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Cherie Blair QC – one of the United Kingdom’s leading human rights lawyers and wife of former Prime Minister Tony Blair – is calling for Iran to ensure that seven leaders of the Bahá’í faith – held in prison for more than a year without charge or access to their legal counsel – be given a fair trial and a chance of justice.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)– responding to
On July 9, 2009, Rep. Frank Wolf of Virginia made the following statement, urging the Obama administration “to make human rights and religious freedom, including the persecuted Baha’is, an integral part of the dialogue” with Iran.
Norway’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Iran’s charge d’affaires in Oslo, Mohsen Bavafa, to express its concern for the human rights situation in Iran.
At midnight on Tuesday June 30th 2009, unidentified men broke the glass storefront of the Mr. Peyman Shadman’s automotive supply store in Semnan and set the place on fire by throwing explosives inside. Mr. Shadman is an Iranian citizen and a Baha’i.
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Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community |
Posted: 19 Jul 2009 01:58 PM PDT
Editor’s Note: Dr. Naficy is a well-known Iranian poet, writer, and human rights and political activist. In April of this year, he wrote a brilliant essay, which Iran Press Watch was pleased to share extracts of which in translation (ipw1, ipw2, and ipw3). Dr. Naficy has graciously provided this site with a full translation of his essay and Iran Press Watch is pleased to bring this seminal article to the attention of its readers. By Dr. Majid Naficy Recently, a letter was published over the signature of 42 Iranian intellectuals addressed to the Baha’i community and proclaiming “one and a half century of persecution and our silence is enough”. The title of the letter was We are Ashamed. Over a month ago, Mr. Khosro Shemiranie sent this letter to me to sign. Even though from the age of fourteen I have been saddened by what Baha’is have been going through and I have written about it, I responded that I could not sign it since it was instigated by a “feeling of shame” and “collective sin” and not “seeking justice and freedom of conscience”. I added, “If you reword this letter in which the phrase ‘We are Ashamed’ is repeated thirteen times and change it to ‘We arise to defend the rights of Baha’is’, you can be sure that I will sign it without any hesitation.” Now that this open letter has been published and broadly disseminated, and many others have joined as signatories, I find it necessary to write my reasons for not signing it. I hope by launching this discussion, I can bring to light the tyranny and persecutions to which Baha’is have been subjected during the rule of the three regimes of Qajar, Pahlavi and Khomeini over the past 160 years. 1. My First Encounter with Baha’is The first time I got to know a Baha’i was in Sa’di High School in Isfahan, when I was in the seventh grade. His name was Golestan Mossafaei, and he was in the eleventh grade. I met him at our school’s Literature Club. The club was managed by Mohammad Hoquqi, our teacher and resident poet. This club did not last long; it shut down under the pressure imposed by prejudiced school officials. Golestan always had a sweet smile, and sometimes he composed poems. A few times I went to his house, which was located close to a stream in Darvazeh Hasanabad. It was a modest house with one room. Even that room was barely furnished. Golestan explained how their house had been set on fire a few times, by an anti-Baha’i group called Hojjatiyeh. Flyers had also been thrown into their yard, pressuring them to leave their residence. I felt deeply sad hearing about the tyranny inflicted on Golestan and his family. I wrote a short story about it, and read it to members of my literary circle “Jong-e Isfahan”. The vice principal of the school was furious about my friendship with Golestan, and told my father that Majid had been entrapped by Baha’is. My father gave me a worn-out booklet called “Memoires of Prince Dolgoruki”, the Russian Ambassador in Iran from 1846-1854, who allegedly claimed that the Baha’i movement had been started by Russians in order to destroy Iran and the Shiah sect of Islam. My mother forbade me from having a friendship with Golestan Mossafaei. She made such a monster of Golestan that whenever my four year old sister was mad at me, she would say, “Get lost Mofassaaei”. School teachers collaborated in pressuring me, and failed me in “calligraphy” when I was in grade 7! I was a bright student who had passed grade six with an average above 90. In the eighth grade, I was given failing grades in “calligraphy”, “religion”, “algebra” and “geometry”, and had to retake the exams for these subjects at the end of summer. I was not given passing grades and had to repeat grade 8 the following year. This was the first big failure of my life, and taught me a lesson in resilience. I left day school, and enrolled in a night school so that I would be able to complete two grades in one year. Sa’di High School was run by a religious mafia, composed of a few teachers and a fanatically religious vice principal. At the top of the group, there was a physics teacher whose name was Nuri and looked like a shopkeeper in the old bazaar. His shirts were buttoned up to the chin, and his face was always unshaven. He was the one who shut down our literature club, with the excuse that the organizer of the club disseminated the atheistic views of the prominent novelist, Sadeq Hedayat (1903-51), and caused students to drift away from Islam. Two mullahs by the names of Rohani and Faqih-Imami were our “religion” teachers. Another Mullah named Fazaeli, with good penmanship, taught us calligraphy. Even though he had a close relationship with the Shah’s appointed rulers in Isfahan, he also had close ties with our school religious mafia.[1] After two years of studying at night school, I enrolled in another high school called Harati. That school was not free of staunch religious, fanatical teachers either. I remember on cold winter days, as we heard the school bell ring, we had to stand still on the spot and listen to Mr. Parvaresh. After the revolution when he was appointed a Minister, we found out that he had been a member of an anti-Baha’i group [Hojjatieh Society -- see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ 2. Shaykhis and Mullahs About the same time, impressed by the book Tat Neshinha-ye Boluk Zahra [The Tat People of the Zahra County] written by Jalal Al-Ahmad (1923-69), I became interested in the rural life of Iran and in traveling to a small village called Jandaq situated on the edge of Dasht- Namak desert. Inhabitants of this village told me that they were followers of a sect called Shaykhi Baqiri. This enticed me to started reading Shaykhi books. I realized that the teachings of Shaykh Ahmad Ahsa’i (1753-1826) and his successor, Siyyid Kazim Rashti (1793-1843) had been instrumental for the appearance of Ali-Muhammad the Bab (1819-50) [co-founder of the Baha'i Faith]. After the death of Siyyid Kazim Rashti, one of the Qajar Princes, Aqa Karim Khan Kermani (1810-1871) became the Shaykhi leader. In order to stop his followers from accepting the Bab, he turned into the most active anti-Babi mullah of his time. Shaykhis grew in number and influence under him and his heir’s leadership. Even Mozaffari’d-Din Shah considered himself a Shaykhi. After Karim Khan Kermani, the Shaykhi school of thought was divided into two branches. One branch that was in the majority considered Karim Khan’s son as their leader and the Fourth Pillar (that is, the intermediary between the Hidden Imam and his followers, which is similar to Khomeini’s idea of Velayet-e Faqih, “rule by jurists”). The other branch, under the leadership of Mohammad-Baqir Hamadani, rejected the heredity nature of the Fourth Pillar. They became known as Shaykhi Baqiris. After studying Shaykhi books, I concluded that some of Shaykh Ahmad’s views seemed more logical than the views of his Shiah counterparts. For example, resurrection at the Day of Judgment (known as Hurqalya) was the resurrection in a softer and more refined form– not a physical reconstruction. I found the Babi movement attractive only to the extent that it was egalitarian and the fact that a courageous female poet by the name of Tahirih Zarrin-Taj (1814 or 1817-1852) was one of its prominent followers. Other than that, from a young age, I was not interested in religious ideology. My paternal grandfather, Abu-Torab, who had left the city of Kerman to settle in Pudeh, a small village near Isfahan, did not accept the heredity branch of the Shaykhis. Going through my father’s library, I came across a few manuscripts of his grandfather, and once briefly read through one which explored the philosophical issue of free will versus predestination. My father believed that there were no differences between Shaykhi and currently practiced Shiah schools, and that it was just a matter of whom each group considered to be their Source of Emulation. However, I had the feeling that my parents were afraid of becoming known as Shaykhis and kept secret their meetings for the purpose of studying and discussing the books of Kermani and Hamadani. Among the views of Shaykhi Baqiris, my father liked their distrust of traditional mullahs. Among contemporary Islamic thinkers, my father liked Ali Shariati (1933-77), an Iranian scholar who was against the cast of clergy. I remember my father, while driving for picnics on Fridays, used to sing a folk song making fun of mullahs: “I am a mullah, a mullah / Stayed overnight in a stable / A flea came and bit me / I kicked my quilt off/ Burnt my cot / And broke my teaspoon / I am a mullah, a mullah / Stayed overnight in a stable”. In Iranian folktales, a mullah was often pictured as a “cunning fox”, and as a creature obsessed with food, overeating and sexual excesses, while pretending to be pious and self righteous. Khomeini was well aware of how mullahs were portrayed and their reputation. After the revolution, imitating his teacher, Abdul-Karim Haeri-Yazdi, Khomeini, in one of his speeches, changed the famous proverb “How easy to become a mullah, how hard to become a human!” to “How hard to become a mullah, impossible to become a human”. He was trying to influence the subconscious of the masses and to overcome their innate sense of mistrust and resentment towards the mullahs. 3. From Tahirih to Ezzat From 1964 to 1981, occasionally I came upon or heard about Baha’is. For example, I heard about Bahram Sadeqi (1936-86), a renowned storywriter from Najafabad who was a Baha’i. However, it was on September 17, 1981, when I found myself again in a situation in which I felt that I had the same destiny as Baha’is. It was over two years since the revolution in Iran. Fundamentalist militant rulers were violently persecuting and executing members of the Iranian National Front and the leftist organizations. These groups were the ones that had played a crucial role in uprooting the Pahlavi regime. On September 16, my wife and comrade, Ezzat Tabaian, left the house. That night, she phoned a friend and hurriedly told him that while being chased by the Islamic Militia, she had fallen and broken her pelvic bone. My wife asked him to contact me and tell me to quickly destroy all “incriminating evidence” in the house. The next day, the same friend asked if I had a safe place to spend the night, knowing that our home would not be spared from attacks. When I replied that I had nowhere to go, he suggested a large house on Lashkar square that belonged to his old aunt. I knew his aunt was a Baha’i, and her house would not be a safe place either. However, we had no choice but to go to his aunt’s house. A deft servant opened the door and led us in. The old aunt told us how Islamic forces had arrested the last members of the Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Tehran. She was worried about her own safety as well. That night, I had the strange feeling that Tahirih, the courageous Babi female poet was talking to me from the edge of the well into which she had been thrown after being strangled, 150 years before. I was seeing a connection between Tahirih and the painful fate of my wife in the claws of her tormentors. A few years later on September 18, 1986, I wrote a poem, Raftam Golat Bechinam [I Went to Find your Flower] published in a collection of poems under the same title, about the events of three days after the arrest of my wife Ezzat. The second part of the poem relates to the old Baha’i woman who offered me her home as refuge: I have hardly fled The slaughter place of a Marxist To take refuge in a Baha’i’s. Is there a lesson here for me? In the deserted courtyard Where the yellow leaves rustle And the lonely goldfish Circles in the green water, A secret is revealed to me: The bloody body of Zarrin Taj is still Hanging over the prison’s well. - Have you seen my Isaac? The old building echoes my words. “Ezzat”s and “Tahirih”s had the same destiny. On January 7, 1982, Ezzat and another leftist woman, along with fifty leftist men, faced the firing squad. Their bodies were dumped in the Khavaran cemetery located southeast of Tehran. Two months before that, I had gone to the same cemetery with my wife to visit the grave of a relative, Sadeq Okhovat, who had faced the firing squad. At that time, there were perhaps fewer than 30 graves at Khavaran. The second visit was for my wife, and I was accompanied by my brother-in-law, Hosein Okhovat-Moqadam. However, when Hosein was executed a few weeks later, I could not bring myself to visit the Khavaran cemetery again. Later I learned that three days before my wife was executed — that is, on January 4, 1982 — six members of the Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Tehran had been executed and their bodies had been dumped in the same cemetery. On January 2009, this cemetery was demolished by the Islamic Government of Iran. It was the resting place of 50 Baha’is, and thousands of other freedom-seeking Iranians. 4. The Test of the Broadmindedness of Iranians I know about the sufferings endured by Baha’is not only from books, but also from seeing it first hand in my own day-to-day life. Their sufferings date back to the time of the Shah of Iran, particularly in the 1950s, when with the Shah’s approval and using the national radio, Mohammad-Taqi Falsafi would deliver blistering sermons which provoked mobs to attack Baha’i holy places. This trend has continued under the present reign of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has been governing for the past 30 years, and has executed over 200 Baha’is solely on the ground that they were Baha’is. Baha’is do not have the slightest basic human or civil rights as Iranian citizens. In an article which I wrote in 2004 titled “Shirin Ebadi and Freedom of Conscience”, I recognized: Defending the Baha’is must be considered a litmus test for any intellectual Iranian claiming that they honor human rights. In the Islamic government of Iran, there is no place for any Baha’i, Buddhist, Hindu, atheist, or the like. This is because according to Article 13 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic, the only recognized religious minorities are Zoroastrian, Jewish, or Christian Iranians. Among the many minority groups that are legally deprived of their right to freedom of conscience, the situation of the Baha’is has been in particular the bleakest. From the inception of this religion, dating back to the era of Mohammad Shah Qajar, the Iranian Shiah clergy have been leading open attacks on this community [i.e. Babis and Baha’is]. The clergy imagined that the appearance of the Bab robbed them of their messianic claim to the expected Hidden Imam, Who is suppose to appear at the “end of time” to fill the world with justice. They believe that the appearance of the Bab took away from them the raison d’etre of Shi’ism. During the final decade of the Shah’s regime, rumors began to be spread by fanatical groups known for their anti-Baha’i stance, aimed at provoking the people with mentally-sick hatred against the Baha’is, that Baha’is were supporters of the Shah. These false rumors became so widespread that even after the 1979 revolution, when in 1981 the regime began to intensely suppress the opposition including the Baha’is, Iranian intellectuals hesitated to defend the Baha’is against oppression – even when they could see perfectly well that Baha’is were being imprisoned, tortured, and executed merely for being Baha’i. It is for this reason that I consider the single most important quality of a democratic-minded Iranian is to be a supporter of the right of Baha’is to their religion and not heed the fictitious excuse that “Baha’is are members of a political party and not a true religion”. 5. The Test of the Broadmindedness of Baha’is After the publication of my article on Shirin Ebadi and the freedom of consciousness referred to above, I was asked: if the test of broadmindedness of an Iranian is in his defense of the rights of Baha’is, then what defines the broadmindedness of a Baha’i? In my opinion, a democratic Iranian Baha’i must not only defend the rights of all heterodox thinkers in Iran, but must first and foremost defend the rights of the followers of Azal who call themselves by the name Bayani. Only then can a Baha’i be worthy of the title of free and democratic. To make this matter more clear, I will explain something that happened in 1987 in Los Angeles. I was invited to a poetry night, and recited the poem raftam golat bechinam, from which a stanza was quoted above. Among the attendees was a Baha’i couple. At that time, in this poem I had used the word Babi instead of Baha’i. Afterwards, the Baha’i woman asked, “Why did you use the word Babi? Today there are no Babis and they all have become Baha’is.” Her question and comment not only demonstrated the narrow-mindedness and exclusivity of some Baha’is towards the minority group of the Babi-Azalis, but it also illustrates the narrow-mindedness of many Iranian leftists, of which I had been one, as well. At this point is it necessary to briefly look at the history of the emergence of the Babi movement and the divisions that took place within it. 6. The Azalis and the Baha’is At the age of 24, Ali-Muhammad Shirazi in 1844 declared himself to be the Bab, which means he was the gate to the Promised One of Shia Islam. He later confirmed that indeed He was the Promised One himself. Shortly before His execution in 1850 in Tabriz, He named one of His followers, a 14-year-old youth named Mirza Yahya Nuri, to be His successor and gave him the title Subh-i Azal.[2] After the premiership of Amir Kabir, efforts to eradicate the Babis increased in intensity and many of them were compelled to leave their native land. In 1863, Mirza Husayn-Ali, known as Baha’u’llah, declared himself to be “He Whom God Shall Make Manifest”, Whose appearance was foretold by the Bab. Baha’u’llah was a step-brother of Mirza Yahya (Subh-i Azal) and was 13 years his senior. At the time, both brothers lived in Edirne, a town in the Ottoman Empire. Mirza Yahya did not accept his brother’s claim and the differences between the two caused enmity and bloodshed among the Babis. Eventually, in order to alleviate the situation, the Ottoman government was forced to exile Yahya to Cyprus and Baha’u’llah to Palestine. Edward Browne (1862-1929), an English scholar who visited both brothers, writes about this bloodshed which resembles the enmity between Shiah and Sunni in Islam or Trotsky and Stalin at the time of Bolshevism.[3] The followers of Baha’u’llah proclaimed their mission to be for the entire world and quickly grew in numbers. However, the followers of the younger brother [Mirza Yahya], returned to or stayed in Iran to fight against the political system and to reduce the influence of the Qajar dynasty. Two of Mirza Yahya’s sons-in-Law, Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani and Shaykh Ahmad Ruhi, emerged at the forefront of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution (1905-11). They gave their life in this path in Tabriz. During the 1909 interval in which the Iranian Constitution was suspended, the successor of Mirza Yahya by the name of Yahya Dawlatabadi was collaborating with the prominent writer Ali-Akbar Dehkhoda (1879-1959) to publish the freedom-fighting newspaper Sorush in Istanbul. Today, Azalis who continue to call themselves Bayani, that is, followers of the book of the Bayan written by the Bab, are a small minority community in Iran. Because of their practice of dissimulation, they hide their beliefs. By contrast, the followers of Baha’u’llah have their center in Haifa, have worldwide recognition and number several million. 7. The Dualistic Approach of the Leftist Movement During the 1970s, leftist intellectuals in Iran revisited the Bab’s movement and grew attracted to it as a social uprising against feudalism — they also acknowledged the contributions of Azali thinkers during the Constitutional Revolution.[4] However, as Iranian Marxists on one hand did not respect the necessary role of freedom of conscience, and on the other hand believed the fictitious rumors about Baha’i collaboration with the government during the premiership of Amir-Abbas Hoveyda (and the evidence they had in this regard was that the notorious Parviz Sabeti ran the SAVAK’s televised shows), they had a negative view of the Baha’is. This negative attitude increased, particularly after the revolution. The Soviet-oriented Tudeh party, which considered itself a main backer of the Islamic regime, started helping the fundamentalist clergy in their anti-Baha’i activities. As written by Reza Fani-Yazdi, “Suddenly, in spring 1982, the Tudeh party sent a circular letter to all its regional offices throughout the country instructing that all Baha’is were to be expelled from its membership rolls.”[5] The members of the Tudeh party were asked not only to expel the Baha’is, but also to divulge the identity of any members of the independent leftist groups who were anti-regime. Though the Tudeh party had played an important role in creating the new Islamic regime, it was not long after the revolution that they fell prey to the oppressive regime they had helped build. On February 11, 1981, an independent Marxist and anti-establishment group, Peykar Organization had arranged a demonstration in Tehran’s Enqelab Square to mark the anniversary of the anti-Shah revolution. There I was identified by two medical students supporters of the Tudeh Party) with whom I had used to go hiking at the time of the Shah. The Islamic security guards had turned Capri, a movie theatre into a centre for interrogating demonstrators. They seized me, and were dragging me to the interrogation center when I managed to escape with the help of a few friends who started fighting with the vigilante. (Two of my rescuers are still alive and live in North California.) When I made it home, I found my wife Ezzat very worried; she had seen me captured, but had not seen my escape. Alas, only a few months later it was I who had to witness my wife leaving home and never coming back. 8. Appeal for Justice not Collective Shame With 300,000 followers in Iran, the Baha’i community is the largest minority group after the Sunni sect of Islam. Nevertheless, Baha’is are deprived of all basic human and civil rights, including the freedom of belief, access to higher education, and employment in any government sector. In a secret memorandum issued in 1991 and signed by the leader, Khamenei and President Rafsanjani, the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council instructed all its lower bodies regarding the principle policy of the government towards Baha’is: “prevention of their progress and advancement” at all levels of society.[6] This was also the policy of Khomeini before and after the revolution. While residing in Paris in the summer of 1978, Khomeini was interviewed by James Cockrof, a professor at Rutgers University. Khomeini was asked about his stance regarding the Baha’is and whether they would enjoy freedom of belief and action in an Islamic regime. Instead of a direct response, Khomeini stated, “Baha’ism is not a religion. It is a political party and a misguided sect”. The interviewer again asked if Baha’is would be allowed to practice their religious duties. Khomeini responded, “No”.[7] In Khomeini’s terse responses, one can find two justifications for the Shiah fundamentalist’s suppression of the Baha’is. The first justification is that the Baha’i faith is not a religion, but a political party associated with the government of the Shah and colonialism, and which gives support to Israel. Therefore, the Baha’is should be suppressed for the sake of the country’s security. The second justification is that the Baha’is are condemned for apostasy. According to Article 5 of the Criminal Code regarding the “law of apostasy” presented to the Islamic Parliament in February 2008, apostates (which includes the Baha’is) will be sentenced to death if they are male, and life imprisonment if they are female. The first justification mentioned above is based on collective punishment. That is, if a member of a group is alleged to have committed a crime, then all members of that group, whether male, female, elderly, or child, are guilty through association, and will be subject to punishment. The second justification is based on sheer disregard for human rights, freedom of belief and of the right to choose a religion or no religion. This justification has its roots in the obscurantism of the middle ages. In both the above justifications, the right and individual responsibility is completely absent, and instead emphasis is placed on collective belief and group ideologies. In contradistinction to the above, if we were to accept the principle that all humans, regardless of gender, religion, ethnicity, social status and religious belief, are equal before the law and that they have natural rights to freedom of belief, freedom of thought, freedom of expression, and such natural liberties, then the above two justifications for oppressing Baha’is and other minorities will have no foundation whatsoever. Therefore, it is necessary to recognize individual freedom in the country’s Constitution in order to open the door of justice to all Baha’is and other minorities. This appeal for justice has two inseparable parts: 1. Complete alignment of the country’s Constitution with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations, which calls for the separation of religion and state 2. Activities of the anti-Baha’i group Hojjatiyeh should be considered illegal and forced to end. All those who have been involved in the persecution of Baha’is and other minorities should be brought to justice in a court of law, in the presence of a jury and defense attorneys. As I mentioned in the beginning of this essay, the greatest shortcoming of the open letter to the Baha’i community of Iran titled “We are Ashamed” is that instead of demanding justice for the Baha’is (that is, insisting that freedom of belief must be enshrined in the Constitution and that anti-Baha’i groups be made illegal), it proposed a collective shame upon all Iranian intellectuals for allowing 150 years of oppression against the Baha’is. Instead of calling on people to accept human rights, this open letter has established its foundation on collective shame and group repentance. Without a doubt, when it comes to human and civil rights, the Baha’is of Iran are the most deprived. As I have mentioned earlier, the test of Iranian broadmindedness must be measured by his sensitivity to the cruelty perpetrated against this group of our countrymen. However, first, it is incorrect to accuse all intellectuals of “silence against crimes perpetrated against the Baha’is”. Each person is responsible for his own actions and not for the oversights of others, whether in the past or at the present. Second, feeling ashamed or guilty for wrongdoings committed in the past is a personal matter and should be sincerely communicated directly to the individuals or families adversely affected by the acts of oppression. As I wrote in my July 2006 essay titled “Behazin and right of silence” published in “Shahrvand” magazine, I clearly explained that asking individuals to feel ashamed or to repent publicly for their beliefs is an old method of religious inquisition, dating back to the reigns of dictators such as Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and Khomeini. The main objective of such practices is to undermine and destroy the individual’s self-worth. A liberated and broadminded intellectual would instead defend the rights of individuals, and would not allow public pressure to curtail individual beliefs and actions. They would insist on personal responsibility and choice. Public shaming and public confession is a method used by Franciscan monks in their inquisition period and employed in fanatical environments for the purpose of extracting acknowledgment and breaking down personal will. In a similar manner, party administrators in the Stalinist era or under Mao’s regime employed “self-critical sessions” which used such techniques, and Khomeini used them in his televised public “confessions”, or for compulsory group meetings in Evin prison. I say no to the so-called “original sin” of a group. I say no to metaphoric “baptism” by signing a letter that confesses to shame. We must fight for the freedom of belief and demand that anti-Baha’i activities be banned in Iran. Let everyone tell their own personal stories, and if one feels ashamed about keeping silent while crimes were committed, let him or her take personal responsibility and deal with it as he or she sees fit. 20 February 2009 Notes 1. In September 2000 I published my memoir of this period in a detailed essay “avalin-haye man” (My Firsts) in Shahrvand magazine. This essay has also been included in my book “man khod iran hastam va si-o-panj maqaleh-ye digar” (I am Iran Alone and Thirty-Five other Essays Toronto, Afra-Pegah publishers 2006 2. Dr. Naficy is mistaken in this regard. While the Bab consented to Baha’u’llah’s request for Mirza Yahya to be named a temporary head of the community, there is no evidence whatsoever that Mirza Yahya was named a successor. The title Subh Azal was not given by the Bab and was self-adopted by Mirza Yahya Nuri. [Translator] 3. For an example of this discussion, refer to Edward Granville Browne, A Year Amongst the Persians, Cambridge University Press, 1927, pp. 559-62. In that book, Browne refers to the killing of seven Azalis in Akka by the followers of Baha’u’llah. 4. For instance, see Mohammad-Reza Feshahi, Vapasin Junbesh Qurun Vusta’i: Akhbari, Usuli, Shaykhi and the Babi. Javidan Publications, Tehran, 1977. 5. Reza Fani-Yazdi, “Baha’i-setizi Pish va Pas az Enqelab” [Anti-Baha’ism before and after the Revolution”, Iran-Emrooz, 6/11/2008. 6. This document was uncovered by Reynaldo Pohl, the United Nations’ special representative on human rights in Iran, and published by him in his report of 1993: http://bic.org/assets/Pohl% 7. See The Denial of Higher Education to the Baha’is of Iran, by Geoffrey Cameron. [The Persian version of this essay was first published on Thursday, March 12, 2009, at http://fa.shahrvand.com/2008- |
[Source: http://hra-news.org/news/2038. |
Thursday, July 16, 2009
PM underlines concern for Iran’s Bahá’ís at historic meeting with Bahá’í delegation
Posted: 15 Jul 2009 04:00 PM PDT
The Prime Minister Gordon Brown has underlined the UK government’s concern over the seven Bahá’í leaders being detained in Iran.
