Persecution of Baha'is
Persecution of Baháʼís occurs in various countries, especially in Iran, where the Baháʼí Faith originated and where one of the largest Baháʼí populations in the world is located. The origins of the persecution stem from a variety of Baháʼí teachings which are inconsistent with traditional Islamic beliefs, including the finality of Muhammad's prophethood, and the placement of Baháʼís outside the Islamic religion. Thus, Baháʼís are seen as apostates from Islam.
Baháʼí spokespeople, as well as the United Nations, Amnesty International, the European Union, the United States, and peer-reviewed academic literature have stated that the members of the Baháʼí community in Iran have been subjected to unwarranted arrests, false imprisonment, beatings, torture, unjustified executions, confiscation and destruction of property owned by Baháʼí individuals and the Baháʼí community, denial of employment, denial of government benefits, denial of civil rights and liberties, and denial of access to higher education. Baháʼís have also been significantly persecuted in Egypt.
Baha'is in Iran
... Baháʼís are considered apostates by the Shi'a clergy because of their claim to a valid religious revelation subsequent to that of Mohammed. The Baháʼí Faith is defined by the Government as a political "sect," historically linked to the Pahlavi regime and, hence, counterrevolutionary, even though one of the tenets of the Baháʼí Faith is non-involvement in partisan politics.
Baháʼís may not teach or practice their faith or maintain links with coreligionists abroad. The fact that the Baháʼí world headquarters (established by the founder of the Baháʼí Faith in the 19th century, in what was then Ottoman-controlled Palestine) is situated in what is now the state of Israel, allows the Iranian government to charge the Baháʼís with "espionage on behalf of Zionism," in particular when caught communicating with or sending monetary contributions to the Baháʼí headquarters.
Broad restrictions on Baháʼís appear to be aimed at destroying them as a community. Baháʼís repeatedly have been offered relief from mistreatment in exchange for recanting their faith. Baháʼí cemeteries, holy places, historical sites, administrative centers, and other assets were seized shortly after the 1979 revolution. None of the properties have been returned, and many have been destroyed.
Baháʼís are not allowed to bury and honor their dead in keeping with their religious tradition. They are permitted access only to areas of wasteland that the Government designates for their use, and are not allowed to mark the graves. Many historic Baháʼí gravesites have been desecrated or destroyed. In 2000 in the city of Abadeh, a Revolutionary Guard officer bulldozed a Baháʼí cemetery with 22 graves.
In what appeared to be a hopeful development, in 2002 the Government offered the Tehran community a piece of land for use as a cemetery. However, the land was in the desert, with no access to water, making it impossible to perform Baháʼí mourning rituals. In addition the Government stipulated that no markers be put on individual graves and that no mortuary facilities be built on the site, making it impossible to perform a proper burial.
Baháʼí group meetings and religious education, which often take place in private homes and offices, are curtailed severely. Public and private universities continue to deny admittance to Baháʼí students, a particularly demoralizing blow to a community that traditionally has placed a high value on education. Denial of access to higher education appears aimed at the eventual impoverishment of the Baháʼí community.
Baháʼís regularly are denied compensation for injury or criminal victimization. Government authorities claim that only Muslim plaintiffs are eligible for compensation in these circumstances.
In 1993, the UNSR reported the existence of a government policy directive regarding the Baháʼís. According to the directive, the Supreme Revolutionary Council instructed government agencies to block the progress and development of the Baháʼí community, expel Baháʼí students from universities, cut Baháʼí links with groups outside the country, restrict employment of Baháʼís, and deny Baháʼís "positions of influence," including in education. The Government claims that the directive is a forgery. However, it appears to be an accurate reflection of current government practice designed to eradicate slowly the Baháʼí community.
In September 2001, the Ministry of Justice issued a report that reiterated that government policy continued to aim at the eventual elimination of the Baháʼís as a community. It stated in part that Baháʼís would only be permitted to enroll in schools if they did not identify themselves as Baháʼís, and that Baháʼís preferably should be enrolled in schools that have a strong and imposing religious ideology. The report also stated that Baháʼís must be expelled from universities, either in the admission process or during the course of their studies, once it becomes known that they are Baháʼís.
While in recent years the Government has eased some restrictions, thereby enabling Baháʼís to obtain food-ration booklets and send their children to public elementary and secondary schools, the prohibition against the admission of Baháʼís to universities remains. Thousands of Baháʼís dismissed from government jobs in the early 1980s receive no unemployment benefits and have been required to repay the Government for salaries or pensions received from the first day of employment. Those unable to do so face prison sentences.
