December 25 2020
Iranian chess referee Shohreh Bayat has now been granted asylum in the UK; she is the fourth major chess figure from Iran to give up on the Islamic Republic and move abroad this year.
The three women to abandon Iran have done so because of the dress code, which requires them to cover their hair even while abroad. The one male to leave the country did so because of the ban on Iranians competing against Israelis.
The 32-year-old Bayat is an arbiter (referee) for the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and was chief arbiter at the Women’s World Chess Championship 2020 in China. What should have been a career highlight pitched Bayat into the center of a cultural row in January after an image circulated that appeared to show her hair uncovered. Actually, she was wearing a scarf, but it was pushed far back on her head and did not show given the angle at which the photo was taken.
Bayat has now abandoned the headscarf entirely.
Bayat is Asia’s first ever female Category A international chess arbiter.
After the hejab incident in January, she did not return to Iran for fear of being arrested. Instead, she flew to England and applied for asylum. After 10 months, she was finally granted asylum in October.
In September, she revealed to The Telegraph of London that she has Jewish roots that she had kept hidden in Iran and, while waiting for asylum in Britain, had been able to celebrate her first Rosh Hashanah—the Jewish New Year.
“All my life was about showing a fake image of myself to society because they wanted me to be an image of a religious Muslim woman, which I wasn’t,” she told the newspaper.
On October 30, several journalists and senior figures in British chess took to Twitter to report that Bayat’s application for asylum had been successful. “England’s gain is Iran’s loss,” wrote Telegraph chess correspondent Malcolm Pein. “Look forward to see her officiating at many of our tournaments.”
Bayat’s family has also come under pressure since the January incident. Chess champion and vice-president of FIDE Nigel Short revealed that Bayat’s father, Kiumars, was forced to quit as president of the Gilan Chess Association as punishment for his daughter’s perceived transgression.
Restrictions imposed by the Islamic Republic have prompted several top chess players to stop playing under the Iranian flag.