Mr Brown’s remarks were made at a meeting which took place this afternoon at the Prime Minister’s office in the Houses of Parliament, attended by Lembit Öpik, MP for Montgomeryshire – who is Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Friends of the Bahá’ís group – and a delegation of three Bahá’ís, including two members of the national governing council of the Bahá’í Faith in the United Kingdom.
It was the first ever meeting between a UK Prime Minister and representatives of the Bahá’í community, which was established in Britain in 1898.
The prisoners – five men and two women – were arrested in spring 2008. Prior to their arrest they were members of an informal committee looking after the affairs of Iran’s 300,000 strong Bahá’í community, the country’s largest non-Muslim religious minority. Charges against the seven have been reported in government-controlled mass media as “espionage for Israel”, “insulting religious sanctities” and “propaganda against the Islamic republic”. A further accusation of “spreading corruption on earth” has also been cited.
List of Baha’is Imprisoned in Iran
Posted: 15 Jul 2009 01:51 PM PDT
Introduction
Iran Press Watch has updated its list of Baha’is imprisoned in Iran because of their religious affiliation and plans to publish a monthly update.
Babol
Mr. Moshfeq Samandari (Apr. 14, 2009) here
Bushehr
Asadollah Jaberi (Jul. 9, 2009) here
Amad (Kaveh) Jaberi (Jul. 9, 2009) here
Karaj
Shahram Safajoo (Apr. 26, 2009) here
Qa’emshahr
Masoud Atayian (Nov 17, 2008) here
Anisa Fanaian (Jan 18, 2009) here
Mazandaran
Zia’u’llah Allahverdi (Jun. 24, 2009) here
Sonya Tebyanian (Allahverdi) (Jun. 24, 2009) here
Sari
Fayzu’llah Rushan (Apr. 2008) here
Fuad Naeimi (Sep. 2007) here
Simin Gorji (2008) here
‘Ali Ahmadi (2008) here
Changiz Derakhshanian (2008) here
Siyamak Ibrahimi-Nia (2008) here
Zia’u’llah Allahverdi (Oct 18, 2008) here
Sonya Allahverdi (Oct 18, 2008) here
Anvar Moslemi (Nov 22, 2008) here
Soheila Motallebi (Nov 22, 2008) here
Firouzeh Yegan (Jan 10, 2009) here
Pegah Sanai (Jan 10, 2009) here
Torreh Taqi-Zadeh (Feb 15, 2009) here
Mishel Ismaelpour (Apr 21, 2009) here
Semnan
Mrs. Sahba Rezvani-Fanaian (Dec. 15, 2008; transferred to Evin on May 4, 2009) here
Adel Fanaian (Jan. 5, 2009) here
Taher Eskandarian (Jan. 5, 2009) here
Abbas Nurani (Jan. 5, 2009) here
Mr. Pooya Tebyanian (Mar. 8, 2009)
Mrs. Manizheh Nasrillahi (June 17, 2009) here
Shiraz
Sasan Taqva (Nov. 2007)
Raha Sabet (Nov. 2007)
Mehran Karami (Feb. 2009)
Haleh Rouhi (Nov. 2007)
Tehran
Mahvash Sabet (Mar. 2008) here
Jamaloddin Khanjani (May 2008) here
Saeid Rezaie (May 2008) here
Fariba Kamalabadi (May 2008) here
Vahid Tizfahm (May 2008) here
Behrouz Tavakkoli (May 2008) here
Afif Naeimi (May 2008) here
Tonekabon
Badi’u’llah Fazli
Yasuj
Ali-Askar Ravanbakhsh (Oct. 28, 2008) here
Zulaykha Musavi (Oct. 28, 2008) here
Ruhiyyih Yazdani (Oct. 28, 2008) here
Yazd
Mehran Bandi (Aug. 28, 2008) here
Posted: 15 Jul 2009 05:35 AM PDT
Iran Press Watch was deeply saddened to learn of the plane crash earlier this morning in Iran in which 168 passengers were killed, including Iran’s national judo team. Our deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and the people of Iran. Our prayers are with all Iranians.
For further details, kindly consult such sites as CNN or other major news outlets.
Two Baha’is Sentenced to Imprisonment
Posted: 15 Jul 2009 04:47 AM PDT
The following news was posted in Persian on the Khabar Navard site and is offered below in translation:
Last year witnessed many incidents of attacks on Baha’i homes in the Mazandaran region, and interrogations and arrests of Baha’is. These persecutions were particularly intense in such towns as Behshahr, Qaemshahr, Sari and Tonekabon
Two Baha’i residents of Behshahr, in the province of Mazandaran, namely, Zia’u’llah Allahverdi and his wife, Sonya Tebyanian (Allahverdi) were incarcerated for 50 days last fall (see previous post). During May and June of 2009, they had two court sessions, which on June 24 resulted in a verdict of a 2-year and a 1-year sentence for the husband and wife, respectively.
The charge against them is “activities against national security”. The two Baha’is were given 20 days, that is, until July 14, 2009, to file an appeal.
The above is happening against a background such that every form of turmoil and insecurity in the nation is blamed on the Baha’is, though no one has ever produced the slightest evidence in support of any wrongdoing by the Baha’is. From the bombing of the Husayniyh in Shiraz to the present conflicts in all towns, particularly Tehran, they blame every form of unrest on the Baha’is!
It is noteworthy that from the perspective of religious law, civil law or just basic ethics, to charge someone without any evidence or proof is viewed as immoral and a transgression. However, every day, based on the most frivolous excuses, Baha’is are subject to interrogation, violation and arrest – and so far, not a shred of evidence against them has come to light.
It is now more than a year since the former Baha’i leaders of Iran were incarcerated without any formal charges in the notorious Evin prison, and languish in the harshest physical and psychological conditions. Each day, the Iranian regime accuses them of a new crime and adds to the preposterous charges against them. Every so often their families have been promised a trial for their 7 loved ones, and then the trial has been canceled or postponed.
[Posted on June 28, 2009, at: http://khabarnavard.blogspot.
Posted: 15 Jul 2009 04:43 AM PDT
As part of its continuing service, Iran Press Watch is instituting a series of editorials which comment on conditions in Iran as well as potential pathways to solutions which could be explored through the Baha’i writings and related materials.
The Baha’is of Iran are eager to contribute actively to the social and economic improvement of that country and have had a long and cherished record of doing so through the formation of many schools, moral training classes, building of hospitals, hospices, motels, bathhouses, and much more.
Although Iran Press Watch was founded in order to provide independent and academic information on the persecution of Baha’is in Iran, we also look forward to a time when Iranians of all religious, ethnic and tribal communities can work together for the betterment of their homeland.
Towards this goal, we invite our readers to contribute short essays that might be suitable as editorials, which are oriented toward two very broad subjects:
1. Current conditions in Iran, and why they have led to the state of the country as it exists, from a social or economic perspective.
2. Outlines for how some of the ideas presented in the writings of the Baha’i faith-community could suggest solutions to social, economic or governance issues of Iran.
A few possible topics:
§ Why such a small minority as the Baha’is, obedient to government and laws, attracts such intense hatred over such a long period of time
§ The coming trial of the Yaran, and its effect on the image of Iran abroad
§ The effect of the recent upheavals on Baha’is’ relationships with their Muslim neighbors in Iran
§ The Baha’i approach to elections — indirect (electing local electors, who then elect national leaders), no parties, no politicking — and how such an approach might be of interest in areas of the world where the politics of disunity has led to national unrest
§ The usefulness of integrating Iran socially and economically with the rest of the world
§ The usefulness of orienting the encouragement of certain social norms toward rewards for desired behavior more than punishment for not behaving as desired
§ The importance of trustworthiness in government
§ Importance of the equality of men & women, and women’s education
§ Usefulness to Iran of reducing extremes of wealth & poverty
And many more.
The point to this series is that the Baha’i writings are not merely abstract indicators for a future perfect society, but are highly relevant to specific currently existing conditions in the Iranian republic; they point to ways to improve that society through their consequent effects. Editorials in this series will make this link explicitly and in some detail.
Posted: 15 Jul 2009 03:12 AM PDT
The port city of Bushehr (or Bushihr) has a long and important association with the Baha’i community, as it was in Bushehr that Siyyid Ali-Muhammad Shirazi, known as the Bab, a co-founder of the Baha’i Faith, lived for six years from 1834 to 1840, engaged in commerce and writing the early compositions of his doctrines and teachings.
In recent times, there has been almost no news about harassment of the Baha’is in that town, but the following disturbing report was filed by the Committee of Human Rights Reporters, which appears below in translation:
According to a report received by our office, on Thursday, July 9, 2009, at 11:30 am, a number of individuals in civilian clothing who introduced themselves as agents of the Ministry of Intelligence went to the work place of Mr. Asadollah Jaberi in Bushehr and asked him to accompany them to his residence.
Upon arrival, they searched Mr. Jaberi’s home for three hours from 12 noon until 3 pm, and confiscated a large quantity of his personal property, such as books, CDs, videos, computer case, laptop, mobile phone, and other items belonging to the Jaberi family.
Once the search was concluded, the agents arrested Mr. Jaberi and his son, Amad (Kaveh) and took them to the local office of the Ministry of Intelligence.
At 3:30 pm, agents of the same Ministry went to the home of Farideh Jaberi [a daughter of Asadollah Jaberi] and confiscated her books, CDs, computer case and other personal items, and compelled her to present herself at the Ministry’s office in Bushehr on Saturday, July 11.
On the same day, the home of Mr. Parham Ranjir was searched at 7:30 pm, followed by the search of the residence of Mr. Bahram Zare’i at 8 pm, and the search of the home of Abbas Zare’i at 8:30 pm. However, since Bahram Zare’i was away on a journey, the agents were not able to search his residence.
It should be noted that the arrest of Asadollah and Amad Jaberi took place without any court order or warrants, and the arresting agents did not specify the charge against these two individuals. So far, no news has been received of their condition.
[Posted on July 10, 2009, at http://chrr.us/spip.php?
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Accusations against Baha’is within the Context of Islamic Heresiography
Posted: 14 Jul 2009 08:09 AM PDT
The Baha’i Faith is an independent world religion which began in the Iran in the 19th century. In 1844 (1260 AH) Siyyid Ali-Muhammad Shirazi declared himself to be the Hidden Imam, the Qa’im or Mahdi expected by Shi’ite Muslims. In 1850 the Bab was executed in Tabriz and for a number of years the Babi community was in disarray until in 1863 Baha’u'llah declared himself to be not only He Whom God Shall Make Manifest foretold by the Bab [man yazhirullah], but the Promised One of all religions. The Baha’i Faith therefore bares the same relationship to Islam that Christianity has to Judaism. Baha’is believes in the divine origin of all religion, but sees their social teachings of revelation as varying according to the needs of the time and place.
As a graduate student I sometimes hired Iranian students to assist me with translating certain Persian Baha’i histories. My preference, of course was to use Iranian Baha’is who would be more familiar with the vocabulary specific to our Faith, but there were occasions when I resorted to non-Baha’is. On one occasion an intelligent, rather secularized young man of Muslim background was reading a Baha’i text in Persian with me when he awkwardly asked me the following question: “Is it true that Baha’is believe that before a man gives away an apple, he should taste it first.”
I knew better than to take his question literally, but I wasn’t about to guess at what he meant, so I said, “Farhad if you want an answer to your question you’re going to have to be clearer.” After fumbling around a bit he finally asked me if it were true that Baha’is believed that a father should sleep with his daughter before he gave her away in marriage. At that point I said, “Think, for a minute, Farhad. If you were going to make up stories to discredit a religion, what sort of things would you say?” He then admitted that he had figured the stories weren’t true but he couldn’t be sure.
This story, as fantastic as it might appear is all too typical of the rumors and slander that are spread about Baha’is in various places throughout the Islamic world.[1] The Nineteen Day Feast where Baha’is gather to say prayers, read from their scriptures, discuss the affairs of the community and share refreshments and food are rumored to be sexual orgies. The Baha’i Faith itself is thought to have been a Russian and British plot to destroy the unity of Islam, notwithstanding the unlikelihood of those two countries having colluded on anything in the 19th century. Nowadays it is imagined that Baha’is are receiving their support from Zionists or the US government.
A plethora of largely fabricated evidence has been published to support such charges, the most famous being the forged memoirs of Prince Dolgorukov which are aimed at proving the Baha’i Faith to be a Russian plot.[2] Similarly, Firaydun Adamiyyat, in his biography of Nasser-al-Din Shah’s first Prime Minster, Amir Kabir states that a British intelligence officer claims Arthur Conolly admits to recruiting Mulla Husayn as a spy in his traveler’s narrative Journey to the North of India Overland from England through Russia, Persia, and Affghaunistaun, however there is no mention of Mulla Husayn or the Báb there.[3] As was the case with Dolgorkov’s forged memoirs there was a problem with the chronology. The meeting supposedly takes place in 1830 when Mulla Husayn would have been 17 and the Bab ten years of age. Connolly died two years before the Bab declared his mission to Mulla Husayn. After Adamiyyat was confronted with these facts, this allegation was removed from subsequent editions of the book.
In 2003 a somewhat more imaginative version of these charges was published by Abdullah Shahbazi in the Quarterly Journal of the Institute for Iranian Contemporary Historical Studies. The article entitled “History of Baha’ism in Iran” argues the Bab had been approached by Anglo-Jews companies to make claims which which disrupt the Islamic world.[4] The article has a rather unique take on an incident which took place in 1839 wherein the Jews of Mashhad were forcibly converted to Islam after accusations of blood libel.[5] Shahbazi’s position is that these Jews voluntarily converted en mass in order to subsequently become Babis in order to provide a false impression that numerous Muslims were converting to the Bab’s religion. About sixty of these crypto-Jews did become Babis and subsequently Baha’is, but the majority did not.[6] They make up only a minuscule portion of the Baha’is of Muslim background in Iran.
More recently there has been a renewed effort in Iran to fabricate links between Baha’is and Zionism. The propagandists have gone so far as to masquerade as Baha’is on internet sites such as http://jewbahais.blogspot.com run by someone using the name Yohanna, where misleading information is posted regarding the relationship of Baha’is to both Judaism and Zionism. Photos are included supposedly picturing Jewish-Baha’is in New York that in fact depict Baha’is of Christian background in London.
It is not my purpose here to refute these charges as they have been adequately dealt with elsewhere by abler writers than myself.[7] What I wish to do here is provide some insight as to the origins of such charges, and how they have been part of the standard repertoire used against religious dissidence in Islamicate culture for centuries. While some scholars have argued that many of the conspiracies theories regarding the Baha’i Faith emerged only in 1940’s and reflect the propensity of Iranian society to “believe and endorse conspiracy theories,”[8] I would like to suggest that such charges are really quite old, much older than the Baha’i Faith itself and extend beyond the borders of Iran itself. In fact, I would go so far as to suggest that the charges being made against Baha’is by Shi’ites are virtually the same ones Sunnis have been making against Shi’ites for centuries within the Islamic world.
Aside from the Baha’i Faith itself, Islam has historically been the most tolerant of the world’s religions. This is mostly owing to the fact that Qur’an itself asserts that there is no people to whom a prophet has not been sent. (Qur’an 35:24, 16:24.) This opened the door for the acceptance of the legitimacy of nearly all the previous religions, even those not formally considered People of the Book (i.e. Christians and Jews.) Much more problematic has been the acceptance of any claims to revelation after Muhammad. No religion likes to be superseded, but in Islam particularly the notion that there would be no revelation after the Qur’an came to be seen as every bit as fundamental to the religion as the Oneness of God and the Prophethood of Muhammad, so much so that many Muslims erroneously believe that asserting the Finality of Prophethood is part of the shahadah or Islamic declaration of Faith. For this reason, any religious movement arising after Islam or which departed from the common understanding of Islam had to be explained away as something other than a religion. The stock explanation came to be that such movements were really political in nature, usually instigated by an outsider, often a Jew, aimed at creating disruption (fitna.) For instance, Sunni Muslims hold a Yemenite Jew, Abdallah ibn Saba, responsible for the founding Shi’ism, a belief that goes back at least as far as al-Tabari and is most famously cited in al-Shahristani’s classical heresiogrpahy, Al-Milal wa al-Nihal.[9]
A classical work which illustrates the manner in which Muslims came to view religious dissidence is in Nizam ul-Mulk’s Siyasat-Nameh or Treatise on Government. Nizam u’l-Mulk served as Grand Vizier to the Seljuks who had invaded the Middle East under the pretext of saving Islam and the Caliphate from Shi’ite heretics. Most especially Nizam u’l-Mulk had to contend with the Ismaeli Assassins, to whom according to some accounts he eventually fell victim. The Siyasat Nameh presents the Sassanid ruler Khosrau the Just as the ideal ruler and one of the acts which is depicted as bringing him to power was his suppression of the Mazdakite heresy. Nizam u’l-Mulk presents the Mazdakite religion as a Manichean-type dualism which was especially dangerous for its social program of community of property and wives.[10] It is difficult to know at this distance if the historical Mazdak really had anything more radical in mind than a more equal distribution of property and ending the practice of the wealthy having several wives while the poor could afford none, but the notion of communism and wife-swapping came to be associated not only with his heresy but with subsequent religious dissidence as well. Shi’ites, as well as the Babis, were accused of engaging in such practices. While the economic prosperity of the Baha’is of Iran during the Pahlavi period may have dissolved any notion that Baha’is were communists, the idea that Baha’is practiced a ‘community of wives’ lived on in lurid stories about Baha’i sexual orgies.[11]
As in Christianity, Manicheanism came to be seen in the Islamic world as the paradigmatic heresy, and in works like al-Tabari, it came to be associated with incest as well. Such charges have echoed down the ages and been associated with virtually any dissident religious movement which arose thereafter, especially in Iran, and especially in regards to any movement associated with Shi’ism. The association of heresy with incest appears to go back to the Arabs first encounter with Zoroastrianism. Certain Zoroastrian scriptures appeared to approve of next-of-kin marriages, though the extent to which this was actually practiced during the Sasanian period is a matter of debate. Nonetheless, since Islam had extensive definitions of what constituted incest (lit. mahram or taboo) Muslims found Zoroastrian beliefs in this area to be shocking. As Geert Jan Van Gelder points out in his article on “Incest and Interbreeding” in Encyclopedia Iranica,
Marriage rules help to define a religion and a culture; the alleged practices of the Zoroastrians are a recurrent motif in Muslim texts and are used to distinguish between “us” and “them.” Heretical sects are often credited with a sexual free-for-all or holding women as communal sex objects, with all the implications of possible incest.[12]
Shi’ites were particularly vulnerable to such charges. For instance, the Arabic poet and prose writer, Abu’l-Ala Maarri (d. 449/1058), accused the Carmathians of incestuous practices. Likewise the Ismaelis are accused by early Muslim heresiographers with allowing “marriage with daughters and sisters, drinking wine, and all sorts of sensual pleasures.”[13]
If we compare the attacks against Baha’is even today to those made by Sunni Islamists against Shiites we will see that they are virtually identical. For instance, someone writing under the name of Dr. Abdullah Muhammad al-Gharib warned of Ayatollah Khomeini’s rise to power arguing that he was in fact an American agent, working to support the cause of Zionism in order for Persians to wreck their revenge on Islam for the destruction of the Persian Empire. Al-Gharib insists “the day will comes when people will know that the Jews were behind [the Iranian Revolution] just like Ibn Saba’ was behind their emergence in the first place.”[14]
In describing how it was necessary for Salah al-Din to defeat the Fatimids before turning his attention to the Crusaders he notes that despite the defeat of the Shi’ites they once again emerged:
with their old beliefs with only the names changed: the Safavids, the Baha’is, the Qadianis, the Druze, the Nusayris [‘Alawites], the Assassins, the Isma’ilis…. The [batinis] returned to support the enemies of Allah and to cooperate with them against Muslims. They cooperated with Britain, Portugal, France, and Czarist Russia…. They returned to shred Islamic unity all over again.[15]
Two months before the death of Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the al-Qaeda leader in Iraq, he preached a four hour sermon attacking the Shi’ites utilizing al-Gharib’s work. In that sermon the Iran-Iraq War is blamed on a conspiracy on the part of the U.S., Iran, and Iraqi Shi’ites to destroy an Islamic nation. Even the Lebanese Hizbullah was labeled an “Israeli puppet.” The Shi’ites are accused of sexual corruption which includes, yes, accusations of incest.
It should be apparent by now that the charges being made against Baha’is have little to do with their own beliefs and practices but are instead drawn from a standard Islamic repertoire of what a heresy is supposed to look like and the assumed motives behind its origins and propagation. That Muslims might presume some of these things about Baha’is to be true, is perhaps not surprising. What is more disturbing is the fact that evidence is being deliberately fabricated primarily by Shi’ite ‘ulama (though sometimes Sunnis are also involved) to support such charges. One would hope that a religion sect born of oppression would refrain from utilizing the same weapons against Baha’is that been aimed against them. But alas, this appears not to be the case.
[1] For instance former Deputy Head of Al-Azhar and Member of the Islamic Research Council Seif Mahmoud Ashour, stated the following in regards to Baha’is:
“We hear they permit incest, that a man can marry his sister, pray with nineteen raq’aa , fast nineteen days a year and pray towards Acre (in Israel, resting place of Baha’u’llah’s remains) and not towards Mecca”. The Daily Star, December 7, 2006.
The truth of course, is that while Baha’is have a different Qiblih and fast for only nineteen days as opposed to the thirty days in Islam, incest is most certainly not part of their religion, nor do they marry their sisters.
[2] Intrafamily-i siyasi ya yad-dashtha-yi Kinyaz Dulquruki [Political Confessions, or the Memoirs of Count Dolgoruki].’ In Salnama-yi Khurasan [Khurasan Yearbook], Historical Section, 1st. Reprinted Tehran, 1323 Sh/1943-44. These fictitious memoirs of the former Russian ambassador to Iran (1846-1853) has the ambassador hatching this plot with Baha’u'llah and Mirza Yahya in the home of Hakim Ahmad Gilani. The problem with this scenario is that Gilani died in 1835, years before Dolgorukov ever set foot in Iran. Baha’u'llah would have been about 17 at the time while Mirza Yahya was only five. No Russian version of Dolgorukov’s memoirs have ever been produced. Some of the more egregious mistakes have been edited out of later editions, such as the one where Dolgorukov supposedly gives Baha’u'llah money to build a house in Akka. Dolgorukov died long before Baha’u'llah was exiled there.
[3] Amir Kabir va Iran. Tihran in 1323/1944 (pp. 243-4)
[4] Abdullah Shahbazi, “History of Baha’ism in Iran” http://www.shahbazi.org/pages/bahaism2.htm
[5] Blood libel accusations against Jews have been historically connected with Christianity, not Islam, but they were introduced to the Islamic world in the 18th and 19th centuries by the French.
[6] When the state of Israel was formed in 1948 many members of this community immigrated there, the families which had become Baha’i, did not.
[7] cf. Momen, Moojan (2004), “Conspiracies and Forgeries: the attack upon the Baha’i community in Iran”, Persian Heritage 9 (35) As if to prove that refuting such charges is child’s play, an eighteen year old boy Adib Masumian has written a book doing so entitled Debunking the Myths (Lulu:2009.) Unfortunately such refutations cannot be made in the Iranian press where these charges are usually repeated.
[8] Eliz Sanasarian , “The Comparative Dimension of the Baha’i Case and Prospects for Change in the Future”, in Brookshaw; Fazel, Seena B., The Baha’is of Iran: Socio-Historical Studies, (New York, NY: Routledge, 2008), p. 159.
[9] Al-Milal wa al-Nihal, Ed. William Cureton in Books of Religions and Philosophical Sects. 2 vols. Leipzig: Otto Harrassowitz (reprint of the edition of London 1846), vol. 2, p. 11.
This story is recounted in numerous Sunni sources, such as the following from ImamAbu Hanifa’s Musnad Imam-e-Azam p. 158:
“Abdullah ibn Saba was a Jew who accepted Islam during the time of Uthman and he urged the people of Egypt to kill Uthman and he would exhibit much love for Ali. He was an evil infiltrator and whose mission it was to spread corruption among the Muslims.”
[10] Hubert Darke, trans. The book of government, or, Rules for kings : the Siyar al-Muluk, or, Siyasat-nama of Nizam al-Mulk , (Surrey : Curzon Press, 2002) p. 192.
[11] Note this description from a Muslim website of Tahirih’s proclamation at the Badasht which separated the early Babis from Islam: “The ruling of Islamic sharee’ah no longer applied and it was permissible for the people – indeed prescribed for them – to share their wealth and women.” http://islamqa.com/en/ref/88689 Accessed June 8, 2009. Tahirih’s proclamation did call for the abrogation of the shariah, but not mention was made of the community of wives and property.
[12] http://www.iranica.com/newsite/index.isc?Article=http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v13f1/v13f1005.html, accessed June 10, 2009.
