I Don't Want to go to Paradise by Force!

Each asylum seeker’s story is like a book, an elaborate tale with its own twists and turns. While they may have common features, such as the risk of death and moments of intense fear, each individual’s story is unique and personal. 

Amir Ali's narrative is the 52nd asylum seeker’s story IranWire has published. An Afghan immigrant who lived and worked in Iran for many years, his is a story of a lifetime of migration, from Afghanistan to Iran, Iran to Turkey, and then to the Greek island of Lesbos. Today, he dreams of becoming a professional photographer and working for National Geographic. Early in 2020, before Greece went into lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic, the director of one of Lesbos’ museums organized an exhibition of Amir Ali's photography. 

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"I was once a devout Muslim, but then I couldn't convince myself. Maybe I'm not at that level. I wanted to be a normal human being first of all, and then choose a religion if I felt the need to be religious. In Afghanistan, they say you must be a Muslim and you must go to the mosque and pray and recite the Koran. Otherwise you may easily lose your life. I don't want to pretend to be a person that I am not. I didn't believe in religion, but for when I practiced religion and pretended to believe; it was like torture."

Amir Ali, who has chosen not to reveal his surname because he does not want his family to become involved in his life again, immigrated to Iran with his family in 1996, when he was eight years old. At the time, Afghanistan was ruled by the Taliban and there were high levels of migration to neighboring countries, especially Iran. He has no real recollection of that first trip; all he remembers is that that was the first time he had seen electricity and it was so beguiling that he stared at the lights until his eyes ached. 

At that time, there was no right to education for those who did not have identity documents. So he and the other children in the family worked alongside the adults. Amir Ali picked cotton with his mother.

Several years passed and the Taliban lost power of the country following the US invasion of Afghanistan. Many immigrants returned to their homeland, hoping to make a living and re-start their lives. They believed the Taliban's toppling from power would be the end of the war and to insecurity. But it did not lead to peace, and today, insecurity prevails in Afghanistan, a country that has now been at war for more than half a century. 

Traffickers, Hardship, Loneliness

Amir Ali's family also returned to Afghanistan, but he chose to stay in Iran, although he said in many ways his heart was still with his homeland. During his life in Iran, he had gone to Afghanistan many times to visit family via trafficking routes. But his last trip was the most traumatic: first he was taken hostage by traffickers, and then when he eventually arrived in Kerman he lost all his belongings, including his phone and all his contacts. He says the four years that followed were lost years. "I had no contact with my family. I didn't have any money. I worked as a laborer and constantly faced violence from my employer. Those were the worst times of my life, worse than Moria,” referring to the camp he lived in when he first arrived in Greece.

Eventually he got in contact with family in Iran and was able to combat some of the terrible loneliness he suffered. He returned to Afghanistan and joined the army. After serving in the Afghan army and facing the fear of death and the hardship of war, he knew what he wanted to do: "I decided to leave all these countries that want to take their people to heaven, and go to a place where human rights exist. No place in the world is perfect, but here the situation is much better than in the countries I came from."

So Amir Ali traveled across both Afghanistan and Iran and surrendered to the sea, where hundreds of refugees die every year. He didn't have much money, so he couldn't afford a lifejacket. In an inflatable boat, without protection, he along with dozens of other migrants set out on a journey to redefine himself. Like others who have been in similar situations, he says the journey was a moment-by-moment story of survival, where the future seemed out of reach. 

The Road to Photography

Amir Ali finally set foot in Europe and reached Greece. After arriving on the island of Lesbos, he lived in Moria Camp for a year and a half, and although he had never received much education, he tried to learn English and Greek. He left Moria — described as “hell” by many asylum seekers — and started work. The first job he found was sewing for a tailor who made clothes and other items out of the lifejackets asylum seekers had left on the beach after reaching the island. His English improved and, bit by bit, he pursued his dreams, the goals for which he had risked his life.

Eventually, he got a job working as a translator for Doctors Without Borders. At the same time, he began pursuing one of his greatest dreams: He bought a camera and discovered the island of Lesbos from the perspective of a non-refugee, an angle he describes as "ingenious" and "explorable." His photographs and creativity have been so effective that a director of a museum housed in an ancient building on the island decided to bring Amir Ali and his photographs to public attention. He set up an exhibition of his work in the museum.  

It has now been four years since Amir Ali arrived on the island of Lesbos, first as an asylum seeker and then working in a range of jobs. Today, with Doctors Without Borders, he is still connected to the world of asylum seekers. At the same time, he explores nature and considers his life through his camera: "I appreciate life more now,” he says. “I think I have reached a certain peace after these experiences. I have more respect for myself and those around me, and I see people and issues more deeply. These experiences have changed me. My goal was to come to a country where I could be myself. I wanted to be where no one was forcing me to do what I didn't want to do; where human beings are equal, where there is no war of religion, color, language, or nationality. Fortunately, I achieved many of them. I feel I have achieved many of my goals."

His dream is beginning to come true, and he hopes to be photographer for National Geographic, to photograph places that are "unique and spectacular” and that not everyone can access. “I'd like to get my camera and go where many can't easily go,” he says. A lifetime of immigration can lead a person to redefine himself. Amir Ali’s incredible experiences have made him who he is today, and his experiences have fostered in him the ability to pursue his own unique future.