Hundreds gathered on Monday outside Södersjukhuset in Stockholm to protest the deportation of two valued assistant nurses, Zahra Kazemipour and Afshad Joubeh. The couple, who fled Iran in 2016, face expulsion from Sweden due to a law change abolishing track switching for work permits. Colleagues and unions warn that the decision will severely impact healthcare.
Zahra Kazemipour, 50, and Afshad Joubeh, 56, fled Iran in 2016 due to threats against Afshad, who had been imprisoned for regime criticism. They arrived in Sweden with their then six-year-old son and applied for asylum in 2017, but were denied in 2020 after appeals. Through track switching, which allowed asylum seekers with jobs to apply for work permits without leaving the country, they stayed and worked as assistant nurses at Södersjukhuset in Stockholm. In Iran, Zahra was a head nurse and Afshad a cardiologist; in Sweden, they contributed during the pandemic, and Zahra is training to become a licensed nurse. Seven years ago, they had a daughter, and their son attends Swedish school.
In April 2024, the government abolished track switching as part of stricter migration policy, requiring applications from abroad. The couple applied for extensions in December 2023 before their permits expired in April, but the Migration Agency decided after the law change, leading to denial in November 2024. Deportation is planned after January 8, 2025. The family cannot return to Iran due to life risks and has no plan for where to go.
On Monday, December 23, 2024, hundreds gathered at the hospital entrance with candles and signs to protest. Senior physician Stephan Serenius called the decision 'inhumane, inhuman, and undignified' and criticized it as contrary to Swedish values. Anesthesiologist Jacob Broms, who worked with Zahra during the pandemic, described it as 'absurd' and emphasized the need for their skills. Nurse Charlotte Petterson Enblad suggested exceptions for established cases, while Elin Karlsson from the Swedish Medical Association stated it is 'very wrong' to deport integrated staff when healthcare lacks competence.
Migration Minister Johan Forssell (M) defended the changes, citing issues like fraud and vulnerability in the old system. He noted reduced asylum immigration and shortened decision times to 19 days but understood emotions in individual cases. 'We inherited a broken system,' he said, pointing to 500,000 unemployed in Sweden. Despite support from colleagues, Zahra feels shocked: 'We have no plan.'
