Farid was born into a poor family in Marivan’s Chali Sur, western Iran. Overcome by a sense of responsibility to help his family, he dropped out of school at the age of 17 and decided to work the treacherous paths through the mountains as a kolbar.
Kolbars are semi-legal porters who transport untaxed goods across the Kurdistan Region-Iran border and sometimes the Iran-Turkey border. They are constantly targeted by Iranian border guards and are sometimes victims of natural disasters. Many kolbars are pushed into the profession by poverty and a lack of alternative employment, particularly in Iran's Kurdish provinces where unemployment is high.
Around the same time he started working, Farid fell in love and hoped to impress her family by saving enough money to provide a decent living for their daughter. He fulfilled that dream and the young couple married.
“Farid was ecstatic that he was able to reach his beloved and that is why he was working tirelessly. But unfortunately that happiness only lasted 20 days,” said one of Farid’s kolbar friends who spoke to Rudaw English on condition of anonymity.
On February 6, Farid and a group of other kolbars were on their way back from the Kurdistan Region with their heavy packs on their backs when they lost their way in a powerful blizzard that raged in the mountainous areas of Anjiran, north of Marivan.
The group told one of their younger kolbars to lay down his load and run for help from a nearby village, but as the sun began to set on the day, it also did on Farid’s life.
“His friend went and asked for help, but by the time he returned and despite the villagers’ efforts, they found Farid’s lifeless body, frozen to death,” said the friend.
Farid was only 20 years old.
This past winter has been exceptionally tragic for Iran’s impoverished kolbars who have lost their lives because of the extreme conditions and natural disasters, or were killed or wounded by Iranian border guards. Many were also treated with hostility by Iraqi border guards. Iran and Iraq have increased security along the border in the past year in an effort to limit the activities of Kurdish-Iranian groups who are opposed to the Islamic republic regime.
In its annual report on human rights violations in Iran for 2023, the Paris-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network said that 29 kolbars died last year, two of whom froze to death.
Written and translated by Chenar Chalak