A Re-politicized history of Iranian transit migrants passing through Turkey in the 1980s

Abstract

This study scrutinizes the experiences of Iranian transit migrants passing through Turkey in the 1980s, whose history is dehumanized and depoliticized in the reconstruction of the history of Turkey’s experience with transit migration. It is argued that extracting their stories for the sake of depicting a homogenized picture of Iranian transit migrants in the background disguises the conflicts, struggles, and strategies embedded in their lives in transit. It is also argued that their experiences of being in transit cannot be told without taking into account their pre-flight experiences and their subjective assessment of being a refugee. The present study focuses on Iranian transit migrants’ relations with the Turkish authorities, their perceptions of being in transit in Turkey, and the relations among the community of Iranians in transit. It is argued that the degree of political affiliation was an important factor in the way they experienced being a transit migrant. Through the case of the Iranian transit migrants passing through Turkey in the 1980s, this study aims to contribute to the literature that challenges the victimized portrait of refugee. The main sources of this thesis are oral narratives of Iranian refugees living in Sweden and Germany, as well as written and filmed narratives of or pertaining to Iranians passing through Turkey.