"THE BAHAIS QUESTION ?"

2012-01-26T01:31:00.001-08:00

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New crackdown highlights campaign to block progress of Iranian Baha'is
http://news.bahai.org/story/884

NEW YORK, 26 January 2012, (BWNS) – The Iranian government's systematic strategy to drive Baha'is to economic ruin shows no sign of abating.

According to reports received by the Baha'i International Community, a renewed campaign is under way in Kerman, the major city in south central Iran.

"We have learned that the Public Places Supervision Office is denying the renewal of licenses – and revoking some existing ones – for Baha'i-owned businesses in the city," said Bani Dugal, principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations.

"A wide range of professions are being targeted – from computer sales and repair shops to real estate brokers. Baha'is involved in the sale of iron alloys, steel, or gold are losing their licenses, as are Baha'i-owned businesses relating to food products, and health and cosmetic services, such as opticians," she said.

Baha'is in Kerman have also been told that they are not allowed to own a large number of shops on the same street.

"The authorities have even gone so far as to revoke the licenses of business partners of Baha'is, who are not themselves members of the Baha'i Faith," said Ms. Dugal.

Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, many thousands of Baha'is have lost their jobs or sources of livelihood. In 1993, the UN disclosed an Iranian government memorandum – endorsed by the country's Supreme Leader – that explicitly outlines a plan to "block" the "development of the Iranian Baha'i community."

In addition to the barring of young Baha'is from higher education, said Ms. Dugal, it is clear that the authorities are continuing with a range of other actions to carry out this policy.

"We have received accounts of at least 60 incidents in the past five years, designed to curb the economic prospects of Baha'is," she reported.

Some recent examples include:

– From 2 to 12 January 2012, more than 70 percent of Baha'i-owned businesses in Sari and Ghaemshahr (Mazandaran province), and a number in Gorgan and Gonbad (Golestan province), were searched in order to find some excuse on which to threaten or arrest Baha'is. Authorities even searched the houses of Baha'is that are working from home, in some cases more than two years since they closed up their stores;

– In July 2011, the Baha'i owner of a shop in Abadan received a notice from the Union for Retailers and Manufacturers of Jewelry, Watches and Glasses asking him to return his work license and liquidate his assets within 24 hours;

– In June 2011, an optical shop was sealed on the pretext of transferring the license to a new location. The head of the Public Places Supervision Office indicated that the order to seal the shop was issued by the higher authorities. The shop had been previously closed by the authorities in December 2008, along with four other Baha'i shops in Nazarabad. But after a legal battle, the owner managed to reopen in a new location – only to have it sealed again.

– After a wave of arson attacks on a dozen Baha'i-owned businesses in Rafsanjan, Iran, in late 2010, some 20 homes and businesses were sent a warning letter demanding that Baha'is sign an undertaking to "refrain from forming contacts or friendships with Muslims" and from "using or hiring Muslim trainees."

– In early 2009, in the city of Semnan, the association of Trade Unions passed a by-law stating that no Baha'i should receive a business license. Soon after, a number of Baha'i-owned businesses and shops throughout the city were subsequently sealed or shut down.

– In an example of another kind of economic pressure, a Baha'i in Isfahan – shortly before being fired from his work – requested from the social security agency that he be allocated the amount that had been deducted from his wages for his pension. He received notice that his request was not being pursued as it was a "non-issue," given the fact that the reason for his losing his job was his membership in "the deviant Bahaist sect." The notice specified that he and another 14 individuals were fired based on the legal prohibition on their being hired in the first place, and thus their claims were of no account.

"International law firmly spells out the right of individuals to be free to work and earn a livelihood, without discrimination," said Ms. Dugal.

"Last month, the international community voted overwhelmingly at the UN to condemn Iran for its ongoing and recurring human rights violations. Surely it's time that Iran realizes that it can no longer get away with oppressing its citizens and thinking that no one will notice."

To read the article online and access links, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/884

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2012-01-20T01:21:00.001-08:00

Slovak politicians call Iran's persecution of Baha'is "chilling" and "abhorrent"
http://news.bahai.org/story/882

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia, 20 January 2012, (BWNS) – Treatment of the Baha'is in Iran has "escalated to an institutionalised and blatant policy of persecution," according to a proclamation issued by the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Slovakian parliament.

The proclamation describes the Iranian government's incitement to hatred based on religion and belief as "abhorrent." It also states that the "regime's endeavors to persecute Baha'is is chilling indeed," and demands an end to Iran's "spiralling efforts to destroy the Iranian Baha'i community."

Baha'is "must be guaranteed their full and equal human rights" and "be allowed to contribute to the public life and development of Iran along with their fellow citizens," wrote the Foreign Affairs Committee.

"The fact that this Committee has taken on the situation of Baha'is in Iran is important for two reasons," said its chairman, Frantisek Sebej.

"One, because the democratic parliaments of the world must care about and deal with the denial of human rights of suppressed minorities in other parts of the world, at least for the reason that we are the luckier ones who live in a free world and have the obligation to care for others."

"The second reason is that with such a resolution we can help the Baha'i community."

Noting "a sharp increase in the systematic, government-supported program to destroy the Baha'i community in Iran," the statement also describes the destruction of Baha'i holy sites and cemeteries as an "atrocious blow to religious cultural heritage of significant value for humankind." It calls for the immediate release of the seven imprisoned Baha'i leaders and the Baha'i educators jailed for their association with the Baha'i Institute of Higher Education.

"At issue are denial of the right to life, liberty and security of person; violent attacks; arbitrary arrests and imprisonments; denial of access to education; confiscation and destruction of personal community property; and the denial of employment, pensions and other benefits," the proclamation says.

The Committee – which approved the proclamation at a meeting held yesterday in the building of the National Council of the Slovak Republic – also resolved to send the statement to senior figures in Iran, including President Ahmadinejad.

"Though I do not expect that the Iranian Government will stop the persecution of Baha'is," said Dr. Sebej, "at least it will not dare to do more horrific things while thinking that no one is watching and nobody cares."

To read the article online and view photographs, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/882

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2011-12-09T09:16:00.001-08:00

Heads of medical schools urge Iran to release jailed Baha'i educators

8 December 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States — Almost 50 leaders of medical education in the United States have joined the worldwide protest against the Iranian government’s persecution of Baha’i students and educators.

Forty-eight Deans and Senior Vice-Presidents – who between them head more than a third of American medical schools – have signed an open letter addressed to Iran’s representative to the United Nations. The letter was published on the Persian-language “Association Against Education Discrimination” website on 7 December – the day that Iranian student movements annually commemorate Student Day.

“We are writing as individuals who are leaders of globally recognized educational institutions to voice our concern about the treatment of Baha’i students and educators in Iran,” the letter says.

“As leaders of medical education, we believe that education is an inherent human right. At our respective institutions, we have hosted and continue to host students, residents, fellows, and faculty irrespective of their religious beliefs from all over the world. We have welcomed this diverse population into our educational communities to contribute to the discovery and dissemination of knowledge for the benefit of humanity.”

The letter’s chief signatory – Dr. Philip Pizzo, Dean of Stanford University’s School of Medicine – helped collect the signatures last month at the annual meeting of the Association of American Medical Colleges’ Council of Medical School Deans.

The statement details the systematic attack launched by Iranian authorities against an informal community initiative – known as the Baha’i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) – which was set up to provide education for young Baha’is barred from university. Seven Baha’is associated with BIHE are now serving four- and five-year jail terms.

“The arresting of BIHE faculty and administrators as well as the banning of generations of Baha’is from education solely on the basis of their religious background are violations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights to which Iran is a State Party,” the letter continues.

“We therefore urge your government to release the instructors and administrators of BIHE from prison. We also request that your government extend Baha’i students and faculty in Iran the same rights to education that we offer every student and professor at our institutions regardless of their heritage, religion or country of origin.”

The open letter was published on the same day that the situation of Baha’i educators and students was raised in a joint statement by an international group of lawmakers – US Senators Mark Kirk and Joseph Lieberman, Canadian MP Irwin Cotler, British MP Denis MacShane, Australian MP Michael Danby, Italian MP Fiamma Nirenstein, and Lithuanian MP Emanuelis Zingeris.

Continuing outcry

These latest actions come just days after Senator Mobina Jaffer, Canada’s first Muslim senator, told a Canadian Senate enquiry that it was "unprecedented" that Iran has now criminalized the education of young people.

The condemnation of the imprisonment of the seven Baha’i educators has spanned the world. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has led the criticism of their sentences, along with such prominent figures as Nobel Peace Prize laureates Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Jose Ramos-Horta, andLieutenant-General Roméo Dallaire, the former UN peacekeeping force commander who tried to stop the 1990s genocide in Rwanda.

In October, some 43 distinguished philosophers and theologians in 16 countries signed an open letter protesting against the attack on BIHE.

In Germany, some 45 prominent professors have demanded the immediate release of the seven, while in Australia, letters of protest have been sent by 73 university academics, and Universities Australia, representing the vice-chancellors of all Australian universities.

Last month, more than 50 academics in Ireland called upon the Iranian authorities to allow access to higher education for all, while 26 professionals from the cinema industry urged the government of Brazil to defend the rights of filmmakers, journalists and Baha'i educators and called upon Iran to immediately release those imprisoned.

Click here to see the full list of signatories to the open letter

Further information

Recent Iran-related articles

Concerns for imprisoned Baha'i educators voiced in Senate

Canada's first Muslim senator strongly criticizes Iran for its prosecution and imprisonment of Baha'i educators.

Senator highlights "warning signs" in Iran's treatment of Baha'is

Former UN peacekeeper Romeo Dallaire says Iran's actions against Baha'is remind him of what he witnessed in Rwanda.

UN strongly condemns Iran's human rights violations; European Parliament joins global outcry

UN General Assembly uses some of its strongest language to date.

Recent headlinesView all »

2011-10-18T10:36:00.000-07:00

Baha'i World News Service to me

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Baha'i educators sentenced
http://news.bahai.org/story/860

NEW YORK, 18 October 2011, BWNS – Seven Baha'i educators in Iran have each received four or five-year prison sentences, according to reports received by the Baha'i International Community.

Verdicts against the seven were reportedly handed down by a judge at Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court in Tehran.

The educators have been detained for almost five months in connection with their involvement in an informal community initiative – known as the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) – in which Baha'i professors, debarred by the Iranian government from practicing their professions, offer their services to teach young community members who are banned from university.

Two of the individuals, Vahid Mahmoudi and Kamran Mortezaie, were each sentenced to five years imprisonment.

Four year jail terms were given to BIHE lecturers Ramin Zibaie, Mahmoud Badavam and Farhad Sedghi, consultant Riaz Sobhani, and helper Nooshin Khadem.

"It is not even clear at this stage what the exact charges were against these innocent souls, whose only desire was to serve young people who have been unjustly barred from higher education on purely religious grounds," said Bani Dugal, Principal Representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations.

"What kind of society makes educating the young a punishable crime?" she said.

Two other Baha'is associated with BIHE – husband and wife Kamran Rahimian and Faran Hesami, both psychology instructors – are also still being held without charge.

Global protest

The most recent attacks carried out against BIHE continue to provoke condemnation from governments, organizations, academics and young people throughout the world.

More than 70 academics in Australia, including University of Ballarat vice-chancellor, David Battersby, have signed an open letter protesting Iran's educational discrimination against Baha'is and calling for the immediate release of the imprisoned educators.

On 10 October, 43 prominent philosophers and theologians in 16 countries signed another letter of protest. "To acquire knowledge and learning is the sacred and legal right of all; indeed, the state is obliged to provide it. In Iran, the government has done the opposite..." wrote the academics.

Two Nobel Peace Prize laureates – Desmond Tutu, the Anglican Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, and Jose Ramos-Horta, President of East Timor – in another open letter, sharply criticized the Iranian government, comparing its actions to "the Dark Ages of Europe" or the "Spanish Inquisition."

On 5 October, resuming a Canadian Senate debate about the Baha'is in Iran, Senator Hugh Segal described the suffering heaped on Baha'is as "systematic and brutal, especially when the Baha'i are known as a peaceful faith that embraces the sanctity of all religions."

"The official Iranian oppression of Baha'i ... is a clarion call to humanity and to free peoples and democracies everywhere to look directly at the harsh colors of the Iranian reality and not look away until the challenge is faced head on," said Senator Segal.

Around 112 Baha'is are currently behind bars in Iran because of their religion. This includes the seven Baha'i leaders, serving 20-year jail terms on trumped-up charges. The cases of some 300 other Baha'is are still active with the Iranian authorities.

To read the article online and access links, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/860

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

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Copyright 2011 by the Baha'i World News Service. Stories and photographs produced by the Baha'i World News Service may be freely reprinted, re-emailed, re-posted to the World Wide Web and otherwise reproduced by any individual or organization as long as they are attributed to the Baha'i World News Service. For more information, go tohttp://news.bahai.org/terms-of-use/

2011-10-13T10:54:00.001-07:00

Baha'i World News Service
http://news.bahai.org/story/858

UN Secretary General "deeply troubled" by developments in Iran
UNITED NATIONS, 13 October 2011, BWNS – For the fourth consecutive year, the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has strongly criticized Iran's record on human rights, saying violations have "continued and intensified" over the last 12 months.

Iran has stepped up its crackdown on human rights defenders, women's rights activists and journalists, Mr. Ban said in a report released yesterday.

Read the report here: http://news.bahai.org/sites/news.bahai.org/files/documentlibrary/858_Secretary_General_Report.pdf

The Secretary General said he was "deeply troubled" by recent developments, which included a "notable increase" in the country's use of the death penalty, along with a rise in unfair trials, amputations, and the use of torture, arbitrary arrest and detention.

Mr. Ban called on the Iranian government to respect the rights of all its citizens – but noted especially the "important and constructive role the human rights lawyers and activists play in protecting human rights," encouraging Iran to "fully guarantee freedom of expression and assembly and to open up greater space for their independent work."

Restrictions on "unrecognized religious minorities," were also highlighted in the report with "serious concern" being expressed, particularly at the ongoing persecution of Iran's Baha'i community.

Iranian Baha'is face limits on access to higher education, Mr. Ban said, noting that this form of discrimination culminated this year in a government effort to shut down the informal initiative to educate young members of the Baha'i community barred from university.

"According to numerous reports, on 21 May 2011, security forces conducted raids on the homes of individuals involved in the activities of the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education and arrested 15 of its members in various cities, including Gohardasht, Isfahan, Karaj, Sari, Shiraz, Tehran and Zahedan..." he said.

Mr. Ban also discussed the fate of seven national Baha'i leaders, arrested in 2008 and sentenced to some 20 years imprisonment in 2010 – noting that their excessive sentence was upheld earlier this year.

"The High Commissioner for Human Rights has raised this case several times in letters to and meetings with the Iranian authorities, expressing deep concern that these trials did not meet the requirements of due process and fair trial," he said.

Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations, welcomed the report and its conclusions.

"Taken as a whole, Mr. Ban's report has once again indicted the current Iranian regime, documenting the government's wide-ranging effort to silence the growing demands of its citizenry for justice, democracy, and transparency.

"Baha'is have long suffered from the Islamic Republic's ongoing and ever-increasing inability to tolerate any viewpoint or opinion that falls outside the official script. Mr. Ban's report clearly documents the degree to which so many others – from women to journalists to lawyers – are also bearing the brunt of this oppression.

"The report also outlines Iran's refusal to cooperate with UN special rapporteurs, who have since 2005 been denied permission to visit Iran so that they can investigate the situation there.

"We hope the international community will duly take note and continue its effort to see that Iran ends the unjust persecution of its own citizens," said Ms. Dugal.

To read the article online, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/858

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2011-10-10T05:39:00.000-07:00

Philosophers and theologians worldwide condemn Iran's attack on Baha'i educators

NEW YORK, 10 October 2011, (BWNS) – More than 40 distinguished philosophers and theologians from 16 countries have joined the condemnation of Iran's policy to bar young Baha'is and others from higher education.

In an unprecedented global initiative, the 43 prominent academics – of Christian, Hindu, Jewish, and Muslim backgrounds – have signed an open letter, published in The Daily Telegraph (UK), and reported in the Folha de São Paulo (Brazil),

Read the open letter here: http://news.bahai.org/sites/news.bahai.org/files/documentlibrary/857_philosophers_letter_en.pdf

Read the Daily Telegraph article:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/8816662/Religious-academics-denounce-persecution-against-Irans-Bahai-minority.html

The letter condemns in particular recent attacks by the Iranian authorities on an informal educational initiative of the Baha'i community – known as the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) – in which Baha'i professors, debarred by the Iranian government from practicing their professions, voluntarily offer their services to teach young community members who are banned from higher education.

Seven Baha'is associated with BIHE recently made their first court appearances after being imprisoned for four months. They were detained after a series of raids on 22 May, in which 39 homes associated with BIHE were targeted. The Institute's activities have since been declared "illegal."

"As philosophers, theologians, and scholars of religion, living throughout the world, we are raising our voices in protest against the recent attack by Iranian authorities on the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education," the open letter states.

"To acquire knowledge and learning is the sacred and legal right of all; indeed, the state is obliged to provide it. In Iran, the government has done the opposite..."

"Attacks such as these, against the rights of citizens to organize and be educated in freedom, can no longer be tolerated. We call upon the Iranian government not only to cease its persecution of Baha'is, but to provide, and promote, education for all."

Among the most celebrated academics backing the call is Dr. Charles Taylor, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at McGill University, Canada. He signed the letter, he said, out of his deep sense of "conviction that there ought to be 'no compulsion' in religion."

It is also "connected to my disquiet about the Iranian revolution," said Professor Taylor, "and the way its finer ideals have been hijacked by people who are abusing their faith in order to make it serve as a tool of mobilization against the 'enemy.'"

Another prominent figure to add his name to the list is Hilary Putnam, Cogan University Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Harvard, U.S.A.

"Ever since the American and French revolutions at the end of the eighteenth century, the aspiration of peoples of different ethnicities, nationalities, and creeds for their fundamental human rights, including the right to worship as one's conscience dictates and the right to education, have gained momentum," said Professor Putnam.

"The persecution of the Baha'i university students in Iran is a shameful attempt to turn the clock back to the dark ages. Their cause deserves the support of enlightened and moral people everywhere."