[13] ‘Abd-al-Qaher Bagdadi, al-Farq bayn al-feraq, ed. Mohammad Badr, (Cairo, 1910), p. 270.
[14] Al-Gharib, Wa ja’a dawr al-majus, [Then came the Turn of the Maajus] p. 296, from the internet edition available at www.d-sunnah.org
[15] Al-Gharib, Wa ja’a dawr al-majus, p. 78
[Above paper was presented at 2009 CESNUR Conference, Salt Lake City, Utah, June 11-13, 2009]
Posted: 14 Jul 2009 08:09 AM PDT
The Baha’i Faith is an independent world religion which began in the Iran in the 19th century. In 1844 (1260 AH) Siyyid Ali-Muhammad Shirazi declared himself to be the Hidden Imam, the Qa’im or Mahdi expected by Shi’ite Muslims. In 1850 the Bab was executed in Tabriz and for a number of years the Babi community was in disarray until in 1863 Baha’u'llah declared himself to be not only He Whom God Shall Make Manifest foretold by the Bab [man yazhirullah], but the Promised One of all religions. The Baha’i Faith therefore bares the same relationship to Islam that Christianity has to Judaism. Baha’is believes in the divine origin of all religion, but sees their social teachings of revelation as varying according to the needs of the time and place.
As a graduate student I sometimes hired Iranian students to assist me with translating certain Persian Baha’i histories. My preference, of course was to use Iranian Baha’is who would be more familiar with the vocabulary specific to our Faith, but there were occasions when I resorted to non-Baha’is. On one occasion an intelligent, rather secularized young man of Muslim background was reading a Baha’i text in Persian with me when he awkwardly asked me the following question: “Is it true that Baha’is believe that before a man gives away an apple, he should taste it first.”
I knew better than to take his question literally, but I wasn’t about to guess at what he meant, so I said, “Farhad if you want an answer to your question you’re going to have to be clearer.” After fumbling around a bit he finally asked me if it were true that Baha’is believed that a father should sleep with his daughter before he gave her away in marriage. At that point I said, “Think, for a minute, Farhad. If you were going to make up stories to discredit a religion, what sort of things would you say?” He then admitted that he had figured the stories weren’t true but he couldn’t be sure.
This story, as fantastic as it might appear is all too typical of the rumors and slander that are spread about Baha’is in various places throughout the Islamic world.[1] The Nineteen Day Feast where Baha’is gather to say prayers, read from their scriptures, discuss the affairs of the community and share refreshments and food are rumored to be sexual orgies. The Baha’i Faith itself is thought to have been a Russian and British plot to destroy the unity of Islam, notwithstanding the unlikelihood of those two countries having colluded on anything in the 19th century. Nowadays it is imagined that Baha’is are receiving their support from Zionists or the US government.
A plethora of largely fabricated evidence has been published to support such charges, the most famous being the forged memoirs of Prince Dolgorukov which are aimed at proving the Baha’i Faith to be a Russian plot.[2] Similarly, Firaydun Adamiyyat, in his biography of Nasser-al-Din Shah’s first Prime Minster, Amir Kabir states that a British intelligence officer claims Arthur Conolly admits to recruiting Mulla Husayn as a spy in his traveler’s narrative Journey to the North of India Overland from England through Russia, Persia, and Affghaunistaun, however there is no mention of Mulla Husayn or the Báb there.[3] As was the case with Dolgorkov’s forged memoirs there was a problem with the chronology. The meeting supposedly takes place in 1830 when Mulla Husayn would have been 17 and the Bab ten years of age. Connolly died two years before the Bab declared his mission to Mulla Husayn. After Adamiyyat was confronted with these facts, this allegation was removed from subsequent editions of the book.
In 2003 a somewhat more imaginative version of these charges was published by Abdullah Shahbazi in the Quarterly Journal of the Institute for Iranian Contemporary Historical Studies. The article entitled “History of Baha’ism in Iran” argues the Bab had been approached by Anglo-Jews companies to make claims which which disrupt the Islamic world.[4] The article has a rather unique take on an incident which took place in 1839 wherein the Jews of Mashhad were forcibly converted to Islam after accusations of blood libel.[5] Shahbazi’s position is that these Jews voluntarily converted en mass in order to subsequently become Babis in order to provide a false impression that numerous Muslims were converting to the Bab’s religion. About sixty of these crypto-Jews did become Babis and subsequently Baha’is, but the majority did not.[6] They make up only a minuscule portion of the Baha’is of Muslim background in Iran.
More recently there has been a renewed effort in Iran to fabricate links between Baha’is and Zionism. The propagandists have gone so far as to masquerade as Baha’is on internet sites such as http://jewbahais.blogspot.com run by someone using the name Yohanna, where misleading information is posted regarding the relationship of Baha’is to both Judaism and Zionism. Photos are included supposedly picturing Jewish-Baha’is in New York that in fact depict Baha’is of Christian background in London.
It is not my purpose here to refute these charges as they have been adequately dealt with elsewhere by abler writers than myself.[7] What I wish to do here is provide some insight as to the origins of such charges, and how they have been part of the standard repertoire used against religious dissidence in Islamicate culture for centuries. While some scholars have argued that many of the conspiracies theories regarding the Baha’i Faith emerged only in 1940’s and reflect the propensity of Iranian society to “believe and endorse conspiracy theories,”[8] I would like to suggest that such charges are really quite old, much older than the Baha’i Faith itself and extend beyond the borders of Iran itself. In fact, I would go so far as to suggest that the charges being made against Baha’is by Shi’ites are virtually the same ones Sunnis have been making against Shi’ites for centuries within the Islamic world.
Aside from the Baha’i Faith itself, Islam has historically been the most tolerant of the world’s religions. This is mostly owing to the fact that Qur’an itself asserts that there is no people to whom a prophet has not been sent. (Qur’an 35:24, 16:24.) This opened the door for the acceptance of the legitimacy of nearly all the previous religions, even those not formally considered People of the Book (i.e. Christians and Jews.) Much more problematic has been the acceptance of any claims to revelation after Muhammad. No religion likes to be superseded, but in Islam particularly the notion that there would be no revelation after the Qur’an came to be seen as every bit as fundamental to the religion as the Oneness of God and the Prophethood of Muhammad, so much so that many Muslims erroneously believe that asserting the Finality of Prophethood is part of the shahadah or Islamic declaration of Faith. For this reason, any religious movement arising after Islam or which departed from the common understanding of Islam had to be explained away as something other than a religion. The stock explanation came to be that such movements were really political in nature, usually instigated by an outsider, often a Jew, aimed at creating disruption (fitna.) For instance, Sunni Muslims hold a Yemenite Jew, Abdallah ibn Saba, responsible for the founding Shi’ism, a belief that goes back at least as far as al-Tabari and is most famously cited in al-Shahristani’s classical heresiogrpahy, Al-Milal wa al-Nihal.[9]
A classical work which illustrates the manner in which Muslims came to view religious dissidence is in Nizam ul-Mulk’s Siyasat-Nameh or Treatise on Government. Nizam u’l-Mulk served as Grand Vizier to the Seljuks who had invaded the Middle East under the pretext of saving Islam and the Caliphate from Shi’ite heretics. Most especially Nizam u’l-Mulk had to contend with the Ismaeli Assassins, to whom according to some accounts he eventually fell victim. The Siyasat Nameh presents the Sassanid ruler Khosrau the Just as the ideal ruler and one of the acts which is depicted as bringing him to power was his suppression of the Mazdakite heresy. Nizam u’l-Mulk presents the Mazdakite religion as a Manichean-type dualism which was especially dangerous for its social program of community of property and wives.[10] It is difficult to know at this distance if the historical Mazdak really had anything more radical in mind than a more equal distribution of property and ending the practice of the wealthy having several wives while the poor could afford none, but the notion of communism and wife-swapping came to be associated not only with his heresy but with subsequent religious dissidence as well. Shi’ites, as well as the Babis, were accused of engaging in such practices. While the economic prosperity of the Baha’is of Iran during the Pahlavi period may have dissolved any notion that Baha’is were communists, the idea that Baha’is practiced a ‘community of wives’ lived on in lurid stories about Baha’i sexual orgies.[11]
As in Christianity, Manicheanism came to be seen in the Islamic world as the paradigmatic heresy, and in works like al-Tabari, it came to be associated with incest as well. Such charges have echoed down the ages and been associated with virtually any dissident religious movement which arose thereafter, especially in Iran, and especially in regards to any movement associated with Shi’ism. The association of heresy with incest appears to go back to the Arabs first encounter with Zoroastrianism. Certain Zoroastrian scriptures appeared to approve of next-of-kin marriages, though the extent to which this was actually practiced during the Sasanian period is a matter of debate. Nonetheless, since Islam had extensive definitions of what constituted incest (lit. mahram or taboo) Muslims found Zoroastrian beliefs in this area to be shocking. As Geert Jan Van Gelder points out in his article on “Incest and Interbreeding” in Encyclopedia Iranica,
Marriage rules help to define a religion and a culture; the alleged practices of the Zoroastrians are a recurrent motif in Muslim texts and are used to distinguish between “us” and “them.” Heretical sects are often credited with a sexual free-for-all or holding women as communal sex objects, with all the implications of possible incest.[12]
Shi’ites were particularly vulnerable to such charges. For instance, the Arabic poet and prose writer, Abu’l-Ala Maarri (d. 449/1058), accused the Carmathians of incestuous practices. Likewise the Ismaelis are accused by early Muslim heresiographers with allowing “marriage with daughters and sisters, drinking wine, and all sorts of sensual pleasures.”[13]
If we compare the attacks against Baha’is even today to those made by Sunni Islamists against Shiites we will see that they are virtually identical. For instance, someone writing under the name of Dr. Abdullah Muhammad al-Gharib warned of Ayatollah Khomeini’s rise to power arguing that he was in fact an American agent, working to support the cause of Zionism in order for Persians to wreck their revenge on Islam for the destruction of the Persian Empire. Al-Gharib insists “the day will comes when people will know that the Jews were behind [the Iranian Revolution] just like Ibn Saba’ was behind their emergence in the first place.”[14]
In describing how it was necessary for Salah al-Din to defeat the Fatimids before turning his attention to the Crusaders he notes that despite the defeat of the Shi’ites they once again emerged:
with their old beliefs with only the names changed: the Safavids, the Baha’is, the Qadianis, the Druze, the Nusayris [‘Alawites], the Assassins, the Isma’ilis…. The [batinis] returned to support the enemies of Allah and to cooperate with them against Muslims. They cooperated with Britain, Portugal, France, and Czarist Russia…. They returned to shred Islamic unity all over again.[15]
Two months before the death of Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the al-Qaeda leader in Iraq, he preached a four hour sermon attacking the Shi’ites utilizing al-Gharib’s work. In that sermon the Iran-Iraq War is blamed on a conspiracy on the part of the U.S., Iran, and Iraqi Shi’ites to destroy an Islamic nation. Even the Lebanese Hizbullah was labeled an “Israeli puppet.” The Shi’ites are accused of sexual corruption which includes, yes, accusations of incest.
It should be apparent by now that the charges being made against Baha’is have little to do with their own beliefs and practices but are instead drawn from a standard Islamic repertoire of what a heresy is supposed to look like and the assumed motives behind its origins and propagation. That Muslims might presume some of these things about Baha’is to be true, is perhaps not surprising. What is more disturbing is the fact that evidence is being deliberately fabricated primarily by Shi’ite ‘ulama (though sometimes Sunnis are also involved) to support such charges. One would hope that a religion sect born of oppression would refrain from utilizing the same weapons against Baha’is that been aimed against them. But alas, this appears not to be the case.
[1] For instance former Deputy Head of Al-Azhar and Member of the Islamic Research Council Seif Mahmoud Ashour, stated the following in regards to Baha’is:
“We hear they permit incest, that a man can marry his sister, pray with nineteen raq’aa , fast nineteen days a year and pray towards Acre (in Israel, resting place of Baha’u’llah’s remains) and not towards Mecca”. The Daily Star, December 7, 2006.
The truth of course, is that while Baha’is have a different Qiblih and fast for only nineteen days as opposed to the thirty days in Islam, incest is most certainly not part of their religion, nor do they marry their sisters.
[2] Intrafamily-i siyasi ya yad-dashtha-yi Kinyaz Dulquruki [Political Confessions, or the Memoirs of Count Dolgoruki].’ In Salnama-yi Khurasan [Khurasan Yearbook], Historical Section, 1st. Reprinted Tehran, 1323 Sh/1943-44. These fictitious memoirs of the former Russian ambassador to Iran (1846-1853) has the ambassador hatching this plot with Baha’u'llah and Mirza Yahya in the home of Hakim Ahmad Gilani. The problem with this scenario is that Gilani died in 1835, years before Dolgorukov ever set foot in Iran. Baha’u'llah would have been about 17 at the time while Mirza Yahya was only five. No Russian version of Dolgorukov’s memoirs have ever been produced. Some of the more egregious mistakes have been edited out of later editions, such as the one where Dolgorukov supposedly gives Baha’u'llah money to build a house in Akka. Dolgorukov died long before Baha’u'llah was exiled there.
[3] Amir Kabir va Iran. Tihran in 1323/1944 (pp. 243-4)
[4] Abdullah Shahbazi, “History of Baha’ism in Iran” http://www.shahbazi.org/pages/bahaism2.htm
[5] Blood libel accusations against Jews have been historically connected with Christianity, not Islam, but they were introduced to the Islamic world in the 18th and 19th centuries by the French.
[6] When the state of Israel was formed in 1948 many members of this community immigrated there, the families which had become Baha’i, did not.
[7] cf. Momen, Moojan (2004), “Conspiracies and Forgeries: the attack upon the Baha’i community in Iran”, Persian Heritage 9 (35) As if to prove that refuting such charges is child’s play, an eighteen year old boy Adib Masumian has written a book doing so entitled Debunking the Myths (Lulu:2009.) Unfortunately such refutations cannot be made in the Iranian press where these charges are usually repeated.
[8] Eliz Sanasarian , “The Comparative Dimension of the Baha’i Case and Prospects for Change in the Future”, in Brookshaw; Fazel, Seena B., The Baha’is of Iran: Socio-Historical Studies, (New York, NY: Routledge, 2008), p. 159.
[9] Al-Milal wa al-Nihal, Ed. William Cureton in Books of Religions and Philosophical Sects. 2 vols. Leipzig: Otto Harrassowitz (reprint of the edition of London 1846), vol. 2, p. 11.
This story is recounted in numerous Sunni sources, such as the following from ImamAbu Hanifa’s Musnad Imam-e-Azam p. 158:
“Abdullah ibn Saba was a Jew who accepted Islam during the time of Uthman and he urged the people of Egypt to kill Uthman and he would exhibit much love for Ali. He was an evil infiltrator and whose mission it was to spread corruption among the Muslims.”
[10] Hubert Darke, trans. The book of government, or, Rules for kings : the Siyar al-Muluk, or, Siyasat-nama of Nizam al-Mulk , (Surrey : Curzon Press, 2002) p. 192.
[11] Note this description from a Muslim website of Tahirih’s proclamation at the Badasht which separated the early Babis from Islam: “The ruling of Islamic sharee’ah no longer applied and it was permissible for the people – indeed prescribed for them – to share their wealth and women.” http://islamqa.com/en/ref/88689 Accessed June 8, 2009. Tahirih’s proclamation did call for the abrogation of the shariah, but not mention was made of the community of wives and property.
[12] http://www.iranica.com/newsite/index.isc?Article=http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v13f1/v13f1005.html, accessed June 10, 2009.
[13] ‘Abd-al-Qaher Bagdadi, al-Farq bayn al-feraq, ed. Mohammad Badr, (Cairo, 1910), p. 270.
[14] Al-Gharib, Wa ja’a dawr al-majus, [Then came the Turn of the Maajus] p. 296, from the internet edition available at www.d-sunnah.org
[15] Al-Gharib, Wa ja’a dawr al-majus, p. 78
[Above paper was presented at 2009 CESNUR Conference, Salt Lake City, Utah, June 11-13, 2009]
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Dear Friends,
No doubt you’ll be relieved to know that trial of Baha’is in Iran is postponed.
Whilst this is a great relief please lets not stop praying for these pure souls or stop the campaign to release them and other Baha'is. 40 in Total.
The Blessed Beauty of Abhá: Bahá’u’lláh – may my life be sacrificed for His followers - instructed the believers to detach themselves from all else and recite this prayer 9 times, for the release of the friends from prisons and their freedom the fangs of the enemies.
He is, in truth, the Omnipotent, the Unrestrained!
O Lord of all Names and Fashioner of the Heavens! Release [Thy] friends from the prison of enemies. Verily, Thou art the Sovereign Ordainer of Thine decrees, He who shineth, resplendent, from the Horizon of Creation.
O Thou, Everlasting Root! By the life of Bahá *, deprive them not of hope, nay rather aid and assist them. Verily, Thou rulest as Thou pleasest and within Thy grasp lie the Kingdom of Creation. The fangs of Thine enemies have been whetted, ready to bite into the flesh of Thy friends. Protect these companions, O Thou Who rulest over all Humankind and art the Judge on the Day of Judgment!
Bahá’u’lláh
Elder's Meditation of the Day - July 11 "Do not grieve. Misfortunes will happen to the wisest and best of men. Death will come, always out of season. It is the command of the Great Spirit, and all nations and people must obey. What is past and what cannot be prevented should not be grieved for..." --Big Elk, OMAHA Chief Our earth continues to grow by cycles and seasons: The cycles of growth - spring, summer, fall, winter. The cycles of the human being - baby, youth, adult, elder. It is through these cycles that we will experience the changes. I will not always necessarily agree with these changes, but I need to trust the Grandfathers are in charge. Things will come and things will go. Really, I own nothing, the Creator owns all. Too often I label things as mine. I say this belongs to me, but it really belongs to the Creator. He gives me things to take care of. I need to do the best I can with what I have, with what I know at the time. And when the Creator changes things, I need to let go for His planning is the best.
Oh Great Spirit, today let me do the best I can with what I know, with what I have. Let me experience acceptance of Your will.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community |
| Cherie Blair: Iran’s Baha’is face “uncertain, dangerous future.” Posted: 09 Jul 2009 03:22 PM PDT
In an article published in Thursday’s edition of The Times, Mrs Blair writes that, in the aftermath of Iran’s disputed Presidential election result, there is a risk that the ongoing threat to the country’s largest non-Muslim religious minority may be overlooked. “They face a very uncertain, dangerous future,” writes Ms Blair. Read Cherie Blair’s article here (Times Online) The five men and two women, detained in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison since the spring of 2008, helped see to the minimum needs of Iran’s Bahá’í community after all Bahá’í institutions were banned by the Iranian government. Their informal committee was disbanded along with all local-level Bahá’í administrative groups in Iran in March this year. Family members of the seven have recently been told that they will face trial on Saturday 11 July. Spurious allegations made against them include “espionage for Israel”, “insulting religious sanctities”, “propaganda against the Islamic republic” and “spreading corruption on earth.” “We must urge that the Iranian Government give the leaders of the Bahá’í community a fair trial,” writes Mrs Blair, “and allow independent observers access to ensure this happens. We must also call on Iran to live up to their international obligations to protect all their citizens and allow them to hold and practise their religious beliefs, without discrimination or fear.” Mrs Blair’s article also pays tribute to Iranian lawyer and Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi, who announced that she would defend the Bahá’í prisoners. As a result, Dr Ebadi’s “offices were raided and shut down, angry mobs appeared outside her home and she, and her family, received renewed and serious threats to their safety,” writes Mrs Blair. “Shirin Ebadi is a courageous woman and a brilliant advocate. But we can not let her carry this burden on her own,” Mrs Blair says.
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| Roxana Saberi and USCIRF Call for Release of Iranian Baha’is Posted: 09 Jul 2009 02:56 PM PDT
“In addition to the hundreds of Iranians who have been detained in the context of Iran’s disputed presidential poll, many other ‘security detainees’ arrested long before the June election remain behind bars,” wrote Miss Saberi in a letter to USCIRF requesting U.S. government intervention in the Baha’i case. “These Iranians and the authorities who have detained them need to know that the Iranian people’s human rights are a matter of international concern. “The elections in Iran last month have exposed the world to the cold realities about how the Iranian government regularly deals with dissent or views that are a perceived threat to the theocratic regime,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF chair. For example, a senior cleric, Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami, recently said in a Friday sermon that election demonstrators should be convicted and sentenced to death for “waging war against God.” The seven Baha’is to be tried, two of whom shared a cell with Miss Saberi, are charged under the jurisdiction of Branch 28 of Iran’s Revolutionary Court, the same judicial process which convicted Miss Saberi in April. The Baha’is are accused of spying for Israel and other religious offenses. “The charges against these imprisoned Baha’is are baseless and a pretext for the persecution and harassment of a disfavored religious minority. They should be released immediately,” said Mr. Leo. “USCIRF urges the President and other leaders in the international community to speak out and call for the release of the seven Baha’i leaders, as the President did for Miss Saberi. These prisoners are in jail solely because of their religious identity, and have not been afforded any due process or direct access to legal representation.” On April 18, Miss Saberi was tried, convicted, and sentenced to eight years in prison on false espionage charges. After an international outcry, including statements by President Barack Obama, Miss Saberi appealed the verdict and was released weeks later. Currently, in Iranian prisons are more than 30 members of the Baha’i community, which is banned from practicing its faith. On July 6, 10 Nobel laureates, including former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, called on the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon to urge the release of political prisoners and appoint a special envoy to assess the Iranian elections and their aftermath. The letter noted the laureates’ concern for 2003 Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi, a human rights lawyer who is legal counsel for the seven Baha’is and has not been permitted access to her clients. “USCIRF urges Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon to appoint an envoy to investigate the elections and other instances of repression in Iran such as the impending Baha’i trial,” said Leo. Read the Letter by Roxana Saberi
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| Congressman Frank Wolf demands human rights as integral part of dialogue with Iran Posted: 09 Jul 2009 02:24 PM PDT
“Madam Speaker, May 14 marked the one-year anniversary of the imprisonment of the seven-member national committee of the Iranian Baha’is. They have been unjustly held for over a year without formal charges or access to their attorneys.“According to The New York Times, the seven Baha’is are scheduled to face trial this Saturday, July 11. “They will reportedly be charged with “espionage for Israel,” a crime which is punishable by death. “The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom recently released their 2009 report which recommends that the State Department designate Iran a country of particular concern due to its gross violations of religious freedom. “Such violations include the execution of over 200 Baha’i leaders since 1979, the desecration of Baha’i cemeteries and places of worship and the violent arrest and harassment of members of the Baha’i faith. “As the administration seeks diplomatic engagement with Iran, I urge them to make human rights and religious freedom, including the persecuted Baha’is, an integral part of the dialogue. “Human dignity and freedom must not be relegated to the sidelines.”
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| Norway summons Iran diplomat over human rights concerns Posted: 09 Jul 2009 02:10 PM PDT
Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere also called on Iran to release protesters arrested after the disputed 12 June presidential election, the ministry said in a statement. “The authorities in Iran do not respect basic human rights,” Stoere said. “Norway objects to the politically-motivated arrests, and reacts in particular to the fact that local employees at the British embassy in Tehran have been imprisoned,” he added. Iran arrested nine Iranian employees at the British embassy in Tehran, and accused them of fomenting post-election unrest. All but one of the nine have been released. Oslo also condemned the arrests of opposition members, journalists, human rights activists and peaceful demonstrators. “Iranian authorities are urged to immediately stop political arrests and release those unjustly imprisoned,” said the foreign minister. Norway also condemned the 4 July execution of 20 Iranians convicted of drug trafficking. In addition, Stoere raised his concern over the situation of the Baha’i community in Iran, in particular the upcoming trial against seven Baha’i leaders in Tehran. “I urge the Iranian authorities to respect the religious beliefs of all minorities in Iran,” he said. [Source: Norway’s Foreign Ministry website via Washington TV]
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Thursday, July 09, 2009
l have rolled up the world and all that is therein, and spread out a new Order in its stead.’ `The day is approaching when God will have raised up a people who will call to remembrance Our days, who will tell the tale of Our trials, who will demand the restitution of Our rights. Bahai writings
TO -MORROW 11TH JULY TRIAL FOR 7 BAHAIS IN EVIN IRAN
PLEASE
recite prayers for the Yaran ( friends) on Friday ( 11-11:30 pm ,Iranian Time) and Saturday (7-7:30pm ,Iranian Time ) before their possible trial at the Branch 28,Revolutionary Court.
the Bab was set before a firing squad in Tabriz, Iran, on 9 July 1850, He explained to His executioners that they had no idea who He was and what they were doing. His last words were: `
`O wayward generation! Had you believed in Me every one of you would have followed the example of this youth [Anis], who stood in rank above most of you, and would have willingly sacrificed himself in My path. The day will come when you will have recognized Me; that day I shall have ceased to be with you.’
Like Jesus, who prayed as He was crucified,`Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do’
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
July 11th is Baha’i Rights Day
July 8th, 2009
Baha’i Rights Day is dedicated to raise awareness about human rights abuses perpetrated against the Baha’i community. Decades have passed and the Baha’is in Iran and Egypt have not had a minute of rest from the ongoing persecution. Looting of Baha’i homes, the arrest and incarceration of Baha’is, denial of civil rights, the desecration of Baha’i cemeteries, the expulsion of Baha’i students from university and the closure of Baha’i businesses are only a few aspects of the crusade launched against the Baha’is.
The date is significant inasmuch as the the trial of seven Iranian Baha’i leaders, arrested in the spring of 2008, is scheduled to be held at Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court on July 11, 2009.