Iran has taken some positive steps in recognizing the rights of Baháʼís, as well as other religious minorities. In November 1999, President Khatami publicly stated that no one in the country should be persecuted because of their religious beliefs. He added that he would defend the civil rights of all citizens, regardless of their beliefs or religion. Subsequently, the Expediency Council approved the "Right of Citizenship" bill, affirming the social and political rights of all citizens and their equality before the law.
In February 2000, following approval of the bill, the head of the judiciary issued a circular letter to all registry offices throughout the country that provided for any couple to be registered as husband and wife without being required to state their religious affiliation. The measure effectively permits the registration of Baháʼí marriages in the country. Previously Baháʼí marriages were not recognized by the Government, leaving Baháʼí women open to charges of prostitution. Thus children of Baháʼí marriages were not recognized as legitimate and therefore denied inheritance rights.
According to a U.S. panel, attacks on Baháʼís in Iran have increased since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president as well as Sunni Muslims. On May 14, 2008, members of an informal body known as the Friends that oversaw the needs of the Baháʼí community in Iran were arrested and taken to Evin prison. Officers from the Ministry of Intelligence in Tehran searched and raided the homes of the six people in the early hours of May 14. The arrest of the six follow the detention of another Baháʼí leader in March, who was originally taken to answer questions relating to the burial of a Baháʼí in the Baháʼí cemetery in Mashad. They have not been charged, and are prisoners of conscience.
The Iran Human Rights Documentation Center has stated that they are concerned for the safety of the Baháʼís, and that the recent events are similar to the disappearance of 25 Baháʼí leaders in the early 1980s. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom has stated that it fears that the "development signals a return to the darkest days of repression in Iran in the 1980s when Baha'is were routinely arrested, imprisoned, and executed."
Geneva, June 10, 2020, The Baháʼí International Community (BIC) issued a statement on the situation of Baháʼís in Iran, expressing concern over the "unprecedented number of new prison sentences, re-incarceration and a media campaign of hatred, are raising concerns of the long-persecuted religious minority in the country.," "re-incarceration," and "media disgusting campaign" against Baháʼís in Iran. According to the statement, the Iranian authorities have ramped up their persecution of the Baháʼís, targeting at least 71 individuals across the country in recent weeks. Reports of new threats to “uproot” the community in Shiraz.
Persecution of Baháʼís occurs in various countries, especially in Iran, where the Baháʼí Faith originated and where one of the largest Baháʼí populations in the world is located. The origins of the persecution stem from a variety of Baháʼí teachings which are inconsistent with traditional Islamic beliefs, including the finality of Muhammad's prophethood, and the placement of Baháʼís outside the Islamic religion. Thus, Baháʼís are seen as apostates from Islam.
Baháʼí spokespeople, as well as the United Nations, Amnesty International, the European Union, the United States, and peer-reviewed academic literature have stated that the members of the Baháʼí community in Iran have been subjected to unwarranted arrests, false imprisonment, beatings, torture, unjustified executions, confiscation and destruction of property owned by Baháʼí individuals and the Baháʼí community, denial of employment, denial of government benefits, denial of civil rights and liberties, and denial of access to higher education. Baháʼís have also been significantly persecuted in Egypt.
Baha'is in Iran
... Baháʼís are considered apostates by the Shi'a clergy because of their claim to a valid religious revelation subsequent to that of Mohammed. The Baháʼí Faith is defined by the Government as a political "sect," historically linked to the Pahlavi regime and, hence, counterrevolutionary, even though one of the tenets of the Baháʼí Faith is non-involvement in partisan politics.
Baháʼís may not teach or practice their faith or maintain links with coreligionists abroad. The fact that the Baháʼí world headquarters (established by the founder of the Baháʼí Faith in the 19th century, in what was then Ottoman-controlled Palestine) is situated in what is now the state of Israel, allows the Iranian government to charge the Baháʼís with "espionage on behalf of Zionism," in particular when caught communicating with or sending monetary contributions to the Baháʼí headquarters.
Broad restrictions on Baháʼís appear to be aimed at destroying them as a community. Baháʼís repeatedly have been offered relief from mistreatment in exchange for recanting their faith. Baháʼí cemeteries, holy places, historical sites, administrative centers, and other assets were seized shortly after the 1979 revolution. None of the properties have been returned, and many have been destroyed.
Baháʼís are not allowed to bury and honor their dead in keeping with their religious tradition. They are permitted access only to areas of wasteland that the Government designates for their use, and are not allowed to mark the graves. Many historic Baháʼí gravesites have been desecrated or destroyed. In 2000 in the city of Abadeh, a Revolutionary Guard officer bulldozed a Baháʼí cemetery with 22 graves.