OPEN LETTER
As philosophers, theologians, and scholars of religion, living throughout the world,
we are raising our voices in protest against the recent attack by Iranian authorities on the
Bahá’í Institute for Higher Education (BIHE).
As people of faith, we affirm that human beings are fundamentally spiritual in
nature, created with the innate capacity to know God and investigate truth for
themselves. To acquire knowledge and learning is the sacred and legal right of all; indeed,
the state is obliged to provide it. In Iran, the government has done the opposite. Among the
numerous violations of the human rights of Bahá’ís, their access to higher education is
systematically blocked for no other reason than their beliefs. In order to cater to the needs
of their youth, Iranian Bahá’ís developed the BIHE – their own, informal, community
education initiative. On 22 May, 39 homes associated with the BIHE were raided. The
Institute’s activities have since been declared “illegal.” Nine educators remain incarcerated.
Attacks such as these, against the rights of citizens to organize and be educated in
freedom, can no longer be tolerated. We call upon the Iranian government not only to cease
its persecution of Bahá’ís, but to provide, and promote, education for all.
Signed by:
Charles Taylor Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, McGill University, Canada
Hilary Putnam Cogan University Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Harvard University, U.S.A.
Cornel West Class of 1943 University Professor of African American Studies, Princeton
University, U.S.A.
Leonardo Boff Professor Emeritus of Ethics, Philosophy of Religion, and Ecology, Rio de
Janeiro State University, Brazil
Stanley Hauerwas Gilbert T. Rowe Professor of Theological Ethics, Duke University, U.S.A.
Ebrahim Moosa Professor of Religion & Islamic Studies, Duke University, U.S.A.
Graham Ward Regius Professor of Divinity, Oxford University, U.K.
John Milbank Professor in Religion, Politics and Ethics, University of Nottingham, U.K.
Rabbi David Novak J. Richard and Dorothy Shiff Chair of Jewish Studies, Professor of Philosophy,
University of Toronto, Canada
Tahir Mahmood Chairman, Amity University Institute of Advanced Legal Studies; former
member, National Minorities Commission and former member, Law Commission
of India.
Moshe Idel Professor Emeritus of Jewish Thought, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel
Abdulkader Tayob Professor of Islamic Studies, University of Cape Town, South Africa
William Desmond Full Professor of Philosophy, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium; Adjunct
Honorary Professor of Philosophy, National University of Ireland Maynooth,
Ireland
Xinjian Shang Professor of Philosophy, Peking University, China
Kevin Hart Edwin B Kyle, Prof of Christian Studies and Chair of Religious Studies,
University of Virginia, U.S.A.; Professor Of Philosophy, Australia Catholic
University, Australia
Murray Rae Professor of Theology and Head of the Department of Theology and Religion,
University of Otago, New Zealand
Asghar Ali Engineer Founding Chairman of Asian Muslim Action Network; Head of Center for Study
of Society and Secularism, Mumbai, India
Remi Brague Chair of the Study of Religion, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich,
Germany
A. Rashied Omar Research Scholar of Islamic Studies and Peacebuilding, University of Notre
Dame, U.S.A.; Imam at Claremont Main Road Mosque, Cape Town, South AfricaJoshua Cho President and Professor of Christian Thought, Hong Kong Baptist Theological
Seminary, Hong Kong.
Douglas Pratt Professor of Religious Studies, Waikato University, New Zealand
Ashok Vohra Professor of Philosophy, Delhi University, India; Indian Council of Philosophical
Research.
Carver Yu President and Professor of Christian Thought, China Graduate School of
Theology, Hong Kong
Laurie Zoloth Professor of Medical Humanities and Bioethics, Professor of Religious Studies,
Northwestern University, U.S.A.
Pilgrim W.K. LO Professor of Systematic Theology, Chairman of Institute for Luther Studies in the
Asian Context, Lutheran Theological Seminary, Hong Kong
Philip Goodchild Professor of Religion and Philosophy, University of Nottingham, U.K.
Paul Morris Professor of Religious Studies, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand
James E. Faulconer Richard L. Evans Chair of Religious Understanding, Brigham Young University,
U.S.A.
Rod Benson Ethicist and Public Theologian, Tinsley Institute, Morling College, Australia
Hassan Mwakimako Senior Lecturer in Islamic Studies, Pwani University College, Kenya
Yunus Dumbe Lecturer in Islamic Studies, Islamic University College, Ghana
Joseph Cohen University Lecturer in Philosophy, University College Dublin, Ireland
Adam Miller Professor of Philosophy, Collin College, Texas, U.S.A.
Elaine Wainwright Professor of Theology, University of Auckland, New Zealand
Raphael Zagury-Orly Head of the MFA Program, Bezalel School of Design and Fine Arts, Israel
Felix Ó Murchadha Senior Lecturer in Philosophy, National University of Ireland Galway, Ir eland
Na’eem Jeenah Associate Lecturer of Political Studies, University of the Witwatersrand;
Coordinator of Masjidul Islam in Johannesburg, South Africa
Kathleen Flake Associate Professor of American Religious History, Vanderbilt Divinity School,
U.S.A.
Rabbi Aryeh Cohen Associate Professor of Rabbinic Literature, American Jewish University, U.S.A.
Jeffrey Bloechel Associate Professor of Philosophy, Boston College, U.S.A.
William Hackett Research Fellow and Lecturer in Philosophy, Australian Catholic University,
Australia
Rabbi Akiba Lerner Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies, Santa Clara University, U.S.A.
Nathan Oman Assistant Professor of Law, William and Mary School of Law, U.S.A

2011-09-06T07:55:00.001-07:00

Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community

________________________________________
UNESCO chief inaugurates square for tolerance and peace in Haifa
Posted: 03 Sep 2011 09:17 PM PDT
While the Baha’is in Iran are facing severe persecution as direct result of prejudice and intolerance in Iran, the Baha’i International Community participates in inauguration of special space in Haifa dedicated to tolerance and peace, knowing well that the road to a peaceful world is abolishment of prejudice due to ignorance and true eduction of each and every child, junior youth, youth, young adults and women and men of the World.
Editor
—
[BWNS, 30 May 2011] HAIFA, Israel — In the Middle East, Haifa is known as one of the region’s most ethnically and religiously diverse cities, including Jews, Christians, Muslims, Druze and Baha’is among its residents.
And so it was fitting that on her first visit to the Baha’i gardens here, the Director General of UNESCO spoke of the challenges facing multi-cultural societies.
“Managing diversity raises some of the most difficult questions of this 21st century – inside our societies and outside, with our neighbours and globally,” said Irina Bokova, formerly the Foreign Affairs Minister for Bulgaria.
Ms. Bokova was speaking at a special ceremony held in the Baha’i gardens to inaugurate the UNESCO for Tolerance and Peace Square, situated at the point where Haifa’s historic German Templer colony meets the terraced gardens of the Shrine of the Bab.
The newly-named square in Haifa will “stand for the tolerance and the peace that we seek to build and to deepen – in this region, and across the world,” she remarked.
“I am more than convinced that the only ways to build a more peaceful and equitable world are through education and dialogue – to deepen understanding, to strengthen mutual respect and to prepare the ground for reconciliation…” said Ms. Bokova who, in October 2009, became the first woman to head the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
“If wars start in the minds of men; it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed,” she said, citing the UNESCO manifesto.
The ceremony also coincided with the 10th anniversary of the official opening in May 2001 of the garden terraces of the Shrine of the Bab. In 2008, a UNESCO committee meeting held in Quebec, Canada – at which Ms. Bokova was present – decided to inscribe the Shrine and terraces, along with the Shrine of Baha’u'llah near Acre, on the World Heritage list, as sites of “outstanding universal value.”
Future development plans for the UNESCO for Tolerance and Peace Square include upgraded stonework and decorative floral plantings in the centre of its traffic circle, establishing a symbolic bridge between the German Templer colony and the Baha’i gardens.
Secretary General of the Baha’i International Community, Albert Lincoln, welcomed Ms. Bokova to the ceremony, along with other invited guests including the Mayor of Haifa, Advocate Yona Yahav; the Most Reverend Dr. Elias Chacour, Archbishop Metropolitan of the Melkite Catholic Church for Acre, Haifa, Nazareth and All Galilee; and other representatives of Haifa’s Arab and Jewish communities.
“Haifa really is a city of peace and a living example of how the Middle East could and should be,” said Dr. Lincoln, describing as “normality” the wide variety of religious, ethnic and cultural groups who live and work side by side in the city.
“Normality need not explain itself, but perhaps we do need to remind ourselves and others from time to time of its essential foundations,” said Dr. Lincoln.
“The human race, with all its diversity, is one family…” he said. “But even in the city of peace, normality cannot be taken for granted. It needs nurturing and defence.”
Thanking Ms. Bokova and her staff for their work, Dr. Lincoln concluded, “UNESCO plays a leading role in the critical work of nurturing and defending this kind of normality all around the world by promoting peace, education and the recognition of the universal values in the infinite diversity of the world’s cultures.”
—
Source: http://news.bahai.org/story/828

2011-08-23T08:49:00.001-07:00

New reports of human rights violations highlight situation of Iran's Baha'is

GENEVA, 23 August 2011 (BWNS) – Iran's treatment of its Baha'i citizens has been identified as a major area of concern in three important new surveys carried out by international human rights organizations.

The reports have recently been issued by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Minority Rights Group International (MRG) and Amnesty International.

The highlighting of the situation of Iranian Baha'is within the broader framework of international human rights violations has been welcomed by the Baha'i International Community.

"Each of these reports surveys a major issue area – minorities, women prisoners, or the Middle East in general – and each accordingly places the ongoing persecution of Baha'is in that context, demonstrating the interconnected and interrelated nature of rights violations," said Diane Ala'i, the representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.

"We likewise express our grave concern about human rights violations directed at other groups in Iran, such as women, journalists, and human rights defenders, as well as ordinary citizens seeking the right to freedom of expression," said Ms. Ala'i.

"Release all women prisoners of conscience"

In its report on women prisoners, Paris-based FIDH called on Iran to "release all women prisoners of conscience unconditionally and immediately."

Iran is currently unjustly holding at least 47 such women prisoners, wrote FIDH on 13 August.

Six Baha'i women are listed by FIDH, including Mahvash Sabet and Fariba Kamalabadi, both serving 20 year sentences for their membership of a national-level ad hoc group that helped attend to the needs of Iran's 300,000-strong Baha'i community. Last year, they were unjustly convicted of espionage and other trumped-up charges that were wholly related to their practice of the Baha'i Faith.

Also included in the report is Nasrin Sotoudeh, the lawyer who has represented numerous victims of human rights abuses including Baha'is and prisoners sentenced to death for crimes committed when they were minors. In January this year, authorities sentenced Ms. Sotoudeh to 11 years in prison for charges that include "activities against national security" and "propaganda against the regime." Additionally, she has been barred from practicing law and from leaving Iran for 20 years.

Other cases highlighted by FIDH include those of women's rights supporter Mahboubeh Karami, serving a three-year prison term; journalist Hengameh Shahidi, jailed for six years; student activist Bahareh Hedayat, sentenced to nine and a half years; and film actress Marzieh Vafammehr, who is being arbitrarily detained.

"The international community should express full support for the Iranian women's movement and its fight for the establishment of basic freedoms, equal rights and respect for human rights in Iran," said Karim Lahidji, vice-president of FIDH and President of the Iranian League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran (LDDHI).

Situation for Baha'is "remained dire"

In MRG's annual survey of minority populations around the world, published in London last month, the spotlight falls upon problems facing women from minority and indigenous communities.

They are often targeted for rape and other forms of sexual violence, torture and killings – specifically because of their ethnic, religious or indigenous identity.

"The situation for Baha'is in Iran remained dire in 2010," said the report's section on Iran, highlighting that the trial and sentencing of Iran's seven Baha'i leaders took place without "independent observers."

It also reported that Iranian Baha'is face restrictions on access to education and employment and the "arbitrary destruction of their homes, arrests, and confiscation and destruction of property."

Amnesty International – in a special supplement to its Wire magazine on the theme "50 Years of Defending Rights in the Middle East and North Africa" – observed that Baha'is are among the many religious minorities that populate the Middle East "sometimes regarded with deep-seated suspicion and hostility that make them vulnerable to abuses of their human rights."

To read the article online and access links, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/846

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2011-08-10T10:40:00.001-07:00

In new affront, authorities say they will bury an Iranian Baha'i as a Muslim

GENEVA, 10 August 2011 (BWNS) – In an outrageous new incident of religious discrimination, authorities in the city of Tabriz, Iran, have refused to allow Baha'is to bury a relative in accordance with Baha'i law – and instead have promised to entomb the deceased woman without a coffin under Muslim rites.

"To anyone who understands the culture of the Middle East, the idea that the government would force a family to bury their loved one according to the rites of another religion is beyond the pale," said Diane Ala'i, the representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.

She noted that according to Baha'i rites of burial, the deceased must be interred in a coffin, whereas under Muslim law, no coffin is used.

"This incident demonstrates the almost unbelievable length to which Iranian authorities are willing to go to express their prejudice and animosity against Baha'is," she said.

The incident began on Monday when authorities in Tabriz told the family of Mrs. Fatemeh-Soltan Zaeri that they would be unable to bury her in the local cemetery according to Baha'i law. Instead, they said, she would have to be interred according to Muslim customs.

The family objected, noting that the cemetery has always been accessible to members of all religions in the area to bury their dead as they wished.

In response to this protest, authorities demanded that Mrs. Zaeri be buried without a coffin – and they withheld her body for 48 hours, preventing them from taking her body somewhere else.

Yesterday, when the family member contacted cemetery authorities again, pleading that her body be released so they could bury her elsewhere, they were advised that she would be buried on Thursday anyway, without a coffin, in a Muslim ceremony – and that only her husband would be allowed to be present.

This is but the most recent incident in a long history of problems facing Baha'is over the proper burial of their dead. In many cities in Iran, Baha'is have long been blocked from using Muslim cemeteries – but have instead been allowed to create their own.

However, these Baha'i cemeteries have been frequently vandalized and desecrated.

In the past year or so, Baha'i cemeteries in Tehran, Ghaemshahr, Marvdasht, Semnan, Sari, and Isfahan have been defaced, bulldozed, or in some way blocked to the Baha'i community. In late April, a small Baha'i cemetery in Gilavand with only four graves was desecrated by intruders using a tractor; all four tombs were destroyed. Earlier, in March, a Baha'i family in Najafabad was prevented from burying a loved one in the Baha'i cemetery there, despite their having secured a permit to do so.

"Iranian officials repeatedly deny that their government persecutes Baha'is on account of their religion. Harassment over Baha'i burials and the desecration of cemeteries are clear indications that the persecution is based solely on religion and not the result of any threat posed by Baha'is," said Ms. Ala'i.

To read the article online, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/845

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2011-07-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

Iran: Baha'is educating their youth is a "conspiracy" against the state

GENEVA, 27 July 2011 (BWNS) – Some nine weeks after they were arrested, 11 Iranian Baha'is – associated with an initiative offering higher education to young community members barred from university – are now reportedly facing charges.

The Baha'i International Community has learned that, by establishing the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education, the 11 are accused of "conspiracy against national security" and "conspiracy against the Islamic Republic of Iran."

"What could possibly motivate the Islamic Republic to make such a charge?" asks Diane Ala'i, representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.

A widespread international outcry has followed the latest attack on the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE), in which some 39 homes were raided at the end of May. Of the 19 BIHE staff or faculty members who were originally detained in connection with the raids, 11 remain in prison.

"Callous action"

The recent targeting of the BIHE is the latest attempt in an ongoing policy to keep Iran's largest non-Muslim religious minority on the margins of society. Since the 1979 Islamic revolution, young Baha'is have been systematically deprived of higher education. With nowhere else to go to, the community initiated its own educational programme. This, in turn, has come under attack on numerous occasions by the Iranian authorities who have now declared it "illegal."

"This callous action is all part of a systematic plan to impoverish the Baha'is of Iran," explains Ms. Ala'i. "The authorities are clearly determined to drive Baha'i youth, who long to contribute to their society, out of their homeland.

"Baha'is have been banned from higher education for three decades. And now, their own peaceful initiative – to meet a need created by the government's own actions – is branded a conspiracy against the state.

"Iran's actions are being closely scrutinized at home, and around the world by governments, organizations and fair-minded individuals. It's time for the international community to vigorously challenge the Iranian government on this matter," she says.

Families' fears

The families of the 11 prisoners are fearful that their loved ones will be held for a prolonged period.

"We know that in the case of the seven Iranian Baha'i leaders, they should have been released within two months; the court had not brought forward any evidence to justify their continued imprisonment," says Ms. Ala'i.

"When the attorneys for the defendants objected to this detention, the court made up new charges against them to justify keeping them in custody. They were illegally held for almost two years under the original writ for their detention."

Worldwide condemnation

The outcry against the latest attack on the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education has spanned the world, from Australia to Zambia.

Universities Australia – representing all 39 of the country's universities – raised the issue on 28 June with the Director-General of UNESCO. "Australian universities are united in their strong support for facilitating access to education for all, irrespective of religious faith," the organization wrote.

In a statement on 1 June, Austria's Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger described the restriction of access to education for young Baha'is as "unacceptable."

Congressman Luiz Couto, former president of Brazil's Human Rights and Minorities Commission, told the Brazilian National Congress on 2 June, "The action of the authorities towards individuals associated with the BIHE demonstrate the clear intention of Iranian government to carry out their policy of the elimination of the Baha'i community."

Senator Mobina Jaffer – the first Muslim woman appointed to Canada's upper house – informed the Canadian Senate on 21 June that the attacks are "not only on the students and the faculty of the Baha'i education institute, but on the cherished idea that education is the birthright of all."

In Chile, on 15 June, the Senate unanimously asked President Sebastian Pinera to "strongly condemn" Iran for its "rigorous and systematic persecution of Baha'is." The resolution specifically mentioned the arrests of BIHE faculty and staff, objecting to the "unjust detention of those individuals."

Professors from Oxford, Cambridge and other leading universities in England wrote an open letter on 11 June, calling for academics, students and politicians to support the right of Baha'is to access higher education in Iran. "The authorities must be taught that human rights are universal," they wrote to The Guardian newspaper. "Barring Baha'is from university exposes the government's own ignorance."

Thousands of postcards have been dispatched in all regions of France and the Netherlands, describing the situation. Radio features about the postcard campaign were broadcast on French radio stations.

On 9 June, Christoph Strasser, Member of Germany's Parliament and spokesperson on human rights of the Social Democrats, addressed a letter of protest to the Iranian ambassador to Germany. "All humans have the right to education," wrote Mr. Strasser. "With Baha'is being prohibited from studying at universities, your government is injuring fundamental human rights."

Condemning the raids and arrests, New Zealand's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Murray McCully, described the denial of higher education to the Baha'is in Iran as "reprehensible."

Some 80 prominent citizens of India signed a petition to the Iranian Government calling for the immediate and unconditional release of the prisoners. "The consequences of this policy of disallowing the Baha'i youth to have access to higher education will be detrimental not only for the Baha'i community of Iran, but also for the nation as a whole," they wrote.

The Chairman of Ireland's Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, along with members of the Committee – which includes Members of Parliament and Senators – met with Iran's Ambassador to Ireland and raised the matter with him, requesting that the Ambassador convey their concerns to his authorities in Tehran. The Ambassador undertook to do so.

The Al Seyassah newspaper in Kuwait published an article on 24 May reporting the attack against BIHE.

Students at the University of Zambia launched a two-week long postcard campaign "in support of BIHE and the right to education." The postcard depicted Zambian students on one side and – on the other – a message for Iran's minister of science, research and technology stating "Baha'is should be able to enter universities as faculty and staff and as students who can get a degree."

"We continue to call upon governments, organizations and people everywhere to urge Iran to allow Baha'is their fundamental human right to education and to release these prisoners immediately," says Diane Ala'i.

