We demand justice for stateless refugees in Denmark. March with us in solidarity on June 10 at 1 pm.
In the last decade, the political and public debate in Denmark has led to an increasingly restrictive climate for the protection and integration of both the stateless and refugees. Denmark does not grant a protection status on the grounds of statelessness, even though it is their obligation under the 1954 and 1961 Statelessness Conventions, and in fact systematically disregards statelessness – leaving many stateless refugees in a grimly-called “deportation gap”.
The Abdullahi and Azizi families are living – and must suffer – the direct consequences of Denmark’s restrictive and inhumane asylum policies. While Danish politicians are on occasion supportive of the freedom fight in Iran, they simultaneously place Iranians in deportation camps, where they are not able to live a normal life. In a state of limbo, they are unable to return to Iran as it is not safe to those opposing the regime, but also unable to settle in Denmark as their asylum requests have been denied.
The Abdulahi and Azizi families are Kurdish-Iranian who have been refugees since 1979. They have been forced to flee since the invasion of Iraq, are recognized UN refugees and hold official UN documents from the various camps. The children – all adults now – grew up in various refugee camps and the family remains stateless till this day.
Hawar Azizi relates the story of his family:
“The Azizi family fled Iran along with thousands of other families during the Iranian revolution in 1979. Our uncles, cousins, close and distant relatives were forced to flee when the Islamic Republic Ayotollah Khomaini seized power in Iran.
In addition to the Azizi family's ethnicity as Kurds, we belong to the Yari religion, which is a minority religion in Iran. Yari is not recognized by the Islamic regime and people belonging to this religion are harassed on a daily basis. They are not allowed public work or to continue their education after primary school as the religion is considered a threat to Islam.”
Relieved to have finally escaped to Denmark, they are faced with another injustice – their denial to asylum in Denmark. Neither Iraq nor Iran accepts them as citizens, and they are unable to return despite the fact that the family has been cooperating with Danish authorities to leave Denmark. Their other family members have received asylum in innumerable countries – Sweden, Italy, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway – but in Denmark, they remain in deportation camps.
This is not a way to treat human beings in need of protection – whatever state they might come from, recognized or not. We invite you to march with us in solidarity on 10th June at 13.00.
We gather at Christiansborg Castle Square, from where we march around the inner city, and finish back at Christiansborg for speeches, poetry, and music.
We demand justice for stateless refugees. We demand asylum for the Abdullahi and Azizi families in Denmark. We demand a dignified life for refugees in Denmark.
Photo: Lars Vibild