Podcast 44: Iranian Refugees in an interview with Faraz Sanei

The idea of ‘being a refugee’ can evoke many different images in people’s minds.  Refugees from Iran are perhaps not what one may immediately think of as ‘typical’. To start with, there’s a relatively wide range of reasons behind people’s decision to flee – from religious persecution to the ongoing witch-hunt for dissidents and political activists.  What happens once they cross the border also varies quite a bit.  While the luckier ones eventually get resettled and can start to rebuild their lives in another country, many end up in permanent limbo – or even back where they started.

We wanted to get a clearer picture of what the Iranian refugee situation looks like today. On today’s show, the Campaign speaks with Faraz Sanei, Middle East and North Africa Researcher at Human Rights Watch.  Over the past year he has traveled to Iraqi Kurdistan and Turkey where he met with Iranians who fled the country seeking safe haven.