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Shoan Vaisi: "The state must take action against right-wing structures in the authorities such as the police"
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SPIEGEL:
Mr. Vaisi, you want to join the Bundestag, apply spontaneously to the left in North Rhine-Westphalia for a promising place on the list, and you want to run for a constituency candidate.
Why are you doing that?
Vaisi:
I've been politically active for years.
I had been thinking about a Bundestag candidacy for a long time.
In the end, I was convinced by the withdrawal of the refugee and Greens politician Tareq Alaows, who ran for the Bundestag here in North Rhine-Westphalia and now no longer wants to move into parliament because of racism experiences.
So I thought to myself: It just can't be!
Someone is doing what the majority of Germans expect from us refugees: He is committed to society, gets involved here.
And then something like that happens.
My comrades have encouraged me to take this step.
To person
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Shoan Vaisi
,
born 1990 in Sanandaj in Iran, fled to Germany via Turkey and Greece in 2011.
Since 2018 he has been studying social work in Bochum.
He is a member of the left and is committed to the party in Essen.
He has been a German citizen since 2017.
At the party convention of the North Rhine-Westphalian Left next weekend, he wants to run for the promising 12th place on the state list for the federal election.
SPIEGEL:
Tareq Alaows has not yet responded to inquiries; there is only the press release from his local Green Association in Dinslaken, in which he is quoted with the allegations.
Do you know him, have you spoken to him?
Vaisi:
No, I haven't had any contact with him yet.
SPIEGEL:
Do you personally fear racist attacks during the election campaign?
Vaisi:
I was involved in politics in Iran from an early age.
In a country where political engagement is not rewarded, but persecuted and punished.
In this respect: I am not dominated by fear.
My party is behind me.
I was also a professional athlete in the Second Ringer Bundesliga, so I know how to defend myself in an emergency.
But so that this is not misunderstood: I can absolutely understand the decision of Tareq Alaows.
If I didn't run for office either, it would be a favor for the right wingers.
For me: now all the more.
SPIEGEL:
How do you deal with racism yourself?
"If I didn't run for office either, it would be a favor for the right wingers."
Vaisi:
I've lived in Germany for more than nine years and have often experienced racism.
Still, I always try to see the glass as half full and not half empty.
I don't want to let that get me down.
SPIEGEL:
What can the state do to give you more security?
Vaisi:
The state has to take action against right-wing structures in the authorities such as the police.
We also need more support for the civil society associations that campaign against racism.
The state must not put obstacles in the way of those who work every day for an open society.
SPIEGEL:
You fled Iran to Germany in 2011.
How did that happen?
Vaisi:
In Iran I belong to the Kurdish minority, which in itself leads to conflicts with the state.
I have been politically active since my youth, and above all I campaigned for minority and women's rights.
Immediately after graduating from high school, I was persecuted by the state for my political commitment.
In the end, I had a choice: Either I would go to prison in Iran for many years and be tortured, or I would leave the country.
So I walked to Turkey and finally ended up in Germany.
I quickly got involved with the left here.
In Iran I also belonged to a left group.
SPIEGEL:
Kurds are still being deported from the European Union to Iran today.
Vaisi:
Yes, that is inhuman.
We on the left are calling for a general ban on deportation for everyone.
Kurds are persecuted in Iran.
Although they are a small minority, they make up a large proportion of the prisoners in Iran.
SPIEGEL:
What do you want to achieve in the Bundestag, should you make the leap into parliament?
Vaisi:
I am a social worker and my main concern is child and youth work.
Above all, I want to fight to ensure that everyone has the same educational opportunities, regardless of their migration background and social class.
Of course, I would also like to change refugee policy.
SPIEGEL:
If there was a majority for a green-red-red government alliance after the election, should the left use that?
Vaisi:
That's a controversial topic for us.
For me, it's about achieving something for the people in my political struggle.
If, in a green-red-red federal government, we can prevent Bundeswehr deployments abroad, do more in climate policy and do more for the socially disadvantaged, then we should do it and participate in government.
