Music teacher, Iranian Farshid Melkian, fights deportation
Muslim who has converted to Christianity fears torture and imprisonment
Published: 14th January, 2011
by PETER GRUNER
AN Iranian who lives in Islington is fighting deportation by the British government back to his own country, where he fears torture and imprisonment.
Music teacher Farshid Melkian, 48, who has lived here for five years, has been refused asylum in Britain.
A member of St Mary’s Church, Upper Street, Mr Melkian – a Muslim by birth – converted to Christianity at the church last year.
He is divorced, with a child back in Iran, and was arrested in his home country during a protest involving Sufis, a mystical religious group often at odds with Iran’s fundamentalist regime.
“I was put in prison for five weeks by the Iranian authorities, where I was beaten,” he said. “They also played psychological games with me. They wanted me to sign papers saying that Sufis had support from the West or Israel. It wasn’t true.
“When I finally got out, I decided to escape to Britain. Now I’ve become a Christian I fear that the Iranian authorities will treat me even more harshly than before. They will put me in prison again. In Iran, the authorities don’t like people who leave the Islamic faith.”
Since the deportation order, Mr Melkian, who plays the Iranian instrument the setar, is unable to work and all benefits have been cut. He is existing on savings and is being given free accommodation by friends who live locally.
St Mary’s Minister, the Rev Simon Harvey, said he didn’t know the details of the deportation case but was delighted to have Farshid as a member of the congregation.
“We will be happy to provide any encouragement and support we can. We hope his appeal is successful.”
The Reverend Martine Oborne said Farshid had been a regular member of the church for some time. “He’s a nice man and very spiritual,” she said.
Mr Harvey added: “Farshid has enriched us, he has a gentle and quiet approach, and a sincere Christian faith.
“He’s even played the sitar for us during worship.
“I’ve been especially touched by the way that several members of the church community have been generous toward him, offering him real kindness and hospitality.”