To read the article online, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/843

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2011-07-19T06:27:00.000-07:00

Mahine essuie les larmes de ses grands yeux noirs. Cette ravissante Iranienne de 24 ans est réfugiée en Scandinavie depuis fin 2010, à la suite du coup d’Etat de juin 2009 qui a reconduit Ahmadinejad à la présidence. Arrêtée en juillet 2009, emprisonnée quatre mois, elle a perdu l’usage de la parole. Depuis son arrivée en Europe, elle est sous traitement médical intensif. Aujourd’hui, elle raconte son calvaire pour la toute première fois.

Visage blême, elle chuchote : « J’habitais en province avec mes parents. Je n’ai jamais milité ni participé à la moindre manifestation. Je n’ai même pas voté pour Moussavi. Je savais que rien ne changerait. J’étais obsédée par mes études : obtenir mon diplôme de médecine générale et partir à l’étranger, afin de me spécialiser en neuropsychiatrie pour enfants handicapés. Ironie du sort… C’est moi qui suis handicapée aujourd’hui. »
Elle boit un deuxième verre d’eau, allume une cigarette. « J’ai été arrêtée – enfin, plus exactement, kidnappée – par des “lebass chakhssi” [des agents de renseignements en civil] et non des policiers, en sortant de chez moi, sous les yeux horrifiés de ma mère. Ils n’ont fourni aucune explication, aucun mandat, contrairement au cas de mon frère. Lui, il a été arrêté par des flics en uniforme devant son université [Amir Kabir, à Téhéran, épicentre de la contestation étudiante]. »

« Quatre civils cagoulés m’ont poussée dans une voiture aux vitres fumées. Ensuite, c’est le trou noir : ils m’ont passé une toile de jute sur la tête, puis l’ont scotchée au niveau de la bouche et du cou. La bande adhésive me serrait la gorge. Le tissu puait l’urine, j’étouffais. J’ignore où ils m’ont emmenée. Je me suis retrouvée enchaînée des heures à une chaise, sans pouvoir bouger. Ma vessie pleine me torturait. Enfin, à ce moment-là, j’ignorais encore ce qu’est vraiment la torture. » Mahine baisse la tête, les traits figés. Des larmes coulent le long de ses joues et pleuvent sur ses mains délicates, qu’elle serre entre ses genoux.

« Soudain, j’ai senti des mains d’hommes me déshabiller et me fouiller. On m’injuriait : je méritais “les pires châtiments à cause de mon salopard d’enc… de frère”. Il était soupçonné de militantisme et incarcéré lui aussi. Je ne savais rien de ses éventuelles activités. On m’a capturée pour servir d’appât, pour faire craquer mon frère. On m’a traînée au sol, je recevais des coups de pied dans les reins, sur les seins… Puis on m’a jetée, toujours encagoulée et ligotée, dans une pièce humide et malodorante parmi d’autres prisonnières. L’odeur de sang et le brouhaha de plaintes, de râles et de toux sèches étaient mes seuls liens avec la vie. Ensuite, on m’a emmenée dans une salle d’interrogatoire. Une voix, celle du chef, je suppose, s’est mise à m’insulter. Des injures de voyou des bas quartiers. Et de nouveau des coups. De plus en plus durs. Paralysée, l’esprit ankylosé, je n’arrivais même plus à pleurer. Des mains ont enlevé mes chaînes puis m’ont déshabillée. Des voix ont récité des sourates du Coran et l’horreur a commencé. Deux hommes me tenaient et un troisième me violait. A tour de rôle. Ils priaient sainte Zahra [fille du prophète Mahomet, qui fait l’objet d’un culte chez les musulmans chiites] pour que leur acte soit accepté par le Très-Haut. Après, ils ont uriné sur moi et m’ont laissée seule. Impossible de dire ce que l’on ressent alors : incrédulité, horreur, rage, et surtout la haine des hommes, des saints, de Dieu. On m’a torturée durant toute mon incarcération. Pendant les abus sexuels, j’entendais des supplications de mon frère. Imaginer qu’il voyait les geôliers me violer était au-dessus de mes forces.

Alors j’ai tenté de me tuer en me tapant la tête contre les murs. J’ai su plus tard qu’il m’avaient fait écouter des enregistrements de sa voix. Lui, il était incarcéré à Evin, la prison politique de Téhéran. Pour le faire avouer, on le menaçait de me violer, on lui montrait des films de mes tortures. J’ignore s’ils l’ont obligé à… » Mahine se tait, puis reprend : « J’ai avoué tout ce qu’ils voulaient. Oui, mon frère possédait des armes, oui il organisait des réunions secrètes chez nous, oui il m’avait parlé des actions que lui et ses amis comptaient mener, oui il s’était inscrit à l’université Amir Kabir pour raisons politiques… En fait, il a juste brillamment remporté le concours d’entrée. »

Le récit de la jeune femme ressemble à des dizaines d’autres, notamment celui d’une victime de 21 ans qui a parlé, le visage caché, face à la caméra d’un militant clandestin de l’ONG International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran (*) : « Il faut dénoncer ces crimes, en finir avec la peur et cette horreur. Je suis invisible. Des milliers d’autres le sont en Iran. Je vous en prie, faites en sorte que cela cesse. » C’est cette vidéo, et d’autres, qui ont décidé Mahine à parler à son tour.

IL EXISTE AUSSI DES PRISONS ULTRASECRÈTES, SOUS LE CONTRÔLE EXCLUSIF DES PASDARANS

Du fond de leur prison, d’autres adressent des lettres ouvertes aux autorités iraniennes. Comme les frères Zaniar et Loqman, prisonniers politiques condamnés à mort en 2011. Torturés par sept bourreaux, ils ont fini par avouer des meurtres jamais commis. « Eux se fatiguaient de me tabasser ! Leur chef m’a félicité pour mon endurance, écrit Zaniar, mais j’ai craqué quand ils ont menacé de violer des membres de ma famille sous mes yeux. J’ai signé leur torchon. »

Les rares « chanceux » qui sortent des geôles iraniennes le doivent à la corruption généralisée, jusqu’aux plus hautes strates du régime. Dès qu’une famille arrive à la porte d’une prison où l’un des siens est enfermé, un mafieux lui propose spontanément ses services. Tout passe par ces réseaux, qui graissent la patte des matons, des officiers, des juges… Quel que soit le résultat obtenu, ils ruinent les proches des prisonniers, prêts à se défaire de tous leurs biens pour sauver leurs enfants. Ce système D ne fonctionne que pour la partie visible de l’iceberg. Car il existe aussi des prisons ultra secrètes, sous le contrôle exclusif des pasdarans, les Gardiens de la révolution, liés au bureau du Guide suprême, l’ayatollah Khamenei.

« Mes parents ont mis trois mois à savoir si j’étais vivante, explique Mahine. Du poste de police au palais de justice, ils ont payé des “médiateurs“ devant chaque établissement. Le premier jour de ma disparition, ils ont donné 800 euros [le salaire mensuel d’un professeur d’université] juste pour obtenir quelques noms de médiateurs fiables. »
Ces intermédiaires sont souvent d’anciens prisonniers de droit commun. Au plus bas de leur hiérarchie, il y a « le chien », en général un jeune qui effectue son service militaire en prison. C’est lui qui fait le lien avec les geôliers.

« Tout s’achète, reprend Mahine. Information, coup de fil d’une minute à une heure en présence des matons, location de portable, médicaments, drogues et, enfin, mise en liberté conditionnelle. Moi, vers la fin, j’ai eu droit à une cellule propre. Pour cela, pour ma libération et ma fuite du pays, mes parents ont dépensé plus de 38 000 euros. Davantage pour mon frère. Son crime ? Avoir eu des contacts avec le QG de campagne de Moussavi, durant les élections de 2009. Outre leurs économies, mes parents ont perdu la santé. » Mahine a été libérée au bout de quatre mois. Son frère a été condamné à six ans de prison pour « activité et complot contre la sécurité de l’Etat ». Il a été libéré sous caution au bout de deux ans, mais reste sous surveillance permanente et interdit de sortie.

Quand on veut vraiment briser les prisonniers politiques, on les envoie dans les « étables », les « terminus » ou les « abattoirs », des enfers où la majorité des détenus sont atteints de maladies infectieuses. Nous tenons ces renseignements du colonel Z. H., alias Babak Rahimi, le nom qui figure sur sa fausse carte d’identité. Il nous parle dans un café Starbucks. Ancien haut gradé du Sepah, inspecteur de la sécurité des prisons, il s’est récemment enfui d’Iran pour l’Amérique du Nord. La soixantaine, les traits poupins, l’air perdu, il se dit divorcé et sans enfant : durant la guerre avec l’Irak, un éclat d’obus l’a rendu stérile.

LES BOURREAUX PRIENT AVANT LEVIOL, AUTORISÉ PAR DES FATWAS

« Nous étions les yeux et les oreilles du Guide. Notre job : surveiller les responsables de toutes les prisons du pays, officielles ou non. En recoupant nos rapports, le bureau du Guide nous surveillait aussi. Nous avons confisqué des dizaines de films de tortures destinés à sortir du pays. En fait, le sort des prisonniers politiques est réglé à l’avance par le juge, selon des codes secrets introduits dans le mandat d’arrêt. Un Z en bas de page signifie « arracher des aveux par tous les moyens », un chiffre huit, légèrement déformé : « torture et exécution après l’aveu ». Ceux qui ont droit à un jugement sont des chanceux… »

Une ONG, Harana, a répertorié 76 types de tortures pour l’année en cours. Le colonel jette un coup d’œil au rapport puis sourit, glaçant : « Vous savez, le sel sur les plaies ouvertes, les poids accrochés aux testicules, les électrochocs ne sont rien comparés à certaines tortures importées de Russie. Ils envoient des gars se former là-bas. Il y a par exemple le “ventilateur à trois pales” : on attache un prisonnier à chacune, puis on fait tourner dans de la glace pilée tout en les frappant avec des câbles électriques. Tous avouent. »

Le colonel avale une gorgée de thé. Lui jure n’avoir jamais tué ni maltraité quiconque. « Mais j’ai vu des dizaines de viols d’étudiants à l’aide de bouteilles fermées, ou cassées pour provoquer des hémorragies. Et des viols collectifs de jeunes femmes. C’est vrai que les bourreaux prient avant le viol, autorisé par des fatwas. Je reste hanté par une fillette. A la prison principale d’une province du Centre, pour arracher des renseignements à Mahmoud Khorram Chokouh, un ingénieur en pétrochimie, ils ont violé sa fille Haideh, âgée de 9 ans, sous ses yeux. La gamine hurlait en appelant son père. Lui injuriait le Tout-Puissant. Il a été pendu comme ennemi de Dieu. J’ignore ce qu’est devenue la gamine. »

Aujourd’hui, selon le colonel, les éliminations se font de plus en plus dans des centres secrets. Chaque ville en compte de 15 à 30. Le plus terrifiant est le 005 de la capitale, près de l’aéroport Mehrabad. Quand ils veulent que le meurtre se sache – pour terroriser les autres –, ils relâchent le prisonnier en disant : « Tu es libre, mais deviens muet. » Puis un assassin l’achève contre une remise de peine. Depuis 2010, le régime se sert de plus en plus de criminels pour ses basses besognes. Les plus zélés suivent également des cours idéologiques pour aduler Khamenei, qui les absout de leurs péchés.

« Le pire, reprend le colonel, ce sont les centres de détention de la sécurité nationale. La police n’y met jamais les pieds. Juste les hauts gradés du Sepah comme moi. Le nombre de victimes dépasse votre imagination. Mais ça commence à se savoir car des geôliers ou des tortionnaires mettent de l’argent de côté pour partir… Certains espèrent également se racheter, comme moi. Je n’en pouvais plus. Quand ma propre sœur m’a dit que mon argent puait, j’ai craqué. » Celle-ci est veuve. Le colonel a élevé ses deux enfants, qu’il aime, dit-il, comme s’ils étaient les siens. Il tremble pour eux aujourd’hui. Son neveu, adolescent, renie le régime. S’il apprenait le dernier poste de son oncle, il le rejetterait. « Les jeunes ne veulent plus de ce régime, soupire le colonel. Y compris les enfants des dirigeants… »
© Katouynoue Amiri

(*) iranhumanrights.org, entre autres organisations qui luttent pour les droits de l’homme en Iran.
Remerciements à Ahmad Batebi.

2011-06-26T06:50:00.001-07:00

Martyrs of Manshad

translated by Ahang Rabbani

An edited version of this piece was published in World Order, 28:1 (Fall, 1996), 21-36.

Introduction:

Áqá Siyyid Muhammad (1863-1918) was a BaháÕí physician who practiced traditional Iranian medicine in the small town of Manshád near the city of Yazd in Central Iran. Yazd has always been and continues to be a place where religious minorities, Zoroastrian as well as BaháÕí, have experienced repeated attacks, pogroms, and confiscation of property provoked by a fanatical and rapacious Shiite clergy. A particularly cruel episode occurred in June 1903, when more than one hundred BaháÕís were killed in the city and its outlying villages, including Manshád. Áqá Siyyid Muhammad left an account, rich in detail, of what he witnessed during those blood-soaked days—an account he supplemented with details from interviews with the survivors. Its value is enhanced by the specificity of information it offers: names of the martyrs, circumstances of their deaths, identities of the murderers. Subheads have been added to clarify places and dates. Some details have been moved to the footnotes to make the narrative flow better, and some passages have been omitted. Those familiar with the modern history of Iran will not be surprised to find among the persecutors Husayn Mírzá JaláluÕd-Dawlih, son of the infamous Mas`úd Mírzá ZilluÕs-Sultán, elder brother of MuzaffariÕd-Dín Sháh. Both princes have left a trail of blood in the annals of their country. Áqá Siyyid MuhammadÕs account was published in its original Persian in Tehran circa 1975 under the title Sharh Shahádat Shuhadáy Manshád.
The Translators

The upheaval of Manshad that resulted in the persecution of the Baha'í community there and in the surrounding areas started on Saturday, 26 June, 1903/1 Rahmat 61 B.E.5 During that year, the renowned and much-esteemed Baha'í teacher, Jinab-i-Ibn-i-Abhar, traveled from Tehran to Yazd for the purpose of visiting and encouraging the believers. The Baha'ís of Manshad, learning of his sojourn to Yazd, invited this beloved soul to their town so that he might teach the Faith and meet the friends. Ibn-i-Abhar readily accepted this invitation and during the Ridvan festivities journeyed to Manshad. The news of his arrival brought much joy to the believers and cheered their spirit, all the while inflaming the jealousy and hatred of the fanatical populace of town.
Ibn-i-Abhar remained in Manshad for four days and on the fifth day, via the village of Taft, he returned to Yazd, where he stayed for a few more days before going back to Tehran.

**Saturday 12 June

During this time, Mírza Ibrahím, the Imam-Jum'ih, returned to Yazd from a brief trip to Isfahan on Saturday, 12 June, 1903/16 Rabí'u'l-Avval, 1321 A.H. The people of Yazd wasted no time informing him of the activities of Baha'ís and of their new vigor and enthusiasm and their gatherings for the dawn-prayers. His overgrown ego and lust for leadership inflamed, he issued an order for an unprecedented pogrom against the Baha'is. The townspeople, having now received the Imam-Jum'ih's blessings to eliminate the Baha'ís, set out to implement their accursed and evil plot.

**Sunday 13 June

The next morning, some of these mischievous people gathered around the shop of Aqa-i-Muhammad 'Attar (son of Hajjí 'Azíz Khan) and stoned the front entrance. Then they captured this shopkeeper and took him to the Imam, requesting permission to kill him. A few individuals who were acquainted with Aqa Muhammad's goodly character, however, intervened and assisted with his release.

**Monday 14 June

On the third day, 14 June, three hours after sunrise, in the middle of Yazd's bazaar, one of the Baha'is, Hajjí Mírza-yí-Halabísaz, was stabbed and killed by the ax of Hasan Ibn-i-Rasúl, a great enemy of the Faith. Prince Husayn Mírza, the Jallalu-d-Dawlih (son of Prince Mas'úd Mírza, the Zillu's-Sultan), who was the governor of Yazd, quickly dispatched his aides on the receipt of this news to calm the people and stop further rioting and killings.
When the tragic news of Hajjí Mírza's martyrdom reached the Baha'ís of Manshad, they mourned his death and held a memorial service for that much-loved believer. The entire Baha'í community was present in that assemblage, engaged in prayer and supplications. The news of this gathering and the apparent sorrow of the friends further inflamed the hatred and jealousy of the people, who took every opportunity to threaten the friends and pour salt on the wounds of a brokenhearted community.
The believers of Manshad, apprehensive for their lives, informed the governor of their dire condition. In response, he dispatched ten soldiers headed by a man named Ísa Khan to Manshad with orders to protect the believers and prevent further upheaval. When Ísa Khan and his men arrived in Manshad, they stayed in the house of the town's chieftain, Muhammad-i-Kalantar (son of Hajjí 'Alí-Akbar-i-Manshadí), where they remained for four days.

**Friday 25 June

On Friday, 25 June, the last day of his stay, a Governor's messenger arrived late in the afternoon and presented a sealed package to Ísa Khan. This servant was present in that gathering when the official papers were handed to him. On reading the letter, he was much perturbed. I asked him about the contents of the papers, which had visibly disturbed him, but he did not reply, so deep was he in contemplation. Later that same night Ísa Khan asked my opinion: "Without a guide, would I be able to go to Yazd, via the village of Mihríjird, this very night?" I advised him that, since it was quite dark and he had never traveled through those country hills before, it would be an arduous journey. I also suggested he should take a guide with him. Accepting this, Ísa Khan, accompanied by a Manshadí guide and two of his soldiers, headed for Yazd.

