| German government criticizes 20 year prison sentence Posted: 13 Aug 2010 12:02 PM PDT See: |
| Amnesty International: SENTENCES AGAINST JAILED IRANIAN RELIGIOUS MINORITY LEADERS CONDEMNED Posted: 13 Aug 2010 11:56 AM PDT The five men and two women, leaders of the Baha’i community in Iran who were arrested over two years ago, were convicted on Saturday 7 August of crimes including “espionage for Israel”, “insulting religious sanctities” and “propaganda against the system” by a Revolutionary Court in Tehran. Fariba Kamalabadi, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi, Saeid Rezaie, Mahvash Sabet, Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Vahid Tizfahm have denied all the charges against them and lawyers for the seven have indicated that they will appeal. “This verdict is a sad and damning manifestation of the deeply-rooted discrimination against Baha’is by the Iranian authorities,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa deputy director. “These seven Baha’i leaders, some of whom are elderly, are prisoners of conscience jailed solely on account of their beliefs or peaceful activities on behalf of the persecuted Baha’i minority.” “The seven were held for months without charge before being subjected to a parody of a trial.. They must be immediately released.” The seven Baha’is, who were arrested between March and May 2008, faced several postponements to their trial while they remained in detention. Their lawyers were rarely allowed to visit their clients and were initially denied access to the court room. One of their lawyers, Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi, has been unable to return to Iran since June 2009. In February 2010, she told Amnesty International that the seven’s file was empty and the accusations baseless. The Iranian authorities blamed the Baha’is, among other groups, for orchestrating much of the unrest that took place on the Ashoura religious holiday in December 2009. The Iranian authorities blamed the Baha’is, among other groups, for orchestrating much of the unrest that took place on the Ashoura religious holiday in December 2009, the last mass demonstration that took in the aftermath of Iran’s disputed presidential election in June 2009. The Baha’i community denies any such involvement. “The authorities tried to make the Baha’i minority scapegoats for the unrest when there is no evidence that they were involved,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui. The Baha’i religion is not recognized in Iran’s Constitution and Baha’is have no legal protection. The Iranian authorities also deny Baha’is equal rights to education, work and a decent standard of living by restricting their access to employment and benefits such as pensions. Iran’s 300,000-strong Baha’i community are not permitted to meet, hold religious ceremonies or practice their religion with other believers. Source: http://www.amnesty.org/en/ |
| Buzek on the sentencing of Baha’i leaders in Iran Posted: 13 Aug 2010 11:50 AM PDT The President of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek, is deeply troubled and concerned about the reports of the sentencing of seven religious leaders of the Baha’i faith in Iran. According to news reports, an Iranian court has sentenced seven leaders of the Baha’i faith to 20 years in prison. We have strong doubts about the fairness and transparency of the judicial procedure and I deeply deplore this. Therefore I call on the relevant authorities to allow a fair and open appeal procedure. Iran has committed itself to international standards and I underline that this includes also the respect and protection of religious freedom.” The European Parliament and President Buzek will continue to closely observe this issue. * * * For further information: Jens Pottharst Press Officer Mobile: +32 498 981 348 Source: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/ |
| UK Foreign Secretary: Sentence of Baha’i leaders “completely unacceptable” Posted: 13 Aug 2010 11:42 AM PDT Foreign Secretary William Hague has made a statement following the sentencing of 7 spiritual leaders of the Bahá’í faith to 20 years in prison. On hearing this news, the Foreign Secretary said: The Iranian judiciary has repeatedly failed to allay international and domestic concerns that these seven men and women are guilty of anything other than practising their faith. It is clear that from arrest to sentencing, the Iranian authorities did not follow even their own due process, let alone the international standards to which Iran is committed. The accused were denied proper access to lawyers, and there is evidence that the trial was neither fair nor transparent. I call on the Iranian authorities urgently to consider any appeal against this decision, and to cease the harassment of the Bahá’í community. I further call on the Iranian Government to ensure that the rights of all individuals are fully protected, without discrimination, and that it fulfils its obligations to its own citizens as set out in the Iranian constitution.” Source: http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/news/ |
| USCIRF Condemns 20-Year Sentence of Baha’i Prisoners Posted: 13 Aug 2010 11:32 AM PDT WASHINGTON, DC – Seven Baha’i leaders who have been in prison for two years were sentenced to 20 years in prison by an Iranian court, according to Baha’i activists who spoke with the media. The five Baha’i men and two women had been charged with several baseless and unsubstantiated crimes which carry the death penalty, including espionage, propaganda activities against the Islamic order, and spreading “corruption on earth.” Their attorneys are in the process of filing an appeal. “This is an outrageous miscarriage of justice and one more example of how the Iranian regime is a gross violator of human rights and religious freedoms,” said Leonard Leo, U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) chair. “The prosecutions and sentences are, pure and simple, politically and religiously motivated acts, and the Commission calls for the unconditional release of these seven individuals.” The Iran Sanctions Act, signed into law by President Obama roughly a month