{"id":4006,"date":"2025-05-16T19:26:42","date_gmt":"2025-05-16T19:26:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/6rang.org\/english\/?p=4006"},"modified":"2025-05-16T22:43:02","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T22:43:02","slug":"they-see-us-as-criminals-new-report-exposes-systematic-persecution-and-forced-displacement-of-lgbti-iranians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/6rang.org\/english\/4006\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThey See Us as Criminals\u201d: New Report Exposes Systematic Persecution and Forced Displacement of LGBTI Iranians"},"content":{"rendered":"

6Rang (Iranian Lesbian and Transgender Network), 16 May 2025:\u00a0 <\/em>In a new report<\/a>\u00a0titled\u00a0\u201cThey See Us as Criminals,\u201d<\/em>\u00a06Rang\u00a0uncovers the structural forces behind the forced displacement of LGBTI individuals from Iran. Submitted to the UN Independent Expert on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, the report reveals how criminalization, state repression, and social violence compel queer Iranians to flee, only to face continued threats and discrimination beyond Iran\u2019s borders.<\/p>\n

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Under international law, forced displacement, when widespread or systematic, may amount to a crime against humanity. This report, released to mark May 17, the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia, is based on testimonies from 25 LGBTI Iranians who have fled the country. It documents a pattern in which legal vulnerability, family abuse, social exclusion, and constant government surveillance form a relentless cycle of forced migration.<\/p>\n

Respondents reported experiences of\u00a0 domestic abuse, coerced marriages, conversion therapy, and threats of imprisonment as direct reasons for fleeing Iran. Nearly half, described being monitored or harassed by Iranian authorities even after leaving the country, illustrating the transnational reach of state repression.<\/p>\n

Notably, 96% of participants were also members of ethnic or religious minorities, which further compounded their risk. 77% had endured\u00a0 direct violence from family members, often enabled by legal impunity and fear of seeking help. For most, seeking asylum was not a choice, it was a means of survival.<\/p>\n

A non-binary respondent who fled Iran in 2017 told 6Rang:
\n\u201cIran\u2019s laws see people like me as criminals. There was no way for me to legally change my identity, access gender-affirming healthcare, or even live freely. I was constantly at risk of arrest.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

A lesbian woman who escaped in 2023 said:
\n\u201cMy family saw my sexuality as a disgrace. They tried to force me into a marriage, and when I refused, I was beaten and locked in my home. I knew I had to escape before it was too late.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Nearly half of the interviewees also reported experiencing threats or harassment abroad, including online abuse and smear campaigns led by Iranian state media.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven outside Iran, I am not safe,\u201d said one trans activist in exile. \u201cThey spread lies, call us traitors, and try to silence us through fear.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Transit countries such as T\u00fcrkiye were also reported to be\u00a0 unsafe, with 76% of respondents facing violence, discrimination, or legal insecurity during their asylum processes.<\/p>\n

All respondents said they cannot return to Iran due to threats of arrest, torture, or execution. In some cases, charges like\u00a0\u201ccorruption on earth\u201d<\/em>\u00a0have been used to seek the death penalty against LGBTI activists.<\/p>\n

Legal and Political Context<\/strong><\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s Islamic Penal Code criminalizes same-sex relations and gender non-conforming expression, with punishments ranging from flogging to execution.<\/p>\n