Five Iranian footballers granted Australian visas after anthem protest
Five members of the Iranian women’s football team have been granted humanitarian visas in Australia after their elimination from the Asian Cup, the BBC News reported, citing the Australian government.
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke with the five players who have been granted humanitarian visasImmigration Minister Tony Burke said the women “were moved to a safe location” by Australian police. He said other squad members had been told they were welcome to stay in the country.
The women were due to fly home, but supporters raised concerns about their safety after the team declined to sing the national anthem ahead of their match against South Korea last week.
This prompted criticism in Iran, with one conservative commentator accusing the team of being “wartime traitors” and pushing for harsh punishment.
The remainder of the team was taken to Gold Coast Airport and was expected to fly to Sydney on March 10.
The team’s coach was briefly stopped by dozens of activists who tried to persuade the other players to stay in Australia. Some protesters lay on the ground in an attempt to block the coach from moving forward. The players watched from inside the bus.
Australia’s humanitarian visa programme grants permanent protection to refugees and people in humanitarian need. Visa holders can live, work, and study in the country.
Speaking early on Tuesday, Burke said the five players were happy for their names to be confirmed as Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Ghanbari, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh, and Mona Hamoudi.
“They want to be clear they are not political activists. They are athletes who want to be safe,” he said, adding that talks had been going on over several days.
Giving further details, Burke told parliament that a police officer had been inside the team’s hotel and had made efforts to create “the maximum amount of opportunities” for players to seek help.
The players were reportedly unable to walk around the hotel unaccompanied and were escorted to a conference room to eat, according to a source who spoke to SBS News.
Giving further details, Burke said that on March 9, it became clear that five of the players “wanted to be able to stay in Australia”.
The group left their hotel the same day and were moved to a safe location by police.
Shortly after they left, the BBC witnessed some of their minders running across the hotel to try to find them – but they had already gone.
