Local villagers, mainly from the Iranian side, have for years been carrying goods and commercial items to sell on both sides of the border. This act has been deemed illegal by Iran.
However, according to Aziz Hassani, the mayor of the Kurdish city of Sardasht, the locals will be given special licenses to be able to carry on their border crossings on foot and avoid the risk of being stopped by border guards.
Hassani said that the decision to reopen the border and license the villagers has come from Iran’s interior ministry in Tehran and is supposed to go into effect in 10 days.
The special license comes with a few conditions, said the Sardasht mayor.
Only heads of families, who have finished their military service and live within 15 kilometers of the border qualify for the special permit.
“Those who apply for the license must not be employees of any government or military institution, or rich and no younger than 18 years old,” Hassani said.
“No one can give his license to someone else except female heads of families who can give the license to a relative to use for work,” he added.
The Sardasht mayor did not elaborate as to how many people may apply for the license.
People crossing the Iran-Kurdistan Region border have been called smugglers but locally known as kolbars or load carriers.
They have often been arrested by Iranian border guards, their horses and mules shot and their cargo seized.
According to Hassani, this decision is an attempt by the government to organize the land border crossing.
Thousands of villagers of young and old age are engaged in the cross-border trade.
They often carry goods such as electronics, alcohol and cigarettes from the Kurdistan Region to Iran where most of these items are banned.
The announcement comes just days after a visit by the mayor of Sardasht and Iran’s consul general to the Kele-Qaladize border area.
Local kolbars have reported that government authorities have long had plans to license them, but the efforts were hampered by the army who wanted a share of the revenue generated from tariffs imposed on the locals.