**Saturday 26 June

The following morning, three hours after sunrise, I was home when Shatir-Hasan, the baker, and Aqa 'Alí-Akbar (sons of the late Aqa Mírza Ibrahím, the baker) came to me in a state of bewilderment. I asked them what was troubling them. They replied: "News is circulating in Manshad that the people of Yazd have caused much disturbance and have put to death several of the believers." I inquired if they knew who had brought this news and if there was any validity to it. They responded that this news was brought by one Muhammad-Sadiq Na'ím-Abadí and assured me that they would ascertain its truth.
When they left my house Aqa 'Alí-Akbar returned to his shop and Shatir-Hasan set out to investigate the matter. On his way, at the Manshad cemetery, he came upon the source of the news, Muhammad-Sadiq Na'ím-Abadí, whom he asked about the events in Yazd and who reported killings of Baha'ís. The wicked Muhammad-Sadiq, overcome with anger, severely struck Shatir-Hasan in the head, opening a wound from which a fountain of blood poured forth. Muhammad-Sadiq, not satisfied with this treacherous act, then cried out for the people to gather about the baker. When a large group had formed, he told them of the events in Yazd and incited his listeners to perpetuate the same in Manshad. Shatir-Hasan, his head and face bloody, left the crowd and returned to the company of his brother Aqa 'Alí-Akbar, to whom he recounted the events which had passed—including the report of Muhammad-Sadiq inciting the populace with inflammatory cries. No sooner had the news reached the Baha'ís of the town that, in fear for their lives, a number retreated into hiding in neighboring villages and in the mountains.
Meanwhile the people who had gathered around Muhammad-Sadiq, numbering about three hundred, embraced the idea of vandalizing and confiscating all Baha'í belongings and putting to death a number of the members of the community. One influential believer, Haj 'Alí-Muhammad, was soon informed of this gathering and arrived to suppress the flame of hatred glowing in the hearts of the fanatical people. After much talking and persuasion, he was able to calm the crowd and disperse the gathering. Afterwards, he came directly to my house, happy that the group had had a change of heart. The crowd, however, remained quiet for only a short time before becoming agitated again, an agitation much louder than before. Once again, Haj 'Alí-Muhammad went out to calm the crowd, but his efforts were in vain this time and the mob's abusive cries grew worse.
In the midst of all this commotion, Aqa Ghulam-Rida, the son of Hajjí 'Alí-Naqí and a staunch believer, crossed paths with Siyyid Ibrahím, a shepherd and a son of Siyyid Abu'l-i-Manshadí. In a rage of anger, Siyyid Ibrahím decided right there and then to take Aqa Ghulam-Rida's life by beating him with his shepherd's rod. Luckily, Aqa Ghulam-Rida escaped from the hands of this barbarous man. The siyyid, seeing a distant group of rioters approaching, deceitfully lay motionless on the ground as if he had fatally fallen victim to the hands of a Baha'í. The angry crowd gathered around him, shouting "O people, shame has befallen Islam. Baha'ís have murdered the siyyid!" The people, who by now numbered in excess of three hundred, lifted the siyyid's supposedly lifeless body and carried him to the house of Muhammad-i-Kalantar, the town's chief. There they continued with their accusations and agitation that the Baha'ís had killed the siyyid!
The Kalantar sent a messenger to my house bearing the news that a Baha'í had beaten up a man, who remained unconscious in the chief's house, and asking me to examine him to determine if he was still alive. Confident of God's confirmations and putting my trust in His Hand, I headed to the Kalantar's home. On the way, I was constantly threatened by an angry mob who followed me the entire way. Several individuals attempted to take my life, but one of them barred the rest from injuring me. I finally passed through the crowd safely and reached the Kalantar's home. After examining the siyyid and checking his pulse, I knew for certain that no one had harmed this person, yet this news fell on nothing but deaf ears in the enraged crowd, which needed an excuse to continue its assault. Consequently, the crowd left the Kalantar's house shouting obscenities.
Of this group, twenty-seven men, agitated further by a certain Javad (son of Haj Muhammad-Husayn-i-Shírazí) and with the approval of Muhammad-i-Kalantar, left the gathering. Heavily armed and yelling loudly, they walked to the farm of Khajih-i-Hasan. When they reached their destination, about an hour before noon, Mulla 'Alí-Akbar, the brother of the renowned Mulla Muhammad-Rida, surnamed Rada'r-Rúh, was working in the field. As the wild mob approached, Hajjí (son of Ghulam-'Alí, the carpenter), threw a stone at Mulla 'Alí-Akbar, striking his head and covering his face and long, white beard with much blood. Unappeased by this act, another man, Ja'far (son of Ghulam), struck him in the head with a heavy rod, knocking his feeble frame to the ground. Despite the protests of his ten-year-old grandson, Muhammad-'Alí, who went so far as to throw himself on Mulla 'Alí-Akbar to protect him, the mob proceeded, using knives, sticks, and stones, to assault the body of Mulla 'Alí-Akbar until his spirit yielded. Perhaps only the hand of fate saved the young boy, who was rescued from the hands of the vicious men by an intervening citizen. Two individuals buried Mulla 'Alí-Akbar in the very spot where his body lay. Several days later, however, his body was removed from the temporary grave and properly buried in his own home in Manshad, in the neighborhood known as Mírzaha. Mulla 'Alí-Akbar was seventy years old at the time of his martyrdom.
Having taken the life of Mulla 'Alí-Akbar, the bloodthirsty mob quickly headed toward the house of Muhammad-Isma'íl, a Baha'í baker and a son of Mírza Ibrahím, the baker, who lived on the same farm. Ransacking his house and finding him on the second floor they stabbed him repeatedly before throwing him down from the balcony, after which his body was subjected to various sets of blows by those eagerly waiting outside. The body of that lover of truth was buried in the vicinity of his house. At time of his martyrdom, Aqa Muhammad-Isma'íl was sixty-seven years old.
After committing these two shameful acts of murder, the mob left the farm, returning to Manshad. As they entered, the remaining inhabitants of the town, numbering three hundred, joined them. By now it was noon. They marched towards the home of Ustad Husayn, a Baha'í shoemaker from Yazd who happened to be in Manshad during these events. When the mob entered his house Ustad Husayn retreated to his roof. Muhammad-Sadiq Na'ím-Abadí, who had incited the mob earlier in the day, followed him with the intent of killing him. Ustad Husayn, protecting himself with a shoemaking tool that he had in his hand, injured and successfully warded off Muhammad-Sadiq. No sooner had he fought off Muhammad-Sadiq than he was overtaken by several individuals, led by a certain Hajjí Muhammad, who climbed a tree to gain access to the roof. Ustad Husayn, defenseless and overpowered, was thrown from his roof to the ground where a ruthless mob set on him with knives, sticks and stones, martyring this noble soul.
In the midst of this, Muhammad-Sadiq's aged mother ran out of the house and threw herself on her son's lifeless body, weeping bitterly. The heartless mob, still stoning the dead body, brought much injury to this woman who was seventy year-old devoted. They so injured her, both in body and heart, that, only twenty days after the martyrdom of her son, she passed on to the Abha Kingdom and was buried in Manshad's cemetery. The mob took the dead body of Ustad Husayn to the Shahmírí River on the outskirts of the town and buried him in a spot there, which to this day remains his resting place. Ustad Husayn was fifty years old at the time of his martyrdom.
After this incident, the mob continued with its vicious attacks on the lives and property of Baha'ís. Arriving at a neighborhood known as Karchinar, they encountered three believers—Aqa Husayn (son of Muhammad-Kazim), Aqa Ghulam-'Alí (son of Hasan Ibn-i-Hajjí Rajab) and Aqa Ramadan (son of Javad Ibn-i-Hajjí Ali-Naqí)—who were attempting to flee to the refuge of the mountains on the south side of Manshad known as Pusht-Baghnú and Mazra'ih-i-'Abbas. The mob followed them. Without any forewarning or provocation, 'Alí, the brother of the Kalantar, who was carrying a gun, fired and shot Aqa Husayn. As he fell, the mob opened fire on him, riddling his body with bullets. Not satisfied with this act, they stoned what remained of his mortal frame. Sixty-five years old at the time of his martyrdom, he was brought back to his own home and buried there.
After the unjust and cold-blooded murder of Aqa Husayn, the murderous mob targeted Aqa Ghulam-'Alí; a certain 'Abdu'l-'Alí fired on him first, then the rest clubbed and stoned his young body until it lay motionless. Regrettably, Aqa Ramadan suffered the same fate as did his companions. He was found taking refuge behind a large rock on the hill and, after being stoned to death, both he and Aqa Ghulam-'Alí were buried on the same hill, a location which would remain their permanent grave sites. Aqa Ramadan was twenty-two and Aqa Ghulam-'Alí eighteen years old at the time of their martyrdom.
The mob, like a pack of wolves, remained near the hill until sunset, searching for any other Baha'ís who might have taken refuge there. They then headed back to Manshad, where on the way, passing through the Muhammad-Abad region, they came upon Siyyid Mírza, the son of Siyyid Ahmad. Having forsaken his home out of fear of the enemies, he had laid down to rest and had fallen asleep on the ground. Seeing him, two of the crazed citizens, Ghulam-'Alí (son of Hajjí Muhammad) and Ghulam-Husayn (son of Mírza 'Alí-Rida), picked up a massive rock and delivered a fatal blow to the head of the dormant and defenseless Siyyid Mírza. Carrying him to his own orchard, the men buried him in a hurriedly dug grave, which to this day remains his resting place. He was seventy-five years old on the day of his martyrdom.
In sum, on that first day of upheavals, from one hour before noon until sunset, seven believers were put to death in the most inhumane and reprehensible ways. No sound could be heard that day except the shouts of a maddened populace, the roar of gunfire, and the cry of the friends' anguish. Only God knows what befell us all during those tragic events. At times I was given the news of yet another dear friend being put to death or heard the mocking in the streets. At other times the foes would congratulate each other as if they had won a great victory by killing innocent people and destroying the properties of Baha'ís. All through this, I was constantly being threatened with death, yet I had no choice but to witness and remain patient in light of the horrendous events encircling the community.

**Sunday, 27 June

The next day, Sunday, 27 June, this servant was briefly visiting one of the friends, Haj 'Alí-Muhammad, at the hour of dawn. As I left his house, I saw ten gunmen6 entering the town. I asked someone on the street who these men were, and he responded that the men, all from the nearby villages, had heard about the killing and plundering of the possessions of the Baha'ís of Yazd and Manshad and had come to have their share in it too. When the news of their arrival reached the mob, they joined forces and headed towards the homes of the believers.
The first home and shop they came upon belonged to two previously mentioned brothers: Shatir-Hasan and Aqa 'Alí-Akbar. All their belongings were either destroyed or plundered—even the grapevines in their garden were uprooted and smashed. The house and shop were then set afire.
Afterwards, about two hours before noon, the mob moved on to the house of Muhammad-Baqir (son of Hasan Ibn-i-Salih) who was one of the believers of Yazd visiting Manshad at the time. Another believer, Mulla Muhammad-i-Manshadí, had taken refuge on the second floor of the house as well. Three persons7 from the rioting gang entered the house and located Mulla Muhammad. One of the three men told the others that Mulla Muhammad had been a teacher of his and suggested that they leave him alone and spare his life. The other two, who would not consent to this, brought Mulla Muhammad downstairs and alerted the others to his presence. The mob and the ten gunmen circled around him. One of the gunmen, Ghulam-Rida Zardankí, fired a shot at his chest which was then followed by another shot by another gunman, a certain 'Alí-Akbar. Then the rest either opened fire on Mulla Muhammad or stoned and clubbed him. After killing him viciously, they tied a rope to his feet and dragged his body to the back of Aqa 'Alí-Akbar's house. Two of them, Zaynu'l-'Abidín and Hasan-'Alí, brought gasoline and another, 'Alí-yi 'Arab, poured it over the body and set it on fire. While the body was burning, the rest of the crazed mob continued to stone it—so much so, that the charred remains were completely buried under the rocks and sticks. When the last signs of his body were covered, some poured water over the pile of rocks and left the scene. That evening, his son, Ustad Naqí, with the help of another believer, Hajjí 'Alí-Muhammad, took the body and buried it in a property belonging to Mulla Muhammad. His resting place remains at the same spot. He was fifty-eight years old at the time of his martyrdom.
On the first day of the troubles, a group of Baha'ís8 had taken refuge in the nearby mountains on the eastern side of the town. A certain Rajab-'Alí who previously frequented the Baha'í gatherings and on occasions expressed his allegiance to the Faith and had been friendly towards the believers, learned of their hiding place in the mountains. On Sunday night, he went to visit them and, as the believers trusted him, inquired about the events of recent days, asking further about the friends who had been murdered, their families and their own households and relatives who were left behind. Rajab-'Alí told the Baha'ís about the martyrdoms and the generally disastrous condition of the believers in town. When the group asked what was to come, Rajab-'Alí told them that on that day a group of gunmen had entered the town for the purpose of massacring the Baha'ís and plundering their possessions. He also mentioned that it was anticipated that the following day, a few hundred townspeople would circle this hill, killing all the Baha'ís who had taken refuge there.
On hearing this, since they trusted this man, the believers became greatly perturbed. The refugees decided that in the middle of the night, they would descend from the hill, and each travel in a separate direction. Little did they know that Rajab-'Alí was devoid of any spiritual qualities and was totally insincere. When they dispersed in the dead of the night, Aqa 'Alí-Akbar had a bad fall and broke his leg. Shatir-Hasan was also severely injured when a rock rolled over his foot. As a result, these two brothers were obliged to remain in the hills and could not disperse with the others. Meanwhile, Rajab-'Alí upon leaving the group, went directly to the home of the notorious Muhammad-i-Kalantar, and gave him a complete report of the plans of the Baha'ís and the condition of the two brothers.

**Monday 28 June

The next morning, on the third day of the massacres, Muhammad-i-Kalantar dispatched several gunmen to the hills with instructions to find and kill the two brothers. A very large number of bloodthirsty enemies of the Faith also accompanied these evil men. Meanwhile, Shatir-Hasan, in spite of his injuries, had came down the hill at dawn to fetch some water for his brother who was in great pain. He was by a small stream when spotted by the mob. Circling him, they ascertained the whereabouts of his brother. Shatir-Hasan was forced to tell the group that last night while running a rock had fallen on him and cut his foot, causing it to bleed badly, and, if they followed the blood trail, it would lead to his brother, Aqa 'Alí-Akbar.
A number remained with him to ensure that he would not go anywhere. The rest followed the blood trail until they reached the top of the hill and saw Aqa 'Alí-Akbar who was very weak and could not move. When he was spotted, one of the gunmen, Mulla Rabí', the son-in-law of the Kalantar, shot him, following which a certain Rida-i-Shikarí and then the other townspeople also launched a volley of bullets.
After killing him, they left the body and came back down to join the rest by the water. Shatir-Hasan had some sugar candy with him which he distributed among the mob and assassins. Then he took off his outer garments and divided them among the mob. Having thereby prepared himself for his martyrdom, he asked if he could drink some water before they killed him. After being granted permission, Shatir-Hasan said, "Though I know you won't allow me time to drink, I am resigned to the will of God." As soon as he had taken a few steps towards the stream, seventeen of the gunmen shot him in the back. This was followed by round after round. In all, three volleys of shots, with a total of fifty-one bullets, pierced his beloved body. After the martyrdom, his body was left there by the water. Later that evening, a few of the friends placed his body in a wooden coffin and, bringing it back to Manshad, hid the coffin in his own home for four months until it was safe to bury it in a nearby place. He was sixty years old at the time of martyrdom.
Forty days after the martyrdom of Aqa 'Alí-Akbar, nine of the believers9 returned quietly at night to the hills and located his body. They also placed his body in a casket and buried it at his own home in Manshad. He was fifty-six years old at the time of his martyrdom.

**Tuesday 29 June

On Tuesday, the mob learned of the hiding place of 'Alí-Akbar (son of Hasan Ibn-i-Hajjí Rajab), who had taken refuge in the house of his son-in-law, Ghulam-Rida. About one hour before noon, the mob rushed to the house, located Jinab-i-'Alí-Akbar, and dragged him outside to the streets. As everyone watched and cheered, one of the gunmen, Ghulam-Rida Ibn-i-Husayn, shot him. This was followed by a severe blow to the head with a heavy club—which Husayn-'Alí (son of Hajjí Muhammad) carried for this very purpose—rendering him unconscious. The rest of the crowd at that time set upon him, stoning, clubbing and firing at him. His body then was thrown off a nearby bridge into the river below, where it remained floating in the water until that evening when a few of the believers pulled his body out and buried him in one of his orchards. Jinab-i-'Alí-Akbar was fifty years old at the time of martyrdom.

**Wednesday 30 June

The next morning, the crowd learned of yet another Baha'í in hiding. This time it was Aqa Mírza Husayn (son of Sadiq Ibn-i-Hajjí Muhammad-'Alí), who had been hiding in the northern hills, known as mountains of Murghistan and Murad-'Alí. Around noontime, two men, Javad (son of Ghulam-'Alí, the carpenter) and Zaynu'l-Abidín-i-Yazdí (son of 'Alí-Akbar), went into the hills, located Aqa Mírza Husayn, and captured him. It was two hours before noon when he was brought back to Manshad and taken to the home of Muhammad-Rabí'. Aqa Mírza Husayn asked for water, in response to which the aforementioned Muhammad-Sadiq Na'ím-Abadí unsheathed a large knife, and, saying "Drink this," stabbed him. The man then turned to the mob and said, "O people, I had vowed to drink the blood of these Babís. Now watch me fulfill my vow." He then pulled the knife out of the body and licked all the blood off it. Then he signaled the mob to shoot Aqa Mírza Husayn, which the crazed gunmen were happy to do. Not being satisfied with that, the mob then circled his remains and stoned and clubbed him. After killing him in that fashion, they tied his feet with a rope and dragged him through the streets of Manshad until they reached the martyr's home, where they deposited his remains. That evening, his wife took the body and quietly buried it in a nearby garden belonging to Aqa Mírza Husayn, where it remains to this day. He was sixty years old at the time of martyrdom.
That same day, Muhammad-i-Kalantar sent some of his men to arrest Aqa Yadu'llah, who was a son of Aqa Mírza Husayn. The boy, who was no more than twelve years old, was taken to the home of the Kalantar so he might also be put to death. In the ensuing gathering at which this servant was also present, I told Muhammad-i-Kalantar that the boy is a minor and religious laws are not applicable to him. In order to ensure his freedom, I suggested to the Kalantar that he collect some money as a price for his liberty. He accepted my request, and the mother of the child was called. Upon collecting a sum, he allowed the boy to leave.
Again on that same day, the mob after killing Aqa Mírza Husayn, went to another neighborhood in the outskirts of Manshad known as Kuzh. At that time one of the believers, Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad (son of Hajjí Husayn Ibn-i-Hajjí 'Alí-Akbar-i-Turk), was hiding from the hands of the bloodthirsty crowd in the home of another Baha'í, Husayn Ibn-i-Hasan Ibn-i-Panah-'Alí. Four men10 entered the house, located Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad and took him outside. One of the gunmen, 'Alí-Akbar, aimed his gun at Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad's head and fired. He immediately fell to the ground at which time the rest of the crowd began stoning him. At that moment, while the severely injured Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad was breathing his last breaths, a man approached him. This heartless individual opened Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad's mouth, filled it with sand and soil, and then kicked him until he was dead. A rope was tied to his feet and he was dragged and paraded to the front door of Shatir-Hasan's home, the believer whom the same people had killed earlier. His body was left there until nighttime, when one of the believers gathered his remains and buried them in backyard of the same house, where they remain to this day. Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad was forty-five years old at the time of martyrdom.

**Thursday 1 July

The next day, Thursday, two hours before noon, four men11 entered the home of Khadíjih-Sultan, an elderly Baha'í woman and mother of the martyr Aqa Ghulam-Rida. They took her to the home of Muhammad-i-Kalantar and requested his permission to kill her. He instructed them to take her away, thereby signaling his consent. The men took her to the top of an Islamic school building in the town center and pushed her off the roof. The women of Manshad gathered around her body and first removed her chador and veil, after which her remains were stoned by men and women alike. Khadíjih-Sultan, who was later buried in her own home, was sixty-five years old at time of her death.