July 8th, 2009
Baha’i Rights Day is dedicated to raise awareness about human rights abuses perpetrated against the Baha’i community. Decades have passed and the Baha’is in Iran and Egypt have not had a minute of rest from the ongoing persecution. Looting of Baha’i homes, the arrest and incarceration of Baha’is, denial of civil rights, the desecration of Baha’i cemeteries, the expulsion of Baha’i students from university and the closure of Baha’i businesses are only a few aspects of the crusade launched against the Baha’is.
The date is significant inasmuch as the the trial of seven Iranian Baha’i leaders, arrested in the spring of 2008, is scheduled to be held at Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court on July 11, 2009.
Here’s how you can help
Inform your friends, family and colleagues that on July 11 they should tweet, blog, Facebook in support of human rights for Baha’is
Contact journalists to formally recognize this day and write about the Baha’i persecution
Contact bloggers and request that they write about Baha’is and their rights.
Tweet about it consistently on July 11 and use the #BahaiRights hashtag in order for people to locate. The idea is to make #BahaiRights a top trend on July 11. Follow @BahaiRightsDay
You do not have to be a Baha’i to participate! Please make others aware of that. We’re uniting to help raise awareness for the plight of the Baha’is, no matter what our race or religion may be.
Inform yourself on the persecution at Iran Press Watch or the Muslim Network for Baha’i Rights
Make every effort to spread the word about the day! Thank you.
Saturday, July 04, 2009
| Distribution of an Anti-Baha’i Proclamation Posted: 03 Jul 2009 10:48 AM PDT
Pictures of two such documents were provided by the Baha’is of Iran to media outlets and appear below in translation. The first is a letter to Grand Ayatollahs inquiring about the Baha’is and dealing with them: In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful! Peace be upon the blessed threshold of the sources of emulation of the Islamic world! Respectfully it is submitted: the wayward sect of the Baha’i has been active in one of the districts in the vicinity of Shiraz and, regrettably, some Muslims, because of being ill-informed, have associated and consort with them on a regular basis. As such, we beseech your distinguished selves to offer an opinion on the following questions so that the public is informed:
1. What is the ruling in regard to wedlock of a Muslim with a Baha’i (namely, for a Baha’i woman with a Muslim man, and for a Muslim woman with a Baha’i man)? 2. What is the ruling about business transactions or dealings with Baha’is? 3. What is the opinion of your distinguished selves regarding shaking hands and kissing Baha’is? 4. What is the ruling about eating food prepared at a Baha’i home or by a Baha’i hand? 5. What is the ruling for eating out of a plate or drinking from a glass used earlier by a Baha’i? 6. What is the ruling for attending celebrations or weddings of Baha’is, or attending commemorative services by Baha’is because they were known to [Muslim] attendees? 7. Working (such as in building construction, etc) by a Baha’i for a Muslim, and for a Muslim to be employed by a Baha’i? 8. Are the Baha’is considered infidels and najis [lit. defiled, in Shi’te jurisprudence it designates unclean or untouchable]? The second document provides the response of several Grand Ayatollahs to these questions and request for religious rulings. Responses bear the signature and seal of each jurist: The illustrious Ayatollah [Ali] Khamenei: All followers of the wayward Baha’i sect are condemned as infidels and najis [unclean], and [Muslims] should avoid food and substances containing moisture touched by the Baha’is. The believers are duty-bound to combat trickeries and seditions of this wayward sect. The illustrious Ayatollah Behjat: They are najis and association with them should be avoided. The illustrious Ayatollah Makarem-Shirazi: Every form of affiliation, socializing, marriage, buying, selling and other contact with members of the misguided Baha’i sect is forbidden. Muslims must completely avoid such actions. The members of the misguided [Baha’i] sect are outside of Islam and any kind of interaction with them is forbidden. [Source: http://www.peykeiran.com/
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| Arson in a Baha’i-Owned Automotive Store Posted: 03 Jul 2009 04:51 AM PDT
As the store carried flammables like motor oil, the fire did tremendous damage. The firefighters prevented the fire from spreading to homes nearby. Mr. Shadman’s store has been set on fire several times but the authorities have shown no effort to stop the arsonists.
[Source: HRA-Iran http://hra-iran.org/index.php?
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| Iran’s Baha’is mentioned in U.K. Prime Minister’s questions Posted: 03 Jul 2009 04:43 AM PDT The Prime Minister has promised to continue raising Britain’s concerns with Iran, over the issue of the seven Bahá’ís being detained in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison. Gordon Brown’s comments came during Prime Minister’s questions in the House of Commons, in response to the MP for Montgomeryshire, Lembit Opik. Click here to view the embedded video.
“I have become deeply concerned about the seven Baha’i leaders in Iran facing trial by the revolutionary court on 11 July on serious but unsubstantiated charges, with no evidence being offered against them,” said Mr Opik, who is Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Friends of the Bahá’ís group. Describing current circumstances in Iran as “very difficult issues”, Mr Brown expressed his “disappointment at the restrictions that (Mr Opik) has mentioned on the freedoms of the Iranian people, with people due to stand before a closed court on 11 July.” According to information conveyed by the authorities at Evin to the family members of the seven Bahá’ís who have been imprisoned for more than a year, a trial date has been set for 11 July. The seven were arrested in the spring of 2008 and have been held without any formal charges or access to their attorneys. Official Iranian news reports have said the Baha’is will be accused of “espionage for Israel, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic Republic.” “Some people in Iran are seeking to use Britain as an explanation for the legitimate Iranian voices calling for greater openness and democracy. However, we will continue, with our international partners, to raise our concerns with Iran, including on the issue that the honorable Gentleman raised,” Mr Brown said. [Source: http://bahainews-uk.info/2009/ |
For Bahais, a Crackdown Is Old News
CLIFTON, N.J.
Sometimes during the past two weeks, making her rounds as a hospital resident, Dr. Saughar Samali has caught a glimpse of television news in a patient’s room or heard a bulletin on the radio in the family-practice office. Against her desire, against her better judgment, she has been plunged back into the maelstrom of Iran.
As long as she is on duty, Dr. Samali can suppress what she sees and hears of the marchers, the arrests, the beatings. But when she leaves St. Joseph’s Hospital in Paterson and returns home to nearby Clifton, the present conjures up a terrible past.
She remembers when her father’s factory in Tehran was set afire, leaving him severely scarred and blind in one eye. She remembers her family’s trying to escape to Pakistan, traveling in a smuggler’s Jeep, headlights out on a midnight desert. She remembers the army bullets that shattered the windshield and pierced the tires, and she remembers the months in prison that followed.
It was 1985, and she was 5 years old. In all the years since, even after a subsequent, successful escape and a new life in the United States, Dr. Samali has not forgotten what it meant to be a Bahai in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
“I try to turn my emotions off,” Dr. Samali, 28, said of the current turbulence in Iran. “The Bahais in Iran go through this every day. It’s sad to see this, but maybe this is a way for the truth to come out.”
The Bahais have long served as the proverbial canaries in the coal mine of Iran’s theocracy. Their persecution, as documented over nearly 30 years in numerous human rights reports, has contradicted all the näively hopeful predictions that the hard-line surface of Iran obscures a deeper wellspring of moderation and tolerance.
In 1983, the Iranian government banned all official Bahai activity. Deeming the faith an apostasy, Iran’s fundamentalist Shiite government has denied Bahais higher education, confiscated Bahai property, desecrated Bahai cemeteries and refused to recognize Bahai marriages.
During the recent upheaval, which is essentially a struggle among Shiites over the dubious re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Bahais have again served as scapegoats. Supporters of President Ahmadinejad have recycled the canard that Bahais are American spies and secret Zionists, and have added a new one, claiming the British Broadcasting Corporation stands for the Bahai Broadcasting Company.
The rhetorical attacks have coincided with the government’s decision to put seven Bahai leaders on trial on July 11 in a so-called Revolutionary Court. The leaders, arrested in early 2008, face charges of “espionage for Israel, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic Republic,” according to official Iranian press reports. Espionage is punishable by death.
So, for the 165,000 Bahais in the United States, at least 10,000 of whom are refugees from Iran, the questionable election and the crackdown on protesters come as grim confirmation of the government’s character.
“I feel a sense of turmoil in my heart,” said Farhad Sabetan, a spokesman for the Bahai International Community, the organization that represents Bahai interests at the United Nations. “Bahais have gone through this kind of pressure for over the last 30 years, and the way they’ve been treated is how the Iranian people are now being treated.”
The Bahai community in Clifton embodies both stirring achievement and unrelenting tragedy. A mixture of American converts and Iranian immigrants and refugees, the group operates a Bahai center for classes and celebrations and elects a nine-member “spiritual assembly.”
One of those nine, Habib Hosseiny, was born and raised in Iran, becoming a professor of English. He was studying for his master’s degree at the School for International Training in Brattleboro, Vt., when the Islamic revolution overthrew the shah in 1979. After hearing of the execution of seven Bahai leaders in 1981 in Hamadan — “all my friends, such beautiful people,” Mr. Hosseiny said — he decided not to return.
In the United States, Mr. Hosseiny built a career teaching English as a second language in colleges and high schools. He and his wife, Ahdieh, raised children, who gave them grandchildren. His Bahai friends in Clifton included doctors, engineers and journalists.
All the while, from afar, Mr. Hosseiny followed the waves of persecution in Iran. His father-in-law was imprisoned three times. A gynecologist who served on the spiritual assembly in Mr. Hosseiny’s home city, Kermanshah, was arrested and killed. The Iranian government seized Mr. Hosseiny’s home and all of his savings.
“When you’re strong in your faith, you accept this as a test,” Mr. Hosseiny, 69, said. “You want to take on important, difficult tests, so you can achieve.”
Even after 30 years of official oppression of Bahais, Mr. Hosseiny repeats a mantra that mullahs plainly do not hear: that Bahaism is a religion of peace, that Bahais are not political, that Bahais support the government wherever they live. All the Bahais in Iran want, he said, are the same human rights as other citizens.
As he watches the news, as he tries to call relatives in Iran, as he tracks events as obsessively as Dr. Samali tries to screen them out, Mr. Hosseiny has arrived at a conclusion similar to hers. Maybe the Bahais have achieved some kind of equality at last.
Attacked by the Basij militia and the Revolutionary Guard, assaulted with water cannons and guns, Iranian Muslims, at least the ones who publicly call for fair elections and human rights, are being treated just like Bahais.
Sign in to Recommend More Articles in US » A version of this article appeared in print on June 27, 2009, on page A13 of the New York edition.
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Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community |
Two Historical Documents by Mousavi and Abtahi
Posted: 15 Jun 2009 04:00 PM PDT
Editor’s Note: In our continual effort to document the mistreatment of the Baha’is of Iran and the regime’s role in bringing about systematic discrimination against the Baha’is, two official documents by Iranian authorities relating to the Baha’is of that nation are shared below by Iran Press Watch in translation (originals of both documents are posted on the Persian page of this site).
The first is a memorandum to government offices and agencies written by Mr. Mir-Hossein Mousavi, who served as the fifth and last Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran from 1981 to 1989, before the constitutional changes which removed the post of prime minister.
The second document is written by Hojjat ol-Eslam Seyyed Mohammad Ali Abtahi who is an Iranian theologian, scholar and chairman of the Institute for Interreligious Dialogue. He is a former vice president of Iran and a close associate of former President Mohammad Khatami.
First Document
In The Name of God
Section seven/Minorities
Number 11-4462
February 1, 1989
Memorandum to all Ministries, Organizations, Government Agencies, Islamic Revolutionary Foundations, and Governors of all Provinces across the country:
Based on the reports received, there have been no coordinated, unified instructions for confronting members of the misguided Baha’i sect available to the executive branch . Therefore, with the approval of the respected President of the Islamic Republic, it is necessary that all ministries, organizations, government agencies, Islamic revolutionary foundations and governors of all provinces across the country to implement the guidelines outlined below as the official policy of the government.
Spies should be sternly confronted based on established laws and regulations, but with respect to other citizens, regardless of their beliefs, they should be treated as ordinary citizens in a manner consistent with the latter part of Article 23 of the Constitution. However, attempts should be made to correct their beliefs.
No official or representative of the Islamic Republic is permitted to deprive citizens of their civil or social rights unless they have been proven to be spies, or as stipulated by laws established by the official legal authorities of the country.
It should be noted that based on Article 13 of the Constitution, Zoroastrian, Jewish and Christian Iranians are the only religious minorities that are free to practice their religious duties within the framework of the laws of the country. They are permitted to conduct their personal lives and activities based on their respective religious laws and ordinances.
Mir Hussein Mousavi
Prime Minister
Second Document
The weighty responsibility of supervising the implementation of the constitution
In The Name of God
Number 80-7662
December 31, 2001
Dearly esteemed brother, Mr. Sayed Mohammad Khatami, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran
With Greetings:
Based on a report presented at the official meeting of the respected Committee of the Islamic Parliament on December 30, 2001, which I attended, with respect to principals 88 and 90 of the Constitution, some of the Baha’is employed in government offices and agencies will lose their rights as citizens of the country due to their belief and their association with the Baha’i religion.
I remind you that on February 1, 1989, the respected former Prime Minister [Mir Hussein Mousavi] with the approval of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran issued a memorandum to all ministries, organizations, government agencies, Islamic revolutionary foundations, and governors of all provinces across the country indicating:
“No official or representative of the Islamic Republic is permitted to deprive citizens of their civil or social rights unless they have been proven to be spies, or as stipulated by laws established by the official legal authorities of the country.”
By presenting the above-mentioned background information and with respect to Article 23 of Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, your views and recommendations as the President of the country and the authority responsible for the implementation of the Constitution will provide us with guidance regarding the necessity of considering the civil rights of the Baha’i sect workforce.
Signed Seyyed Mohammad Ali AbtahiThursday, June 11, 2009
“Ahle hag natarsid yemayatat mikonim = Oh people of Truth, do not be afraid we support you , back you up , protect you.”
“Bahá’i do not be afraid we support you / back you up & protect you.”
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community |
| Several Updates on the Baha’is of Iran Posted: 09 Jun 2009 04:20 PM PDT The following news items appeared on June 4, 2009, on the Persian site of the Baha’i International Community and are provided below in translation by Iran Press Watch. The source of each story is cited next to the name of the town. Isfahan (http://news.persian-bahai44.
Hushmand Talebi-Iskandari, Mehran Zayni-Najafabadi and Farhad Ferdousiyan were convicted on July 21, 2008, on the charge of “trespassing and illegal use of governmental property”. The court had set a fine and instructed that they “should cease their use of this property (the cemetery)” and “to return it to its original condition”, i.e., that they should remove the bodies buried there. Upon appeal, the appeals court ruled on February 14, 2009, clearing the three Baha’is of this charge and designating that parcel of land for burial of the dead as a cemetery.
Karaj (http://news.persian-bahai44.
Semnan (http://news.persian-bahai44.
Shiraz (http://news.persian-bahai44.
Shiraz (http://news.persian-bahai44.
Tehran (http://news.persian-bahai44.
Tehran (http://news.persian-bahai44.
Yasuj (http://news.persian-bahai44.
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| Posted: 09 Jun 2009 04:16 PM PDT Editor’s Note: Iran Press Watch was pleased to receive the following moving essay, which describes the feelings of many Iranian Baha’is. It is presented below in translation; the original in Persian is attached. By a passer by I miss them a lot. I am talking about the three Baha’i youth: Sasan Taqva, Raha Sabet and Haleh Ruhi. I like to visit them, and for this purpose, I travel to Shiraz. Come along if you like. It takes some concentration to summon the power from within. First we say prayers, meditate and then visualize Shiraz, a city whose foundation was laid upon a spiritual dream. I hope that someday the spiritual city of Shiraz will be worthy of a great hero to initiate a world-encompassing movement from within this spiritual place. Together, we pass through the streets of Shiraz to reach the prison facility of the Ministry of Intelligence, called Plock 100. This is the place where the three youth are incarcerated. We enter quietly. We walk through narrow concrete hallways with high ceilings. Everywhere is dead silent; we move forward quietly. After passing through a few covered areas, we arrive at a metal door. Slowly we open the door. We see a small L-shaped area; looking around, we don’t see any windows — do you see any? No light can penetrate the cement walls and into the cell. The air is heavy, there is not enough oxygen and it is hard to breath. What a jail! The florescent ceiling light is on at all times. The floor is bare concrete, without so much as an old carpet to cover it. There are only a few blankets to use as a mattress and cover. There is an old television set which appears to have been installed some time ago. There are a few books, magazines and personal items in the other corner of the cell. Haleh and Raha, two angel-like girls, under the pressure and hardships of the past 18 months in jail, look skinny, weak and pale. They are only allowed outside in the small yard 15 minutes each day to get a little fresh air. Everything, even down to the timing of these short breaks, is determined by the prison guards. Despite all these restrictions, they seem happy; it is as though they are living in a different world. They enjoy each other’s company. We hear footsteps, then the door opening. Look at the girls — they are silent. It seems that Raha has a piece of paper and a pen in her hands. We see a male guard at the door, he is waiting for something. The girls give him a list of the necessary items that they need — there are no stores in this prison. There is no conversation between the girls and the guard. Can you hear anything? If you ask the girls, they will tell you that they are forbidden to talk to the male guards, and that there are no female guards at this prison. I understand you have good reason to feel upset; those who set out to serve their forsaken, deprived countrymen with love and compassion are detained in an atrocious prison which can best be likened to jailhouses from the Middle Ages. Let us pray for their steadfastness and ask God to remove their difficulties. We can pray individually or in groups. Let us raise our hands to God and ask for His mercy to shower upon these two prisoners and all the other male and female inmates who are spending their days in the various prisons of Iran. Let us pray for the freedom of all the captives who are inflicted with a heavier load of tyranny and injustice than the rest of us, irrespective of their religion, belief system, ethnicity or language. Friends, it is time to go. Let us part with a message to the girls: “Haleh, Raha, we deeply love you! We are proud of you as our countrymen and as our fellow Baha’is. You are symbols of strength and steadfastness. You are worthy role models for Iranian youth”. Slowly, we head towards the door; we take another glance at the cell and its high walls. Certainly you agree that this horrifying prison with its solid concrete walls has not succeeded in creating a barrier between the girls and ourselves. We open the metal door quietly, enter the hallway and go towards the other side, where the obedient follower of his Lord, Sasan, is all alone in his cell. We open the door and see a cell similar to that of the girls. We see a young man, smiling and resigned to the will of God, is whispering prayers in the corner of his cell. Think for a little while! How has he tolerated 18 months of solitude? What has given him such power to be joyful and content? We wholeheartedly listen to his prayer which has filled the atmosphere of his cell: “Subhanika ya hu, ya man huwa hu. Ya man lisan ahadan illa hu.”[1] The thick, solid walls of his cell cannot prevent him from conversing with his Lord. We hear that many outside the jail are praying along with him. Apparently, he can hear their prayers; during deep meditation he can even see them (in the same way that my friends and I had seen you while we were in jail and had gained energy from you). Dear Sasan, my good friend, we have to go now. May we witness the freedom of all of the innocent prisoners of Iran! O entrapped bird! May you live to witness that blessed day when there are no more cages and confinements in the world! [1] This expression appears 19 times in Baha’u'llah’s Tablet of the Bell [Lawh-i Naqus] and means, “Sanctified art Thou, O He; O He Who is He; O He other than Whom there is none but He.” [Original attached. Translation by Iran Press Watch.] Download: Origianl Persian |
Friday, June 05, 2009
Article published Jun 5, 2009
The day will come when Iran's Baha'is are free to worship
By ROBERT H. STOCKMAN
This time Shirin Ebadi has her work cut out for her.
On April 23 the Nobel Prize winning attorney -- the first Iranian and the first Muslim woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize -- told a packed audience at the University of Notre Dame's DeBartolo Performing Arts Center about her struggle to defend human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In addition to various past cases, she mentioned two pending cases she had agreed to take: the unjust imprisonment of Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi and the arrest and imprisonment without trial of the seven informal leaders of Iran's 300,000 members of the Baha'i Faith.
Saberi has since been released, but the seven, known as the Yaran (friends) marked their first anniversary in prison. Their families have been told that, in addition to charges of spying for Israel and insulting the sacredness of Islam, they may be charged with spreading corruption on earth, a vague charge that can carry the death penalty.
Why the charges? The claim that Baha'is spy for Israel stems from the fact that the Baha'i world headquarters is in Israel, but that is a historical accident. The Iranian and Turkish leaders sent the founder of the faith, Baha'u'llah, to a prison city there in 1868, 80 years before there was an Israel. As for insulting Islam, Baha'is highly respect Islam and Muhammad, but Baha'u'llah claimed to be a divine messenger after Muhammad. The claim is utterly unacceptable to many Muslims, and Iran's leaders consider any Iranian accepting it worthy of the death penalty.Yet Ebadi's efforts are not completely hopeless. The world's collective reaction to the arrest of the Yaran may be the reason their trial, scheduled for February, was postponed. Thirty years ago the persecution of Iran's Baha'is was met by a deafening silence from the vast majority of Iran's intellectuals, bureaucrats and human rights activists. No more; the conspiracy of silence has been broken, as anyone following Iranpresswatch.org and the Muslim Network for Baha'i Rights (bahairights.org) will see. The Iranian government now finds itself in the awkward position of seriously damaging its reputation internationally or backing down on a major but secret priority: the destruction of Iran's Baha'i community.
Recently, Michiana welcomed its fourth Iranian Baha'i refugee family to the area. Local Catholics, Muslims, Baha'is and Protestants contributed furniture, showed them around and made them feel at home. Local residents are writing Congressman Joe Donnelly, D-Granger, and Indiana Sens. Richard Lugar and Evan Bayh to urge them to support House Resolution 175 and Senate Resolution 71, two Congressional resolutions condemning the persecution of Iran's Baha'is. If we keep the pressure on Iran, the day will come when Iran's Baha'is are free to worship in their homeland.
Robert H. Stockman, an instructor of religious studies at DePaul University, is a member of the South Bend Baha'i community and Baha'i representative to the United Religious Community.
The day will come when Iran's Baha'is are free to worship
By ROBERT H. STOCKMAN
This time Shirin Ebadi has her work cut out for her.
On April 23 the Nobel Prize winning attorney -- the first Iranian and the first Muslim woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize -- told a packed audience at the University of Notre Dame's DeBartolo Performing Arts Center about her struggle to defend human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In addition to various past cases, she mentioned two pending cases she had agreed to take: the unjust imprisonment of Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi and the arrest and imprisonment without trial of the seven informal leaders of Iran's 300,000 members of the Baha'i Faith.
Saberi has since been released, but the seven, known as the Yaran (friends) marked their first anniversary in prison. Their families have been told that, in addition to charges of spying for Israel and insulting the sacredness of Islam, they may be charged with spreading corruption on earth, a vague charge that can carry the death penalty.
Why the charges? The claim that Baha'is spy for Israel stems from the fact that the Baha'i world headquarters is in Israel, but that is a historical accident. The Iranian and Turkish leaders sent the founder of the faith, Baha'u'llah, to a prison city there in 1868, 80 years before there was an Israel. As for insulting Islam, Baha'is highly respect Islam and Muhammad, but Baha'u'llah claimed to be a divine messenger after Muhammad. The claim is utterly unacceptable to many Muslims, and Iran's leaders consider any Iranian accepting it worthy of the death penalty.Yet Ebadi's efforts are not completely hopeless. The world's collective reaction to the arrest of the Yaran may be the reason their trial, scheduled for February, was postponed. Thirty years ago the persecution of Iran's Baha'is was met by a deafening silence from the vast majority of Iran's intellectuals, bureaucrats and human rights activists. No more; the conspiracy of silence has been broken, as anyone following Iranpresswatch.org and the Muslim Network for Baha'i Rights (bahairights.org) will see. The Iranian government now finds itself in the awkward position of seriously damaging its reputation internationally or backing down on a major but secret priority: the destruction of Iran's Baha'i community.
Recently, Michiana welcomed its fourth Iranian Baha'i refugee family to the area. Local Catholics, Muslims, Baha'is and Protestants contributed furniture, showed them around and made them feel at home. Local residents are writing Congressman Joe Donnelly, D-Granger, and Indiana Sens. Richard Lugar and Evan Bayh to urge them to support House Resolution 175 and Senate Resolution 71, two Congressional resolutions condemning the persecution of Iran's Baha'is. If we keep the pressure on Iran, the day will come when Iran's Baha'is are free to worship in their homeland.
Robert H. Stockman, an instructor of religious studies at DePaul University, is a member of the South Bend Baha'i community and Baha'i representative to the United Religious Community.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Supporters of Ayatollah Boroujerdi demand investigation of Baha’i case Posted: 02 Jun 2009 02:45 PM PDT
[Source: http://bameazadi19.blogspot. |
| Posted: 02 Jun 2009 12:54 PM PDT Iran Press Watch has recently received the attached document which lists 32 questions that the celebrated Haji Mirza Haydar-Ali Isfahani, a prominent Baha’i during the time of Baha’u'llah and Abdu’l-Baha, had composed. These questions were intended to engaged the thinking Muslims in better appreciating issues raised by the Baha’i faith. Iran Press Watch hopes to be able to publish a translation of these questions in a near future (but should one of our esteemed readers wish to offer a summary translation, that would be most welcome). |
| Iran’s Official Propaganda about the Baha’is Posted: 02 Jun 2009 09:29 AM PDT Like all other embassies, the Iranian embassy in Greece also publishes information for the benefit of those wishing to visit Iran or learn about Iran. This document is available at: http://www.iranembassy.gr/eng/ Interestingly enough, on pages 38 and 39 there is a section on the Baha’i community. Judge for yourself if anything written in this official document of the Iranian government is true about the Baha’is of that country:
Download: Official Document |
| 3 Baha’i Prisoners Released in Shiraz Posted: 02 Jun 2009 12:43 AM PDT
Several days ago, Iran Press Watch learned that the authorities in Shiraz had agreed to release three Baha’i prisoners, namely, Keyvan Karami, Farham Masumi and Vahdat Dana on condition of bail of about $100,000 for each. Due to delicate and complex situation in Shiraz, Iran Press Watch decided against sharing that news, but our editorial staff was thrilled to learn that today, May 22, the three aforementioned Baha’is have been released and reunited with their families. The attached picture was taken upon the release of the three Baha’is. More details will be shared in a near future.
