Driven from Their Homeland, Denied Safety in Exile Too! S. Rouzbeh 2026-11-05 Why is a government that would not tolerate its critics in Iran, and whose policies drove many of them to emigrate, now seeking to silence them thousands of miles away? Should Iranians who have left their homeland be deprived of safety and freedom of expression in their host countries too? This contradiction is one consequence of 47 years of Islamic Republic rule: a government that fuelled emigration by restricting freedoms and excluding opponents, yet seemed to expect their protests to end once they crossed the borders. Why is a government that would not tolerate its critics in Iran, and whose policies drove many of them to emigrate, now seeking to silence them thousands of miles away? Should Iranians who have left their homeland be deprived of safety and freedom of expression in their host countries too? This contradiction is one consequence of 47 years of Islamic Republic rule: a government that fuelled emigration by restricting freedoms and excluding opponents, yet seemed to expect their protests to end once they crossed the borders. Who sowed the seeds of emigration? The emigration of Iranians has not been driven solely by the search for economic opportunity. Political repression, religious and social discrimination, imprisonment, executions, corruption, the absence of meritocracy and restrictions on personal freedoms have, alongside the cost-of-living crisis, led many to leave the country. Of course, not all emigrants are political refugees; some have moved for education or work, or to join family. This distinction should not be overlooked. Research by Stanford University’s Iran 2040 Project estimated that around 3.1 million people born in Iran were living abroad in 2019, citing political repression, weak governance and economic hardship among the factors behind emigration. In this context, the phrase ‘If you don’t like it, leave Iran’ is not merely a line spoken on television; it is a sign of a political culture that suggests leaving one’s homeland instead of listening to a citizen’s protest. The talent that left, the voices that remained Iranian emigrants work in universities, hospitals, media organisations, businesses and research centres in various countries. According to data from the Pew Research Center in March 2026, around 65 per cent of Iranian Americans aged 25 and over have a bachelor’s degree or higher. This figure does not describe all Iranians around the world, nor does it mean that all emigrants are successful; but it offers an indication of some of the human potential that has left Iran. Some of these same emigrants have continued their work in journalism, human rights advocacy and political protest in the more open environment of their host countries. The government may tolerate a critic leaving Iran, but apparently not that critic’s voice continuing abroad. The question is: was the aim for opponents to leave, or for opposition to be silenced? Repression that crossed borders ‘Transnational repression’ is a term for governments’ actions to threaten, monitor, intimidate or harm critics and opponents beyond their own territory. The September 1992 assassination of four Iranian Kurdish opponents at the Mykonos restaurant in Berlin, and the Berlin court’s ruling in April 1997, are documented historical examples. In October 2025, the US Department of Justice announced that two people in the plot to murder Masih Alinejad, a journalist and women’s rights activist, had each been sentenced to 25 years in prison for acting on behalf of the Iranian government. According to the US Department of Justice, the agreed payment for the murder was $500,000. This case shows how political differences have, in some instances, led to plans to murder an opponent in another country. A July 2025 report by the UK Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights also warned about threats attributed to the Islamic Republic, citing kidnapping, assassination, threats against family members, digital attacks and efforts to discredit opponents. Of course, each allegation should be presented according to the strength of its evidence; court judgments are not the same as intelligence reports or unverified claims. Why are the voices of emigrants a source of concern? Inside Iran, censorship, arrests and restrictions on the media raise the cost of protest. Abroad, journalists have greater access to independent media, human rights activists to international organisations, and citizens to opportunities for assembly and free expression. Not all Iranian emigrants oppose the government or engage in political activism; but the voices of some of them can challenge the official narrative. Pressure on family members in Iran, where established in a particular case, is another form of the same control: someone speaks abroad, while their relatives at home pay the price. In this way, the country’s borders are not the end of pressure, but sometimes the beginning of a new form of it. Return: coming home or entering danger? For many Iranians, emigration does not mean severing ties with their homeland. Parents, children, language and memories remain in Iran. Yet some fear that, on returning, they may be questioned or arrested, or may not be able to leave the country again. The UK Foreign Office specifically warns of the risks of travel to Iran for dual nationals. Article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights prohibits arbitrarily depriving people of the right to enter their own country. But being allowed to enter is not the same as being able to travel safely and leave again. A homeland should not become a place of fear and uncertainty for a citizen who wants to see their family. You brought this upon yourselves! The Islamic Republic must face the consequences of its policies. Pressure and restrictions drove many Iranians away from the country; but geographical distance did not sever their ties with Iran or take away their right to speak. The government cannot treat a critic’s departure as the solution on the one hand, while threatening their freedom in exile on the other. What is being heard today from beyond the borders is, at least in part, the product of those same policies of exclusion and repression. You brought this upon yourselves! If critics are tolerated neither in their homeland nor in exile, then where are they entitled to live and speak freely? Selected Sources Stanford University, Iran 2040 Project, Migration and Brain Drain from Iran (2020). Pew Research Center, 7 Facts About Iranian Americans (5 March 2026). UK Parliament Joint Committee on Human Rights, report on transnational repression (30 July 2025). US Department of Justice, notice of conviction in the plot to murder Masih Alinejad (30 October 2025). International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 12; UK Foreign Office, travel advice for Iran. Source: https://srouzbeh.com/en/posts/entry-1793888814660-b0728ac1 Please credit the author and link to this edition.