Nouri al-Malaki government has placed increasing pressure on the residents of Ashraf, in order to please Iran. Iraqi troops have blockaded the city, stopping food, medicine, fuel, parliamentarians and lawyers from entering, and have attacked the city twice without provocation, killing over 50 unarmed civilian residents. Absurdly, this is only a portion of their crimes to date.

In an effort to stop future bloodshed, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), has classified the residents as asylum seekers, under special protection from international law. But Iraq has done everything in its power to stop the UNHCR from processing the asylum claims of the residents of Ashraf and unfortunately the UN has not stood up for the rights of the residents. Now Iraq wants to transfer the 3400 residents to a 0.6 sq. km camp, encircled by 4 m walls, containing looted, dilapidated trailers without toilets or other facilities. The residents are not allowed to inspect the camp before being transferred, they will not be allowed to take their belongings and they will not be allowed to leave the camp once there. Sources inside the Iranian regime have reported that the camp is fitted with surveillance equipment and Iraq confirms that hundreds of police officers are to be stationed inside the camp. If this is not a prison, what is? Now the Iraqi government is asking the UNHCR to rubber stamp this prison as a UN refugee camp. The UN must resist.

Even though it is more convenient to ignore all human rights abuses in Iraq, even though it is more diplomatic to naively accept the Iraqi government's lies, the UN, the US and the EU must now take a stand. It is not worthy of democratic countries and institutions to look away as Iraq slips into authoritarianism, denies its people human rights, tortures prisoners and makes a mockery of humanitarian procedures. Human rights activists, Archbishops, parliamentarians, jurists and journalists have spoken out for Ashraf and the rights of all Iraqis, it is time for governments do the same!

Henrik Hermansson
PhD Candidate, Department of Political Science, Trinity College Dublin
Human rights advocate

ENDS

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