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| Three Baha’is Summoned to Intelligence Ministry in Urumiyeh Posted: 02 Jun 2009 12:35 AM PDT
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Editor’s Note: Due to recent modifications to the site design, our editorial staff overlooked posting of the following report. Our apologies.
On Monday, May 25, 2009, the usually reliable HRA site reported:Monday, May 18, 2009
Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community |
Apostasy and Baha’is as Apostates in Islam
Posted: 16 May 2009 10:41 AM PDT
Editor’s Note: This is a translation of an editorial titled “What is apostasy, and are Baha’is apostates?” written by Mohammed Shebl, printed in an Egyptian newspaper “Al Qahirah” (Cairo) on May 5, 2009.
By Mohammad Shebl
The treatment of Baha’is has occupied my thoughts and has disturbed my peace. You might be surprised, but when I see tyranny and oppression inflicted on Baha’is, and increasing on a daily basis, I feel a heavy load on my shoulders.
On one hand, National Identification Cards for Baha’is have not commenced being issued yet; but on the other hand, there are discussions about passing a law in the Egyptian parliament categorizing Baha’is as criminals, and deciding on the charges to be levied against them for their alleged apostasy.
To date, I have not heard whether arson charges have been brought against those who set the homes of a few Baha’is on fire. I also do not know the fate of the Baha’is who had to flee from their burning homes.
God, should anyone who accepts a different religion be subjected to so much cruelty? Is this what has become of human beings who were created noble by their creator, a creator who sends messengers with heavenly books and has given his creatures the freedom to choose their own path, and only requires that they be responsible to their Lord?
What I see in the Qur’an is the glorious verse: “Let there be no compulsion in religion” [Qur'an 2:256]. What is clearly evident from this verse and from the entire Holy Qur’an is that neither entering Islam nor exiting from it, nor even following or not following its commandments is compulsory. However, there are ignorant clergy who believe that the freedom to choose is limited to entering Islam, while exiting is prohibited and punishable by the death penalty.
I consider it necessary to address a question that has been of utmost importance in recent days. The question is: “What is apostasy, and are Baha’is apostates?” I want you all to listen carefully with open minds to what is offered here. Even though this topic has been documented in scriptures for ages and ages and has been accessible to all, historically it has been overlooked.
Before starting the discussion, I should clarify that the verses in God’s book are the first guideline for the establishment of laws. I would also like to share a tradition from Moaz Ibn Jabal who says that the Prophet Mohammad addressed him saying, “If you are asked to make a judgment, what would you base your judgment on?” He responded, “First I refer to God’s Holy Book for guidance; if I cannot find a reference, I will refer to the Prophet’s traditions; and if I still cannot find the answer, I will use my own judgment”. The Prophet Mohammad praised him and said, “Praise be to God that you have succeeded in carrying out the will of God”. Consequently, if the response to the question of apostasy was documented in the Holy Qur’an, there would be no need for referring to other sources of information.
Let us investigate God’s commandment in the Qur’an in relation to apostasy. The law is cited in the verse: “Nor will they cease fighting you until they turn you back from your faith if they can. And if any of you turn back from their faith and die in unbelief, their works will bear no fruit in this life and in the Hereafter; they will be Companions of the Fire and will abide therein” [Qur'an 2:217].
Regarding the implications of these verses and the meaning of “fire”, we read the interpretation of Shaykh Muhammad Rashid Reza (1865 -1925), pupil of Imam Muhammad Abduh: “at the time of weakness and fewness of Muslims, non-believers adhering to oppression and torture were forcing Muslims to recant their faith. This is how they made Emar Ibn Yaser and his family, Balal, Sahib, and others renounce Islam. When Muslims migrated from Mecca to Medina and their numbers increased, they initiated a war against non-believers, and God, praised be his name, revealed the verses stated above. The word “infidel” was mentioned when Muslims were declaring their belief through holy war, indicating that all the good deeds of those exiting Islam would be wiped out in this world and in the world to come, since turning away from religion is turning away from the three main tenets of the faith[1].
All messengers of God have confirmed these three principals. No one who has recognized and accepted these principals will cast them away, unless he is corrupt and filled with hatred. Such a person will have no abode but hell and will eternally remain therein.
Let us continue discussing our serious and important question: “Have Baha’is abandoned the three principals?” I leave this judgment to the readers. However, if you were to ask me, I would say that Baha’is believe in God and believe in the next world. With respect to good deeds and moral conduct, I should say among them are those who adorn themselves with goodly deeds and those who do not, just as with the followers of all the other religions.
In summary, based on the Qur’an, apostasy is conversion from the belief in God and of the Unity of God to disbelief. Only a person who changes his belief in God to denial and negation of God, and to disbelief in the continuation of life in the next world, can be labeled an apostate.
The Holy Qur’an clearly promises the Lord’s reward to all those who believe and conduct their lives based on the three principals: “Those who believe (in the Qur’an) and those who follow the Jewish (Scriptures), and the Christians and the Sabians, and who believe in Allah and the last day, and work righteousness, shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve” [Qur'an 2:62].
In conclusion, we know that many label Baha’is as apostates. Even if we were to accept that accusation, the law of God concerning such individuals is that they are condemned to remain in hell eternally, but no tyranny and oppression should be inflicted on them in this world. We can only say: “Ye have your religion and I my religion” [Qur'an 109:06].
Notes:
[1] The three principals are:
a: the world is created by a mighty and powerful Creator, and He is the only One Who should be worshiped,
b: belief in the next world and life after death,
c: practicing goodly deeds and seemly conduct that will benefit the individual himself and all the creation of God.
[Published on May 5, 2009 at: http://basmagm.wordpress.com/
Related posts
§ Two New Disturbing Reports from Egypt (13)
§ Open Letter by Prominent Figures (0)
§ Five-Year Legal Battle Ends in Favor of Egyptians Baha’is (0)
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community |
| Attacks on Baha’i Residence in Semnan Posted: 21 Apr 2009 11:36 AM PDT  "Death to Infidel Baha'i Israeli" and "Baha'ism = treason" As reported many times by Iran Press Watch, the Baha’is of Semnan live under harsh and oppressive conditions instigated by the clerical establishment of that town. The latest incident against the Baha’is is reported by Human Rights Activists of Iran and is presented below in translation:
[Source: http://hra-iran.net/index.php?
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| Baha’is Continue to be Harassed in Mashhad Posted: 21 Apr 2009 09:19 AM PDT Further to Iran Press Watch report of April 16, 2009, http://www.iranpresswatch.org/
[Source: http://hra-iran.net/index.php? |
Monday, April 06, 2009
Anti-Baha’i columnist refuses to apologise
Matt Bradley, Foreign Correspondent
- Last Updated: April 05. 2009 8:34PM UAE / April 5. 2009 4:34PM GMT
Ahmed al Sayyid Abdul Ela, a Baha’i leader whose talk show appearance was followed by the torching of Bahai’s homes. Victoria Hazou for The National
Cairo // A newspaper columnist accused of inciting attacks last week against members of the Baha’i faith in an Upper Egyptian village said yesterday he remains unapologetic for his controversial comments.
Six Egyptian human rights groups have called on public prosecutors to investigate Gamal Abd al Rahim, a writer for the state-run Al Gomhurriya newspaper, for “incitement to felonies and misdemeanours”.
They say Mr al Rahim’s statements against Baha’is on a popular talk show led directly to an attack that saw villagers in the town of Al Shuraniya torch five homes known to belong to Baha’is.
The attacks in Al Shuraniya, in which eight homes were damaged but no one was injured, struck Egypt’s tiny Baha’i community only weeks after a decision by a constitutional court that will allow Egypt’s Baha’is to leave the religion section of their identity cards blank.
Baha’is had celebrated the verdict, which they hope will give their long-disenfranchised community equal citizenship status to Muslims and Christians. But if the court victory pointed to improvements in religious tolerance, the violence in Al Shuraniya revealed the latent communal tensions that persist in Egyptian society.
In an interview in his Cairo office, Mr al Rahim said the statements aired last Saturday, in which he said that a Baha’i leader who was a guest on the same programme “should be killed”, did not incite villagers in the town of Al Shuraniya to attack the homes of their Baha’i neighbours.
“I’m responsible for every word I said, and I don’t owe anyone any apologies,” said Mr al Rahim, who added that he condemns the attacks.
Instead, he said, the villagers were merely reacting to “disgraceful” statements by one of the show’s other guests, a Baha’i named Ahmed al Sayyid Abdul Ela, who boasted that his hometown of Al Shuraniya, about 400km south of Cairo, was “full of Baha’is”.
“The Egyptian people know how Sharia [Islamic jurisprudence] views this religion. They felt disgrace because of this man. And because of the strong customs and traditions of Upper Egyptian society, they attacked this man’s house.”
Mr Ela’s brothers were among those who appeared at a courthouse yesterday in Assiut, a governorate near to Al Shuraniya, to present their statements to police. On the evening of the attacks, police ordered all of Al Shuraniya’s Baha’i residents to leave the city before they could return to their homes to collect belongings. Most of them fled to Cairo.
“It was so painful to see all the children scared. It would have been better to have died than to have watched that,” said Abdul Bassit, Mr Ela’s brother, whose house was destroyed during the riots last Sunday night. “The police were there, but they were just watching. They didn’t take any of the kind of action that you would expect from police. This incident was such proof of ignorance and barbarism I couldn’t believe it was happening.”
Egypt’s constitution does not officially recognise the Baha’i faith and many Muslims consider them to be apostates.
Some, such as Mr al Rahim, also believe the Baha’i are agents of Zionism. While their numbers are few, he said, they are a dangerous threat to Islam and to Egypt.
“They are a group that is just related to Israel,” he said, citing the Baha’i headquarters in Haifa, Israel, as evidence of a Zionist conspiracy to permeate Egyptian society. “They just get money from abroad. They exist in Egypt, but their presence might cause discord in Egyptian society. I’m worried about Egypt.”
Even in the face of such ardent opposition, Baha’i community leaders say they are preparing to continue their struggle for basic rights.
After last month’s decision on identification cards, Baha’i leaders say the next step will be to pass legislation to allow civil marriage – the Baha’i still must leave Egypt to get married because they are prohibited from marrying in an unrecognised faith. But marriage is only one of several identity benefits denied to the Baha’i that most Egyptians take for granted.
Labib Hanna, a Baha’i leader, said his family still pays income taxes for his late sister, who was not issued a death certificate when she died five years ago because her religion was not recognised by the state.
“We are really true citizens. We love Egypt and we are obeying the government,” said Dr Hanna, a mathematics professor at Cairo University.
The Baha’is’ problems with the Egyptian government began in 1960, when Gamal Abdul Nasser disbanded the group’s official organisation and seized its property. That decision led to the periodic harassment and arrest of Baha’i adherents on charges of “contempt of religion” throughout the following decades.
Commentators in state-run newspapers continue to malign the Baha’i. The Baha’i religion teaches an ethos of global religious unity. Baha’i place the Prophet Mohammed on a continuum of divine prophecy that includes, but is not limited to, the teachings of Jesus, Buddha, Krishna and Abraham. God will continue to send messengers, the Baha’i believe, and those messengers will continue to reveal divine truth.
Baha'ism is tantamount to apostasy, say many Muslims, because Baha'is
believe God sent other prophets after Mohammed.
It is perfectly acceptable for Muslims to convey their opinion of Baha’ism, said Hossam Bahgat, the executive director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, a human rights advocacy organisation that supported the Baha’is in the identity card case.
It is the incitement of violence, he said, that should be investigated and prosecuted by legal authorities.
“It’s much more serious than bigotry. Bigotry is a word I can use to describe all the views [Mr al Rahim] has expressed against Baha’is in the past month, against which Baha’is and rights activists chose not to take any legal action because we believe he was exercising his right to expression, as repulsive as the opinions he was expressing were,” said Mr Bahgat.
But some of Mr al Rahim’s comments, he said, were a “direct incitement to committing felonies and misdemeanours. We think that there is a clear link between the statements he made on TV and in a state newspaper to the type of violence we saw last week.”
mbradley@thenational.ae
Friday, April 03, 2009
Here are 3 quotations from Baha'i teachings about Zionism, which refute the charge that Baha'is are Zionists:
Shoghi Effendi's statement to the "United Nations Special Committee on Palestine", 14th July 1947, which is still the official position of the Baha'i community today (The Priceless Pearl, p. 286):
"The Bahá'í Faith is entirely non-political and we neither take sides
in the present tragic dispute going on over the future of the Holy Land
and its peoples nor have we any statement to make or advice to give
as to what the nature of the political future of this country should be.
Our aim is the establishment of universal peace in this world and our
desire to see justice prevail in every domain of human society, including
the domain of politics. As many of the adherents of our Faith
are of Jewish and Moslem extraction we have no prejudice towards
either of these groups and are most anxious to reconcile them for their
mutual benefit and for the good of the country.
What does concern us, however, in any decisions made affecting
the future of Palestine, is that the fact be recognized by whoever
exercises sovereignty over Haifa and Acre, that within this area exists
the spiritual and administrative center of a world Faith, and that the
independence of that Faith, its right to manage its international affairs
from this source, the right of Bahá'ís from any and every country of
the globe to visit it as pilgrims (enjoying the same privilege in this
respect as Jews, Moslems and Christians do in regard to visiting
Jerusalem), be acknowledged and permanently safeguarded."
http://badiblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/simple-solution-to-troubles-in-middle.html
This web page quotes an article from "Star of the West" Baha'i magazine which quotes 'Abdu'l-Baha as saying:
"If the Zionists will mingle with the other races and live in unity with them, they will succeed. If not, they will meet certain resistance. For the present I think a neutral government like the British administration would be best. A Jewish government might come later.
"There is too much talk today of what the Zionists are going to do here. There is no need of it. Let them come and do more and say less.
"The Zionists should make it clear that their principle is to elevate all the people here and to develop the country for all its inhabitants. This land must be developed, according to the promises of the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah and Zechariah. If they come in such a spirit they will not fail.
"They must not work to separate the Jews from the other Palestinians. Schools should be open to all nationalities here, business companies, etc. The Turks went down because they attempted to rule over foreign races. The British are always in power because they keep fair and promote harmony.
"This is the path to universal peace here as elsewhere -- unity. We must prevent strife by all means. For 6,000 years man has been at war. It is time to try peace a little while. If it fails, we can always go back to war."
"The accusation: That Bahá’ís are agents of Zionism.
The reality: This charge is based on the fact that the Bahá’í World Centre is in Israel. The Bahá’í World Centre was, however, established on Mt. Carmel in the 19th century, long before the State of Israel came into existence, in accordance with the explicit instructions of Bahá’u’lláh, who was exiled there from Iran."
Shoghi Effendi's statement to the "United Nations Special Committee on Palestine", 14th July 1947, which is still the official position of the Baha'i community today (The Priceless Pearl, p. 286):
"The Bahá'í Faith is entirely non-political and we neither take sides
in the present tragic dispute going on over the future of the Holy Land
and its peoples nor have we any statement to make or advice to give
as to what the nature of the political future of this country should be.
Our aim is the establishment of universal peace in this world and our
desire to see justice prevail in every domain of human society, including
the domain of politics. As many of the adherents of our Faith
are of Jewish and Moslem extraction we have no prejudice towards
either of these groups and are most anxious to reconcile them for their
mutual benefit and for the good of the country.
What does concern us, however, in any decisions made affecting
the future of Palestine, is that the fact be recognized by whoever
exercises sovereignty over Haifa and Acre, that within this area exists
the spiritual and administrative center of a world Faith, and that the
independence of that Faith, its right to manage its international affairs
from this source, the right of Bahá'ís from any and every country of
the globe to visit it as pilgrims (enjoying the same privilege in this
respect as Jews, Moslems and Christians do in regard to visiting
Jerusalem), be acknowledged and permanently safeguarded."
http://badiblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/simple-solution-to-troubles-in-middle.html
This web page quotes an article from "Star of the West" Baha'i magazine which quotes 'Abdu'l-Baha as saying:
"If the Zionists will mingle with the other races and live in unity with them, they will succeed. If not, they will meet certain resistance. For the present I think a neutral government like the British administration would be best. A Jewish government might come later.
"There is too much talk today of what the Zionists are going to do here. There is no need of it. Let them come and do more and say less.
"The Zionists should make it clear that their principle is to elevate all the people here and to develop the country for all its inhabitants. This land must be developed, according to the promises of the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah and Zechariah. If they come in such a spirit they will not fail.
"They must not work to separate the Jews from the other Palestinians. Schools should be open to all nationalities here, business companies, etc. The Turks went down because they attempted to rule over foreign races. The British are always in power because they keep fair and promote harmony.
"This is the path to universal peace here as elsewhere -- unity. We must prevent strife by all means. For 6,000 years man has been at war. It is time to try peace a little while. If it fails, we can always go back to war."
"The accusation: That Bahá’ís are agents of Zionism.
The reality: This charge is based on the fact that the Bahá’í World Centre is in Israel. The Bahá’í World Centre was, however, established on Mt. Carmel in the 19th century, long before the State of Israel came into existence, in accordance with the explicit instructions of Bahá’u’lláh, who was exiled there from Iran."
*Reprinted with permission of the Bahá’í International Community* 
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Graphic Details on the Burning of Baha'i Homes in Egypt
Below is a video showing the burning of Baha'i homes in the village of Showranyiah in the province of Sohag in Upper Egypt (You can hear at the end of the video someone shouting for the person taking the video "el hokooma gaya" (The government [police] is coming):
The following is an account of the events surrounding the violence perpetrated against the Baha'is of Egypt and the burning of their homes in a southern village located in the province of Sohag. This information was related by a reliable source in Egypt:
This crisis began with a television program, named al-Haqiqah [The Truth], aired on Egypt's Dream-2 channel last Saturday, 28 March, from 7:30-8:30 PM, in which the extremist journalist, Gamal Abdel-Rahim, ferociously attacked the Baha'is, calling for their killing and for the killing of Dr. Basma Moussa who was also a participant in the same program. Another participant in this program was Mr. Ahmad El-Sayyid, an Egyptian Baha'i from the southern village of Showranyiah who indicated that there were many Baha'is living in his province of Sohag. The program was hosted by the well-known TV personality, Mr. Wael El-Ebrashy.
Shortly after the airing of this program on Saturday night, a mob went to the homes of the Baha'is in the village of Showraniyah, which is an island in the middle of the Nile consisting of two sub-villages named Nagh el-Kabir and Nagh el-Sa'aydah, in the southern province of Sohag. The mob began by shouting insults at the Baha'is, who were in their homes at the time, and chanted "No God but Allah" and "Baha'is are enemies of Allah," and began throwing bricks and rocks at these five homes.
Some of these Baha'is were able to contact the police and reported the attack. The police then interfered, dispersed the crowd, and took all the Baha'is to the police station and held them in protective custody until the police was able to negotiate with the mob and reach some sort of a truce. Subsequently, they released the Baha'is to return to their homes the next morning (Sunday) and provided police guards around the homes until Monday morning when the guards were pulled.
On Tuesday morning, 31 March, the journalist Gamal Abdel-Rahim wrote an inflammatory article, published in the government-owned al-Gomhoriyah [The Republic] newspaper, also posted on his blog, in which he stirred the emotions of the ignorant masses by slandering the Baha'is and calling for their killing. He also praised the villagers for their attacks on the Baha'is. That same day, when night fell, a mob attacked the homes of the Baha'is in Showraniyah (see video above), threw homemade Molotov cocktail bottles and fire bombs at the homes burning a total of 6 homes (according to the Egyptian media two homes did not belong to the Baha'is). They vandalized the homes and looted their property, some of which were electric appliances and other expensive items. Meanwhile, the Baha'i families and their children were desperate for a place to hide, some of whom were in the recesses of their homes and some were able to escape the fire and hide in alley corners in the dark.
In order to spread the fire, the mob cut-off the water supply to the homes and blocked access to the village so that fire trucks would be delayed in their response. Because the village is an island, fire trucks have to access the village by a ferry.
At last, the police interfered and arrested six villagers from the mob, and took the Baha'i families into protective custody again. They were able, then, to smuggle these families with their children and babies out of the village in the early dawn, Wednesday morning--only with their clothes on their backs--via the ferry and took them to several undisclosed distant locations in Egypt.
Today, 2 April 2009, six Egyptian Human Rights Organizations as well as Dr. Basma Moussa, the Egyptian Baha'i who was the target of death threats caused by Gamal Abdel-Rahim's calls for her murder, as well as several members of the Baha'i families from Sohag went to the offices of the State Council in Cairo. They met with Egypt's Attorney-General and filed formal complaints against Gamal Abdel-Rahim and the mob in the village of Showraniyah.
The Attorney-General referred Dr. Moussa's case to the Giza Attorney-General and referred the Baha'i villagers case to the Assyout (southern province) Attorney-General because it was felt that the Sohag office of the attorney might be biased against them. During that visit in Cairo, large crowds were present--many of whom were supportive--as well as riot police and security forces. Also present were several representatives from various media agencies, including al-Gazirah channel which has recorded interviews with those present. The media was not permitted to enter the building of the State Council [Maghlis al-Dawlah].
Several leading Egyptian newspapers have already reported on these events, some of which are linked to here (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6). International news agencies have also picked up the story (AP-1, AP-2 & AFP, Reuters).
P.S. All pictures in this post are from today's visit to the State Council.
Al-Gazirah Channel:
Today, six Egyptian human rights organizations, led by the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) have issued a joint statement that expressed their disgust with these heinous acts against this innocent religious minority of Egypt, and have described their strategy in handling the situation. They are requesting the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators of these acts as well as State-sponsored protective measures for the Baha'is. This is a very serious and strong statement (a must read), the statement was initially released today in Arabic, and was later translated to English. It is quoted below with permission:
Joint Press Release
2 April, 2009
Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
Hisham Mubarak Law Center
El-Nadim Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence
Arabic Network for Human Rights Information
Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression
Rights Groups Urge Prosecutions for Assault on Baha'i Egyptians
Six Egyptian human rights organizations today urged the Public Prosecutor to initiate an immediate investigation into assaults committed against Baha'i Egyptians over the past several days in the southern governorate of Sohag. In a complaint filed this morning, the groups called for the investigation to include those responsible for the direct incitement to the assaults and asked that the matter be referred urgently to criminal trial.
"The heinous and unprecedented attacks on Baha'i Egyptians are a crime against all Egyptians,“ the rights organizations said. “We shall never allow the perpetrators of these crimes to benefit from the same climate of impunity that has marred the government's response to sectarian violence against Egyptians Copts over the last four decades.”
Preliminary inquiries carried out by the rights groups found that the attacks began on Saturday evening, 28 March, in the village of al-Shuraniya, located in the Maragha district of Sohag, when dozens of village residents gathered outside of the homes of Baha'i citizens in the village and began chanting, “There is no god but God, Baha'is are the enemies of God.” Those assembled then began pelting the houses with rocks, breaking windows and attempting to break in. Although police forces arrived in the village after being called by the victims of the attack, the police simply dispersed the assembled parties without arresting anyone involved in the crime. Similar, though less intense, attacks occurred on 29 and 30 March.
On 31 March at approximately 7 pm, the attacks escalated when some residents of the village—known by the victims—threw improvised firebombs and Molotov cocktails at the homes of the five Baha'i families living in the village, leading to the partial destruction of the houses. The victims said that the assailants broke or disabled the water connections to their homes to prevent them from putting out the fires. According to the victims, the assailants also broke into the houses, vandalizing property inside and stealing some electrical appliances and livestock. There were no human injuries or losses. The attacks prompted some of the Baha'i families to flee their homes and hide in the fields until the following morning. The police arrived during the attacks and again dispersed the assailants; there was no information that any of the assailants had been arrested.
The next morning, 1 April, the police ordered the remaining Baha'is in the village to leave immediately and did not allow them to return to their homes to collect clothing, medicine, schoolbooks, money, or other necessities. Information gathered indicates that all Baha'is have left the village as of the evening of 1 April.
The assaults on the Baha'is in al-Shuraniya began after an episode of the program “al-Haqiqa,” aired on Dream 2 on 28 March, which discussed the situation of Baha'is in Egypt. The program featured a Baha'i from al-Shuraniya and Baha'i activist and dentistry professor Dr. Basma Gamal Musa. Also participating in the program was Gamal Abd al-Rahim, a journalist at the state-owned al-Gumhouriya newspaper and a member of the board of the Press Syndicate, who, during the program, said referring to Dr. Basma, “This one should be killed.” On 31 March, only hours before the homes of the Baha'is were torched in al-Shuraniya, al-Gomhouriya published an article by Gamal Abd al-Rahim in which he praised the residents of al-Shuraniya for stoning the homes of Baha'is in the village in the preceding days. He considered these crimes to be evidence of al-Shuraniya residents’ “protectiveness of their religion and beliefs.”