**Friday 2 July

Meanwhile, Aqa Siyyid Javad (son of Aqa Siyyid Taqí) had taken refuge in his home. The next day, one of the men from the killing mob by the name of Ghulam-Rida learned of his whereabouts and went to his house, captured Aqa Siyyid Javad, and brought him out. His three young daughters, who were only nine, seven, and five years old, began to weep and plead with the man to leave their father alone. They even begged to be killed in place of their father. The daughters, tears pouring from their eyes, circled the man and held tight to their dear father. Determined to take Aqa Javad's life, the man ignored all the children's pleas and cries and used his club and kicks to separate the daughters from their father and, violently slapping them, he forced them to let go of their father. By now, an eager crowd had gathered and was watching the whole incident. Aqa Siyyid Javad was dragged outside, tied with a rope, and with bare feet and head was taken to the home of Muhammad-i-Kalantar. At that moment, when they brought Aqa Siyyid Javad, I happened to be visiting the Kalantar. Aqa Javad's countenance seemed to glow with joy and extreme happiness and certitude. He was radiating a heavenly smile as he entered the room. He was not speaking to anyone and seemed immersed in the ecstasy of his imminent martyrdom and eternal union with his Beloved. The crowd told the Kalantar that they had captured this Baha'í and with the wave of his hand the Kalantar signaled his approval for him to be taken away and be killed. The mob paraded the siyyid to the town square. One of them, Ghulam-'Alí, the carpenter, fired a bullet, the immense pressure of which destroyed his head. Others12 joined in by firing their guns at him and engaging in their ritual stoning, cursing, and defaming of the body. Later, his remains were dropped into a pit used for preparation of charcoal, which serves to this day as his burial place. It was an hour before noon when Aqa Siyyid Javad drank the cup of martyrdom. He was forty years old.

**Saturday 3 July

On Saturday, Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad, the son of Hajjí Nasru'llah, had taken refuge in the house of his nephew, Aqa Mírza Ahmad, when six men13 entered the house to capture him. They tied a rope around his neck and two men, Muhammad and Ghulam-Rida, forcefully pulled each end. Such is how Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad was martyred two hours before sunset. After the killing, they stoned and clubbed his remains and left the body. That evening the believers took his remains to nearby property belonging to Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad himself and buried him. He was fifty years old.

**Sunday 4 July

The following day, Sunday, Aqa Ghulam-Rida, the son of Hajjí 'Alí-Naqí, who had also taken refuge at a home of a friend, Siyyid Rida, a son of Mírza Jamal, was discovered. Three hours after sunrise, four of the men14 who had committed many of the earlier killings, along with a large mob, came to the house and captured him. They tied his hands behind him, leading him through the streets and eventually to a neighborhood known as Pusht-i-Bagh. There, he was shot to death by two of the gunmen, Siyyid Husayn and Siyyid Ibrahím, and his body was stoned, clubbed, and then thrown into a well. Two months later his body was recovered from the well by fellow believers and was buried in his own home at a site near the grave of his mother, Khadíjih-Sultan, whom the same people had killed earlier. These two souls, the mother and son, are still buried next to each other. He was forty years old.

**Wednesday and Thursday 7 and 8 July

On the following Wednesday evening, Aqa Assadu'llah, another son of Mírza Ibrahím, the baker, and a brother of martyrs Shatir-Hasan and Aqa 'Alí-Akbar, decided to travel to Yazd, knowing that it would be better to leave Manshad for a time. Together with his traveling companion, Siyyid 'Alí, they took a route through the valleys outside of town, walking day and night. The next morning, while passing by a village named Mihríjird, they were recognized by a few of the villagers. The villagers immediately captured these two believers, taking them to a nearby farm known as Ibrahím-Abad. Each was given the opportunity to recant. Siyyid-'Alí, who was a Muslim, did so and was set free. Aqa Assadu'llah, however, held back and refused to recant.
The people sent a report of the day's event to the Imam-Jum'ih of Yazd, Mírza Ibrahím, who was visiting the nearby village of Tarzjan. When the messenger arrived to deliver the report, he was intercepted by one of the community leaders, Hajjí Mírza Muhammad-'Alí-yí-Tarzjaní, who took the report and read its content. Then, without consulting the religious leader, the Imam-Jum'ih, this prideful man dispatched six of his gunmen15 to the farm where Aqa Assadu'llah was held, instructing them to kill him. When the men came to the farm, about three hours into the afternoon, they took Aqa Assadu'llah to the rooftop of a building on the farm belonging to a certain Siyyid Muhammad and asked if he was a Baha'í. On hearing an affirmative response, one of the men, Siyyid Husayn-i-'Arab, stabbed him with a knife and the others mercilessly shot him. His body was thrown into the streets, where it lay untouched for only a short while.
Upon learning of Aqa Assadu'llah's arrest, ten men from Manshad rode to the Ibrahím-Abad farm. Arriving about an hour after Aqa Assadu'llah was executed, one of the men, 'Alí-Akbar (son of Ibrahím) approached the body and with his axe severed the head. The head, as if a prize, was brought back to Manshad and thrown on the grounds at the town square. It remained there for three hours, and then it was taken and hung from the door of Aqa Assadu'llah's own shop, where it became the target of the stoning, cursing, and even spitting of the passers-by. On seeing this spectacle, Mulla Muhammad-Husayn, a well-known Muslim soothsayer, cried out: "O people! In Karbala the infidels killed our beloved Imam Husayn and hung his head from the gates of the city, for which the people of Islam have cursed them for centuries. Today you have committed the same exact shameful act of the infidels!"

**Friday 9 July

Upon hearing this, the people stopped their assault on the severed head. A day later the head was taken down and carried to the home of the victim's brother, Husayn-Baba, next door to the same shop, and buried. Aqa Assadu'llah's headless body, still lying in the same field, was thrown in a well. Two months later, one of the believers, 'Alí-Rida, removed his body from the well and buried it at the same farm where Aqa Assadu'llah had been martyred. Four months later his head was also exhumed and taken to the farm known as Hujjat-Abad and buried. Aqa Assadu'llah was thirty-five years old.
On Friday morning, Aqa Mírza Muhammad, son of the martyred Aqa Mulla 'Alí-Akbar, who had taken refuge in a farm house belonging to another of the believers, Siyyid 'Alí-Akbar, fell prey to the enemy. It was two hours before noon when a mob numbering in excess of two hundred hastened to gather around the farm house. They went inside, captured Aqa Mírza Muhammad, and restrained him by tying his hands together behind him. As such they dragged him to the home of Aqa 'Alí-Akbar, who had been martyred days earlier. There, he was tied to a tree and executed with successive volleys of gun fire. His body was then untied, doused with kerosene, and set on fire, all the while being stoned and kicked by the murderers. Afterwards, one of the relatives of Aqa Mírza Muhammad, a certain Aqa Mírza Muhammad, took his remains and buried him in a property adjacent to his house. Aqa Mírza Muhammad was forty-three years old.
Aqa Siyyid Husayn (son of Aqa Siyyid Ahmad) was yet another Baha'í who had taken refuge at the home of a Muslim friend, Siyyid Aqa'yí. Two days prior to all the convulsions, his eldest son, Siyyid Javad, who was only fourteen years old, had fallen while working in the fields with his grandfather, breaking one leg and severely injuring the other. His injuries were so severe that he could not move and was bedridden. Every day I would visit the boy and tend to his wounds. On the first day of the massacre, Aqa Siyyid Husayn had taken his injured son and wife to the home of a Muslim friend, where he planned to stay during the impending period of unrest. Siyyid Husayn also had another younger son and daughter who were left alone. These two homeless young children roamed the streets during the day and at night, hungry, thirsty and desolate. They would hide in a field or a farm because they had no one to look after them.
On that Friday, which was now the fourteenth day of the troubles, the vicious mob was searching every household in Manshad in hope of finding more Baha'ís to kill. Aqa Siyyid Husayn's host informed him of the day's events, indicating to him that soon his house would be searched, and expressing his fear for their lives. Aqa Siyyid Husayn relayed the same to his wife and also told her that his death was near. He alone left the home which had been his family's refuge, bidding farewell to his wife and son, not knowing that the hand of fate would only allow them one more meeting. Taking the advice of his host, he dressed as a beggar, planning to take refuge behind the pulpit of a nearby mosque. His host asked him to remain there until the mob had finished searching his house and then he would be able to return.
Although the anticipated search of the house did not result in any findings, a number of women in the neighborhood reported having seen Siyyid Husayn entering the mosque. Siyyid Husayn, aware of his dire situation, had no choice but to leave the mosque, running a distance of two hundred yards and then climbing over a wall into a wheat field. He hid between two hay stacks, but was spotted by a woman who informed the search party of his whereabouts. Upon finding him, a member of the mob, a certain Ibrahím, immediately struck him with a wooden stick, while another, Husayn-'Alí (son of Hajjí Muhammad), fired at Siyyid Husayn's face. Ghulam-Rida Tazarjaní threw Siyyid Husayn, who was nearly dead, over the same wall he had earlier climbed, and then dragged him by the feet to the house of Mulla Baba'yí, a soon-to be martyr himself. Siyyid Husayn's wife and children, being informed of his condition, ran to the scene but were stopped and assaulted by the curses and obscenities shouted by the men. Withstanding the brutality and the verbal assault, they were allowed to go near Siyyid Husayn. Upon hearing the crying voices of his family, he opened his eyes and looked in the direction of his wife and children. The family threw themselves on his body and, his arms around them, he embraced them. While holding his loved ones, tears streaming from his broken and sorrow-filled eyes, Aqa Siyyid Husayn bid farewell to his earthly life. That evening his remains were taken to his home and buried. He was forty years old.
When he heard the news of his father's martyrdom, a bedridden and broken-hearted Siyyid Javad pleaded for one last opportunity to visit and bid farewell to his father. Alas, no one paid any attention to this poor boy, though he was only a short distance away from his fallen father. After Siyyid Husayn's death, the son, Siyyid Javad, was taken back to his own home. He was constantly heard saying and praying: "How I wish that the enemies had seen me and taken my life on that day too! If only they would come now and allow me to join that exalted soul!" Not a day went by that he did not wish for his own death and the opportunity to join his beloved father in the Abha Kingdom. His wailing and lamenting were destined to be as ephemeral as his fleeting life, for he was to outlive his father's brutal martyrdom by only fourteen days. Every night his mother would take the other two children, afraid that the neighbors would bring harm to them, and spend the night at friends' homes. Each night, Siyyid Javad would beg his mother not to leave him alone. He feared he would die alone. But the poor mother had no choice but to look after the other two young children and protect them too. One morning when she returned home, she found her son's lifeless body in his bed. After mourning for his death, Siyyid Javad was, according to his wishes, laid to rest next to Siyyid Husayn, where to this day both the father and son remain—a union in both this world and the next.
On the same Friday that Siyyid Husayn was martyred, another young man by the name of Aqa Husayn-'Alí was also martyred. Fearing the bloodthirsty mob, this young man had gone to the Murghistan mountains, where he hid in a cave. When the mob was finished with Siyyid Husayn, some three hours before sunset, they went to the mountains in search for other believers. Upon locating Aqa Husayn-'Alí, they captured him with the intention of bringing him back to town. On the way he fell victim to countless beatings and stonings. In a final act of contempt, one of his attackers, 'Alí-Akbar, son of Ibrahím, fired at him, while Ghulam-Rida, son of 'Alí and Hashim Quchí, beat him to death with sticks and stones. He was buried on that spot, at the tender age of nineteen.

**Saturday 10 July

The following day, Aqa Ghulam-Husayn, a Baha'í from Yazd who had came to Manshad to escape the brutal pogrom unfolding there, along with another Baha'í named Aqa Siyyid Baqir, a brother of martyred Aqa Siyyid Husayn, were found hiding in one of the caves on the eastern mountains. Two hours after sunrise, the mob surrounded the cave, and called for the two believers to surrender. Acquiescing, they emerged, whereupon Aqa Ghulam-Husayn was killed instantly by a huge volley of gunfire and later beheaded. His headless body was left alone and later buried in the same spot. His head was taken to Muhammad-i-Kalantar who instructed one of his messengers, Mírza Muhammad-'Alí, to take it as a gift to Mírza Fathu'llah, the Mushiru'l-Mamalik, the governor of the province of Yazd. Aqa Ghulam-Husayn was sixty-three years old at the time of his martyrdom.
After Aqa Ghulam-Husayn was killed, the mob sought out Aqa Siyyid Baqir, who had escaped the fate of his companion and returned back to his own home some time earlier. When approached at the door of his home, Aqa Siyyid Baqir invited the men inside. They accepted his invitation and came in. After enjoying the refreshments and fruits which Aqa Siyyid Baqir offered them, they arrested him and, tying his hands, led him to the home of Muhammad-i-Kalantar, who then ordered his imprisonment.
On that same day, Siyyid 'Alí, out of fear, decided to leave Manshad and headed toward Yazd. On the way, while passing through the villages of Tazarjan and Taft, three men from that area16 saw and recognized him. Siyyid 'Alí was summarily arrested, his hands were tied behind him, and he was taken to Tazarjan where they sought the permission of Mírza Ibrahím, the Imam-Jum'ih of Yazd, to kill their prisoner. The Imam-Jum'ih replied that since he was not familiar with the character of the siyyid, it was not possible for him to issue such a warrant. He advised them instead to take the siyyid back to Manshad and inquire from the people of that town of him. Two hours before sunset the men entered the town of Manshad, bringing with them Siyyid 'Alí. They had already decided earlier to take him to Muhammad-i-Kalantar and let him pronounce the verdict.
When they came to the town square the siyyid escaped from the hands of his three captors and hid behind a palm tree. By now a group of townspeople had heard of their arrival and had come to see them. They circled the tree and surrounded the siyyid who was holding fast to it as a refuge. As the men prepared to take his life, a villager cried out that the tree that he had embraced was sacred and his life should be spared until he released the tree. They ignored the man and shot Siyyid 'Alí dead. Others continued to repeatedly fire at his motionless body.17 That evening, his wife removed her husband's remains from the scene and buried them in their home. He was thirty-five years old.
The three men who had arrested Siyyid 'Alí and instigated his murder decided before leaving town to shed the blood of this servant. With this intention in mind they headed towards my home. I was all alone when the three men entered my house. Since at the time I neither knew them nor was aware of their intentions, I greeted them warmly. A water pipe was offered and tea was served. Afterwards, I asked them where they were from and what business brought them to Manshad, upon which they related to me the story of Siyyid 'Alí's martyrdom. Upon hearing this, I was overwhelmed by sorrow and grief. Seeing my condition, the men immediately left my house. Outside, I heard one of them mention that, since I had been so extremely kind and hospitable, they did not have the heart to take my life.
That same afternoon, after the mob finished killing Siyyid 'Alí, they returned to the home of Muhammad-i-Kalantar, where Siyyid Baqir was being held from earlier that day pending enforcement of his order of imprisonment. It was late in the afternoon when they took him to a farm field known as the Turkish farm. There, he was martyred as a result of gunshot wounds.18 Later the believers took the remains and buried them next to the gravesite which contained the headless body of Aqa Ghulam-Husayn killed earlier in the day—his companion and fellow martyr. Siyyid Baqir was fifty-one years old.

**Sunday 11 July

The following day, Sunday, Aqa Muhammad, a son of Mulla Baba'yí, had taken refuge in his home when around noontime I saw three men19 headed in that direction. I was grief-stricken, knowing their intent to commit yet another murder of some innocent Baha'ís but I didn't know where they were going. When the men reached the home of Aqa Muhammad, they entered it, brought him out, and took him to town square. Aqa Muhammad requested that they delay their perfidious act for an hour so that he might say farewell to his wife and young children and see them for one last time. The men, ignoring his plea, answering only by shooting him dead. They then tied a rope around his feet and dragged him back home, where later that evening his wife brought the body inside and laid it to rest. He was twenty-three years old.

**Wednesday 14 July

The following Wednesday, Mulla Baba'yí (a brother of the famous martyr Rada'r-Rúh and father of recently martyred Aqa Muhammad) found shelter in a friend's home—a certain Hajjí Muhammad-Hasan. One of the neighborhood's women learned of his whereabouts and informed Manshad's populace. Soon a mob and many onlookers totaling over two hundred descended upon the house where Mulla Baba'yí had taken refuge. Several men entered the home and began searching the rooms. Ghulam-Rida (son of Husayn) came upon the room where Mulla Baba'yí and his son, Aqa Javad, were sitting in the dark corner. Ghulam-Rida cried out that Mulla Baba'yí must be shot right there, but, apprehensive of the harm that might befall his son, Mulla Baba'yí quickly surrendered instead.
Mulla Baba'yí's hands were tied behind his back and, bareheaded and barefoot, he and his son were led to the home of Hajjí Siyyid Husayn in the Mírzaha section of town to be killed. Mulla Baba'yí, who was in the thick of the crowd, could not see his son, so he asked Siyyid Husayn that if they have not yet killed his son to bring him near so he could see him one last time. Siyyid Husayn agreed and brought the son near. The mulla's eyes fell upon him, and his last spoken words were instructions to Aqa Javad that, should he survive, he should arrange for the payment of a debt to a certain individual. Bidding him farewell, Mulla Baba'yí left the boy to the care of Siyyid Husayn, expressing the wish that he not be obliged to speak again and remained silent.
Although the crowd wanted to kill the boy, Siyyid Husayn intervened, using his body to shield the boy from harm, and took him inside a home. It was around noon that the crowd moved Mulla Baba'yí once again towards the bazaar, near the shop of Zaynu'l-Abidín-i-'Attar. With his hands still firmly tied behind him, Mulla Baba'yí endured every manner of insult, injury and defamation. On the way, he was repeatedly stoned. A rock hurled at him by Mírza Husayn (a son of Hajjí Siyyid Mírza, the Imam Jama'at of Manshad), fractured his forehead, from which a fountain of blood gushed forth, covering his radiant countenance. Time after time he was assaulted, until his white beard was soaked by his blood. Paraded in this manner for a time in the bazaar, he was later taken behind the home of martyred Aqa 'Alí-Akbar. During this entire time, his gaze remained fixed in the direction of the Qiblih, the Sacred Threshold of his Beloved, as he whispered a quiet prayer. Not one word was uttered by him in the face of his ordeal, so poignantly did he exemplify the lesson of true faith and sacrifice.
In the midst of the chaos, Shatir-Hasan-i-Ardikaní retrieved a can of kerosene from a nearby shop, poured it over Mulla Baba'yí, and 'Alí-yí-'Arab set him ablaze. While Mulla Baba'yí burned, those who carried guns began to shoot him. Others were satisfied with clubbing and stoning him. Dragging him by his bound feet, he was taken to the home of a fellow believer, Siyyid Taqí, where he was later buried. Mulla Baba'yí, whose body and soul were radiant with the love of His Beauty, was sixty-five years old at the time of martyrdom.