ago, for the first time imposes sanctions on Iran because it continues to engage in serious, systematic, and ongoing violations of human rights, including suppression of freedom of expression and religious freedom. USCIRF urges the Obama Administration to immediately implement sanctions on human rights and religious freedom violators included in the Iran Sanctions Act and urge our European and other allies to do the same. The United States also should make use of another available and important tool, the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA), to impose additional sanctions for the government of Iran’s violations of religious freedom or belief. Each year, since 1999, the State Department has designated Iran a “Country of Particular Concern,” or CPC, due to its systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom. As a CPC, Iran can be subjected to economic and other sanctions under the IRFA. Despite being designated a CPC for 10 years, no IRFA-related sanction has been imposed on Iran, with the U.S. government relying on existing sanctions already in place. USCIRF concludes that the rapidly deteriorating conditions for religious freedom justify specific, additional sanctions under IRFA. “Sanctions against religious freedom violators signals the United States’ solidarity with the Iranian people and sends a stark message to the Iranian regime that it should end more than 30 years of repression,” said Mr. Leo. In recent years, religious minorities, particularly Baha’is, as well as Christians and Sufi Muslims, have suffered intensified physical attacks, harassment, detention, arrests, and imprisonment. Heightened anti-Semitism and repeated Holocaust denial threats and activities by senior government officials have increased fear among Iran’s Jewish community. The government continues to impose lengthy prison sentences on prominent reformers from the Shia majority community, many of whom have been tried on charges of “insulting Islam,” criticizing the Islamic Republic, and publishing materials that allegedly deviate from Islamic standards. USCIRF highlighted these abuses in a National Press Club seminar in May and has worked on the Iranian persecution of Baha’is in the past. USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the President and the leadership of both political parties in the Senate and the House of Representatives. USCIRF’s principal responsibilities are to review the facts and circumstances of violations of religious freedom internationally and to make policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and Congress. To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, contact Tom Carter, Communications Director at tcarter@uscirf.gov or (202) 523-3257. Source: http://www.uscirf.gov/index. |
| Nederland bezorgd over lot Baha’i-leiders Iran Posted: 13 Aug 2010 11:27 AM PDT Nederland is zeer bezorgd over het lot van 7 leiders van de Baha’i-gemeenschap in Iran. De zeven worden ervan beschuldigd ‘vijanden van God’ te zijn en zouden volgens recente berichten tot 20 jaar gevangenisstraf zijn veroordeeld. Nederland is bezorgd over de gebrekkige uitvoering van de rechtsgang in de zaak van de 7 Baha’i-leiders en vreest dat de arrestatie en veroordeling voortkomt uit discriminatie op basis van geloofsovertuiging. De Baha’i zijn een religieuze minderheid in Iran die sedert de islamitische revolutie in 1979 vanwege de geloofsovertuiging wordt vervolgd. De afgelopen tijd is deze vervolging verder toegenomen. “Dat deze mensen veroordeeld lijken te zijn vanwege hun geloof is schokkend” aldus Minister Verhagen. “Ik roep de Iraanse autoriteiten op zich te houden aan hun internationale verplichtingen op mensenrechtengebied. De Baha’i-leiders hebben recht op een eerlijk proces en dienen zo snel mogelijk vrijgelaten te worden.” De zeven, Behrouz Tavakoli, Saeid Rezaie, Fariba Kamalabadi, Vahid Tizfahm, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naemi en Mahvash Sabet, zitten al sinds mei 2008 gevangen. Ze zijn officieel aangeklaagd wegens spionage en activiteiten tegen de nationale veiligheid. Source: http://www.minbuza.nl/nl/ |
| EU Declaration by HR Ashton on sentencing of seven Baha’i leaders Posted: 13 Aug 2010 11:21 AM PDT The European Union expresses its serious concern about the sentencing of seven Baha’i leaders in Iran to 20 years imprisonment and calls for their immediate release. The verdict appears to be based on the defendants belonging to a religious minority and the judicial process was seriously flawed, respecting neither Iran’s international commitments under the International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) nor its national legislation regarding fair trial rights. The EU recalls that freedom of thought, conscience and religion are fundamental rights which must be guaranteed under all circumstances according to article 18 of the ICCPR which the Islamic Republic of Iran has signed up to and ratified. The EU calls on Iran to put an end to the persecution of the Baha’i community. Ref: EU10-171EN EU source: European Union UN forum: Date: 12/8/2010 Source: http://www.europa-eu-un.org/ |
| U.S.A. joins Netherlands, U.K. and European Union in chorus of condemnation at prison sentences Posted: 13 Aug 2010 10:48 AM PDT GENEVA — The United States of America has said it “strongly condemns” the sentencing of seven Iranian Baha’i leaders to 20 years imprisonment. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton described the act as a “violation of Iran’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.” In a statement dated 12 August, Secretary Clinton said that the United States is “deeply concerned with the Iranian government’s continued persecution of Baha’is and other religious minority communities in Iran.” “Freedom of religion is the birthright of people of all faiths and beliefs in all places,” she said. “The United States is committed to defending religious freedom around the world, and we have not forgotten the Baha’i community in Iran.” “We will continue to speak out against injustice and call on the Iranian government to respect the The statement from the United States came as reports reached the Baha’i International Community that the seven Baha’i leaders have been transferred from Tehran’s Evin Prison, where they had been incarcerated for more than two years. They have been taken to Gohardasht Prison – also known as Rajaishahr Prison – in Karaj, some 20 kilometers west of the Iranian capital. Other support Support for the prisoners has also been expressed by the European Union, in a statement made by Baroness Catherine Ashton, the E.U.’