Basir Ahang

Basir Ahang is a Hazara poet, journalist and human rights activist from Afghanistan. He lives in Italy and works for UNHCR.

Basir Ahang has received his diploma from Mir Adina High School in Malistan-Ghazni, and has received his bachelor degree in Persian Literature from Kabul University in 2007. While studying at Kabul University, he has been collaborating with different national and international media. He is one of Radio Malistan founders. Basir Ahang is best known for his social and cultural as well as human rights activities both in Afghanistan and in Europe that makes him an effective and influential figure among the youth.

After receiving security alerts for his activities in Afghanistan, Basir Ahang moved to Italy In 2008 where he continued his studies in International Relations in Padua University. In 2009, after being informed about the condition of the Afghanistan asylum seekers in Greece, he went to Patras city with a team of MSF (doctors without borders) and Italian advocates and journalists. His first reports in Persian that were published on Kabul Press, and in Italian on Italian news websites, shocked everyone, as no one had such first-person detailed reports from refugees and asylum seekers in Greece that far. Basir Ahang is a member of International Federation of Journalists since January 2009.

On March 31, 2009, the Italian parliament showed a reaction to one of his reports on misbehavior of Italian police with a minor named Ali Dad who was thirteen. The parliament asked the authorities to pursue the case. Basir Ahang made a documentary about the refugees and asylum seekers in Greece and after a part of this documentary was broadcast on Rai,”1” Italy’s public television, it caught the attention of journalists and human rights organizations and they were pushed to go to Greece to be able to see the condition of refugees and the violation of their rights and report on it. After these events in May 2009, some lawyers and human rights activists filed a complaint in the European Human Rights Court in Strasbourg France, against the Italian and the Greek governments for their misbehavior and violation of refugees’ rights in these two countries. In this complaint, they asked the EHRC to prevent the systematic refugee’s rights violation, by putting pressure on the Italian and Greek governments. The complaint is still in process after the EHRC has accepted the claim. The complaint includes files of 54 asylum seekers from Afghanistan and Somalia who were tortured by the Italian and Greek police.

Out of many articles in Italian about human rights and socio-political crisis in Afghanistan, three of Ahang’s articles are published in the books below;

1- Geopolitics of Peace 2009 Venice-Italy 2- Afghanistan; Cuore, Fede e Ragione 2012 Milan-Italy 3- Ripartire 2013 Rome- Italy

Ahang has so far, written hundreds of reports on refugees and their legal rights, women rights, freedom of speech and human rights violation]] in Afghanistan. His articles are written in Persian, Italian and English which are published in different online and printing media such as; Kabul Press, BBC Persian, Radio Zamaneh

, Deutsche Welle, Hazara People International Network, Refugee Face, Republic of Silence, Gharjistan, Outlook Afghanistan and the 8 a.m Daily. Some of his articles are translated in French, German and Arabic as well. In 2013 the Aljazeera website has named him the Expert on refugees’ issues. Basir Ahang has participated in several conferences on refugees, women’s rights, and Afghanistan crisis. He has also been appreciated by some human rights organizations for his activities.