Iranian footballer ‘changed her mind’ after speaking to teammates over asylum claim

One of two additional members of Iran’s women’s football delegation granted asylum by Australia has “changed her mind”, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has revealed.

Five players from the team were granted humanitarian visas by Australia on Tuesday following fears of persecution by the Islamic Regime if they returned home.

Player Mohaddeseh Zolfi and “support person” Zahra Soltan Meshkeh Karand were also offered humanitarian visas late that afternoon after discussions with officials.

However, Mr Burke confirmed during question time on Wednesday he had been informed shortly after 10am that one of the two women had “spoken to some of the teammates who had left and had changed her mind”.

“In Australia, people are able to change their mind, people are able to travel,” he said.

“Unfortunately, in making that decision, she had been advised by the Iranian embassy and get her teammates and coach to contact the Iranian embassy and to get collected.

“My officials made sure that this was her decision and question you would want asked, was asked.

“As a result of that, it meant that the Iranian embassy now knew the location of where everybody was.”

It was not immediately clear which of the two women had changed their minds, however appeared likely to be player Mohaddeseh Zolfi.

Mr Burke said he gave immediate instruction for people to be moved.

“For every member of this delegation, they have been shown a respect by Australia that would be unfamiliar to them,” he said.

“They have been shown a country that is willing to say the choice is yours.”

Mr Burke said he had travelled to Brisbane on Tuesday, before which he was two members of the delegation had made contact with officials, stating they wanted to remain in Australia.

They were separated from the rest of the group, who travelled on to Sydney later that afternoon.

Mr Burke said officials wanted to ensure “every individual had a chance to talk to my officials without anyone from the group with them”, and their family, about the decision.

He said there was a “small number of people” the government never had the intention of making a visa offer to.

Iran's women's soccer team arrived in Kuala Lumpu on a flight from Sydney after Australia granted some of their teammates humanitarian visas after they sought asylum over safety concerns on their return home for not singing the national anthem.

Chaos in Queensland

Earlier on Tuesday, some members of the team seemed reluctant to leave. One appeared to pull one player by the arm and collar towards the bus as the team left the hotel, while protesters placed themselves in front of the vehicle to prevent it from departing.

On Wednesday, it was confirmed player Mohaddeseh Zolfi and “support person” Zahra Soltan Meshkeh Karand were the two additional women who had applied for asylum.

“When I met with them, I made them the same offer that I had made the five players the night before, and that was that, if they wanted to receive a humanitarian visa for Australia – which would have a pathway to a permanent visa – I had the paperwork ready to execute that immediately,” he said.

“They both said that they did. I signed off on that, asked the department to start processing straightaway and, overnight, processing happened.”

The pair were reunited with the five other women shortly afterwards.

Later, the rest of the delegation, with the exception of a few, had been taken aside at Gold Coast airport after going through customs and immigration, Mr Burke said.

They were taken into interview rooms with only department officials and an interpreter, without any minders.

“In that situation, what we made sure of was there was no rushing. There was no pressure,” he said.

“Everything was about ensuring the dignity for those individuals to make a choice.

“Obviously the one thing, the one pressure we couldn’t take away, was the context.

“We couldn’t take away the pressure of the context for these individuals, of what might have been said to them beforehand, what pressures they might have felt with their own family members.”

Some had requested to talk to their families, which was facilitated, but ultimately none chose to remain in Australia, Mr Burke said.

“Australia’s objective here was not to force people to make a particular decision,” he said.

“We’re not that sort of nation. What we wanted to make sure of was that, sometimes, possibly for the first time, these individuals were meeting a government that said, “The choice is up to you. “’

Fears for the team’s safety were sparked after the group were branded wartime “traitors” by Iran’s state broadcaster after a handful refused to sing the national anthem during a football match on the Gold Coast.

The team had arrived in Australia for the AFC Asian Cup tournament just days before Iran was attacked by the US and Israel.