Iran's homeless: Forced to live in cardboard cartons and vacant graves

On one cold night in December, some 750 homeless people in Tehran went to a homeless shelter - called Khavaran - to stay warm. Until then, the shelter hadn't housed more than 400 people on a single night.

Khavaran Hall is designed to house 600 people. This capacity is stretched to 1,100 on a winter night. The facility also accomodates seasonal workers who shower, eat one warm meal per day and sleep there. The causes of homelessness in Iran are unemployment, drug addiction, discrimination and poverty.

Homeless people in Iran often use improvised shelters called "cartonkhab," originating from the use of cardboard cartons for shelter. In December 2016, a 28-year-old man from the city of Nahavand was found dead in a building under construction. He had been ejected from his home because of drug-related problems. His was only one of many such deaths in "cartonkhabs" throughout the Iranian cities.

This photo was published in social media in August last year. The Iranian social activists and media republished it and asked politicians to do something about child "cartonkhabs." Subsequently, the health department officials visited two areas in Tehran where they discovered 12 women and six children among the homeless. These women and children were then taken to a shelter.

Only one week after the beginning of the government's homeless recovery plan, shocking news about the "gurkhabha" - homeless people who take shelter in vacant graves - broke on the media. The "Shahrvand" newspaper published a report about 50 women, men and children who spent the night sitting in open graves in the city of Nasirabad.

The authorities forcefully removed "gurkhabha" from the graveyard. The conservative opposition has used this issue to criticize Iranian President Hassan Rouhani for not fulfilling his election promises. Rouhani had stated that he would alleviate poverty and work against social injustice.

Three percent of the homeless women last winter were pregnant, according to government statistics. Most drug-addicted homeless women don't go to the health facilities due to the fear of legal action. Reports say some women even sell their children through gang connections.

Masumeh Abad, a member of the Tehran City Hall, recently said the number of children being sold under these conditions is quite small. She also stated that a sterilization plan won't solve the general homelessness problem. Majid Rezazade, the director of the Center for Rehabilitation and Prevention of Drug Addiction, said these women should be treated so that they can return to a normal life.

The non-governmental organizations in Iran have been working for the homeless people for decades. The "Tolue Bineshanha" (Sunrise of the Invisible) is one such organization that has been active since 2006 - providing food and social services to thousands of homeless Iranians.