Three players offered asylum change their minds, decide to return home
The number of Iranian women football players remaining in Australia is dwindling rapidly after three more team members who sought asylum changed their minds and decided to return to Iran.
Following the Lionesses’ exit from the Women’s Asian Cup, only three of the seven departing delegation members say they want to stay in Australia.
The news will be a blow to the Iranian diaspora in Australia, which has been campaigning for women to be given the chance to remain in the country.
“Three members of the Iran Women’s Football Team made the decision overnight to join the rest of the team on their return trip to Iran,” Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said in a statement on Sunday morning.
“After telling Australian officials they had made this decision, the players were given multiple chances to talk about their options.
“The Australian Government can ensure opportunities are provided and communicated, but we cannot take away the context in which players make these incredibly difficult decisions.”
Burke said every possible effort was being made to ensure women were given the chance to seek a new life in Australia.
“Australians should be proud that our country is where these women experience a nation that gives them real choices and interact with officials who want to help them,” she said.
Five team members left the team and sought asylum last Mondayand were later joined by two more members of the delegation: a player and a support staff member.
Iranian player Mohaddeseh Zolfi, 21, contacted Iranian authorities on Wednesday morning and asked to be taken from a safe house immediately after Burke announced he was seeking asylum in Australia.
The Iranian-Australian community feared at the time that the regime in Iran would redouble its efforts to persuade the remaining women to return to Iran to achieve a propaganda victory against Australia.
“They are clearly under threat. I worry about the rest,” said Tina Kordrostami, a leader of the Iranian-Australian community in Sydney who traveled to the Gold Coast to help the women escape. “The regime is clearly escalating matters to the fullest.”
Human rights campaigner Sara Rafiee said: “This shows how much pressure they are under. I worry about the other girls.”
A member of the Iranian football team told protesters in Malaysia that they were not afraid to go home and that officials had promised them rewards when they returned.
In the video translated by members of the diaspora, the actress said she was promised “rewards” or “benefits” by the authorities and was told that they would be “welcomed” and “treated well” like “princesses” or queens when they returned.
More to come