In what appeared to be a hopeful development, in 2002 the Government offered the Tehran community a piece of land for use as a cemetery. However, the land was in the desert, with no access to water, making it impossible to perform Baháʼí mourning rituals. In addition the Government stipulated that no markers be put on individual graves and that no mortuary facilities be built on the site, making it impossible to perform a proper burial.
Baháʼí group meetings and religious education, which often take place in private homes and offices, are curtailed severely. Public and private universities continue to deny admittance to Baháʼí students, a particularly demoralizing blow to a community that traditionally has placed a high value on education. Denial of access to higher education appears aimed at the eventual impoverishment of the Baháʼí community.
Baháʼís regularly are denied compensation for injury or criminal victimization. Government authorities claim that only Muslim plaintiffs are eligible for compensation in these circumstances.
In 1993, the UNSR reported the existence of a government policy directive regarding the Baháʼís. According to the directive, the Supreme Revolutionary Council instructed government agencies to block the progress and development of the Baháʼí community, expel Baháʼí students from universities, cut Baháʼí links with groups outside the country, restrict employment of Baháʼís, and deny Baháʼís "positions of influence," including in education. The Government claims that the directive is a forgery. However, it appears to be an accurate reflection of current government practice designed to eradicate slowly the Baháʼí community.
In September 2001, the Ministry of Justice issued a report that reiterated that government policy continued to aim at the eventual elimination of the Baháʼís as a community. It stated in part that Baháʼís would only be permitted to enroll in schools if they did not identify themselves as Baháʼís, and that Baháʼís preferably should be enrolled in schools that have a strong and imposing religious ideology. The report also stated that Baháʼís must be expelled from universities, either in the admission process or during the course of their studies, once it becomes known that they are Baháʼís.
While in recent years the Government has eased some restrictions, thereby enabling Baháʼís to obtain food-ration booklets and send their children to public elementary and secondary schools, the prohibition against the admission of Baháʼís to universities remains. Thousands of Baháʼís dismissed from government jobs in the early 1980s receive no unemployment benefits and have been required to repay the Government for salaries or pensions received from the first day of employment. Those unable to do so face prison sentences.
Iran has taken some positive steps in recognizing the rights of Baháʼís, as well as other religious minorities. In November 1999, President Khatami publicly stated that no one in the country should be persecuted because of their religious beliefs. He added that he would defend the civil rights of all citizens, regardless of their beliefs or religion. Subsequently, the Expediency Council approved the "Right of Citizenship" bill, affirming the social and political rights of all citizens and their equality before the law.
In February 2000, following approval of the bill, the head of the judiciary issued a circular letter to all registry offices throughout the country that provided for any couple to be registered as husband and wife without being required to state their religious affiliation. The measure effectively permits the registration of Baháʼí marriages in the country. Previously Baháʼí marriages were not recognized by the Government, leaving Baháʼí women open to charges of prostitution. Thus children of Baháʼí marriages were not recognized as legitimate and therefore denied inheritance rights.
According to a U.S. panel, attacks on Baháʼís in Iran have increased since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president as well as Sunni Muslims. On May 14, 2008, members of an informal body known as the Friends that oversaw the needs of the Baháʼí community in Iran were arrested and taken to Evin prison. Officers from the Ministry of Intelligence in Tehran searched and raided the homes of the six people in the early hours of May 14. The arrest of the six follow the detention of another Baháʼí leader in March, who was originally taken to answer questions relating to the burial of a Baháʼí in the Baháʼí cemetery in Mashad. They have not been charged, and are prisoners of conscience.
The Iran Human Rights Documentation Center has stated that they are concerned for the safety of the Baháʼís, and that the recent events are similar to the disappearance of 25 Baháʼí leaders in the early 1980s. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom has stated that it fears that the "development signals a return to the darkest days of repression in Iran in the 1980s when Baha'is were routinely arrested, imprisoned, and executed."
Geneva, June 10, 2020, The Baháʼí International Community (BIC) issued a statement on the situation of Baháʼís in Iran, expressing concern over the "unprecedented number of new prison sentences, re-incarceration and a media campaign of hatred, are raising concerns of the long-persecuted religious minority in the country.," "re-incarceration," and "media disgusting campaign" against Baháʼís in Iran. According to the statement, the Iranian authorities have ramped up their persecution of the Baháʼís, targeting at least 71 individuals across the country in recent weeks. Reports of new threats to “uproot” the community in Shiraz.
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