Gay Iranian Vahid Kiani Motlagh. Euro MPs write to Barrot and the French authorities

"After receiving your urgent appeal to save the life of the 32-year-old Iranian gay, Vahid Kiani Motlagh", Raül Romeva writes to us, "some Euro MPs, including myself, have sent the following letter to the Commissioner Jacques Barrot and the French authorities". The letter is signed by Jean Lambert, Raül Romeva i Rueda, Michael Cashman, Sophie in ´t Veld, Ulrike Lunacek, Lissy Gröner (newly-elected). We believe this initiative could prove decisive for Vahid's safety.

URGENT

To the attention of the French authorities

and of Jacques Barrot, EU Commissioner for Freedom, Security and Justice

According to information received from NGOs, Vahid Kiani Motlagh, a 32-year-old Iranian, was arrested in France on 25 May 2009 and is being held at the retention center at Saint-Exupery Airport, Lyon, where he risks imminent deportation to Iran. Motlagh, who had lived for about 1 year as an illegal alien in Italy, was travelling with his French companion to Belgium where the two had planned to get married. On 29 May, Lyon administrative court judge Peuvrel rejected Motlagh’s request for release from the center; that day, Motlagh, as refugee and asylum seeker, filed a request for humanitarian protection and asylum. Iran punishes homosexual acts with imprisonment, torture, and hanging. Based on Islamic law, homosexuals accused of “lavat” (sodomy) are arrested without any means for defense.

According to unofficial reports cited by NGOs, Motlagh could be expelled from France within the next couple of days and deported to Iran. As you will be aware, this could violate the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Geneva Convention, European Directives, as well as the European Union Charter of Fundamental Rights — all documents that establish the inalienable right to receive protection or asylum and not to be deported to one’s country of origin or another country where such person would risk violation of basic human rights, notably of the right to life.

We consequently ask the EU Commission and the French government and its competent authorities to verify this information, suspend Motlagh’s deportation procedure and release him from the retention center until his request for asylum has been decided.

Jean Lambert - MEP, Raül Romeva i Rueda - MEP, Michael Cashman - MEP,
Sophie in´t Veld - MEP, Ulrike Lunacek, newly elected MEP, Lissy Gröner - MEP,
Dirk De Meirleir - Executive Director of ILGA-Europe.