Honor Roll^[20] of Baha'í Martyrs of Manshad, 1903

June 26                         Mulla 'Alí-Akbar                70 years old                    
June 26                         Muhammad-Isma'íl                67                              
June 26                         Ustad Husayn                    50                              
                                                                                                
June 26                         Aqa Husayn                      65                              
                                                                                                
June 26                         Aqa Ghulam-'Alí                 18                              
June 26                         Aqa Ramadan                     22                              
                                                                                                
June 26                         Siyyid Mírza                    75                              
                                                                                                
                                                                                                
June 27                         Mulla Muhammad-i-Manshadí       58                              
                                                                                                
                                                                                                
June 28                         Aqa 'Alí-Akbar                  56                              
June 28                         Shatir-Hasan                    60                              
                                                                                                
                                                                                                
June 29                         Aqa 'Alí-Akbar Ibn-i-Hasan      50                              
                                                                                                
June 30                         Aqa Mírza Husayn                60                              
June 30                         Aqa-'Alí-Muhammad               45                              
                                                                                                
July 1                          Khadíjih-Sultan                 65                              
                                                                                                
July 2                          Aqa Siyyid Javad                40                              
                                                                                                
July 3                          Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad               50                              
                                                                                                
July 4                          Aqa Ghulam-Rida                 40                              
                                                                                                
July 8                          Aqa Assadu'llah                 35                              
                                                                                                
July 9                          Aqa Mírza Muhammad              43                              
July 9                          Aqa Siyyid Husayn               40                              
July 9                          Aqa Husayn-'Alí                 19                              
                                                                                                
July 10                         Aqa Ghulam-Husayn               63                              
July 10                         Siyyid 'Alí                     35                              
                                                                                                
July 10                         Aqa Siyyid Baqir                51                              
                                                                                                
July 11                         Aqa Muhammad                    23                              
July 11                         mother of martyr Ustad Husayn   70                              
                                                                                                
July 13                         Siyyid Javad                    14                              
                                                                                                
                                                                                                
July 14                         Mulla Baba'yí                   65                              
                                                                                                
                                                                                                
                                                                                                
Baha'í martyrdoms in the                                                                        
nearby villages:21

Village of Gav-Afshad:

On the evening of Friday, 9 July, the annual memorial gathering in honor of the martyred Imam Husayn was held at the home of Hajjí Mulla Muhammad-'Alí in the village of Gav-Afshad where all the village men, including a Baha'í named Ustad Rida, were in attendance. Sometime during the event, a group of thugs from Manshad arrived at the gathering and on spotting Ustad Rida attempted to martyr him right there and then. However, some of the villagers became very agitated with such a rude behavior on part of Manshadís and argued fiercely that, in honor of Imam Husayn, killing was not permitted that night. After a period of heated confrontation the villagers managed to throw out the Manshadí mob. On the conclusion of the commemorations that night, Ustad Rida, apprehensive of his life, took refuge in house of Hasan (son of Muhammad-i-Gav-Afshad), his son-in-law. However, after only two days, this treacherous son-in-law notified the Manshadí mob of Ustad Rida's whereabouts. Thereupon the house was rushed by the thugs who quickly captured and removed Ustad Rida to another neighborhood of the village, known as Sarmúr-i-Gav-Afshad. Two of them, Muhammad-'Alí (son of Yadgar) and Siyyid Husayn Haddad, took steps to kill Ustad Rida, when Ustad turned to them and said, "As my Beloved has taught us to kiss the hand of our executioners, grant me this one last favor.22 On hearing this, the two men extended their hands to him which he kissed reverently. They then tied a rope around his neck, and then each held one end and pulled in such wise that he was suffocated quickly. His body was hung from a nearby tree until the next morning when it was lowered and buried. Ustad Rida was fifty-six years old at time of his martyrdom.

Village of Darrih:

Shatir-Hasan was a Baha'í from Yazd who, during this period of unrest, had moved to a nearby village of Tazarjan where he was continuing his profession of baking. When the people of the village learned of the disturbances in Yazd, they surrounded Shatir-Hasan with the intention of killing him, too. Shatir-Hasan was able to escape the crazed mob and quickly left the village heading to Manshad. Once in Manshad, he took refuge in the home of the martyred 'Alí Akbar.

Meanwhile, Mírza Ibrahím Tabíb-i-Khuramshahí, also a Baha'í of Yazd, escaping the wrath of the people there, made his way to Manshad. Upon entering the city, the people of Manshad attempted to kill him. However, as many did not know him, their aim was halted by others. On the first day of troubles, 26 June, some three hours before sunset, Shatir-Hasan and Mírza Ibrahím left Manshad and headed towards the village of Darrih. There, these two believers took a room in Khadíjih Darvísh's house. Soon the villagers become aware of the two newcomers and surrounded the house, and a few went inside and captured the two believers. As the villagers were not aware of the details associated with these two, they inquired of one another. Two of them, however, said to the crowd that: "We know these two; both are Baha'ís and have just escaped from Manshad."

The two believers were first undressed by the mob and then their hands were tied behind them. They were then asked to start walking, and the crowd followed behind them moving towards a nearby field used for slaughtering sheep. On the way, though, they were stoned so severely and repeatedly that they passed on to the Abha Kingdom before reaching their destination. Their bodies were thrown in an empty well and filled with dirt till they were no longer visible. Shatir-Hasan was thirty-five and Mírza Ibrahím-i-Tabíb sixty-five years old at the time of their martyrdoms.

Footnotes

1. The Baha'í World, vol. 18, page 26
2. The Baha'í World, vol. 18, page 26
3. Taríkh Shuhaday-i-Yazd, (History of the Yazd's Martyrs), Egypt, 1342H. Manshad episode begins on page 432.
4. Vafa Qa'im-Maqami's gracious assistance by reading through the translation and suggesting invaluable comments is affectionately acknowledged.
5. As it is customary with Middle Eastern narratives, the opening passage is devoted to praise and glorification of God and the Central Figures. This passage is omitted in translation.
6. The ten gunmen were from the surrounding villages of Khabarí, Zardankí and Char-Rahí and the author gives their names as: Ghulam-Husayn Khabarí and his three sons, Ahmad, Rida-Qulí and Hasan; Khayru'llah Char-Rahí; Hajjí, the son of Qurban-'Alí Khabarí; Ghulam-Rida Zardankí; Muhammad, the son of Husayn-i-Char-Rahí; Hasan Shah-Rida; and Iskandar Char-Rahí.
7. The author gives their names as: Hajjí Husayn, 'Alí-Akbar and Hajjí Husayn-'Alí son of Hajjí 'Alí-Akbar
8. 0n page 27-28 of the original text the following names are given: Shatir-Hasan, Aqa 'Alí-Akbar and Assadu'llah, the sons of Mírza Ibrahím; Aqa Hasan-'Alí; Javad; Aqa Siyyid Taqí; Aqa Siyyid Baqír; Siyyid Husayn; children of Aqa Siyyid Ahmad; Aqa Siyyid Muhammad (the son Siyyid Taqí); Aqa Mírza Muhammad Hadí; 'Abdu'l-Vahhab; 'Abdu'r-Rasúl; and Aqa Muhammad Ibn-i-Mihdí
9. Aqa 'Alí-Akbar (the son of Muhammad); Aqa Javad (the son of martyred Mulla Baba'yí); Aqa 'Alí-Akbar (the son of Hajjí 'Alí-Muhammad); Aqa 'Alí-Muhammad (the son of martyred Aqa Mírza Muhammad); Aqa Haydar; Aqa Mírza 'Alí, the well-digger; Aqa Ghulam-Husayn; Aqa Mírza 'Alí-Akbar; Aqa 'Abdu'l-Vahhab.
10. Hasan-'Alí (the son of Hajjí Muhammad); Javad (the son of Muhammad Hadí); 'Alí-Akbar (the son of Ibrahím); and 'Alí-Akbar (the son of Hajjí Husayn).
11. Ghulam-Rida (the son of Husayn); 'Alí (the son of Hajjí Akbar); Ahmad (the son of Hajjí Ghulam); and Ghulam-Rida Tazarjaní.
12. Ghulam-Rida (the son of Husayn); 'Alí-Akbar (the son of Hajjí Husayn); and Ghulam-Rida Tazarjaní.
13. Ghulam-Rida (the son of Husayn); Mírza 'Alí-Akbar; Mírza Javad; Siyyid Muhammad, the soothsayer; Siyyid Husayn (the son of Siyyid Ibrahím); and Muhammad (the son of Rida).
14. Muhammad-Sadiq Na'ím-Abadí; Mírza Rida (the son of Hajjí Siyyid Mírza, the prayer Imam); Siyyid Husayn (the son of Hajjí Siyyid Mahmud);
15. 'Abdu'l-Khaliq; Siyyid Mihdí; Hajjí 'Alí-Akbar-i-Syah; Akbar (the son of Ibrahím, the farmer); 'Abdu'l-Vahhab; and Siyyid Husayn-i-'Arab.
16. Siyyid Sadiq; Siyyid 'Alí-Akbar; and Mírza Muhammad-'Alí (the son of Mírza Siyyid Husayn).
17. Ghulam-Rida Tazarjaní fired the first shot to be followed with shots by Siyyid Sadiq Tarnjí and Mírza Muhammad-'Alí Taftí.
18. The perpetuators were: Mírza Muhammad-'Alí Taftí; Ghulam-Rida (the son of Husayn) and Muhammad-Sadiq Na'ím-Abadí.
19. Ghulam-Rida Tazarjaní; Husayn-'Alí (the son of Hajjí Muhammad); and Hashim-i-Tíúj.
20. This table was prepared by the translators for ease of reference.
21. In addition to the account of the above events in Manshad, the author narrates the heinous martyrdoms in the nearby villages. Due to the importance of these materials, these have been translated as well.
22. This comment echoes the exhortation of Baha'u'llah in the Lawh-i-Shikar Shikkan. For the text of the Tablet see the Baha'í World, vol. 18, p. 11.

2011-06-20T10:39:00.000-07:00

Rally in Rio calls for Iran to respect human rights

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, 20 May 2011 (BWNS) – Representatives from government, religious communities and civil society organizations were among the 800 human rights supporters who gathered to call upon Iran to cease its persecution of Baha'is and other religious minorities.

Participants travelled from all over Brazil to take part in the rally, held at Rio's Copacabana Beach yesterday, some spending up to 15 hours on buses to get there.

Almost 8,000 images depicting the faces of Iran's seven imprisoned Baha'i leaders were on display at the beach, corresponding to the number of days of detention the seven had suffered after three years in prison. The photographs were arranged in a large circle, representing the world, and the union of people of all races and nations.

In his remarks, Brazilian congressman Chico Alencar set the tone for the day's activities, saying, "Religious freedom is something that cannot be touched."

A Jewish participant, Natan Klabin, agreed. "We know well what it is to be persecuted because of one's religion, and thus we know how important it is to show solidarity with other repressed minorities," he said.

Babalowa Ivanir dos Santos – representing the Afro-Brazilian religion, Candomble – spoke of the persecution his community has often faced. "This is why we feel that we must protest against all kinds of religious intolerance. I hope one day we will no longer need to promote demonstrations like this one, in any country," said Mr. Santos.

One thousand yellow vests – printed with the phrases "Today we are all Baha'is" and "Free the 7 Baha'is imprisoned in Iran" – were distributed, along with leaflets about religious freedom. Musicians also contributed to the programme, performing songs on the themes of freedom and solidarity.

Brazilian Baha'i Iradj Eghrari said that demonstrating solidarity among religions is essential to show the Iranian authorities that persecution is not only a matter of concern for Baha'is.

"If a person does not demonstrate support towards persecuted religious minorities, he or she may well be the next victim of religious intolerance," said Mr. Eghrari.

The seven imprisoned Baha'i leaders were members of a national-level ad hoc group that helped attend to the needs of Iran's 300,000-strong Baha'i community. After an illegal 30 month detention, they were tried on trumped-up charges and each sentenced in August 2010 to 20 years in jail.

To read the article online and view photographs, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/834

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2011-06-13T23:55:00.003-07:00

Stand up for Iranian Bahá'ís' right to a higher education

The Guardian, Saturday 11 June 2011
Article history

Exams are here for students across the country. In Iran, too, students are busy at university – but not if they are Bahá'ís. The youth of Iran's largest religious minority were banned from university after the 1979 revolution. On 21 May, Iranian authorities raided 30 homes and arrested 16 Bahá'ís for being part of an initiative to provide higher education to their community.

In 1987, the Bahá'í Institute for Higher Education was established to give Iranian Bahá'ís a chance to study. It has hundreds of students and many come to the UK for postgraduate degrees. The New York Times calls it an "elaborate act of communal self-preservation" – without it, Bahá'ís would have nowhere to learn.

The authorities have struck the institute before and dozens were arrested. It is official policy to block the development of the Bahá'ís. Young Bahá'ís who cannot study are denied a basic human right. Their desire to contribute to society is being strangled at the start of their adult lives.

Academics, students and politicians should join common cause for Bahá'í students in Iran. The authorities must be taught that human rights are universal. Barring Bahá'ís from university exposes the government's own ignorance.

Professor Stephen Chan School of Oriental and African Studies

Professor Sadie Creese Warwick University

Professor Erol Gelenbe Imperial College London

Professor Jonathan Michie Oxford University

Professor Rachel Murray Bristol University

Professor Karalyn Patterson Cambridge University

Dr Andrew Shacknove Oxford University

Professor Patrick Thornberry Keele University

Professor Barbara Wilson Cambridge University

2011-06-08T21:14:00.000-07:00

2011-06-04T11:09:00.003-07:00

Iran Press Watch: The Baha'i Community

Austria’s Foreign Minister: “Rights of the Bahá’í community in Iran must be protected”

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 09:23 AM PDT

Press release of the Austrian Foreign Ministry, dated June 1st , 2011

Spindelegger: „Rights of the Bahá’í community in Iran must be protected” Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger expresses his concern about repression against the Bahá’ís in Iran.
Vienna, June 1st , 2011 – According to current reports, house searches were performed in Iran as well as arrests of persons, who had relations to an educational institute which was established by members of the Iranian Bahá’í community for its members. Followers of the Bahá’í-Religion are prevented on account of their Faith to visit a regular university in Iran. The latest house searches and arrests demonstrate a further effort in order to restrain the access to education for the Bahá’í community.
“The news about an intensification of the repression against the Bahá’í community by the Iranian government are alarming. The right for education is a fundamental human right for every one independent on his or her religion. The restriction of the access to education for young Bahá’ís is inacceptable”, said Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger. “I appeal to the Iranian government to stop the discrimination against this religious minority and to fully respect their rights.”
Already in February 2011, Foreign Minister Spindelegger addressed his Iranian ministerial colleague Ali Akbar Salehei in Geneva in regard to the crucial human rights situation – especially for religious minorities. In the last months the situation of the Bahá’ís in Iran has obviously worsened. “To persecute people because of their Faith is a clear violation against human rights. Iran must observe her international obligation”, so Spindelegger concluding.
The Bahá’í Religion is a world wide spread, independent monotheistic religion. In Austria the Bahá’í-Religion is a recognized religious community
Rückfragehinweis:
Bundesministerium für europäische
und internationale Angelegenheiten
Presseabteilung
Tel.: +43(0)501150-3262,4549,4550
F:+43(0)501159-213
Email: abti3@bmeia.gv.at
www.aussenministerium.at
—
[Translation into English by the Office of External Affairs of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Austria]
[Original Press Release in German:]

Spindelegger: „Rechte der Bahá’ì-Gemeinschaft im Iran schützen“

Vizekanzler und Außenminister Michael Spindelegger zeigt sich besorgt über Repression gegen die Gemeinschaft der Bahá’ì im Iran.

Wien, 1. Juni 2011 – Aktuellen Berichten zufolge kam es in den vergangenen Wochen im Iran zu Hausdurchsuchungen und Verhaftungen von Personen, die mit einem eigens von und für Mitglieder der iranischen Bahá’í-Gemeinschaft geschaffenem Bildungsinstitut in Verbindungen standen. Anhängern der Religion der Bahá’í bleibt der Besuch einer regulären Universität aufgrund ihres Glaubens im Iran verwehrt. Die jüngsten Hausdurchsuchungen und Verhaftungen stellen damit einen weiteren Versuch dar, den Zugang der Bahá’ì-Gemeinschaft zu Bildung einzuschränken.
„Die Nachrichten über eine weitere Verschärfung der Repression gegenüber der Bahá’ì-Gemeinschaft durch die iranische Regierung sind besorgniserregend. Das Recht auf Bildung ist ein grundlegendes Menschenrecht, das jedem zusteht, egal, welcher Glaubensgemeinschaft er angehört. Die Einschränkung des Zugangs zu Bildung für junge Bahá’ì ist nicht akzeptabel“, erklärte Vizekanzler und Außenminister Michael Spindelegger. „Ich appelliere an die iranische Regierung, die Diskriminierung dieser religiösen Minderheit zu beenden und ihre Rechte voll zu respektieren.“
Bereits im Februar 2011 hatte Außenminister Spindelegger seinen iranischen Amtskollegen Ali Akbar Salehi in Genf auf die kritische Menschenrechtssituation – insbesondere für religiöse Minderheiten – angesprochen. In den letzten Monaten hat sich die Lage der Bahá’ì im Iran deutlich verschlechtert. „Menschen wegen ihres Glaubens zu verfolgen, ist ein eindeutiger Verstoß gegen die Menschenrechte. Der Iran muss seine auch international eingegangenen Verpflichtungen einhalten“, so Spindelegger abschließend.
Die Bahá’ì -Religion ist eine weltweit verbreitete, unabhängige monotheistische Religion. In Österreich ist die Bahá’ì -Religion eine anerkannte Bekenntnisgemeinschaft.
Rückfragehinweis:
Bundesministerium für europäische
und internationale Angelegenheiten
Presseabteilung
Tel.: +43(0)501150-3262,4549,4550
F:+43(0)501159-213
mailto:abti3@bmeia.gv.at
www.aussenministerium.at
—
Source: http://www.bmeia.gv.at/aussenministerium/aktuelles/presseaussendungen/2011/spindelegger-rechte-der-bahai-gemeinschaft-im-iran-schuetzen.html

CNN: For Baha’i educators, a lesson in power from Iran

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 09:00 AM PDT

(By Mitra Mobasherat and Joe Sterling, 2 June 2011, CNN) — The three Iranian security officers rang the doorbell, politely informed the man of his arrest, thoroughly searched the house, confiscated high-tech gear and books, and whisked him away to the nation’s notorious Evin Prison.

The early Sunday morning raid took three hours. Now, every second seems like an eternity for the man’s anguished family members, praying for his physical safety, hoping for his release, and getting their heads around the prospect of a long stint in prison, his relatives told CNN.

