E/CN.4/2005/85/Add.2 page 10 25. Opportunities for higher education were closing in 2003 and Afghans living in refugee camps told the mission that they had very few opportunities to attend university. Although it was decreed that even undocumented children would be permitted to attend school, an NGO representative mentioned that some local authorities continued to deny refugee children entrance to public schools. Representatives of Afghan communities also informed the Special Rapporteur that Iranian authorities were cutting educational assistance to the 250,000 Afghan children in Iran. In the past, Afghan families had to pay one third of the education fees but as of the end of 2003, Afghan families would have to pay the totality of the fees. 26. The authorities also progressively reduced assistance for health care throughout 2004. For instance, it became obligatory to subscribe to health insurance schemes at full cost. From September 2004 school fees were compulsory for all Afghan children. 27. If an Afghan marries an Iranian woman, their children have no legal status because the presence of the Afghan man is irregular and the marriage is not recognized officially. The Special Rapporteur was told that in Khourastan Province, over 10,000 children are facing this situation. At the same time, other groups, after 10-15 years’ stay in Iran, have now integrated into Iranian society to the extent that they are reluctant to uproot themselves and their children born in Iran and face an uncertain future in Afghanistan. Torbat-e-Jam Refugee Camp 28. Built in 1994, Torbat-e-Jam refugee camp looks like a housing complex; with wide shrub-lined avenues, several parks, a football field, a gym and a bazaar, it is often described as one of the best refugee camps in the world. Currently, it hosts some 5,500 refugees (2,623 women and 2,817 men) living in 928 houses. Some 1,500 students attend the camp school, which has 170 Iranian teachers for primary and secondary levels. Forty-two students from the camp are currently pursuing their studies at Universities of Mashed and Tehran. 29. An advisory council composed of refugees living in the camp manages all aspects of life through different committees established for that purpose, such as the Committee on Health, Cultural Affairs and Development. 30. Residents in the camp speak Dari and most of them have been living there for seven years or more. They enjoy free access to education, health facilities and basic food. They also have the opportunity of earning a living within the camp by setting up small businesses, or outside the camp, working mainly in agriculture and on construction sites. 31. Most of the young residents living in the camp do not have a clear idea of whether they would like to stay in Iran or go to Afghanistan. The majority of them never lived in their country of origin and feel that prospects in Iran and in Afghanistan are rather limited. In Iran, a number of professions are not available to them and economic conditions in Afghanistan do not provide them with opportunities in terms of employment or earning a living.