The six rights organizations demanded that the Public Prosecutor question Gamal Abd al-Rahim regarding his incitement to violence against Baha'is in both the television program and his published article, pursuant to Articles 171 and 172 of the Penal Code, which address public incitement to felonies and misdemeanors. Consistent with the organizations’ principled opposition to the imprisonment for publication offences, the groups' complaint excluded Article 98(f) of the Penal Code, which stipulates mandatory imprisonment for “anyone who exploits religion to promote extremist ideas with the intent of inciting civil strife and damaging national unity,” and Article 176 of the Penal Code, which also stipulates mandatory imprisonment for anyone who “incites to discrimination against a group of people on the basis of race, origin, language, religion, or belief when such incitement disrupts public peace.”
Moreover, the rights organizations called on the board of Egypt's national Press Syndicate to take immediate action against Gamal Abd al-Rahim, particularly since he occupies a seat on the board, regarding his violation of the Syndicate’s Code of Ethics, which states that journalists have an obligation “to refrain in their writings from joining racist or bigoted advocacy or advocacy that involves contempt or disdain of religions, aspersions cast on the faith of others, or incitement to discrimination against or contempt for any group of society.”
For further information, please call +20 10 628 8928.
All rights reserved © Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
e-mail:eipr@eipr.org
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Even though Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court has, on 16 March 2009, ruled in favor of the Baha'is allowing them to obtain identity documents with dashes [--] entered in place of religion, there remain many obstacles to the normalization of their status in Egypt. This can be easily perceived when reading the recent editorials and reports in several Egyptian newspaper articles.
Initially, following the recent court ruling, several of these articles limited their reporting to the facts about the verdict itself and its implications (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8). More recently, though, newspaper editorials have been busying themselves with eliciting public opinions regarding the Baha'i case from various factions (9, 10).
These opinions range from, those who adamantly oppose the Baha'is and who are bent on continuing their "war" against the Baha'is--calling them apostates who deserve the severest of penalties, to those who are supportive of the citizenship rights of the Baha'is (10, 11, 12, 13), to the extent of voicing their disappointment that the ruling did not go far enough to permit the Baha'is to enter their true religion on these identity documents.
The intent of some of the supporters appears to be not to acknowledge the legitimacy of the Baha'i Faith as an approved religion in Egypt, but rather they look at the matter as a human rights issue: that is the right of people to independent belief and to be identified correctly according to their own belief.
There remains, also, many others who do not understand what the fuss is all about and do not even acknowledge the existence of such a thing as "Baha'i," stating: "besides Islam and Christianity in Egypt, we only had Jews, and fortunately we have managed to get rid of them."
Furthermore, there are those who resort to using the well-known Egyptian sarcasm in order to make their point by calling the Baha'i Faith "Al-deen Abu-Sharta [the dashes religion]," referring to the ruling that allowed dashes to be entered in place of religion on identity documents.
Emad & Nancy Raouf Hindi in the courtroom on 16 March
This controversy, which cannot just vanish overnight simply because of a favorable court verdict, will likely continue for some time to come. Thus, the difficult task before the Baha'is of Egypt will likely go beyond the mere pursuit of their identity documents and the consequent acquisition of some of their citizenship rights.
It will require an extraordinary effort on their behalf to influence the public opinion as to the nature and the legitimacy of their belief. They will also need to help the Egyptian society learn the truth about their Faith and the desire of the Egyptian Baha'is, as obedient citizens and well-wishers of their homeland, to join hands with their fellow Egyptians in promoting their collective welfare.
It is a natural human reaction, particularly after such a long suffering and after so many legal battles, for all those affected by the ruling to be ecstatic with such a victory in their ongoing struggle for their rights. It is also obvious that many other minorities in Egypt will ultimately benefit from such a ruling that, at last, opened the door for them towards their civil rights without having to identify themselves as belonging to one of the three approved religions in Egypt. It is time, however, for the harder task to begin: that is for the Baha'is to intensify the projection of their well-acknowledged brilliant image on their beloved society and correct public perception of their true nature and intent.
A tough obstacle in their path, however, remains to be presidential decree (263) that, in 1960, outlawed the Baha'i Faith in Egypt. Without the reversal of this decree, the Baha'is of Egypt will continue to be the targets of all sorts of false accusations, attacks and ill-intentioned challenges by the extremist elements of the Egyptian society. Ultimately, in order for them to be treated equally in the true sense, it is essential for their status in Egypt to be fully legitimized by removing all barriers to their standing as equal citizens of their beloved Egypt.
Initially, following the recent court ruling, several of these articles limited their reporting to the facts about the verdict itself and its implications (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8). More recently, though, newspaper editorials have been busying themselves with eliciting public opinions regarding the Baha'i case from various factions (9, 10).
These opinions range from, those who adamantly oppose the Baha'is and who are bent on continuing their "war" against the Baha'is--calling them apostates who deserve the severest of penalties, to those who are supportive of the citizenship rights of the Baha'is (10, 11, 12, 13), to the extent of voicing their disappointment that the ruling did not go far enough to permit the Baha'is to enter their true religion on these identity documents.
The intent of some of the supporters appears to be not to acknowledge the legitimacy of the Baha'i Faith as an approved religion in Egypt, but rather they look at the matter as a human rights issue: that is the right of people to independent belief and to be identified correctly according to their own belief.
There remains, also, many others who do not understand what the fuss is all about and do not even acknowledge the existence of such a thing as "Baha'i," stating: "besides Islam and Christianity in Egypt, we only had Jews, and fortunately we have managed to get rid of them."
Furthermore, there are those who resort to using the well-known Egyptian sarcasm in order to make their point by calling the Baha'i Faith "Al-deen Abu-Sharta [the dashes religion]," referring to the ruling that allowed dashes to be entered in place of religion on identity documents.
Emad & Nancy Raouf Hindi in the courtroom on 16 MarchThis controversy, which cannot just vanish overnight simply because of a favorable court verdict, will likely continue for some time to come. Thus, the difficult task before the Baha'is of Egypt will likely go beyond the mere pursuit of their identity documents and the consequent acquisition of some of their citizenship rights.
It will require an extraordinary effort on their behalf to influence the public opinion as to the nature and the legitimacy of their belief. They will also need to help the Egyptian society learn the truth about their Faith and the desire of the Egyptian Baha'is, as obedient citizens and well-wishers of their homeland, to join hands with their fellow Egyptians in promoting their collective welfare.
It is a natural human reaction, particularly after such a long suffering and after so many legal battles, for all those affected by the ruling to be ecstatic with such a victory in their ongoing struggle for their rights. It is also obvious that many other minorities in Egypt will ultimately benefit from such a ruling that, at last, opened the door for them towards their civil rights without having to identify themselves as belonging to one of the three approved religions in Egypt. It is time, however, for the harder task to begin: that is for the Baha'is to intensify the projection of their well-acknowledged brilliant image on their beloved society and correct public perception of their true nature and intent.
A tough obstacle in their path, however, remains to be presidential decree (263) that, in 1960, outlawed the Baha'i Faith in Egypt. Without the reversal of this decree, the Baha'is of Egypt will continue to be the targets of all sorts of false accusations, attacks and ill-intentioned challenges by the extremist elements of the Egyptian society. Ultimately, in order for them to be treated equally in the true sense, it is essential for their status in Egypt to be fully legitimized by removing all barriers to their standing as equal citizens of their beloved Egypt.
source BAHAI FAITH IN EGYPT AND IRAN
Monday, March 16, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
A Remarkable Victory for the Baha'is of Egypt
While their brothers and sisters in Iran continue to endure harsh oppression, the Baha'is of Egypt have just received a remarkable gift from their judicial establishment. The appeal--brought by Islamist lawyers in their attempt to reverse the 29 January 2008 ruling that permitted the Baha'is of Egypt to obtain ID cards and birth certificates with dashes [--] inserted in place of religious identification--was denied by Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court in its session today. The court also asserted that the 29 January ruling must be now enforced.With this ruling, all legal challenges and appeals, brought by those extremists who oppose the Baha'is in Egypt, have been defeated in court. The Ministry of Interior, the principal party to the lawsuits, has never challenged or appealed the ruling that favored the Baha'is.
With this final verdict, there are no legal or administrative obstacles left that could prevent the Baha'is of Egypt from obtaining ID cards or birth certificates in their homeland.
Even though this significant step is considered to be a very welcome development in their struggle for their civil rights, the Baha'is of Egypt continue to suffer from consequences of the 1960 Presidential Decree-263, of the late President Gamal Abdel-Nasser, that outlawed the Baha'i Faith in Egypt.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Debunking the Myths: Conspiracy Theories Posted: 14 Mar 2009 06:49 PM PDT
Several baseless claims have been put forth as truth in various public forums and media. Over time, these have been accepted as “truth” due to repetition and a general apathy by the Iranian masses towards independent investigation of such claims. Gradually, most of us have simply come to accept a variety of often conflicting claims about the Bahá’ís. For instance, the Bahá’ís were created by the British AND Russians in the 19th-century (while both were actually competing for influence in Persia!). Or that the Baha’is held positions of power in the Pahlavi regime and were also agents of Israel, international Zionism, and American Imperialism. During the Iran-Iraqi war, some Bahá’ís were even labeled as Iraqi agents! Adib Masumian puts forth a challenge to these theories in his new book “Debunking the Myths: Conspiracy Theories on the Genesis and Mission of the Bahá’í Faith.” In 89 pages, this work provides an analysis of the most widespread anti-Bahá’í allegations raised by clerics and Iranian polemicists over the past century or so. These include such myths as Prince Dolgorukov of Russia acting as the prime motivator of the Báb, the British General, Arthur Conolly, as the one who persuaded Mulla Husayn to push the Báb into starting his religion, or considering `Abdu’l-Bahá’s knighthood in 1920 as irrefutable evidence of Bahá’í ties to British imperialism. The book also discusses whether any of the influential members of the Sháh’s regime were Baha’is from Amir Abbas Hoveida to General Nassiri or Parviz Sabeti of SAVAK to Farrokhroo Pársá and others. And unlike anti-Baha’i polemicists who hardly ever provide credible sources for their claims, this book offers about 140 citations with a bibliography of over 50 different books and credible websites (both Baha’i and non-Baha’i) to substantiate its assertions. Iran Press Watch highly recommends this book to their readers. It is available for purchase in two versions:
“I hope those who have always wondered about the credibility of claims against the Baha’is take a look at this book and decide for themselves where the truth is. Just as the Protocols of the Elders of Zion has been proven a farce, so must the Dolgorukov Memoirs and other fabrications be exposed, once and for all, for what they are - insults to scholarship. I have attempted to do that, too, in this work.” Related posts
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| An Account of an Expelled Baha’i Student Posted: 14 Mar 2009 05:57 PM PDT Editor’s Note: Iran Press Watch is grateful to have received the following account from a Baha’i young adult in Iran, whom we will only identify by his first name, Ali-Reza. This account is offered below in translation by Iran Press Watch. In the Name of God, the Creator! Respectfully, I declare that I, Ali-Reza … am a Baha’i and the son of a Baha’i. In 1996, I participated in the university entrance exam. At that time because of special circumstances (my mother being a staunch Muslim, had forbidden my father from having contacts with Baha’is), I, the only child of the family, was not even aware of my father’s religion as I was growing up. While filling out the application form, I marked Muslim in the religion column. Before the names of successful candidates were announced in the national newspapers, I was summoned by authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Organization for Evaluation and Assessment. After I was asked many irrelevant questions, I was notified that even though I had passed the entrance exam with flying colors and was eligible to enter medical school, I was not allowed to continue my education due to my father’s religion. I explained that there are no verses in the Qu’ran or the Constitution allowing discrimination against religious minorities; moreover, I insisted that I was a Muslim and was only born to a Baha’i father. I was told that the Baha’i Faith is not among official religions of the country, and its followers are spies of Israel, are anti-Islam and anti-Iran. After ceaselessly pursuing my dream of becoming a doctor, missing one school term, receiving threats and insults, accepting the condition set for me, I was permitted to enroll. The condition was that at no time and under no circumstances should I engage in any teaching of the Baha’i Faith - about which I did not know anything anyway, though I was raised in a home with a Baha’i father. However, a few years later when I started investigating and finally accepted the Baha’i Faith, I realized that I had been raised under the principles of the Baha’i Faith. Unfortunately, the harassment did not stop when I entered university. With every change in the staff, I was interrogated by the Security Committee again and again. All along, the only accusation that I was charged with was that my father was a Baha’i. I was often summoned for investigation and pressured to follow Islam. Each time, I was asked irrelevant questions which I found very hard to deal with. I was becoming emotionally drained, especially when they were associating Baha’is with espionage. In 2002, I was a resident physician, finishing the last term of my medical school, serving in hospitals. Prompted by a spiritual dream that I had, and the curiosity aroused in me by the authorities’ questions, I began to investigate the Baha’i Faith by searching the internet. I wanted to find out about this Faith that I was strongly forbidden to mention to anyone, that I was harassed about so many times throughout so many years. Finally, I accepted the Baha’i Faith. I was so touched by the Most Holy Book and the Book of Certitude that I could not contain myself and conceal my faith. My close friends, my classmates and then the Basij [Islamic militia that interferes in all aspects of people's lives] became aware of it and notified the Security Committee of the university. I also mentioned my belief to the Khademin, who guided me and asked me to be wise [meaning not to proclaim his Faith too openly and thereby jeopardize his life]. After accepting the Baha’i Faith, not only did I lose my friends (though not all of them), but I was subject to the anger and hatred of all my relatives and some of my wife’s relatives. They even tried to force my wife to separate from me. However, she was investigating the Faith as well, and had a favorable view of it. She stood strong and did not bend under their pressure. Since that time, I have been in touch with the Baha’i community, have taught my faith and have increased my knowledge of the faith. I have also trained and educated my children by following the teachings of the faith. After becoming aware of my acceptance of the Baha’i Faith, the Security Committee of the university summoned me and started interrogating me. They told me that based on information received from their sources, they knew that I had been in contact with “elements of the misguided sect” and that I had caused “disturbance in public minds”. I responded and rejected their accusations. I said I had just accepted the Baha’i Faith and had done nothing to cause any disturbance to public minds. They were dismayed by my responses and were angered by my steadfastness in my belief. I was finally charged with being a cause of “disorder at the university” and “disturbance of the minds of students”. I was expelled from the university dormitory, banned from university for two years, forced out of medical school and compelled to major in physiotherapy. I strongly objected, complained to the Ministry of Health and also to the judiciary and even wrote to Mr. Khatami, President of Iran at that time. All my efforts were in vain. I was warned repeatedly that I should not discuss any of what was happening with anyone. In the two years that I was banned from university, I purchased a small car, financed by selling my wife’s jewelry and obtaining a car loan. I started a taxi service between cities to provide for my family. Being away from medical school and serving patients at hospitals that I cherished so much caused a lot of stress. Repeatedly I sought counseling. Even the counselor, after finding out the reason for my depression, wrote to the university officials in the hope that I would be permitted to go back to university, not knowing my depression and dismay were exactly what the authorities wanted to achieve. Since that time I have always felt irritated, impatient and depressed. Eventually, after my two-year dismissal from university ended, despite my desire to finish medical school, I had no choice but to change my field to physiotherapy. However, I was still not left alone. The Ministry of Health continued to write confidential letters to the university officials and vice versa discussing my dismissal - I have related documents in my procession which I am forwarding. Finally, after receiving notice from the Ministry of Health, I was prohibited from registering. I was called to the security office and was questioned by the authorities. Being angered by my responses; I was physically assaulted by the Basij and by security personnel. Due to the efforts of my uncle, I was not arrested or charged. In 2004, after Baha’i students were allowed to enter universities (almost all of them have been expelled by now), I too enrolled. I successfully finished my studies and received a perfect mark on my final report. Even though I had paid all my tuition and I owed nothing to the university, I was sent back again and again between offices and at the end I was told that due to problems in my file and based on a directive from the Ministry of Health, a certificate for the completion of my education could not be issued. I tried many times, contacted many officials, but I could not even get a temporary certificate of completion for my studies. The final verdict was that as long as I insisted on my religious beliefs, it would be impossible to get my certificate. I was not given any written document of what I was told. I personally contacted the Ministry of Health many times asking for the written ruling. Finally, one employee who was very helpful gave me a copy of the communication. Needless to say, after accepting the Baha’i Faith we were not spared from harassment by our neighbors and some of our former friends. Even our car was not left alone. Sometimes, we would see scratches, a broken mirror, or four flat tires. Our son has been under duress in school and finally we were forced to change his school. All the pressures and agitation inflicted upon our lives has affected our younger son as well, the effects of which are noticeable in his behavior and have caused stuttering in his speech. Signed, Ali-Reza Related posts
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| Posted: 14 Mar 2009 05:54 AM PDT
[Source: http://www.rasanews.com/
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| ‘Because of Their Worldliness, Baha’is Resist the Qur’an’ Posted: 14 Mar 2009 05:51 AM PDT
[Source: http://www.rasanews.com/
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| Growth of the Faith and its Relation to Persecutions Posted: 13 Mar 2009 10:03 PM PDT This is a brief talk by the Hand of the Cause of God Dr. R. Muhajir. As it is appropriate to the theme of this site, Iran Press Watch is pleased to share this remarkable talk with its esteemed readers — and listeners. Download the Talk (MP3, approx 6.2MB)
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| United Religions Initiative in Brazil Posted: 13 Mar 2009 10:01 PM PDT By Sam H. Cyrous The United Religions Initiative (URI) based in Brasília, the capital of Brazil, has sent two open letters asking for the immediate release of the Baha’is in Iran, one to the Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs and the other to the Iranian Ambassador to Brazil. They request the Minister they to “issue a public statement on these arrests, and to urge the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to promptly see the equivocal and illegality of these acts that must be repaired, first of all with the release of the prisoners.” They summon the Ambassador to apply the Quranic principles: “In the Holy Quran, Justice and Mercy are values which are always reminded to all the believers. Thus even if we are to consider the total independence of the Iranian State, we cannot understand such attitudes, and even less accept them, as we hereby respectfully express. (…) We also feel impelled to request from those responsible for these human rights violations, and particularly the Iranian Government, good sense and real practice of justice, through the release of these prisoners and the full reestablishment of their rights, since the Christians and Jews among Iranian citizens do not suffer – or they should not – any such violations – facts that yet again cannot justify the mentioned acts.” Cautioning that by acting otherwise, they are the ones endangering Islam: “Dearest Mr. Ambassador, to conclude I would like to express that I understand that, at the eventuality of the continuity of this situation, we shall see it as a setback on the world’s view on human rights in Iran, as well as on the very image of the country, which certainly will give room to those heralds of untruthfulness against Islam and their specific arguments to work solidly in their propaganda.” Moreover, there is no doubt that if this situation that we now repudiate comes to occur, all of us, who work for the social and organizational awareness on the theological and cultural, legal and scientific richness that Islam brought to all humankind through the centuries, will be in a difficult position to argument in defense. Download: Letter to the Iranian Ambassador | Letter to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Related posts |
Vladimir Lenin once said that a lie told often enough becomes truth. If one takes a look at the way Bahá’ís have been viewed and treated by their adversaries, particularly Muslim clerics from Shaykh Fazlollah Nuri to Falsafi to Dorri-Najafabadi and other leaders of the current Iranian regime, they will see an unfortunate truth to Lenin’s assertion.
Editor’s Note: Rasa News Agency continues to share the sentiments of the Iranian clerical establishment towards the Baha’is. In this case, a thoroughly discredited conspiracy theory that the Baha’i Faith was a creation of British intelligence (Baha’u'llah never actually met any Britons until nearly at the end of His life) is the basis of this clergyman’s criticism. The latest in this series is a report published on February 25, 2009.
Editor’s Note: Rasa News is a mouthpiece of fanaticism and deception against the Baha’is of Iran, and it would be a source of much entertainment if it weren’t so tragic. This latest news is true, though it sounds absurd. It reports on last Friday’s sermon (March 6, 2009) by the Imam Jum’ih of Zanjan. What the good Imam said though is a different matter. Judge for yourself.Thursday, March 12, 2009
Letter of Iran’s Attorney-General to the Minister of Intelligence
Editor’s Note: The following letter is from Iran’s Attorney General, Ayatollah Qorban-Ali Dorri-Najafabadi, to the country’s Minister of Intelligence, Muhseni-Azheh’i. The letter is undated, but since it was published online on 19 February 2009, it appears that it was dispatched around mid-February. Since this letter includes various instructions regarding the government’s treatment of the Baha’i community, a translation of the full text of this important letter is provided below by Iran Press Watch.
Muhseni-Azheh’i
To honored Hojjato’l-Islam Muhseni-Azheh’i, the esteemed Minister of Intelligence!
With greetings and hopes that your prayers and meditations are accepted [by God] in this bountiful month!
Regarding the previous letter about the activities of the wayward Baha’i organization, it is necessary for me to point out the following:
A. Acceptance of multiplicity and diversity in a society is among its instruments of liberty - including freedom of thought and decision. It is an undeniable and established principle in any society of religious men, and is affirmed through the covenant of constitutional law. The Constitution is the foundation of societal order and is the final word on the governance and organization of the people. Specifically, Articles 26 and 27 [of IRI's Constitution] recognizes freedom to form parties and associations - of course, not absolute liberty, but conditional.
On this basis, various [political] parties and groups may function legally as long as they do not violate the principles of independence, liberty, national unity, Islamic provisions, and the fundamental laws of the Islamic Republic. Of course, it is not necessary for the members of such assembled groups to believe in these principles, but it is necessary for them to adhere to these provisions.
The law governing the activities of parties and associations (established in 1360 Sh [1981]) has provided a framework for the appearance and functioning of these organizations, and has outlined means for their growth and development. Therefore, associations that are without a constitution or by-laws approved by authorized governmental agencies are not permitted to function.
Religious minorities are defined and delineated in the luminous religious law [of the Shiites] and the nation’s Constitution, and except for those enumerated in Articles 12 and 13, no others are permitted to be active.
In accordance with Article 20 of the Constitution, every citizen is under the protection of the law, and the government is responsible to safeguard each person’s civil rights as a citizen. Moreover, in accordance with Article 23, no one may be opposed or questioned solely based on his beliefs. Based on this foundation, adherence to a principle or belief is free, but to openly express and proclaim it in order to cause deviation in the thoughts of others, to manipulate, pretend, disseminate [ideas] and otherwise attempt to deceive and confuse people are not permissible.
All citizens of Islamic Republic of Iran are under the protective umbrella of the government, and the regime is responsible to ensure their civil rights to their fullest measure. In accordance with Article 22 of the Constitution all citizens are safeguarded against censure, except in instances where they have strayed beyond the boundary of the law.
Fundamentally, individuals who have been given true and legal recognition in the Constitution and secondary edicts are free to undertake these aforementioned activities. However, should they attempt any activity, either individually, collectively or through their organization, which would threaten national security or the sovereignty of the nation, then it is obvious that the government will use its powers to establish the common good and the national benefit, and will confront the aggressor in an equivalent manner.
B. In consideration of the aforesaid, and the methods, history and record of the political-intelligence organization Baha’ism, they are not among the political parties or legal associations that are licensed for activity, nor are they listed among the divine religions, nor do they meet the definition of religious minorities.
The documents, evidence and oral testimony which have been gathered so far prove that the said organization [i.e. the Baha'i community] has been directly in touch with foreign enemies of the people of Iran, and they have long-established and firm connections with the Zionist regime [Israel]. Moreover, they have formed organizations and groups in Iran, and under various designations carry out propaganda, teaching, socio-economics, educational, and humanitarian activities, thereby collecting information, penetrating and undermining the foundations of the people’s beliefs.
Therefore, in accordance with policies and instructions previously issued by the Islamic Revolutionary Attorney General, and that period’s esteemed head of the judiciary branch which prohibited every form of activity by the aforementioned movement [i.e. the Baha'i Faith], once again the same prohibition is promulgated.
The administration of the wayward sect [i.e. the Baha'i community] is illegal and unsanctioned at every level. Moreover, their allegiance to Israel, their opposition to Islam and the Islamic regime, is clear, documented and affirmed, as is their threat to national security. Therefore, it is necessary to confront [the Baha'i community] in accordance with established policies and further to confront whatever organization they establish to shadow and replace the original one.
It is obvious that any disregard or negligence regarding this issue is against public welfare and our national interests, will aid the objectives of foreigners, Zionists and their agents, and will result in admonishment and regret before the Divine Court.
I beseech Almighty God to perpetually render that honored person victorious.
[Posted at http://www.yjc.ir/News/NewsDesc.aspx?newsid=150113. Translation by Iran Press Watch.]
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Posted: 04 Mar 2009 02:53 PM PST
Editor’s Note: On January 30, 2009, Iran Press Watch published an account by Abdollah Shahbazi (http://www.iranpresswatch.
I have seen your name on the list of occupations of Baha’is in Shiraz. It has been seven months since you passed on. It was about seven years before that when you were forced to leave your job. Old age, the trembling of your hands and the sorrow of mom’s death took away your ability to continue working.
You were living on the meager donation bestowed upon you by the “respected authorities”. Twenty years after your pension was cut off, you thought, there had been a little improvement in the treatment of the Baha’is. The only thing that you asked for from these beloved authorities was to be paid from your own contribution to the pension fund which you had made during your thirty years of honest service, teaching children in the hot weather of Abadan. You did not expect a comfortable life, just a modest lifestyle in the last years of your existence. After much correspondence, you were given a meager monthly amount, one sixth of what you were legally entitled to.
Now, your name is in the long list of workers, each of whose occupations somehow requires usage of “water” or “other liquids” making the object that is touched by the Baha’is “unclean” or “untouchable”. It is ridiculous. It is explained that since car repair requires using “water” the car becomes “untouchable”; since an optician uses liquid solutions for cleaning glasses, the glass becomes “untouchable”. In the 21st century, don’t civilized people laugh at such rationalizations? In one case they lacked enough creativity to label occupations in the clothing industry “untouchable”!!
