This is an appeal for action concerning the perilous situation of Kurdish Iranian refugees who after fleeing to Turkey due to lack of safe asylum in Northern Iraq are refused assistance and instructed to return to Northern Iraq by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). This non-assistance policy, known as the Irregular Mover policy, started on Feb. 13, 1997 and makes Kurdish Iranian deportable by the Turkish authorities.

Iranian Refugees' Alliance is criticizing this policy and demanding its immediate cessation because Northern Iraq is not a safe country of first asylum for Kurdish Iranian refugees. Furthermore, due to the lack of prospective resettlement from Northern Iraq -- the only durable solution available -- the vast majority of refugees will remain in life-threatening situations. We call your attention to the attached report entitled "Unsafe Haven: The Situation of Kurdish Iranian Refugees in Northern Iraq" and to our recent letter addressed to High Commissioner for Refugees, Mrs. Sadako Ogata, for a detailed critique.

UNHCR has a critical role in protecting refugees in Turkey. According to international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and US Committee for Refugees, the situation for non-European asylum seekers in Turkey continues to become more precarious. Turkish authorities are often refusing to cooperate with the UNHCR and have been forcibly returning persons who have been recognized as refugees by the UNHCR. However, despite the capricious actions of the Turkish authorities, a vital need exists for re-examining the UNHCR's policies towards Kurdish Iranian refugees. The restrictive Irregular Mover policy must be scrutinized because it imposes an unauthorized barrier to safe asylum, contradicts established refugee law and creates a challenge to UNHCR's own credibility and role as the global protector of refugees.

Please express your concern by writing to the UNHCR Headquarters and Branch Offices urging them to:

1-Stop Turkey from deporting Iranian Kurdish refugees to Northern Iraq and using any measures to deny such refugees access to its asylum procedures.

2-Discontinue UNHCR's IM policy and provide resettlement to all refugees who feel compelled to move from Northern Iraq to Turkey.

Please send your letters to:

High Commissioner Sadako Ogata
UNHCR- Geneva Headquarters
Case Postale 2500, CH-1211 Geneva 2 Depot  Switzerland
Tel: (41-22) 739-8587  Fax: (41-22) 739-7377

Mr. El Ouali
UNHCR-Senior Regional Legal Adviser for CENTRAL ASIA, SOUTH WEST ASIA, NORTH AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST
Tel: (41-22) 739-8587  Fax: (41-22) 739-7377

copies to:

Dennis MacNamara
UNHCR-Division of International Protection
Tel: (41-22) 739-8587  Fax: (41-22) 739-7377

Representative : Barry Rigby
UNHCR-Branch Office in Turkey
17 Abidin Daver Sokak Cankaya Ankara 06680 Turkey
Tel: (90-312) 439-6615  Fax: (90-312) 438-2702

and to the UNHCR Branch in your country.
 

Please inform us of your actions and for more information please contact Deljou Abadi at
Iranian Refugees' Alliance, Inc. Cooper Station  P.O.Box 316   NY NY 10278-0316   USA
Tel/Fax: 212-260-7460   e-mail: irainc@irainc.org