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. “The European Union expresses its serious concern about the sentencing of seven Baha’i leaders in Iran to 20 years imprisonment and calls for their immediate release,” the declaration said. “The verdict appears to be based on the defendants belonging to a religious minority and the judicial process was seriously flawed, respecting neither Iran’s international commitments under the International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) nor its national legislation regarding fair trial rights.” “The EU recalls that freedom of thought, conscience and religion are fundamental rights which must be guaranteed under all circumstances according to article 18 of the ICCPR which the Islamic Republic of Iran has signed up to and ratified.” “The EU calls on Iran to put an end to the persecution of the Baha’i community,” said Baroness Ashton. In the United Kingdom, Foreign Secretary William Hague said he was “appalled” to hear of the prison sentences, describing them as a “shocking example of the Iranian state’s continued discrimination against the Baha’is.” “It is completely unacceptable,” said Mr. Hague in a statement released on Wednesday. “The Iranian judiciary has repeatedly failed to allay international and domestic concerns that these seven men and women are guilty of anything other than practicing their faith. It is clear that from arrest to sentencing, the Iranian authorities did not follow even their own due process, let alone the international standards to which Iran is committed. The accused were denied proper access to lawyers, and there is evidence that the trial was neither fair nor transparent.” “I call on the Iranian authorities urgently to consider any appeal against this decision, and to cease the harassment of the Baha’i community. I further call on the Iranian Government to ensure that the rights of all individuals are fully protected, without discrimination, and that it fulfils its obligations to its own citizens as set out in the Iranian constitution,” said Mr. Hague. The Netherlands‘ Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maxime Verhagen, expressed his country’s concern at “the poor execution of the judicial process in the case of the seven Baha’i leaders” and its fears that the arrest and sentence is “based solely on discrimination of religious belief.” “That these people seem to be condemned because of their faith is shocking,” said Mr. Verhagen. “I urge the Iranian authorities to abide by their international human rights obligations. The Baha’i leaders have a right to a fair trial and they must be released as soon as possible.” Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the President of the European Parliament earlier expressed strong statements of concern at news that Iran’s seven Baha’i leaders have each received prison sentences of 20 years, as reported by the Baha’i World News Service on 11 August. Human rights organizations Human rights organizations – including Amnesty International, FIDH and Human Rights Watch – have issued calls for the prisoners to be released, for the judgment to be annulled, and for Iran to demonstrate that the trial was fair and in accordance with international standards. “This is an outrageous miscarriage of justice and one more example of how the Iranian regime is a gross violator of human rights and religious freedoms,” said Leonard Leo, chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. “The prosecutions and sentences are, pure and simple, politically and religiously motivated acts, and the Commission calls for the unconditional release of these seven individuals.” Diane Ala’i, representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva said the actions of the Iranian authorities, against individuals who are innocent of any crime, represent an “outrageous travesty of justice that defies adequate description.” “At every stage of the case – from their illegal detention and the brutal conditions of their confinement, through the trial, and now to a completely unlawful imprisonment – not even the most basic and fundamental norms of justice were respected.” “We welcome the message coming loud and clear from governments and human rights organizations throughout the world. It is time for Iran to right the wrongs it has done.” (The International Reaction page of the Baha’i World News service is regularly updated with responses from governments, nongovernmental organizations, and prominent individuals. The Media Reports page presents a digest of media coverage from around the world.) Source: http://news.bahai.org/story/ |
| U.S. Secretary of States: deeply concerned with the persecution of Baha’is in Iran Posted: 12 Aug 2010 11:52 PM PDT Secretary of State Washington, DC August 12, 2010 The United States is deeply concerned with the Iranian government’s continued persecution of Baha’is and other religious minority communities in Iran. This week, seven Baha’i leaders, who were incarcerated and held for nearly two years without due process, were each sentenced to 20 years imprisonment. The United States strongly condemns this sentencing as a violation of Iran’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Freedom of religion is the birthright of people of all faiths and beliefs in all places. The United States is committed to defending religious freedom around the world, and we have not forgotten the Baha’i community in Iran. We will continue to speak out against injustice and call on the Iranian government to respect the fundamental rights of all its citizens in accordance with its international obligations. Source: http://www.state.gov/ |
Saturday, August 14, 2010
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