Pouyan Makari

On the date of October 5th of this year, representatives of the Iranian parliament opposed the general idea of granting citizenship to children of Iranian mothers with 84 votes against, 74 votes in favor, and 12 abstentions. The opposing representatives cited national, religious, racial, and border-related risks as the main reasons for rejecting this proposal. They also believed that this proposal would legitimize an illegal act. By “illegal act,” they were referring to the illegal immigration of foreign nationals, especially Afghans, to Iran. This was also emphasized by the representative of the Ministry of Interior, who stated that approving this proposal would not only encourage illegal immigration to Iran, but also put an additional burden on the government. However, it seems that what these representatives and the Ministry of Interior do not consider is the difficult living conditions of individuals like “Sara.”

Sara is a 17-year-old girl who is the result of an Iranian mother’s marriage (from Jiroft) and an Afghan father. She currently lives on the outskirts of Shahr-e Rey. According to these representatives, Sara’s father being Afghan is a justifiable reason for her deprivation.

Not having an identification card means that you cannot study, you cannot plan for your future. It means that you will be different from your peers. Even with your cousins, you will be different and you cannot live like them. For a girl like me, it ultimately means marrying a poor man like myself and having children. Children who may also not be able to obtain an identification card.

Many families who are struggling with this issue try different ways to obtain birth certificates for their children. However, legal pursuits usually do not yield any results. Even if these pursuits were to be successful, the negative attitudes of government employees cause the process to be slower than usual. Sara talks about her mother’s efforts to obtain birth certificates for her, her two younger sisters, and her younger brother: “After my birth, my mother was determined to solve this issue. She tried everything to get me a birth certificate, as well as for my sisters and brother. But at some point, she got tired because of the insults and humiliation she faced. For example, at the Foreign Nationals Office, one of the employees told her after her persistence: ‘Why did you marry an Afghan?’ Of course, he said it in a much more rude and offensive way. This behavior is more common towards women who are married to Afghan men. But with women who are married to Iraqi men or whose husbands are from other

If legal ways do not lead to a result, money is the solution. These problems can also be solved with money. Many families buy birth certificates for their children; either for deceased children or fake ones. It is even possible to obtain a birth certificate through under-the-table payments in the registration office. The reality is that money talks. But the cost of these actions is very high and not everyone can afford it. The costs for Sara’s family, who have no stable job, have been very high. They used to sew soccer balls and put together motorcycle parts, and now they sew in their small brick house with only one bedroom.

“I could have gone to school from the beginning, but going to school required a residence card and we didn’t have the money for it. The immigration office charged separately and the municipality charged separately. For my work permit, my father had to pay every 6 months. Every year, on the first of Mehr, the school asked for a lot of money for us to study. We didn’t have the money to pay for these things, let alone buying an ID card. That’s why I studied at a self-sufficient school for the first few years and when I was eleven, I went to school. That’s when I realized how far behind I was compared to my peers.

Article 976 of the Civil Code addresses the problems of Iranian mothers’ children. The fifth paragraph of this article states that those born in Iran to a foreign father, if they reside in Iran for a full year after the age of eighteen, can obtain Iranian citizenship. However, this is subject to obtaining an official

First, I might get my ID card next year. Second, what changes are going to happen? When 18 years of my life have passed between earth and sky and I couldn’t study properly and live like others, I can’t do it anymore. I was constantly deprived of everything. Having an ID card at the age of 18 doesn’t heal the pain. It’s true that legally I can have insurance, a driver’s license, and other things. But in reality, I came into this world weak, they didn’t let me become strong. I will remain weak until the end of my life. I am a being separate from society and I can’t have self-confidence.

According to the civil laws of Afghanistan, foreign women who marry Afghan men will have the citizenship of that country. Many opponents of granting Iranian citizenship to the children of Iranian women and Afghan citizens believe that these children can easily live in Afghanistan and have Afghan identity. This issue can reduce the financial burden on the government

“It is true among Afghans that we are all equal. However, being in this society was imposed on us. But there was also discrimination towards us among Afghans. This means between children who have Afghan parents and me, whose mother was Iranian. Afghan children were fully accepted in their society, but we are dual identities. Not for this side of the border, nor for that side of the border. Our parents’ identity is like a mole on our forehead. Among Iranians, we are called Afghan and among Afghans, we are called Iranian. Just as being Afghan is an insult among Iranians, being Iranian is also an insult among some Afghans.”

Like many other statistics, there is still no official data about children like Sara that is in line with reality. Many child rights activists estimate the number of these children to be around one million. A number that the Ministry of Interior and the Islamic Consultative Assembly do not believe and consider it to be exaggerated. But one thing that is certain is the fate of these children, which is uncertain and disturbing. Children whose fate is in the hands of a legal system that imposes identitylessness and confusion on them and does not want to determine their fate anytime soon.

Note:

The name and place of residence of the interviewee has been changed in this report due to their personal request.