arthra
Baha'i
Some of you may recall that Baha'is have been blocked from higher education and that after Baha'is established a Baha'i Higher Education Institute the professors were arrested and materials of that institute were were confiscated... sadly the same tactic by fanatical elements is being applied to Baha'i cemeteries...
"In recent years, more than 40 Baha'i cemeteries have been attacked, vandalized or closed, and in numerous cases the burial of Baha'is has been blocked or interfered with by authorities," said Diane Ala'i, the representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.
"The overall pattern that emerges is of a government-coordinated effort to make Baha'is invisible in Iran by eliminating one of the few remaining public signs of their existence – their own distinctive cemeteries – and to force them to abide by Muslim rites as yet another means to force Baha'is to deny their faith," said Ms. Ala'i.
The most well-known of these incidents has been the effort since April by the Revolutionary Guards in Shiraz to destroy the historic Baha'i cemetery there to make way for a new sports and cultural complex.
That effort is continuing, despite a call for a halt to that work in September by three UN human rights experts. Recent reports say the construction work is ongoing, and some 5,000–6,000 square meters of land have now been excavated or built upon.
"It goes beyond common justice that Iranian Baha'is not only face widespread persecution across the entire span of their lives – deprived of education, jobs, and freedom of worship – but that they also are repeatedly being denied the dignity of a decent burial," said Ms. Ala'i.
Other incidents in this campaign include:
● The case of Ziba Rouhani, who died in October in Tabriz. For at least eight days, she was refused burial in the Tabriz Baha'i cemetery by local officials unless she were to be buried without a casket, which would be contrary to Baha'i burial laws.
● The case of Miss Mahna Samandari, a talented young girl who became disabled, who passed away recently in Tabriz at the age of 11. Reports received in November said she was also denied burial in the cemetery in Tabriz.
● In November, government authorities closed the Baha'i cemetery in Mahmoudiyeh in Isfahan province, saying Baha'is would no longer be allowed to be buried there.
● In June in Tabriz, reports emerged that officials had refused to allow the burial of Tuba Yeganehpour and two other Baha'is in the public cemetery there.
● In April, the grave of a prominent Baha'i buried in the Baha'i cemetery in Sabzevar was destroyed by a bulldozer by an unknown individual. As with other such incidents in recent years, it is clear that no one could use this type of heavy equipment without the sanction of the authorities.
● In an eight month period in the city of Tabriz, the remains of at least 15 Baha'is have been refused burial in the public cemetery there, and their families have been forced to send them to another city.
"In recent years, more than 40 Baha'i cemeteries have been attacked, vandalized or closed, and in numerous cases the burial of Baha'is has been blocked or interfered with by authorities," said Diane Ala'i, the representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.
"The overall pattern that emerges is of a government-coordinated effort to make Baha'is invisible in Iran by eliminating one of the few remaining public signs of their existence – their own distinctive cemeteries – and to force them to abide by Muslim rites as yet another means to force Baha'is to deny their faith," said Ms. Ala'i.
The most well-known of these incidents has been the effort since April by the Revolutionary Guards in Shiraz to destroy the historic Baha'i cemetery there to make way for a new sports and cultural complex.
That effort is continuing, despite a call for a halt to that work in September by three UN human rights experts. Recent reports say the construction work is ongoing, and some 5,000–6,000 square meters of land have now been excavated or built upon.
"It goes beyond common justice that Iranian Baha'is not only face widespread persecution across the entire span of their lives – deprived of education, jobs, and freedom of worship – but that they also are repeatedly being denied the dignity of a decent burial," said Ms. Ala'i.
Other incidents in this campaign include:
● The case of Ziba Rouhani, who died in October in Tabriz. For at least eight days, she was refused burial in the Tabriz Baha'i cemetery by local officials unless she were to be buried without a casket, which would be contrary to Baha'i burial laws.
● The case of Miss Mahna Samandari, a talented young girl who became disabled, who passed away recently in Tabriz at the age of 11. Reports received in November said she was also denied burial in the cemetery in Tabriz.
● In November, government authorities closed the Baha'i cemetery in Mahmoudiyeh in Isfahan province, saying Baha'is would no longer be allowed to be buried there.
● In June in Tabriz, reports emerged that officials had refused to allow the burial of Tuba Yeganehpour and two other Baha'is in the public cemetery there.
● In April, the grave of a prominent Baha'i buried in the Baha'i cemetery in Sabzevar was destroyed by a bulldozer by an unknown individual. As with other such incidents in recent years, it is clear that no one could use this type of heavy equipment without the sanction of the authorities.
● In an eight month period in the city of Tabriz, the remains of at least 15 Baha'is have been refused burial in the public cemetery there, and their families have been forced to send them to another city.