On top of the list is written: “Baha’is who have occupations in Shiraz”. Was it expected that Baha’is, after getting fired from their jobs or having their pensions cut off, should sit and stare at the walls, or were they expected to work in an “imaginary” work place?
Always and all over the world, retirement is anticipated as a time for rest and the enjoyment of life. However, instead of retirement, you started your new occupation and worked another fifteen years, providing for your family with pride. You did not give them the satisfaction of seeing you give up in despair. If it had been anywhere other than Iran, there would have been stories and movies about the strength and determination of you and people like you. Alas, with “unclear intentions” and of course “fruitless effort”, they published lists of those who lived with integrity, and who repaid enmity with kindness.
Dear Dad, when I saw your name on the list, it brought back memories of the past. I recall that we were laughing and saying: make up your mind and decide which country we are spying for — is it Russia or England, America or Israel? Dad, were you getting sensitive and classified information from poverty-stricken children of oil refinery workers or from clothing markets and shopkeepers? How is it that we are spies without pay and based on testimony stated at the beginning of the aforementioned “list”, we even provide financial help to Israel!! What kind of spies are we that openly introduce ourselves and write “Baha’i” in all the forms that have a religion column? Dad, if you had not filled out the religion column with honesty, you would have received your pension and I could have graduated from university 17-18 years ago!!
In any movie or story that I have ever seen or read, spies kept their identities secret. Why are we so stupid? This is complicated, my brain can’t figure it out, maybe the announcers of such comments can offer clarification!!
Is honesty so devoid of value that if you had lied, and instead of “Baha’i” had written “Muslim” in the religion columns of employment forms or registration forms of schools and universities, they would now be clapping, would have made life easy for you and would now say welcome to our religion?
There are many like that young man who remembered you from ages ago when you were his teacher. When he was handing you your dismissal letter, he was feeling ashamed of doing what he was ordered to do. In his eyes you could see his appreciation and respect for you.
Hoping that someday honesty and steadfastness will bring results, and that more and more people will start defending basic human rights.
With much love,
Your son.
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Irani Irony: International War Crimes vis-a-vis Internal Peace Crimes
Posted: 28 Feb 2009 02:56 PM PST
By Dr. Christopher Buck
Editor’s Note: The following essay is an invited editorial and Iran Press Watch is deeply grateful to Dr. Buck for this remarkably brilliant piece. 
On Sunday, February 22, 2009, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad presented a bill to the Majlis (Iranian Parliament) to grant the Iranian Judiciary power to invest special courts in Tehran with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals charged with committing war crimes and crimes against humanity, especially against Muslims, anywhere in the world: http://tehrantimes.com/index_
If the Majlis enacts, the Guardian Council endorses, and the Iranian regime enables this new bill, the newly created war crimes courts will enforce a law that was previously promulgated in January—which commands, in substantive part:
[M]assacring people or depriving them of basic necessities and blocking the supply of humanitarian assistance with the aim of exterminating all or part of a population because they practice a particular religion or inhabit a particular region are all considered genocide and those convicted of such offenses will be sentenced to death or receive a prison sentence ranging from 15 years to life. (Emphasis added.)
Ayatollah Seyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, Iran’s judiciary chief, tasked the Islamic Republic’s general prosecutor to commence lawsuits filed by more than 5,700 Iranian lawyers against Israeli leaders for allegedly committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip. Taking the lead in prosecuting Israel rather than individual Israelis, Tehran, in early March, will host a conference of prosecutors from across the Islamic world to consult on how best to effectively seek judicial redress for the putative “genocide” in Gaza Strip.
Jurisdictional issues apart, a grim irony obtains here: If depriving persons of the bare necessities of life—with intent to exterminate a population because it practices a disfavored religion—is tantamount to genocide, then what Iran proposes to prosecute internationally should first be prosecuted internally.
The reason is simple: Iran, for the past 30 years, has prosecuted a systematic campaign to deny Baha’is rights in what independent scholar, Dr. Moojan Momen, has termed, “suspended genocide.” See Moojan Momen, “The Babi and Baha’i community of Iran: a case of ‘suspended genocide’?” Journal of Genocide Research 7.2 (June 2005): 221–241.
If Dr. Momen’s thesis has merit, which I believe it does, then, as Iran looks outside its borders, Iran should also consider the “suspended genocide” taking place inside its borders—in what may be thought of as ongoing “endo-genocide” concomitant with the “exo-genocide” allegedly being perpetrated against Muslims abroad.
While Iran wishes to prosecute the alleged perpetrators of exo-genocide, it continues to perpetrate its own “endo-genocide” by prosecuting its systematic persecution against its own citizens, the Baha’is.
Under Iran’s juridical standard setting forth the requisite elements of the “war crime” of “genocide,” those responsible in the government of Iran should arguably prosecute themselves for their role in the “peace crime” of “suspended genocide” or “endo-genocide.”
Prosecutors can make out a prima facie case by matching the facts with the essential elements of a viable claim of internal genocide, to wit: the accused allegedly have engaged in (1) the act of “depriving” the Baha’is “of basic necessities”; (2) “with the aim of exterminating all or part of a population”; (3) “because they practice a particular religion”—the Baha’i Faith.
Presumably, state immunity permits state actors to persecute Baha’i citizens and leaders with impunity, even though, under Iranian law, these same actors could arguably be charged with the crime of genocide. The following objection will be raised: How can Iranian state actors be charged with genocide, when their actions do not constitute “war crimes? Iran, after all, is not in a state of war.
Although Iran is technically in a state of peace, the Republic’s actions, taken together, represent an internal campaign against the Iranian Baha’i community. True, this is not an overt war. But, to the extent that Iran is executing a systematic campaign to eradicate the Baha’i community—or at least to make life miserable for them—such a campaign may be analyzed as a covert war. This covert war is an open secret.
Here, context (of “depriving” the Baha’is “of basic necessities”) and pretext (“because they practice a particular religion”—the Baha’i Faith) combust with element #2, which is the mens rea, the criminal mind, the culpable intent.
If prosecuted for its own persecution of the Baha’is, those in the Iranian regime “convicted of such offenses” should, under their own proposed penalties, be “sentenced to death or receive a prison sentence ranging from 15 years to life.”
If consistency is a criterion of credibility, then this proposed system of justice is incredible. How can a government prosecute “international war crimes” while perpetrating what may be characterized as “internal peace crimes” or what alternatively—and perhaps more accurately—be described as “war crimes” in the course of a covert war against the Baha’is? This is a non sequitur.
International law is informed by a set of universal norms. These norms are transnational, that is, beyond the state, and are constituted in the United Nations and emerging regional human rights systems. By setting up separate Islamic courts to do the job of the International Court of Justice in The Hague, however, Iran, seeks to impose its own code of retrograde and communalistic traditionalism in the name of justice.
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which was adopted and opened for signature, ratification, and accession in December 1966, was ratified by Iran in June 1975. As a signatory state, Iran entered the Covenant into force in March 1976. While the Iranian government, under the Shah, was subsequently overthrown in the Islamic Revolution of 1979, at no time has the Islamic Republic of Iran sought to revoke its ratification of the treaty. Nor has Iran promulgated any official declarations or expressed any reservations about any of the Covenant’s clauses. Thus, as the signatory’s successor state, the Islamic Republic of Iran remains fully bound by the terms of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which protects, inter alia, freedom of religion.
In contrast, Article 13 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran recognizes Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians as the only legally “recognized religious minorities” and, as such, these are the only religious minorities who “are free to perform their religious rites and ceremonies,” “within the limits of the law.” By specifying that Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians are the only protected people, people from other faiths are, both in principle and in practice, without constitutionally mandated protections.
This is particularly true in the case of the Baha’is, Iran’s largest non-Muslim religious minority. The naked truth is that Baha’is are outside the penumbra of constitutional protections and rights. Not only are the Baha’is not “free to perform their religious rites and ceremonies, and to act according to their own canon in matters of personal affairs and religious education,” they are not free even to pursue university education.
Article 14 purportedly protects the human rights of non-Muslims who do not engage in “conspiracy or activity against Islam and the Islamic Republic of Iran.” In principle, non-Muslims are entitled to be treated in conformity with the canons of Islamic justice. But the Islamic regime can easily circumvent Article 14 by declaring that Baha’is have engaged in “conspiracy or activity against Islam and the Islamic Republic of Iran.” By invoking this exception to Article 14, Baha’is may thereby be stripped of their human rights.
This twisted logic helps explain recent events. On February 11, 2009, the deputy prosecutor-general of Tehran announced that the Revolutionary Court trial of seven Baha’i leaders was imminent.
The charges against the seven members of a national Baha’i coordinating committee—who were arrested in March and May of 2008 and have been held in Tehran’s Evin Prison—are pretextual. They are transparently actuated by religious hatred, pure and simple. Baha’is are ideologically despised—not because they are anti-Islamic—but because they are post-Islamic.
While the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights protects freedom of religion (without any stated exception), the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran protects freedom of religion only if the religion in question is a recognized religion. By design, under the council of 75 experts who originally the drafted the document, the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran fails to enumerate the Baha’i religion. To make matters worse, the human rights provision of the same Constitution provides for the suspension of constitutional protections under the anti-Islam/anti-Islamic Republic conspiracy/activities exception.
Thus there is a clear conflict between the Constitution and the Covenant. With respect to international law, those powerful Iranian clerics who sanction state action against the Baha’is are Covenant-breakers—violating the very Covenant to which Iran is a signatory. (For the preceding analysis, I relied heavily on Jennifer F. Cohen, “Islamic Law in Iran: Can It Protect the International Legal Right of Freedom of Religion and Belief?” Chicago Journal of International Law 9 (Summer 2008): 247–274.)
Ironically, Baha’is are strong and vocal supporters of international law.
Baha’is advocate peace among all nations, religions and races. Baha’is are strong advocates of interfaith ecumenism and in what scholars call “transconfessional affinity”—and would be the first to defend the rights of Muslims wherever they exist as religious minorities.
Iran wants to prosecute Israel for genocide, yet President Ahmadinejad has consistently denied the genocide called the Holocaust. This retrospective negationism is complemented by a proscriptive negationism. While Iran wants to prosecute Israel for genocide, President Ahmadinejad turns a blind eye to the endemic and pandemic genocide of the Baha’i minority under his watch, if not under his auspices.
This is the Irani irony.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Baha’i homes firebombed in Semnan, Iran
Iran Press Watch has posted a disturbing story about the attempted firebombing of several Baha’i homes in the Iranian city of Semnan.
Apparently two Baha’i homes were attacked at one o’clock yesterday (25 February) morning. An unknown group attempted to throw Molotov cocktails through the windows of apartments belonging to the Pirasteh and Pur-Husayni families. Fortunately the petrol bombs hit the masonry around the windows and did not penetrate the apartments.
Raids
Both apartments had previously been raided by by agents of the Ministry of Intelligence, who had confiscated personal effects, documents and papers. These raids, all too typical of what is being done to Baha’i homes in Iran at the moment, took place onf 15 December last year.
Previous firebombing
These were not the first attempts to firebomb Baha’i homes in Semnan. Unknown raiders tried to firebomb the home of Mr Khanjani, another Baha’i resident of the city, on 1st February this year.
Incitement by Friday prayer leader
The latest attacks did not take place out of the blue. In his 20 February sermon, Semnan’s Friday prayer leader, Hojjatu’l-Islam Siyyid Muhammad Shah-Cheraqi, spoke about the letter published by Ayatollah Dorri-Najafabadi, the Attorney-General, calling for the final eradication of any form of Baha’i organization through legal channels. He then declared:
The same way that the people were able to throw out the Shah from Iran, they can rid this nation of the Baha’is.
Other attacks on Semnan’s Baha’is
- A widespread attack on the homes of many Baha’is on 15 December 2008.
- Arrest of Mrs. Sahba Rezvani (Fana’ian), one of the Baha’i organizers in Semnan, on 15 December 2008.
- Arrest of Mr. Adel Fana’ian, Mr. Abbas Nurani (who were both among the present Baha’i organizers in Semnan) and Mr. Taher Eskandarian (a former Baha’i organizer in Semnan) on 4 January 2009.
Who’s behind these attacks?
There is no doubt that these attacks will have the blessing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. The Ministry of Information - what an Orwellian name for Iran’s security ministry - carried out the raids on homes, and it is very likely that the firebombings will have been carried out by “deniable intermediaries”, commissioned and equipped by the Ministry of Information.
Read more
You can read the story on Iran Press Watch here.
Technorati Tags: Baha’i, Bahai, Iran, Semnan, persecution, firebombing, Molotov cocktails
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Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community |
| UK’s top comedians stand up for Bahá’ís in Iran Posted: 25 Feb 2009 04:05 PM PST David Baddiel 15 of Britain’s top comedians have written an open letter calling for the Iranian government to respect the human rights of its citizens, in particular seven leaders of the Bahá’í faith who have been imprisoned for more than eight months and now face spurious charges. In a letter published in today’s edition of The Times (Thursday 25 February), the comedians – including David Baddiel, Bill Bailey, Sanjeev Bhasker, Jo Brand, Rob Brydon, Jimmy Carr, Jack Dee, Omid Djalili, Sean Lock, Alexei Sayle and Meera Syal – say they are concerned for the safety of the seven Bahá’í leaders. “No formal evidence has been brought against them,” says the letter, “They have not been given access to their legal counsel, the Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi. She has had no access to their files and has suffered threats and intimidation since taking on their case.” Charges that are likely to be filed against the Bahá’ís in the Revolutionary Court include “espionage for Israel, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic republic”. “In reality, their only “crime”, which the current regime finds intolerable, is that they hold a religious belief that is different from the majority,” says the letter.
Sean Lock The prosecution of the leaders is the latest development in a 30-year-long systematic effort orchestrated by the government to eliminate the 300,000 member Bahá’í community in Iran, where the faith began in the mid-19th century. Documentary evidence has been provided by United Nations agencies on this campaign of religious persecution against Iran’s largest non-Muslim religious minority. The seven detained Bahá’ís had been looking after the basic needs of Iran’s 300,000-strong Bahá’í community after all Bahá’í institutions were banned by the Iranian government following the 1979 Islamic revolution. In the absence of any national governing council, the informal group of seven was formed with the full knowledge of the government who had routine dealings with them. “As artists who strive to uplift the human spirit and enrich society through our work,” wrote the comedians, “we register our solidarity with all those in Iran who are being persecuted for promoting the best development of society - be it through the arts and media, the promotion of education, social and economic development, or adherence to moral principles.” “Further, we join with the governments, human rights organizations and people of goodwill throughout the world who have so far raised their voices calling for a fair trial, if not the complete release of the Bahá’í leaders in Iran,” they wrote. The letter has been signed by David Baddiel, Bill Bailey, Morwenna Banks, Sanjeev Bhasker, Jo Brand, Russell Brand, Rob Brydon, Jimmy Carr, Jack Dee, Omid Djalili, Sean Lock, Lee Mack, Alexei Sayle, Meera Syal and Mark Thomas. Read the letter at Times Online (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/ [From a Press Release by the Office of Public Information for the NSA of the Baha'is of the United Kingdom] |
| Be Free by Tara Ellis and Raha Lewis Posted: 25 Feb 2009 02:11 PM PST The Be Free organization was initiated to promote the active involvement of youth for human rights through grassroots new media based campaign. Its first project “Azad Bash” (Be Free) aims to contribute to creating a society of dialogue and openness in Iran by using music to involve Iranian youth. “Be Free” is a music track released recently by well-known singers Tara Ellis and Raha Lewis. Listen to the track here and visit their website (at http://www.befreecampaign.com/
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| Moral Victory of Iranian Women 30 Years After Posted: 25 Feb 2009 01:46 PM PST by Elahe Amani with Lys Anzia for the Women News Network - WNN
WNN Iran Report - 30 years ago, Dr. Shirin Ebadi, the first female judge in Iranian history, was removed from her post when religious authorities in Iran declared that all women serving in the country as judges were “unfit” to perform their duties. She was then immediately demoted to a position as administrative clerk in the courtroom where she once presided. Dr. Ebadi was hit then by the inequities of women’s rights and inequality in Iran, but she did not let that stop her. During a time marked by political and religious upheaval, Shirin Ebadi found her path and continued her journey by becoming a human rights advocate and attorney serving the public as she helped those who looked to her to provide counsel on the interpretation of rights under the Iranian law. In 2003, Dr. Ebadi received the Nobel Peace Prize, “for her efforts for democracy and human rights” as she “focused on the struggle for the rights of women and children.” Almost six years later, in Feb 2009, the struggle to defend human rights in Iran continues. “The issues facing us today are increasingly complex. A certain number of states have ignored the rules of international law to impose relations dominated by force. Domestically, repression is increasingly often gaining the upper hand over the respect of rights and freedoms,” said Ebadi to human rights defenders, FIDH - International Federation of Human Rights. Over the past years, Ebadi has been the target of arrests and assassination attempts, but she is not slowing down. She keeps moving forward. Today she continues, in spite of recent reversals, to represent victims of human rights injustice and discrimination. “I realize that putting so much store in political dialogue seems overly optimistic, given the gulf that exists between the West’s expectations of Iran and the Iranian system’s inclination to compromise. I focus on the political process not because I imagine we will refashion a new relationship around the negotiating table anytime soon but because I see no other options ahead. Iran, for its part, must peacefully transition to a democratic government that represents the will of the majority of Iranians,” said Ebadi in her 2006 book, “Iran Awakening.” Now at the age of 61, her life is in more danger than ever. A sentence for “death” has recently been written by vandals on the walls outside her home and office in Tehran and pinned on her door. But the fearless Iranian human rights lawyer has a deep conviction that, “When you believe in the correctness of your work, there is no reason to be afraid of anything.”
Dr. Shirin Ebadi attending the "Tolerance Prize" award ceremony where she received recognition Only a few weeks following an invitation to give a series of public lectures for the University of Malaya, the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs suddenly cancelled Ebadi’s speaking tour. “Dr. Shirin Ebadi is a strong critic (of the Iran government),” said the Ministry. “Her public speaking engagements in Malaysia would cause a disruption of the good relations between the governments of Malaysia and Iran, especially in the field of education,” continued the Ministry’s office. “On the brink of the 10th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights Defenders and the 60th anniversary of International Declaration of Human Rights it is ironic that the censure of a 2003 Nobel Peace Prize laureate has occurred in Malaysia. Following her censored visit to Malaysia, on Sunday, Dec 21, 2008, plain-clothes and uniformed police and security officials raided the offices of Ebadi’s DHRC - Defenders of Human Rights Center. DHRC staff speculates that the closure was in part on the heels of the UN General Assembly Oct 2008 negative report on Iran’s human rights record. The subsequent complete closure of the DHRC building in Tehran has come as a very hard blow to human rights defenders worldwide. DHRC cases defending women rights activists, prisoners of conscience, journalists and students in Iran have been compromised, along with DHRC documentation of families of prisoners with reports of human rights abuse. In addition to this, the DHRC committee of investigation on fair elections has completely halted its work for the upcoming April elections in Iran. “The closure of DHRC is not just an attack on Shirin Ebadi and her Iranian colleagues, but on the entire international human rights community of which she is an influential and important member,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. As global human rights are also put to the test in the US with possible new policies in the closing of Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp along with government interests in withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, the record of human rights abuse by the US is also in the global public’s eye. Speaking up for the greater good is ringing throughout global communities. “Thirty years on, some of the worst abuses of the Shah’s time - torture, executions and the suppression of legitimate dissent - are still being replicated in Iran,” said Malcolm Smart, Director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Program, “despite the efforts of the country’s growing and valiant community of human rights defenders.” “It is high time that Iranian authorities lived up to their obligations under international human rights law,” added Smart.
Dr. Ebadi's torn office placard and threatening graffiti on the facade of her office and home. Photo image: Change4Equality.com On the 30th anniversary of the Iranian revolution, a new and innovative opportunity to address the status of democracy in Iran may be secretly on the mind of many Iranian citizens. Many who participated in Iran’s revolution 30 yrs ago had high hopes for freedom and independence, dignity and rights. But the specific hopes and aspirations of Iranian women were shadowed by despair in the early months of the new Islamic Republic. As new government policies in the post revolution “Spring of Freedom” responded to widespread opposition to the idea of mandatory Islamic dress for women, including requirements to wear the Hijab, relaxation of the codes were not encouraged as Iran’s government took a step back only a few months later. “As long as I am alive, I will do my duty and activities,” she said to the press recently. Exposing Ebadi to higher risks and dangers, her advocacy work on issues related to human rights violations in Iran and her defense in the human rights of Iran’s Baha’i community has placed her in an undeserved dangerous and very precarious position. When Ms. Ebadi received the Nobel Peace prize in 2003, she used the 1.4 million prize money to found and finance the opening of a center for legal rights counsel in Tehran called the DHRC - Defender of Human Rights Center. Recently, in Feb 2008, Ebadi and her family suffered under the weight of Ebadi’s human rights convictions as the government sponsored, IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency, published a series of articles falsely claiming that she and her daughter, a student at Canada’s McGill University, had converted from Islam to a religion currently considered by the Iranian government to be part of a heretical and unrecognized minority - the Baha’i religion. Leaving the Iranian Islamic State religion is a serious crime in Iran called “apostasy” and being accused of this “crime” cannot be taken lightly. “The penalty for apostasy Kofr (infidelity, blasphemy) under the Iranian criminal code is death,” states Section 5, Article 225-1 of the pending Iran State Penal Code. The drive to formally include apostasy laws and to enact “justice” under the penal code has caused “deep concern” at the United Nations. On the Oct 30, 2008 UN General Assembly’s 63rd session, the Assembly expressed concern about Iran “increasing discrimination and other human rights violations against persons belonging to religious, ethnic, linguistic or other minorities.” Groups recognized as suffering under the report include Arabs, Azeris, Baluchis, Kurds, Christians, Jews, Sufis and Sunni Muslims, as well as Baha’is and their defenders. “Particular attacks on Baha’is and their faith in State-sponsored media, increasing evidence of efforts by the State to identify and monitor Baha’is, preventing members of the Baha’i faith from attending university and from sustaining themselves economically,” along with Baha’i arrests, were also highlighted by the General Assembly. Under government scrutiny and the implication in pending Iranian law on the charges of “apostasy,” Shirin Ebadi and her daughter are clearly facing personal danger with a looming and dangerously real sentence of death. She and her daughter promptly denounced these false accusations in public when Ebadi said, “Threats against my life and security and those of my family, which began some time ago, have intensified.” An anonymous, handwritten threat that Ebadi has received during this time says, “Shirin Ebadi, your death is near.” Oct 2008 threats and harassment against Ms. Ebadi escalated while she was in Germany receiving the “Tolerance Prize” from the Protestant Academy of Tutzing. While receiving the prize, the IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency warned Ebadi that she was not in favour with Iran’s government officials as they consider her exploiting Iran’s government authority’s “patience and tolerance.” This award was bestowed on her because of her remarks that are contrary to the interests of the Iranian nation,” stated the IRNA in an accusatory public report. Since the revolution, 30 yrs ago, the population of Iran has doubled. 70 percent of all Iranians are the same age, or younger than, those who took part in the revolution. Today, these youth are eager to just “live their lives” and be part of the global community. Out of two million students attending higher education, more than 60% today are women. 30 years ago, of the 100,000 students attending institutions of higher education in Iran, only 17.5% were females. The leadership, creativity and utilization of communication technology by the young women of Iran is setting a vibrant and energetic example for other global social movements. Iran women are now heralding a new global 21st century women’s emancipation. While in western society, young women are often hesitant to claim the identity, or even use the word “feminism,” feminism in Iran has become commonplace in the discourse. Feminism is considered neither taboo nor dreadful. The creation of online human rights journals, “The Feminist School” and “Campaign for Equality” are two examples of this expanding trend. Even as a majority of women receive higher education in Iran today, 30 years after the revolution, women still constitute only 15% of the formal paid labor force. According to the results of the 1385/2006 Iranian census, only 3.5 million Iranian women are salaried workers, compared with 23.5 million men. Female share of the labor force is less than 20%, considerably below the world average of 45%. Slightly over half of all teachers in Iran today are women, but the proportion of female university teaching staff is only 20%, less than that of Algeria (41%), Tunisia (40%), Turkey (38%), and Bahrain (36%). To top this off, less than 4% of employed women are found in senior, executive or managerial positions. The Campaign Against Stoning and All Forms of Violence against Women, The White Scarves Campaign - fighting against gender segregation in Iran stadiums and Kanoon Zanan are all part of a 30 year transcript of a nation where women will no longer take the back seat and accept the inferior position in society. Iranian women writers, novelists, journalists, publishers and movie directors are defining and redefining gender roles and gender relations on a daily basis. In a 21st century re-interpretation of 14th century sharia law the Iranian people, and Iranian women in particular, are claiming moral victory and the beginning of real legitimacy. [Source: Women's News Network at http://womennewsnetwork.net/ |
| Update on the Situation of the Seven Imprisoned Baha’i Leaders Posted: 25 Feb 2009 03:57 AM PST Iran Press Watch has learned through reliable sources on Wednesday, 25 February 2009, that the seven imprisoned Baha’i leaders have been given permission to meet with their families and that their trial has been postponed for 2 weeks. As further updates are made available, Iran Press Watch will bring them to its readers’ attention. |
| No Laughing Matter - Omid Djalili speaks out Posted: 24 Feb 2009 10:40 PM PST Editor’s Note: Omid Djalili is an award-winning British-Iranian actor/comedian. Not only acclaimed as one of Britain’s funniest stand up comedians, he has also featured in films including ‘The Mummy’, ‘Gladiator’, and ‘Casanova’. Omid is also a Baha’i and published the following note on his blog at http://www.omidnoagenda.com/ I need to bring to your attention the following disturbing news: In May 2008 the Iranian Authorities arrested seven leaders of the Baha’i community on trumped up charges of ‘espionage’. The Baha’i Faith is a peace loving world religion but has suffered a great deal of persecution at the hands of the Iranian government simply because they choose to practice their faith in a different way to the majority. It is feared that this week the seven will face very grave consequences. This of course, is unthinkable in this day and age but I assure you is a reality. Some of you may know over 200 Baha’is were executed in the 1980s after the Islamic revolution, not to mention over 20,000 in the 19th Century. Already having been in prison for over 8 months (the men are in a cell with no beds which is a violation of their basic human rights) pressure groups and governments have voiced their concern with formal protests to the Iranian Government. I hope to add to the sense of public outcry with a press release on behalf of the comedy community to get this story the publicity it deserves. My friend Rainn Wilson (an actor on the American version of The Office) has already written a piece for CNN and now I urge you to visit the Amnesty International website and register your complaint via e-mail or fax. Recent press releases on behalf of other action groups as released through the Bahai’s of the UK are here: http://bahainews-uk.info. |
Claims of ‘show trial’ as Baha’i seven face court and death
Jonathan Spollen, Assistant Foreign Editor
- Last Updated: February 23. 2009 9:30AM UAE / February 23. 2009 5:30AM GMT
As seven leaders of the Baha’i faith prepare to go on trial in Iran on charges ranging from spying for Israel to insulting Islam, the case is bringing the plight of the Baha’i community into the spotlight, underscoring what critics say is years of persecution by the Iranian regime that has begun reaching into the upper ranks of its leadership.