His family says the reason for his arrest is his religion.
The man is one of 16 Baha’is swept away in raids on or after May 21 targeting educators dedicated to teaching members of their community who are denied entry to universities in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Of those 16, nine have since been released. But this educator remains in prison, a Baha’i official told CNN.
The crackdown is the latest example of the Shiite Muslim regime’s relentless persecution of those who adhere to a faith deemed heretical by the ruling ayatollahs.
The Baha’i faith, founded during the 19th century in Iran and now with 5 million to 6 million adherents worldwide, is a monotheistic religion that focuses on the spiritual unity of humanity.
The clerics who hold sway in Iran regard the Baha’i faith as blasphemous because its founder, Bahá’u'lláh, declared himself to be a prophet of God. Muslims believe the Prophet Mohammed was the last prophet of God.
Iranian security officials in Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan and Shiraz raided as many as 30 homes of Baha’is who were part of the Baha’i Institute of Higher Education, or BIHE, established in 1987 to help their co-religionists get undergraduate and graduate degrees. More than a dozen people were arrested in the raids, the most sweeping against the education initiative since 1998.
“The BIHE university was a cover for the propagation of the Baha’i faith and was used to trap citizens in the Baha’i spy network and to gather information from within the county,” the Iran Daily, an official government newspaper reported.
“Authorities have discovered Baha’i propaganda, CDs and books in the possession of those who have been arrested,” according to the newspaper.
The raids have drawn condemnation from the Baha’is and other voices, including the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, an American government agency that monitors religious discrimination across the globe.
“The Iranian government will stop at nothing in its shameless persecution of the Baha’is in Iran,” said the commission’s chairman, Leonard Leo, in a written statement. “It’s not enough that authorities already have a policy in place preventing Baha’is from attending Iranian universities — the government is now systematically trying to dismantle the Baha’i community’s internal initiative to ensure that its youth have the opportunity to get an education beyond high school.”
The 300,000-person Iranian Baha’i community has endured intensified persecution since the shah of Iran was toppled in 1979.
Since the Islamic regime took power decades ago, the U.S. commission says, 200 Baha’i leaders in Iran have been killed, more than 10,000 have been dismissed from government and university jobs, and followers are forbidden to “establish places of worship, schools, or any independent religious associations in Iran.”
They are “denied government jobs and pensions as well as the right to inherit property. Their marriages and divorces also are not recognized, and they have difficulty obtaining death certificates. Baha’i cemeteries, holy places, and community properties are often seized or desecrated,” the commission says.
Baha’i spokesman Farhad Sabetan, who teaches economics at California State University, East Bay, said that while Baha’is are not allowed to serve as military officers, they were recruited to serve as low-level privates in the Iran-Iraq war.
And since 2005, around 400 Baha’is have been jailed arbitrarily, the U.S. commission said, including seven of the community leaders seized three years ago.
“It reminds one of what Hitler wanted to do prior to the extermination,” Sabetan said. That is a reference to the persecution and genocide of Jews under Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime in Germany in the 20th century.
As Baha’is were systemically banned from higher education, they developed the underground-style institute.
Sabetan said that the thinking had been, “Why can’t we just start something ourselves?”
At first the classes were correspondence courses. Others were held in private homes, where dental students stood over kitchen sinks in denture-making lessons.
“It became a grass-roots homegrown development.”
No one bothered the students and teachers at first as the group amassed volunteers, equipment and willing students. Its faculty comprised volunteer professionals who once taught in Iran but lost their jobs after the revolution because they are Baha’is.
But about 10 years later, the crackdowns started.
The power plays made no sense to Baha’is and seemed like oppression for oppression’s sake. Sabetan said one teacher told him that security officers “destroyed everything” in a raid and didn’t even have the good sense to confiscate the material for their own use.
With the help of funding from foreign Baha’i organizations, the system grew and is now a virtual online college.
The effort is a serious initiative to help Iranian Baha’is gain the right qualifications for trades and professions and the bachelor’s degrees issued by the school have been accepted by some Western colleges, the Baha’is say on their website.
The Baha’i educational network offers over 20 associate, undergraduate and graduate degrees in a range of subjects from literature and law to math and pharmacy, the website says.
Sabetan said he doesn’t know what compelled the authorities to carry out the latest raids, but at least one of the people has been charged with acts against the security of the regime.
“It’s not clear to us how the study of physics, chemistry and science endanger the Iranian government,” Sabetan said.
The professor seized in the Sunday, May 22 raid typified the faculty, according to his wife and daughter in Iran.
They did not want to be named for security reasons.
His relatives said he was unpaid for his labors teaching math and economics to fellow Baha’is. The security officers told the teacher and his wife he would be held in Evin Prison’s Ward 209. That’s a section of the penitentiary said to be for political prisoners and run by intelligence officers.
“He was not paid or reimbursed for this work,” his daughter told CNN. “He did it out of love, love for teaching and love for his students. He wanted to give young people an education so they can have a good life and make something of themselves. It was his passion in life to educate others.”
After the three security officers, armed with a warrant, walked in the Baha’i man’s house, the man quickly told his wife that the police had arrived.
“Please put your veil on, your brothers have come,” a phrase meant to show respect to the police of the Shiite regime, which expect women cover their heads.
The officers explained that they would be looking through the family’s personal belongings. While the wife accepted that, she insisted that she accompany them; the officials let her.
“I couldn’t just sit down and let men sort through my home. I told them, ‘This is my house.’ I couldn’t just stand to the side,” she told CNN.
The men were respectful, she said. They didn’t destroy material or ransack the house. But they seized memory cards from cameras, mobile phones, computer hard drives and books on the faith and university.
Before the father was taken away, he told his wife not to worry, saying the authorities will realize he didn’t do anything wrong.
But his relatives and the Baha’i community are worried that interrogators attempting wider clampdowns will try to pry names of other teachers and students out of the arrested teachers.
Before one unsuccessful effort to visit him at the prison last week, his wife said, “God willing, I will be able to see him tomorrow and he will be released. I am positive about this because he did not do anything wrong and he is a good person.”
—
Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/05/31/iran.bahai/
for a translation by Iran Press Watch see: http://www.iranpresswatch.org/fa/post/3021

2011-05-31T08:10:00.001-07:00

"Baha'i Question" cited at European Parliament human rights hearing

31 May 2011

BRUSSELS, Belgium — Victims of religious intolerance are not just people deprived of the right to practice their faith – they suffer abuses in every aspect of their daily lives.

This observation was made at a hearing held before the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Human Rights.

Penelope Faulkner – a member of the European Platform on Religious Discrimination and Intolerance (EPRID) – highlighted the degree to which freedom of religion or belief is threatened around the world.

It is a "massive problem," said Ms. Faulkner. "Especially in countries where the state...incites hatred, religious minorities are defenceless.

"They lose their rights, their livelihood and, in many cases, their lives."

"This is the case of the Baha'i in Iran where the authorities implement a systematic plan to deal with what they call the 'Baha'i Question' – with specific directives to block access to education, confiscate property, deny employment and deny citizenship rights to anyone known to be Baha'i," said Ms. Faulkner.

Her comments came just days after some 16 individuals were arrested in Iran for trying to operate an informal university to provide education to Baha'is who have been barred from higher education by the government. See http://news.bahai.org/story/827.

Ms. Faulkner also noted that recent research has found that 70% of the world's population is living in places where religious freedom is restricted or abused.

"It is in every continent, every community, including Europe. The devastating toll of the human suffering in recent months shows that EU policies in this area are not only needed but much overdue," she said.

"Human beings are responsible"

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Heiner Bielefeldt, told the hearing that he sees such violations on a daily basis.

"And what shocks me most is the degree of hatred against religious minorities between communities – hatred often nourished by a paradoxical combination of fear sometimes bordering paranoia and contempt," said Professor Bielefeldt.

But such hatreds can be overcome, he said.

"After all, it is human beings who are responsible, human beings who also can change, groups of human beings who can also evolve in their conviction. This is something we must always take into account."

Professor Bielefeldt told the hearing – held on 26 May – that freedom of religion or belief is a universal human right, which must be also interpreted to encompass the broadest interpretation of religion.

"You see lots of countries in various regions of the world that promise freedom of religion or belief in their constitution then say, 'O.K. There are three options – you can be Jewish, Christian, Muslim. Period.'

"Sometimes it's five options. Sometimes it's six options. Sometimes it's no religions. But the starting point – if you really stick to the universalistic nature of human rights – must be the dignity of human beings and their self-understanding.

"If you know human beings, their self-understanding is very, very, very diverse," he said.

But, Professor Bielefeldt noted, the United Nations treaties concerning the issue clearly state that freedom of religion or belief "protects theistic, non-theistic, atheistic beliefs, as well as the right not to profess any religion or belief...This is the universalistic spirit, and not only spirit but also letter of human rights and freedom of religion. And this is really under threat."

A broader context

Also on the panel was the Baha'i International Community's representative to the European Union, Sarah Vader. She suggested that freedom of religion or belief should be considered in a "broader context of democracy and human rights protection."

"The EU should pay particular attention to being inclusive and fair, enabling the participation of all – including those more vulnerable groups such as women, youth, ethnic and religious minorities," said Ms. Vader, who was also speaking on behalf of EPRID, a coalition of non-governmental organizations in support of freedom of religion or belief of which the Baha'i International Community is a member.

"In relation to the EU's future policy on freedom of religion or belief, it is necessary for the process to be open, transparent and inclusive, and find a way of involving civil society at different levels, whether it be here in Brussels or at the level of capitals and delegations at the EU," she said.

Ms. Vader offered a series of recommendations by which the EU could improve its overall monitoring and approach to freedom of religion or belief, such as by establishing a special envoy for religious freedom and preparing an annual report on the progress worldwide made towards freedom of religion or belief.

Special Report

The Baha'i World News Service has published a Special Report which includes articles and background information about Iran's campaign to deny higher education to Baha'is. The Special Report contains a summary of the situation, feature articles, case studies and testimonials from students, resources and links.

The International Reaction page of the Baha'i World News service is regularly updated with responses from governments, nongovernmental organizations, and prominent individuals, to actions taken against the Baha'is of Iran.

The Media Reports page presents a digest of media coverage from around the world.

2011-05-27T23:10:00.001-07:00

2011-05-27T23:09:00.001-07:00

2011-05-22T11:47:00.001-07:00

GENEVA, 22 May 2011 (BWNS) – A coordinated series of raids have been carried out on the homes of several Iranian Baha'is, active in a community initiative to provide a higher education programme for young members who are barred from university.

Initial reports indicate that raids took place yesterday on houses in Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan, and Shiraz. As many as 30 people may already have been arrested.

"All of the targets were homes of individuals closely involved with the operations of the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education," said Diane Ala'i, representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.

The Baha'i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) was established in 1987 as a community initiative to meet the educational needs of young Baha'is who have been systematically denied access to higher education by the Iranian government. The BIHE has been described by the New York Times as "an elaborate act of communal self-preservation."

"The Institute has been a remarkably creative – and entirely non-violent – response to the Iranian government's ongoing effort to stifle the normal human development of the Baha'i community," said Ms. Ala'i.

"The Iranian authorities – not content with debarring Baha'is from university solely on account of their religious beliefs – are now cruelly seeking to shut down the community's efforts to provide its youth with higher education through alternative means.

"The government's actions are utterly unjustifiable," said Ms. Ala'i.

This is not the first time that the BIHE has come under attack from Iranian authorities. One of the biggest blows was a series of sweeping raids carried out in 1998 during which some 36 members of the BIHE's faculty and staff were arrested, and much of its equipment and records – located in more than 500 homes – was taken. Other actions against the operations of BIHE were carried out in 2001 and 2002.

These attacks – and Iran's general policy prohibiting young Baha'is from entering higher education – have been met with strong condemnation by governments, academics, UN agencies, civil society organizations and others.

Among the numerous actions taken, university professors and chaplains around the world have sent letters of protest to the UN Secretary-General and the leaders of Iran; in 2006, the president of Princeton university in the United States raised the matter with the Iranian representative to the UN; Spain's House of Deputies has passed a strongly-worded resolution on the situation; Wolfson College, Oxford, also voted through a resolution in November 2007, as did the University of Winnipeg in Canada.

"These latest raids appear to be another concerted attempt to attack the BIHE, which the authorities have long sought to do," said Diane Ala'i.

"We are calling upon governments and educational organizations throughout the world to register with the government of Iran their strong disapproval of its systematic, ongoing efforts to deny to young Baha'is their fundamental human right to access higher education."

To read the article online and access links, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/825

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2011-05-16T11:05:00.001-07:00

Three years on, Iran's imprisoned Baha'i leaders symbolize the oppression of a nation

GENEVA, 16 May 2011 (BWNS) – The injustice being faced by countless citizens of Iran has been highlighted around the world, as supporters marked three years since the arrest of the country's imprisoned Baha'i leaders.

In a message dated 14 May, addressed by the Universal House of Justice to the Baha'is of Iran, the jailed leaders were referred to as true prisoners of conscience. The letter also spoke of the numerous Iranian men and women who have accepted to face hardship for the sake of defending their freedom and human rights.

Their plight was recalled at special gatherings, which included a reception on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.; a service at the Baha'i House of Worship in Sydney, Australia; and prayer meetings, held in numerous places of worship throughout the Netherlands.

Reception in Washington D.C.

In the United States, some 300 congressional staff, representatives from human rights groups, media personnel and community members, attended a meeting at Washington's Hart Senate Office building on 12 May, while a worldwide audience logged on to a live webcast of the event.

The event was hosted by U.S. Senator Mark Kirk, who spoke about a resolution he recently introduced condemning the persecution of the Baha'is.

"I have been very focused on the condition of Baha'is in Iran," said Senator Kirk. "Especially thinking about the seven Baha'i leaders, I think we need to begin to memorize their names.

"They are serving 20 years in prison on baseless charges and I am here today, as I have been for many months now, showing my support from them, and more importantly introducing their individual names to the American people," said Senator Kirk, who recited aloud the names of the seven prisoners to the audience.

They are Fariba Kamalabadi, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi, Saeid Rezaie, Mahvash Sabet, Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Vahid Tizfahm. They were formerly members of a national-level ad hoc group that helped attend to the needs of the country's 300,000-strong Baha'i community.

U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Kathleen Fitzpatrick told the reception that, while democratic evolution, change and reform is under way in the Middle East, "the Iranian authorities continue to use the brutal tactics of repressing their citizens, even as at times they applaud protestors in other areas..."

"Baha'i and other religious minorities...continue to be subject to arbitrary arrest, persecution and unjust sentences," said Ms. Fitzpatrick. "These circumstances typify not only the life of religious minorities in Iran but also of all Iranians and reflect the oppression that has engulfed the nation at the hands of its leaders."

In his remarks, Kenneth E. Bowers – Secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States – noted that those "languishing in Iranian prisons" include not only Baha'is but "lawyers who do nothing more than represent their clients, journalists attempting to ensure that the public receives accurate information, and others such as students and bloggers who express views that the regime does not see as supportive of their policies."

In other speeches, U.S. Representative Michael Grimm praised the resilience of the Iranian Baha'i community; actor Eva LaRue shared stories about the two women in the group; and Iraj Kamalabadi, brother of Fariba Kamalabadi, delivered closing remarks.

Grammy-award winning musician KC Porter performed a new song, titled "Yaran", which he composed after learning about the prison conditions and the overwhelming evidence of the Baha'i leaders' innocence.

Events in Australia and the Netherlands

More than 500 people also observed the third anniversary at a special interfaith service on the theme of justice, held yesterday at the Baha'i House of Worship in Sydney, Australia. Among the special guests in attendance was the convener of the Australian Partnership of Religious Organisations, Professor Abd Malak, an Egyptian Coptic Christian.

The Australian government among many others has been active and vocal in their support of the seven Baha'i leaders – and human rights in Iran more broadly – said Natalie Mobini-Kesheh, Director of the Australian Baha'i community's Office of External Affairs.

"It's important that we, as the public, continue to voice our concern, so that the Iranian government knows that the world is watching," she told a reception held in the House of Worship's information centre.

Also in attendance was Mehrzad Mumtahan, a nephew of Saeid Rezaei, who spoke of the hope the prisoners feel, knowing that total strangers are thinking of them.

In the Netherlands, 24-hour vigils and other prayer gatherings were held throughout the country to mark the anniversary. In Amsterdam, special prayers were said at the Roman Catholic Salvator church. At the city's Russian Orthodox church, the names of the seven prisoners – as well as Christian and Jewish victims of religious persecution in Iran – were read aloud.

A Protestant church in Veldhoven, the Sisters of Charity congregations in Hertme and Eindhoven, and the Hindu Shree Raam mandir in Wychen, also joined the commemoration. In Utrecht and the Hague, prayers were said in Jewish synagogues.

"I stay connected in prayer with those brave ones," said Awraham Soetendorp, Rabbi of the Reform Jewish community of the Hague. "May all the prayers together open the door to freedom."

The human rights group, United4Iran, launched a poster campaign drawing attention to the fact that by 14 May, the seven suffered 7,734 days in prison. The campaign calls upon supporters to make their own posters indicating the number of days of imprisonment, or to take a picture or video holding a pre-prepared poster.

Further events marking the anniversary are being planned around the world, including a "Solidarity Concert" in New Delhi, India, this Thursday.

To read the article online and view photographs, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/823

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2011-03-23T07:18:00.001-07:00

2011-03-23T07:12:00.001-07:00

2011-02-22T21:08:00.001-08:00

Total Moral Victory Today in the World's Worst Prison

Dearest Family and Friends:

The following is a vivid testimony to the ultimate moral, mental, and spiritual integrity, dignity, and destiny of the Baha'is and indeed of the entire human race:

Ever since the most unjust and indignified imprisonment some three years ago, without a single crime, of the most innocent, the pure, and the saintly Baha'i Leaders in Iran called Yaran, and their subsequent transfer from the Evin Prison to the most backward and unusually harsh prison of Rajaei Shahr where some 5000 topmost killers, drug dealers, and others are kept in clusters under sub-human conditions, despite the lack of food, toilet, sanitation, and basic subsistence conditions, despite the dirt, filth, and illness, in pitiful conditions themselves, the two saint ladies Mahvash and Fariba, as with the other five in the men's quarters, have managed to support and uplift the minds and hearts of their fellow pitiful prisoners by giving them their relentless and genuine loving support to the poorer, the more needy, and the more frail fellow prisoners, seeing no evil in any soul, finding and nurturing dignity even in such a man-forsaken hell, and by such genuine constant manifestations of loving kindness have now won, as a manifestation of human moral triumph, the hearts and minds and the respect of these same so-called "criminal" fellow prisoners despite the initially existing dangers to their own very lives!

Over the months, whenever by the only good modern day miracle of cell phone in the prison yard it was made possible for me to hear several times from Fariba herself, and on the one occasion when I got the chance and was so blessed to visit the two most precious ladies via Divine Destiny for one hour myself, as well as from other family members and even directly from prison guard, I heard myself how miraculously the dangerous killers and criminals had been overwhelmingly moved and transformed by the vivifying souls of these two saintly Ladies.

One can recall the moving poem by Mahvash which shook the world, who, amidst the extreme pains of her own, backed against the withered single pomegranate tree in the prison yard, contemplates how the entire burden of these soul-and-body tortured fellow prisoners and indeed all the down-trodden suffering women of the World are now on her shoulder.

I am still amazed how for the entire three years during the rare occasions she could talk on the phone at various times, I never heard Fariba's voice even once tremble slightly except for joy, with full faith, complete optimism, and total jubilation, as if walking in the highest Paradise all these long suffering days and months and years.

I still recall the moving sharing lessons of Fariba relaying to me how she had found the single remaining spot of beauty and purity in each and all of these worldly despised and abandoned souls. I remember when she described to me the miracle account of how the most feared gang leader of the prison mafia, despite the huge body, knife-cut and broken face and other fearsome features, shun by all other killers and criminals, had been so moved by our twin spiritual heronies over time that she had on one occasions when Fariba had to pass a toilet dirt mud which had become watery sludge after rain, with their prison-customary slippers, she saw Fariba from far and told her from the distance "Please wait, please wait, may your holy feet not be touched and smeared by these dirts", then, throwing her own slippers bode and insisted Fariba to kindly step on her slippers and pass by the place lest she be mired. No such things happen in any deadly criminal prison anywhere in the world in any way similar to this Rajaei Shahar, where only for the mere sake of prolonging an already issued death sentence with formalities paperwork procedures, often the killer kills one more unfortunate and helpless person often at random in the prison, days prior to the execution.

