‘Act with urgency’: Government urged to help Iranian soccer players stay in Australia

The Iranian diaspora is pleading with Australian officials to meet privately with members of the Iranian women’s soccer team to explain their options to remain in the country, amid fears the players have been falsely told they would be sent to remote islands if they try to seek asylum in Australia.

The Iranian team will play their final match of the Women’s Asian Cup on Sunday night in the Gold Coast, putting Iranian-Australian community activists on a race against time to provide the players the chance to stay in Australia.

Iranian state television presenter Mohammad Reza Shahbazi accused the team of dishonour for not singing the national anthem before their first match against South Korea on Monday, branding them “wartime traitors” who must be “dealt with more severely”.

Shahbazi’s comments have heightened fears the women could be subject to persecution if they return home, although trying to stay in Australia could also pose risks for their loved ones in Iran.

More than 46,000 people have signed a petition since Friday calling for the government to ensure that no member of the team departs Australia while credible fears for their safety remain.

Iranian-Australian community leaders wrote to Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke on Sunday, urging him to ensure the women are fully informed about their legal protections in Australia.

The community leaders told Burke there were “serious concerns that Islamic Republic officials accompanying the team are closely monitoring the players and are intimidating them, including providing them with misinformation they would be sent to offshore detention to a ‘deserted island’ if they attempted to seek asylum in Australia”.

“Given these circumstances, we respectfully urge the Australian authorities to speak with the players individually and privately, in a private setting away from Islamic Republic officials or security personnel, to ensure they are aware of their rights and the protection pathways available,” Moez Mousavi of the Australian Iranian Council, human rights activist Minoo Ghamari and lawyer Sara Rafiee wrote.

A spokesman for Burke declined to comment, citing the sensitivity of the issues involved.

Rafiee said she wanted the players to know they would be supported by the community if they make the difficult decision to seek asylum in Australia.

She said the players were being “closely monitored by officials and effectively treated as prisoners”, making it difficult for activists to know whether they were aware of their options.

“These are very young athletes placed under extraordinary pressure,” Rafiee said.

“The level of concern in the community is immense, people have even offered their homes, accommodation and financial support if the players need it. Ultimately the decision is theirs, but it is heartbreaking to see them put in such an impossible situation.”

She said the players could face serious consequences if they return to Iran but had to weigh up the possible risks to their relatives if seek asylum in Australia.

“It is our understanding that Islamic Republic authorities have required significant financial guarantees to ensure the players return, including reportedly requiring families to place assets such as their homes as collateral,” she said.

“This places the players in an impossible position: whether to seek protection in Australia and risk repercussions for their families or return and face serious punishment themselves.”

Ghamari said: “These women are very young and very scared. Not knowing how the Australian immigration laws work would be very scary for them.”

The change.org petition to Burke, organised by the Australian Iranian Council, says the players face “immediate and serious” dangers if they are allowed to leave Australia, and urges the government to “act with urgency and humanity” to help them.

“They are women under the authority of a barbaric authoritarian state that has a long record of punishing perceived disobedience, including through intimidation, coercion, torture and reprisals against family members,” the petition states.

“The risks will be especially acute if they are compelled to return while this climate of war, surveillance and political retaliation continues.”

The petition calls for the government to provide immediate access to independent legal advice to each player, and to make clear it will uphold its humanitarian protection obligations.

“Australia is hosting this tournament. That carries not only logistical responsibilities, but moral ones,” the petition states.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said she could not comment on whether the government had made direct contact with the players.

“We know this regime has brutally murdered many of its own people,” she told the ABC’s Insiders.

“We know this regime has brutally oppressed many Iranian women, and we stand in solidarity with the men and women of Iran and particularly Iranian women and girls.”

Liberal frontbencher Julian Leeser said: “Given the serious threats, members of the Iranian team should be offered asylum if they want it.

“The Australian Government should not turn a blind eye to the danger these women face.”

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