The seven defendants, five men and two women, stand accused of “espionage for Israel, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic republic”. But human rights advocates say the charges are baseless and offer all the trappings of a show trial.
They have languished in Evin prison, just north of Tehran, for nearly a year without access to their lawyer, the Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi. If found guilty they face a maximum penalty of death.
“They have not had any contact with Ms Ebadi at all, she has not even had access to their files,” said Nazila Ghanea, a lecturer in international human rights law at Oxford University and author of Human Rights, the UN & the Baha’is in Iran. The situation, she said, was “illegal under Iranian law”.
Diane Ala’i, the Geneva-based representative to the United Nations for the Baha’i International Community, said the seven Bahai’s were targeted because they are leaders of the community in Iran, but said at least 35 other Baha’is also languish in prison, while 80 others had been released on bail awaiting trial.
“These people are being held only because they are Baha’is,” she said.
Several rights groups and organisations have condemned the trial, as have the United Nations, the European Union and the governments of the United States and Britain.
But Iran insists it has “irrefutable evidence” of the individuals’ guilt.
“Baha’i organisations are illegal and their connections to Israel and their enmity toward Islam and the Islamic system are absolutely certain and their threat against the national security is a proven fact,” Qorban-Ali Dorri-Najafabadi, Iran’s prosecutor general, told the state-run Press TV.
But critics say the trial is just the latest instance in a well-documented record of persecution against the Baha’is since the 1979 revolution.
Soon after the establishment of the Islamic republic, dozens of Baha’i members were arrested and executed, including eight of the community’s nine leaders who were hanged without a trial. In the years since, at least 200 have been executed, according to Amnesty International and other rights groups, with many missing and thousands more imprisoned.
Baha’i groups both in and outside Iran say members living there are systematically denied jobs, pensions and the right to inherit property and say that more than 10,000 have been dismissed from government and university posts since 1979.
Moreover, dozens of Baha’i buildings, cemeteries and holy sites have been seized and destroyed since the revolution. One of the holiest Baha’i sites, the House of Bab in Shiraz, was razed and an Islamic centre was built on its ruins.
Prof Ghanea said the Baha’i experience in Iran since the revolution amounted to “civil death”.
With about 300,000 members, Baha’is are the largest religious minority in Iran, but they “have no legal status though they constitute the largest non-Muslim religious minority community”, she said. “They are, however, singled out at every opportunity for discrimination and exclusion.”
A secret government report drafted by the Iranian Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council and signed by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and which was uncovered by the UN in 1993, appears to support allegations of officially sanctioned discrimination.
The letter, written in 1991, says the “government’s dealings with [the Baha’is] must be in such a way that their progress and development are blocked”. It recommends that Baha’is not be allowed to enrol in schools if they identify themselves as Baha’is and calls for their expulsion from universities.
The letter goes on to urge the government to “deny them employment” or “any position of influence, such as in the educational sector”.
Indeed, out of those on trial several have lost jobs, businesses or been denied education for their faith.
Fariba Kamalabadi, 46, a developmental psychologist, was not allowed to study at a public university; Jamaloddin Khanjani, 75, had his brick-making factory seized in the early 1980s; and Mahvash Sabet, 55, was dismissed from her position as a school principal.
The Baha’i faith was established in the mid-19th century by a Persian nobleman, Baha’ullah, and expounds the spiritual unity of all mankind. The religion’s five million members regard Baha’ullah as the latest in a line of prophets that includes Abraham, Moses, Buddha, Jesus and Mohammed.
Iran’s Shiite religious establishment considers the religion a heretical offshoot of Islam.
Article 13 of the Iranian Constitution recognises only Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians as religious minorities in Iran, granting them representation in parliament and a degree of supervised and limited autonomy. Thus Baha’is have no legal rights and are not permitted to elect leaders of their community.
But despite this, said Ms Ala’i, of the Baha’i International Community, official discrimination has failed to “take root” among the public.
“People in Iran are more and more realising the injustices being done to their fellow citizens,” she said, pointing to a recent public letter signed by 243 Iranians titled We Are Ashamed, asking forgiveness “for the wrongs committed against the Baha’i community of Iran”.
And there are even signs the religious establishment is changing its outlook.
In May, Iranian Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri issued a fatwa stating that, “since [Baha’is] are the citizens of this country, they have the rights of a citizen and to live in this country”.
“Furthermore, they must benefit from the Islamic compassion which is stressed in Quran and by the religious authorities.”
jspollen@thenational.ae
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Commentary: Stop religious persecution in Iran
- Story Highlights
- Rainn Wilson: I'm a member of the Baha'i faith, founded in the 1800s in Iran
- He says the faith has been persecuted on and off for 150 years
- Seven Baha'i leaders are going on trial in Iran on a variety of charges, he says
- Wilson: Ask your congressman to support a resolution on the Baha'is
- Next Article in World »
By Rainn Wilson
Special to CNN
Special to CNN
Editor's note: Actor Rainn Wilson plays paper salesman Dwight Schrute in the television comedy "The Office."
Rainn Wilson says fellow members of his Baha'i faith are being persecuted in Iran.
(CNN) -- Why is Rainn Wilson, "Dwight" on "The Office," writing a news commentary for CNN? Good question.
It's a bit strange for me, to say the least; a comic character actor best known for playing weirdos with bad haircuts getting all serious to talk about the persecution of the fellow members of his religious faith.
Dear readers of CNN, I assure you that what I'm writing about is no joking matter or some hoax perpetrated by a paper-sellin', bear-fearin', Battlestar-Galactica obsessed beet farmer.
I am a member of the Baha'i faith. What is that, you ask? Well, long story short, it's an independent world religion that began in the mid-1800s in Iran. Baha'is believe that there is only one God and therefore only one religion.
All of the world's divine teachers (Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha, Moses, Abraham, Krishna, etc.) bring essentially the same message -- one of unity, love and knowledge of God or the divine.
This constantly updated faith of God, Baha'is believe, has been refreshed for this day and age by our founder, Baha'u'llah. There. Nutshell version.
Now, as I mentioned, this all happened in Iran, and needless to say the Muslim authorities did not like the Baha'is very much, accusing them of heresy and apostasy. Tens of thousands were killed in the early years of the faith, and the persecutions have continued off and on for the past 150 years.
Don't Miss
Why write about all this now? Well, I'm glad you asked. You see there's a 'trial' going on very soon for seven Baha'i national leaders in Iran.
They've been accused of all manner of things including being "spies for Israel," "insulting religious sanctities" and "propaganda against the Islamic Republic."
They've been held for a year in Evin Prison in Tehran without any access to their lawyer (the Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi) and with zero evidence of any of these charges.
When a similar thing happened in 1980, the national leadership of the Iranian Baha'i community disappeared. And this was repeated again in 1981.
In fact, since 1979, more than 200 Baha'is have been killed, holy places and cemeteries desecrated, homes burned, civil rights taken away and secret lists compiled of Baha'is (and even Muslims who associate with them) by government agencies.
It's bad right now for all the peace-loving Baha'is in Iran who want only to practice their religion and follow their beliefs. It's especially bad for these seven. Here's a link to their bios. They're teachers, and engineers, and optometrists and social workers just like us.
This thought has become kind of a cliché', but we take our rights for granted here in America. Imagine if a group of people were rounded up and imprisoned and then disappeared not for anything they'd done, but because they wanted to worship differently than the majority.
There is a resolution on the situation of the Baha'is in Iran being sent to Congress. Please ask your representatives to support it. And ask them to speak out about this terrible situation.
Thanks for reading. Now back to bears, paper and beets!
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Rainn Wilson.UK government tells Iran to “end discrimination” against Bahá’ís
Posted: 16 Feb 2009 01:06 PM CST
The UK government says it’s “very concerned” at the imminent trial of seven Bahá’í leaders in Iran and has called for the country to “end discrimination against the Bahá’í community”.
In a statement, Foreign Office Minister Bill Rammell MP, pictured, expressed concern at news that seven leading members of the Iranian Bahá’í community, detained since March and May 2008, have been charged with spying for Israel, “insulting religious sanctities” and ”propaganda against the Islamic Republic” - charges which could attract the death penalty.
“The Iranian government appears to be increasingly using vaguely worded charges of this nature to target human rights defenders and religious minorities,” said Mr Rammell. “It is hard not to conclude that these people are being held solely on account of their religious beliefs or their peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression and association.”
“The seven Bahá’ís had to wait over eight months to be notified of the charges against them. They have not been given any access to their lawyer: and their lawyer has not been given access to their case files. This makes it very hard to believe that they will receive a fair trial,” he said.
The Bahá’í’s legal counsel, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mrs. Shirin Ebadi has been threatened, intimidated, and vilified in the news media since taking on their case. In December, the government moved to shut down the offices of the Defenders of Human Rights Centre, which was founded by Mrs. Ebadi.
In the United States, the Department of State has also condemned “the Iranian government’s decision to level baseless charges of espionage against seven leaders of the Iranian Baha’i community.”
“Authorities have detained these Baha’i for more than nine months without access to legal counsel or making public any evidence against them. The accusations reported in Iranian and international media are part of the ongoing persecution of Baha’i in Iran,” Department of State spokesman Robert Wood said Friday.
In London, Amnesty International has issued an “urgent action” appeal on behalf of the seven, calling for their “immediate and unconditional release.” The European Union has called several times for the Iranian government to immediately release the seven detainees.
In an unprecedented development, almost 250 prominent Iranians living in 19 countries have signed an open letter asking the Baha’is to forgive them “for the wrongs committed against the Baha’i community of Iran” over the last century and a half.
“We will no longer be silent when injustice is visited upon you,” the letter said after enumerating some of the ways Baha’is have been persecuted, from “barbaric murders” to depriving youth of higher education.
The Foreign Office has also reported that it has received “disturbing reports of systematic discrimination against and harassment of Bahá’ís on the grounds of their religion.”
“This takes place in the context of a serious deterioration in the human rights environment in Iran over the last few years, including a worsening crackdown on human rights defenders and minority activists, and a sharp increase in the use of the death penalty (there were over 300 executions in 2008, including 8 juvenile executions),” said Mr Rammell.
“Now that they have been charged, the Iranian government must at the very least ensure that the trial is fair, transparent and open to independent observers,” said the statement. “Iran should also uphold fully the right to adopt and practise a religion of choice, and end discrimination against the Bahá’í community.”
Monday, February 16, 2009
| Telling the Tales of the Trials: A Plea to My Judicial Colleagues in Iran Posted: 15 Feb 2009 10:44 PM CST
Right from the beginning of the Baha’i Faith — even before the declaration of Baha’u'llah, in the time of its precursor, the religion of the Bab — the religious leaders and politicians of Iran set upon the new Manifestations of God and their followers and persecuted them. Not content with harassment, they subjected their victims to every sickening form of torture and cruelty: hammering horseshoes into their feet and making them run, gouging holes into their arms and setting lighted candles into them, blowing them out of cannons. The Bab Himself was imprisoned, then executed by firing squad. Bahá’u'lláh was tortured, imprisoned, exiled from His home country and then from everywhere else they sent Him. Finally, in 1868, they sent Him as far away as possible from Iran and forced Him to live in a prison set into a crusader castle built on the east coast of the Mediterranean. Now, a hundred and forty years later, the religious leaders and politicians of Iran are using that fact as evidence of His followers’ collusion with the state that grew up around it in 1948. Six Baha’is have been in Evin prison in Tehran since May last year, one since last March. Tehran’s deputy prosecutor Hassan Haddad has announced that these members of the `Bahai sect’ are going to be put trial, charged with `espionage for Israel, desecrating religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic Republic’. This is a standard euphemism for `being a Baha’i’. Diane Ala’i, spokeswoman for the Baha’i International Community, emphatically declared that the seven are innocent of all charges and are being held solely because of their religious belief: `The accusations are false, and the government knows this. The seven Baha’is detained in Tehran should be immediately released.’ Let’s see who these `spies’ are: Mrs Fariba Kamalabadi is 46. She is a developmental psychologist and mother of three. Her oldest son studied in the UK and is now in China. The oldest is Mr Jamaloddin Khanjani, a 75 year old grandad. He used to own a factory but that was shut down in the 1979 revolution. He then ran a mechanized farm on his family lands and that too faced constant harassment. One of his four children also lives in China. Father of two, 47 year old Afif Naemi wanted to become a doctor but, being a Baha’i, of course he could not enter university so he became an industrialist instead, taking over his father-in-law’s blanket and textile factory.
Mr Saeid Rezaie, 51, is an agricultural engineer and is the author of several books on the Baha’i Faith. His two daughters were among 54 Baha’i youth who were arrested in Shiraz in May 2006, while his son of 12 is in middle school.
Mother of two Mrs Mahvash Sabet is a 55 year old teacher and school principal who, in the old days, collaborated with the National Literacy Committee of Iran. Now she heads up the Baha’i Institute for Higher Education, which provides alternative higher education for Baha’i youth. Or should I say `headed up’ - she’s been in prison since 5 March 2008.
Behrouz Tavakkoli, 57, specialized in the care of those with physical and mental disabilities until he was sacked from his government position shortly after the 1979 Revolution. The youngest is Mr Vahid Tizfahm, who at 35, is exactly the same age as my own son Sedrhat. Vahid is the father of a 9 year boy and is an optometrist. He used to own an optical shop in Tabriz, the city where the Bab was executed and my husband was born. You can read the rest of their stories here. I feel a close connection to them all. We share a lot. Most of them are around my age and have children the same age as my own. They are all Baha’is from Baha’i families, like me. They all struggled to get an education and then worked in a position of service to their fellow citizens. And they spent all their free time volunteering for the Baha’i Faith. The key thing about them all is that they are members of the national-level Baha’i group known as the `Friends in Iran’. Because all Baha’i institutions of governance and administration were banned by the Iranian government after the Revolution, this ad hoc coordinating body assisted the 300,000 Iranian Baha’is. So they are well known. And they emulate the teachings of Bahá’u'lláh. Their case is going to be heard by the `revolutionary courts‘. Actually, I have a lot in common with the judges there too. I am a magistrate myself. I send to people to prison. I weigh up evidence. I must use the criminal standard of `beyond reasonable doubt’ before I convict. To dispense justice is my responsibility. Here is my message to my judicial colleagues in Iran who sit on this case:
Technorati Tags: Baha’i, Bahai, Bahá’u'lláh, the Bab, Iran, Islamic Republic, persecution of the Baha’is, trial of Baha’is, Hassan Haddad, judiciary, revolutionary courts, magistrates |
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
We are Ashamed!
Editor’s Note: The following is an open letter from a group of academics, writers, artists, journalists and Iranian activists throughout the world to the Baha’i community. This letter has been signed by a large number of the most prominent Iranian intellectuals.
We are ashamed!
A century and a half of oppression and silence is enough!
In the name of goodness and beauty, and in the name of humanity and liberty!
As Iranian human beings, we are ashamed for what has been perpetrated upon the Baha’is in the last century and a half in Iran.
We firmly believe that every Iranian, “without distinction of any kind, such as, race, color, sex, language, religion, politics or other opinions,” and also without regard to ethnic background, “social origin, property, birth or other status,” is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. However, from the very inception of the Baha’i Faith, the followers of this religion in Iran have been deprived of many provisions of human rights solely on account of their religious convictions.
According to historical documents and evidence, from the commencement of the Babi Movement followed by the appearance of the Baha’i Faith, thousands of our countrymen have been slain by the sword of bigotry and superstition only for their religious beliefs. Just in the first decades of its establishment, some twenty thousand of those who stood identified with this faith community were savagely killed throughout various regions of Iran.
We are ashamed that during that period, no voice of protest against these barbaric murders was registered;
We are ashamed that until today the voice of protest against this heinous crime has been infrequent and muted;
We are ashamed that in addition to the intense suppression of Baha’is during its formative decades, the last century also witnessed periodic episodes of persecution of this group of our countrymen, in which their homes and businesses were set on fire, and their lives, property and families were subjected to brutal persecution – but all the while, the intellectual community of Iran remained silent;
We are ashamed that during the last thirty years, the killing of Baha’is solely on the basis of their religious beliefs has gained legal status and over two-hundred Baha’is have been slain on this account;
We are ashamed that a group of intellectuals have justified coercion against the Baha’i community of Iran;
We are ashamed of our silence that after many decades of service to Iran, Baha’i retired persons have been deprived of their right to a pension;
We are ashamed of our silence that on the account of their fidelity to their religion and truthfulness in stating this conviction, thousands of Baha’i youth have been barred from education in universities and other institutions of higher learning in Iran;
We are ashamed that because of their parents’ religious beliefs, Baha’i children are subjected to denigration in schools and in public.
We are ashamed of our silence over this painful reality that in our nation, Baha’is are systematically oppressed and maligned, a number of them are incarcerated because of their religious convictions, their homes and places of business are attacked and destroyed, and periodically their burial places are desecrated;
We are ashamed of our silence when confronted with the long, dark and atrocious record that our laws and legal system have marginalized and deprived Baha’is of their rights, and the injustice and harassment of both official and unofficial organs of the government towards this group of our countrymen;
We are ashamed for all these transgressions and injustices, and we are ashamed for our silence over these deeds.
We, the undersigned, asked you, the Baha’is, to forgive us for the wrongs committed against the Baha’i community of Iran.
We will no longer be silent when injustice is visited upon you.
We stand by you in achieving all the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of the Human Rights.
Let us join hands in replacing hatred and ignorance with love and tolerance.
February 3, 2009
1. Abdolalian Morteza, Journalist, CJFE Board of Directors - Canada, Oakville
2. Abghari Shahla, Professor, Life University – USA, Atlanta
3. Abghari Siavash, Professor, University of Georgia – USA, Atlanta
4. Ahmadi Ramin, Professor, Yale University – USA, Yale
5. Almasi Nasrin, Managing editor of Shahrvand- Canada, Toronto
6. Bagherpour Khosro, Poet /Journalist – Germany
7. Baradaran Monireh, Writer/Human rights activist - Germany
8. Beyzaie Niloofar, Play writer/Theatre Director – Germany, Frankfurt
9. Boroumand Ladan, Researcher, Boroumand Foundation - USA, Washington
10. Boroumand, Roya, Executive Director, Boroumand Foundation – USA, Washington
11. Choubine Bahram, Researcher/Writer – Germany, Köln
12. Daneshvar Hamid, Actor/Theatre Director – France, Paris
13. Darvishpour Mehrdad, Professor, Stockholm University - Sweden, Stockholm
14. Djalali Chimeh Mohammad (M.sahar), Poet - France, Paris
15. Djanati Atai Behi, Actor/ Writer/Theatre Director – France, Paris
16. Ebrahimi Hadi, Editor-in-chief of Shahrgon, Canada, Vancouver
17. Fani Yazdi Reza, Political analyst - USA
18. Farhoudi Vida, Poet/Translator- France, Paris
19. Forouhar Parastoo, Artist/Human rights activist – Germany, Frankfurt
20. Ghaemi Hadi Coordinator Int. Campaign for HR in Iran - USA
21. Ghahraman Saghi, Poet /Journalist – Canada, Toronto
22. Ghahraman, Sasan, Publisher/Writer/Journalist – Canada, Toronto
23. Javid Jahanshah, Publisher, Iranian [dot] com – Mexico, Chihuahua
24. Kakhsaz Naser, Political analyst – Germany, Bochum
25. Kalbasi Sheema, Poet – USA, Washington
26. Kassraei Farhang, Writer/Actor – Germany, Wiesbaden
27. Khorsandi Hadi, Satirist – Great Britain, London
28. Mahbaz Efat, Women rights activist /Journalist– England, London
29. Malakooty Sirus, Classical Guitar Player/ Composer/ Lecturer - England, London
30. Moshkin Ghalam Shahrokh, Actor/Dancer – France, Paris
31. Mossaed Jila, Poet/Writer - Sweden, Göteborg.
32. Mossallanejad Ezat, Writer/Human right Activist, CCVT – Canada, Toronto
33. Parsa Soheil, Theatre Director - Canada Toronto
34. Sahimi, Muhammad Professor, University of Southern California – USA, California
35. Shafigh Shahla, Writer/Researcher – France, Paris
36. Shemiranie Khosro, Journalist - Canada, Montreal
37. Sheyda Behrooz, Literary Critic/Theorist- Sweden, Stockholm
38. Taghipoor Masoomeh, Actor/Theatre Director - Sweden, Göteborg.
39. Tahavori Mohammad, Journalist, USA, MA Cambridge
40. Vahdati Soheila, Human Rights Activist – USA, California
41. Zahedi Mitra, Theatre Director – Germany, Berlin
42. Zerehi Hassan, Editor-in-chief of Shahrvand, Canada, Toronto
To join the signaturees please contact the following emails.
niloofarbeyzaie@gmx.at, shemiranie@yahoo.com
Iran Press Watch has also made a French translation available:
apology-letter-fr.doc (Word Document)
A Spanish version is as always available at http://www.iranpresswatch.org/es.
10 Comments
Why are there no signatures from Intellectuals in the MIddle East or Iran itself?
In response to David’s queries, first the significance of this historic moment must be apprciated. For the first time in 160 years, many highly respected Iranian intellectuals have risked much to append their name to this remarkable document. Never before has such a thing happened in the history of the Baha’i Faith. Furthermore, this is not a complete list of supperters — but only an initial list. More suppertors are adding their names and a complete list will be published in 9 days, on Feb 13.
As a member of humankind, I am so blessed to live in such a turbulent time and witness greatness of some, who are selflessly think of others before their own. I am deeply touched…Thank you
I am so touched that these wonderful people have at last recognized that we Bahais are human beings created by the same creator God as has created all people on earth. My family had very little time with their fatujer my dearest husband Foad because he was kept in Iran and his passport taken away when we went to show our children to their grand parents. for almost 7 years he was unable to join us toill h escaped and now
Sadly he passed away 3 months ago from Cancer which I feel sure was brought about by his treatment in Iran. His children and I miss him more than we can ever say and now he is taken from us again.
He was amost caring gentle man and so loved by us all his humour is somthing I also miss.
I hope whatever comes from this wonderful repoprt it can in some way help people to recognize what is happening to Bahais in Iran
I am very glad to see so strong a document published and signed; the Iranian security aparatus conducts assasinations of any and all targets deemed dangerous whether inside or out in the world thousands of miles from Iran. However, I do not believe the world citizenry will tolerate such extreme, heavy-handed arbitrary behavior much longer as billions of people can and do share ideas and happenings which puts the Iranian political body in very salacious company along with Rwanda, Sudan and Serbia. Any government with any wits about it does not want to be any part of that sort of club and this declaration is perfect for screaming the truth.
It is time for all of us as a united human family to stand up against any injustice towards any portion of this human family. The Bahai’s in Iran have been and continue to be (especially recently) persecuted in unspeakable ways solely because of their religious beliefs which include world peace, equality of men and women, elimination of prejudice of all kind, compulsory education, one God, and reverence and respect for all great religions of the world including Islam. The Iranian government continues to practice its ignorance and astounding insecurity in its political and religious existence by its actions of violence and continuous human rights violations towards its most peaceful minority, namely the Bahai’s. With their unforgiveable and shameful actions, the government and its agents commit the worst possible crime which is that of shattering of their own souls and the greatness of our beloved Iran.
This action causes me to turn to God in unending praise and thanksgiving. The free expression of these gifted individuals and their signatures represent a swelling tide of justice that the world’s people have been longing to realize. I am overjoyed to be a member of the Baha’i Faith as I watch the growing list of supporters. May God bless and hearten every dear one of you! — Loie Mead
It is gratifying to finally see that the people of this world are finally starting to reconize and speak out against injustice. This sort of thing needs to be encouraged and those with the courage to put their names to such documents and make them public desirve praise. It is my sincer hope that this document is acted upon but all the signatres of the UN and it flows over to all injustices in our world.
Dear signatory members of this document, as a Bahai, may I embrace you al