I remember how once Fariba was so overjoyed to tell me how one of her friends, where a few had died mercilessly by swine flu and cast and treated like swines by prison authorities, had first completely given up strong drug addiction, only to replace it with super heavy cigarette addiction, then, by their loving care of our two Baha'i Ladies, day by day she had been reducing to the last one cigarette per day. Fariba told me how that day, just a month ago, Fariba hugged that lady, and rather than insisting or requesting her to give up the final cigarette, only told here gently how much she loved her and was proud of her that despite her years of bad luck in life turning her into a despised criminal, she had obtained the positive hope, the will power, and the supreme determination to accomplish what so many others in the free world had failed despite all facilities and support. Fariba told me how the lady, now a close friend, threw to the ground immediately the last final cigarette, crushed it with her heels, and, cried and said: Today I finally give up this addiction for the sake of love of you, as I feel and know that some day I shall visit you in your home and tell you and show you the effect of the loving transformation you have created in me and our other fellow prison mates!

This is how a candle can shine like the torch, nay as the mid-day Sun, in the darkness of desolation, pessimism and hopelessness, and selfishness that has overshadowed the human society.

Now, I just spoke to Fariba few hours ago on the phone who called from the Rajaei Shahr Prison.

For your information, as the latest news, by tomorrow the two most precious ladies, and the crowning pride of future human civilization will be transferred to the worst section of the Prison entitled "The Under-Ground Dungeon for the Worst of the Villains and Criminals".

This latest panic move by a remorsely helpless oppressor signifies an entirely unparalled scenario in the World History ever even to the present date; that is, for the holy and saintly riligious prisoners of conscience to be one more tier exiled from the already terrible exiled Prison allocated for the worst of criminals, killers, and drug addicts to the lower degree underground dungeon for the most dangerous criminals amongst them, just becasue these two already grossly-wronged innocent Saint Lady Prisoners, while in the prison under sub-human conditions, have by their most pure love and consistent un-conditional tireless and selfless caring actions have transformed the prison-hell into a moral and spiritual Paradise, by moving the souls, changing the hearts, educating the minds and rectifying the conducts of the worst criminals, killers, and drug addicts to such a degree as to empower on the one hand many to give up their severe drug addictions simply on their own free will and by natural encouragement they so lovingly received rather than by persuation and without the need to appeal to any medicine or doctors or tools while against all odds in such deprived hell-prison, and on the other hand enable most others to repent and wash their hands and hearts away from all crimes, purely through the power of real love and by the intense natural free persuation of mind and transformation of heart solely affected via the dynamic power of example of the Twin Tahirih's of the Time!

Fariba said today on the phone that despite the repeated public prison loudspeaker announcements and stern warnings for all prisoners to stay and shun away and do not associate with the Baha'i prisoners, groups and groups of prison ladies thronged and gathered around their cell these past three days, with tearful eyes and warm hugging arms and in a unified supreme show of moral support and expressions of reciprocal love and as spontaneous sign of total unified allegience of all prisoners to the Two Saint Ladies whom they have grown to know as Angels from Heaven stationed in this human hell of a notoriously fanatic and repressive unhumane Regime.

Just hours ago, Fariba in most happy tone of voice told me that one of the miracles of the Supreme Manifestation of God, Baha'u'llah, is that to the degree He gives His loved ones sufferings for the sake of the mental and moral and spiritual education and upliftment of humanity in this dark age of the transition to the collective maturity of the entire human race, to a multiple degree of that He also bestows upon them true felicity, joy, and jubilation; and that how truly happy she is that she is going down to the underground dungeon, with no fear nor a bit concern for imminent interrogations and torture.

This, reminded me vividly of her hand-written letter to me some thirty years back, in 1982 or 1983, posted from Babolsar to Boston, when our dearly beloved martyrs had just ascended to the Abha Kingdom, how she wished to be like the example of the root of the Cause of God, that Divine Tree which is neither of the East nor of the West, whose roots are firm in the earth (dark, cold, wet, lowly soil of the earth as she described), so that its branches and fruits, us, the Baha'is and all the people of good will in the outside world, can overshadow and benefit the entire human kind.

What a sublime drama in the human history.

Speechless in awe and admiration, I remain.

Ya Baha'u'l - Abha!

(Oh Thou The Most Glorious Glory!)

Farzam

2011-01-16T20:05:00.003-08:00

Arsonists threaten reprisals if Baha'is befriend Muslims

GENEVA, 16 January 2011 (BWNS) – A recent wave of arson attacks on Baha'i-owned businesses in Rafsanjan, Iran, appears to be part of a campaign to fracture relationships between Baha'is and Muslims in the city.

After around a dozen attacks on shops – carried out since 25 October 2010 – some 20 Baha'i homes and businesses have been sent a warning letter addressed to "members of the misguided Bahaist sect."

The anonymous document demands that Baha'is sign an undertaking to "refrain from forming contacts or friendships with Muslims" and from "using or hiring Muslim trainees." The Baha’is are also told not to teach their Faith, including on the Internet.

Should the conditions be accepted by the recipients, the letter states, "we will guarantee not to wage any attack on your life and properties."

"For more than two months now, innocent Baha'is have been having their businesses fire-bombed," said Diane Ala'i, the Baha'i International Community representative to the United Nations in Geneva. "Some of them have suffered more than one arson attack on their properties."

"Now, in addition to their livelihoods, their very lives are being threatened unless they promise to isolate themselves from their friends and neighbours," she said.

"What are the perpetrators of such attacks and threats hoping to achieve?" asked Ms. Ala'i. "All it demonstrates for the whole world to see is the religiously motivated hatred being fomented by certain elements in Iranian society."

Ms. Ala'i noted that Baha'is have approached local authorities asking for an investigation. "But nothing has been done," she said.

"Unbelievably, they've even been accused by some of starting the fires themselves, under instruction from foreign governments."

The attackers have particularly targeted household furniture repair businesses, home appliance and optical stores owned by Baha'is.

On 15 November, for example, fires were started in two appliance sales and repair shops, causing damage that exceeded tens of thousands of US dollars. One of the shopkeepers subsequently rented a neighboring property to continue his trade and installed a security door. One month later, despite the precautions, attackers managed to force an explosive substance into the shop through a hole they made in the roof, resulting in a blast that blew the door five meters into the air and shattered windows.

Most recently, on 2 January, another repair shop was set ablaze when a hose pumped a flammable liquid past metal sheets the owner had installed for protection.

A newsletter published by a Muslim cultural foundation in Rafsanjan stated that the attacks have been provoked by the fact that some trades have been "monopolized" by Baha'is in the city. A Muslim-owned coffee shop was also set ablaze after the newsletter mistakenly identified it as Baha'i-owned.

"Economic pressure on Iran's Baha'i community is already acute, with both jobs and business licenses being denied to Baha'is," said Diane Ala'i.

"These attacks and threats are yet another, particularly vicious form of persecution against ordinary citizens who are simply trying to earn their living and practice their faith."

On 21 December, the United Nations confirmed a resolution that expressed "deep concern at serious ongoing and recurring human rights violations" in Iran. The resolution specifically condemned Iran's discrimination against minorities, including members of the Baha'i Faith.

To read the article online and view photographs, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/805

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2010-12-23T22:36:00.000-08:00

Baha'is in Iran are Easily Forgotten

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Read More: Baha'i , Bahai Faith , Discrimination In Iran , Human Rights , Iran , Iran Politics , Iran Religion ,Iranian , Islam , Religious Minorities In Iran , Wikileaks , Women's Rights , Religion News

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Wikileaks has revealed government and diplomatic violations of the truth while paradoxically keeping their own sources secret. In the process, editor in chief and whistleblower Julian Assange has become a hero for human rights defenders. Sadly, the intense publicity surrounding Wikileaks diverts attention from serious injustice and continuing human rights violations, some already on the back burner and badly neglected. A good example is the state-sponsored persecution of Baha'is in Iran.

The 300,000-strong Baha'i community, the largest religious minority in Iran, represents less than 1% of the population. Over the past 30 years, they have suffered torture and execution. They have been denied tertiary education and government jobs, their shops and properties are often seized, cemeteries desecrated and children harassed at school. In addition, Bahai's are facing stepped-up persecution and have been falsely blamed for organizing and inciting anti-government protests although they abstain from partisan political activity on religious principles. Charges against them include espionage, "propaganda activities against the Islamic order" and "corruption on earth," the latter a capital offence. Baha'i communities around the world insist these charges are spurious and part of a campaign to scapegoat members of the faith.

During the Shah's era, Baha'is strove for education and became successful and prominent, creating envy and suspicion, and although police sometimes protected them against Islamic extremists, they were victims of periodic outbreaks of violence.

A major source of ideological friction with Islam is the doctrine of a hierarchy of traditions that subsumes previous ones. According to Baha'is, the Prophet Mohammad was not the last prophet but one in a progressive line, and the next one is not due for a thousand years!

Women's rights are central to Baha'i teaching and in stark contrast to the discriminatory sharia laws implemented by the Islamic Republic of Iran. These rights include full support for the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

There are numerous documented stories of violent arrests and incarcerations in the hundreds of prisons situated in basements of houses in Tehran.

Rozita Vasseghi is a Baha'i prisoner. In Kafkaesque fashion, a man claiming to be a 'postman' arrested her three years ago after a knock on the door, and during repeated interrogations while blindfolded, her captors threatened her with death. Throughout her ordeal, she was denied a lawyer. Following release from prison, she found a job but government authorities exerted pressure on her employers to have her fired. A few years later, she was arrested at her home, and for the next six months, found herself in solitary confinement. Her elderly mother, who was allowed visits of only five minutes, was horrified by her wasted appearance. Accused of insulting Islam, acting against national security and teaching the Baha'i religion, she is serving a five-year sentence.

Rozita's sister Rosa, suffered multiple incarcerations before escaping Iran. She was on her way home in a shared public taxi when the driver asked about her religion. Discovering she was a Baha'i, he stopped and made a phone call. A car with several people soon showed up, the women fully covered in chadors. Rosa was blindfolded and forced into the vehicle and when they reached their destination, she was thrown onto the pavement, her hands were tied and she was dragged down stairs to a room and beaten. Her captors repeatedly called her an infidel and declared her blood would be impure until she renounced her faith and converted to Islam. Over several years, she was repeatedly arrested and imprisoned.

As proponents of a religion originating from Islam, stamped by modernity, universal human rights and compatibility with many Western values, Baha'is are vulnerable targets for persecution by the Iranian theocracy. Baha'i women are doubly at risk, being female and Baha'i, and as victims of severe injustice, they deserve more outrage and support than Assange and Wikileaks.

Ida Lichter is the author of Muslim Women Reformers: Inspiring Voices Against Oppression, published by Prometheus Books, New York.

2010-12-21T20:32:00.001-08:00

Iran's human rights record condemned by United Nations

UNITED NATIONS, 21 December 2010 (BWNS) – In a vote today, the United Nations once again strongly condemned Iran for failing to live up to international human rights standards.

By a vote of 78 to 45, with 59 abstentions, the UN General Assembly confirmed a resolution that expressed “deep concern at serious ongoing and recurring human rights violations.” In more than two decades of such resolutions about Iran, the vote passed with one of the highest percentages ever.

The resolution specifically expressed concern over Iran’s “intensified crackdown on human rights defenders and reports of excessive use of force, arbitrary detentions, unfair trials and allegations of torture,” as well as its “pervasive gender inequality and violence against women,” and its discrimination against minorities, including members of the Baha’i Faith.

“The world community has clearly spoken. It is outraged at Iran’s continued and intensifying violations of human rights,” said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations.

Welcoming the result Ms. Dugal noted that the resolution documents a wide range of violations, from torture to the oppression of women to the persecution of minorities. “All of this has been going on for too long, and it is high time that Iran pays heed to the call of the international community and complies with the standards of international law,” she said.

The resolution devoted an entire paragraph to Iran’s treatment of members of the Baha’i Faith, cataloging an extensive list of recent anti-Baha’i activities. These included: “increasing evidence of efforts by the State to identify, monitor and arbitrarily detain Baha’is, preventing members of the Baha’i faith from attending university and from sustaining themselves economically, the confiscation and destruction of their property, and the vandalizing of their cemeteries…”

It also expressed concern over the recent trial and sentencing of seven Baha’i leaders, saying they were “repeatedly denied the due process of law.”

Worldwide condemnation

The UN vote has coincided with a renewed protest – from numerous governments, organizations and prominent individuals – at the persecution of Iran’s Baha’is.

In a statement dated 17 December, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honorable Lawrence Cannon, reiterated his country’s deep concern at the “ongoing failure of the Iranian authorities to meet their domestic and international legal obligations.”

“The Government of Canada stands firmly with the people of Iran against human rights abuses and discrimination, as well as ill treatment of women and minorities,” said Mr. Cannon.

A number of India’s prominent citizens have also recently called upon Iran to respect its minorities. Among them, former Deputy Prime Minister, L. K. Advani, appealed for justice for the seven imprisoned Baha’i leaders. “The attitude of a country and a nation towards minority religion is the touchstone of how civilized a country it is,” he said on 17 December.

In a debate on freedom of religion in Germany's Parliament, held on 17 December, members of Parliament spoke out on the situation of Baha’is in Iran. Christoph Strässer MP – human rights policy spokesman for the Social Democrats - noted that the Baha’i community, "ever since it was founded, has been dedicated to peace and tolerance..."

Street campaigns about the human rights situation in Iran have been held in the German cities of Frankfurt, Wiesbaden, Mainz and Taunusstein.

“We have gathered here to protest the alarming situation of Baha’is, of human rights in general and the climate of fear that exists for Baha'is, for women, for youth, for bloggers, for journalists,” said Omid Nouripour, MP for Frankfurt, speaking at the event in the city, “and we raise our voices to show the world that the people of Iran need our help.”

Christian Solidarity Worldwide has also called for the release of the Baha’i prisoners. “Clearly the seven Baha’i leaders are being held solely on account of their faith,” said CSW’s Advocacy Director Andrew Johnston on 10 December, “and this contravenes Iran’s international legal obligations.”

In Australia’s parliament last month, members specifically referred to Iran’s discrimination against, and failure to protect the rights of, minorities - including the Baha’i, Sufi, Baluch, and Kurdish communities - as well as the trial and sentencing of the seven Baha’i leaders.

Reports of the 10-year jail terms previously provoked a chorus of condemnation from governments around the world - including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. The European Union and the President of the European Parliament also joined the protest, along with numerous human rights organizations, other groups and countless individuals.

In its annual International Religious Freedom Report, published in November, the United States Department of State reported that the Iranian government’s respect for religious freedom has continued to deteriorate, creating a “threatening atmosphere for nearly all non-Shi’a religious groups, most notably for Baha'is.”

“The U.S. government has publicly condemned the treatment of the Baha’is in UN resolutions,” said the report.

The most recent United Nations resolution was put forward by 42 co-sponsors and approved in a preliminary form in November by a committee of the General Assembly, also by an overwhelming vote against Iran.

To read the article online, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/803

For the Baha'i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

2010-12-07T20:08:00.003-08:00

Open letter speaks out for the rights of all Iranians

7 December 2010

NEW YORK — In an open letter to the head of Iran's Judiciary, the Baha'i International Community today contrasted the country's persecution of Baha'is with Iran's own call for Muslim minorities to be treated fairly in other countries.

"We...request that the Baha'is in that country be granted their full rights of citizenship, in order that they may be able to fulfill their heartfelt aspiration to contribute, alongside their fellow citizens, to the advancement of their nation," says the letter.

"This, indeed, is no more than what you rightfully ask for Muslim minorities who reside in other lands. Baha'is merely seek the same treatment from you," the Baha'i International Community states.

Respecting the rights of Iranian Baha'is now would "signal a willingness to respect the rights of all the citizens of your country," the letter says.

The document, dated 7 December and addressed to Ayatollah Mohammad Sadeq Larijani, states that the injustices meted out on Iran's Baha'i citizens are a "reflection of the terrible oppression that has engulfed the nation." Redressing the wrongs suffered by the Baha'is would "bring hope to the hearts of all Iranians that you are ready to ensure justice for everyone."

"Our call, then, is in reality a call for respect of the rights of all the Iranian people," the Baha'i International Community says.

"How can a just society, or a just world, be built on a foundation of irrational oppression and the systematic denial of basic human rights to any minority? Everything your country overtly professes to seek on the world stage is contradicted by your treatment of your own people at home."

Read the full letter in English

Read the full letter in Persian

"Reprehensible measures"

The letter catalogs in detail the "many reprehensible measures" resorted to by officials during the detention, trial, sentencing and appeal, of the seven Baha'i leaders, who formerly served as the members of a national-level group that – with the Iranian government's knowledge – helped see to the minimum spiritual needs of the Baha'is of Iran.

The seven were accused of propaganda activities against the Islamic order and the establishment of an illegal administration, among other allegations. All the charges were categorically denied.

The letter charts how the prosecutors at the trial of the seven were “ultimately unable to present any credible evidence in support of their claims.” The trial, it observes, "was so devoid of the impartiality that must characterize judicial proceedings as to render the process a complete mockery." "How was it," the letter asks in this respect, "that the verdict issued by the judges could refer to the religion of the defendants as a ‘misguided sect’?”

"...[W]hat is now starkly visible to all is the willingness of the authorities to trample the very standards of justice they are mandated to uphold on behalf of the peoples of Iran," the open letter states.

Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations says that there was never any foundation to the charges that the seven had acted against the interest of Iran.

"To add to this manifest injustice, the judiciary has not yet formalized the appeal verdict," says Ms. Dugal, "thus depriving the prisoners of the right to seek bail or to be granted leave from prison."

"In defiance of all reason, the prisoners are now in the third year of what is still termed a ‘temporary’ detention," she says.

Appalling conditions

After receiving their sentence, the seven Baha'i leaders – Fariba Kamalabadi, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi, Saeid Rezaie, Mahvash Sabet, Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Vahid Tizfahm – were moved from Evin Prison to Gohardasht prison in Karaj.

"They are now effectively placed in exile in contravention of Iran's statutes governing the transfer of prison inmates," says Bani Dugal. "Amongst other indignities, they are forced to endure appalling filth, pestilence, exposure to disease, and quarters so crammed that it is difficult for them to lie down or even to perform their daily prayers."

"It is clear from recent reports that their health has deteriorated and they have no access to adequate medical treatments," she said.

Reports of the trial and sentencing of the seven provoked a chorus of condemnation from governments around the world. The European Union and the President of the European Parliament also joined the protest, along with prominent religious leaders, numerous human rights organizations, and countless other groups and individuals.

"We join with governments and well-meaning people throughout the world, as we call upon Iran's Head of the Judiciary to immediately set these seven innocent Baha'is – and, along with them, all of the Baha'is incarcerated across the country – free," said Ms. Dugal.