Baha'is as a Middle East Controversy

news about imprisoned Iranian Baha'is

SEVEN JAILED IRANIAN BAHA'IS MAKE BRIEF CONTACT WITH FAMILIES

NEW YORK, 19 June 2008 (BWNS) -- Seven prominent Baha'is imprisoned in Iran have each been allowed a brief phone call to their families, the Baha'i International Community has learned.

The calls were the first contact with the jailed Baha'is since six of them were arrested on 14 May in pre-dawn raids at their homes in Tehran. The seventh was arrested in March in the city of Mashhad.

The Baha'i International Community has learned that on 3 June, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet and Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi were permitted to make short phone calls to their families. Mrs. Sabet had been detained in Mashhad on 5 March but on 26 May was transferred to Evin Prison in Tehran, where it is believed the others are also being held.

Later it was confirmed that Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm also have made brief phone calls to their families.

No charges have been filed against any of the seven, who comprise the entire membership of a coordinating committee that saw to the minimal needs of the 300,000-member Baha'i community of Iran.

In 1980, all nine members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Iran were taken away and presumed killed as they were never heard from again. A year later, after the Assembly had been reconstituted, eight of the nine members were arrested and killed.

Besides the seven committee members imprisoned in Tehran, about 15 other Baha'is are currently detained in Iran, some incommunicado and most with no formal charges.






To view the photos and additional features click here:
Bahá'í World News Service - Bahá'í International Community

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Baha'i protest
Marj Belessis

21 June 2008


Cover story
SYDNEY film-maker Mehrzad Mumtahan, a fifth-generation Baha'i, felt the scourge of religious persecution as a child living in Iran through the Islamic revolution of 1979.

The recent arrest of his uncle, along with other Baha'i leaders in Iran, is the latest bitter reminder that, almost 30 years later, the oppression continues.

Mehrzad and relatives of other leaders in detention will speak of their concerns for the safety of their loved ones at a National Refugee Week gathering at the Baha'i national centre at Ingleside tomorrow.

``I have vivid memories of persecution,'' he told The Manly Daily. ``We had to run away from our house in our pyjamas, other people looted the house and took everything away. As a child you lose things you are attached to ...

``We didn't have any accommodation we'd spend a night here, a week there. Dad bought six blankets and we stayed wherever we could, sometimes with another five families.''
Mehrzad was 10 when the revolution came, and although the Baha'is had experienced persecution under the rule of the former Shah of Iran, the oppression continued with a vengeance under the fundamentalist regime of the Ayatollah Khomeini.

The rights of Iran's 300,000-strong Baha'i community to worship the way they wished, to be educated and to work were systematically stripped.

In August, 1980, all nine members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Iran were abducted and disappeared without a trace. The assembly was reconstituted soon afterwards but was again ravaged when eight of its members were executed the following year.

Since 1979 it is estimated that more than 200 Baha'is have been killed or executed in Iran, although none have been executed since 1998.

When Mehrzad was 17, he and his 19-year-old brother decided to leave Iran.

``I had been expelled from school, we were suffering very severe persecution at the time, we couldn't work, we had no passports. I wanted to get an education,'' he said.

``We were smuggled across the border into Pakistan, dressed as Pakistanis, as part of a group of 14 people of all faiths and different parts of Iranian society.

Read more:

The Manly Daily | Manly Local News
 
I hope the next president of Iran will be a true Muslim and stand for religious liberty as the Qur'an itself defends.
 
Maybe so but I think that since Iran has already signed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by being a member of the United Nations that legally they are already bound to recognize freedom of belief and the right to change ones' belief.;)

- Art
 
arthra said:
Maybe so but I think that since Iran has already signed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by being a member of the United Nations that legally they are already bound to recognize freedom of belief and the right to change ones' belief.;)

- Art
Click to expand...

Yep. They are bound by international law to respect religious liberty. Best case scenario: both the President of Iran and the Ayatollah agree to allow Baha'is to be Baha'is.

The Iranian Constitution recognizes Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism. Islam itself, in the Qur'an, guarantees religious liberty. So not only by international law, but also by Islamic law (in the Qur'an) religious liberty is guaranteed.
 
The United Arab Emirates deserves praise!

They have ID cards where Baha'i is an option! Number nine! (that's what I heard)
 
Nobel Laureates call for release of Baha'i prisoners

NOBEL LAUREATES CALL FOR RELEASE OF IRANIAN BAHA'I PRISONERS

NEW YORK, 30 June 2008 (BWNS) -- Six Nobel Peace Prize laureates have issued a statement calling on the Iranian government to free immediately seven prominent Iranian Baha'is imprisoned in Tehran.

The six Nobel winners, under the banner of the Nobel Women's Initiative, called on the Iranian government to guarantee the safety of the Baha'is -- being held in Evin Prison with no formal charges and no access to lawyers -- and to grant them an unconditional release.

"We are thankful to these internationally prominent activists for calling publicly for the release of our fellow Baha'is, who are detained for no reason other than their religion," said Bani Dugal, principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations.

The Nobel laureates supporting the statement are:
-- Betty Williams and Mairead Corrigan Maguire, founders of the Peace People in Northern Ireland and winners of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976;
-- Rigoberta Menchu Tum, a leading advocate of ethno-cultural reconciliation in her native Guatemala and Nobel winner in 1992;
-- Professor Jody Williams, international campaigner for the banning of land mines, winner in 1997;
-- Iranian human rights lawyer Dr. Shirin Ebadi, winner in 2003;
-- Kenyan environmental activist Professor Wangari Muta Maathai, Nobel winner in 2004.

Their statement, issued on the letterhead of the Nobel Women's Initiative, reads:

"We note with concern the news of the arrest of six prominent Baha'is in Iran on 14 May 2008. We note that Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm are members of the informal group known as the Friends in Iran that coordinates the activities of the Baha'i community in Iran; we further note that another member of the Friends in Iran, Mrs Mahvash Sabet, has been held in custody since 5 March 2008; we register our deepest concern at the mounting threats and persecution of the Iranian Baha'i community.

"We call on the Iranian Government to guarantee the safety of these individuals (and) grant their immediate unconditional release."

The Nobel Women's Initiative was established in 2006 by the six women laureates - representing North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa - to contribute to building peace by working together with women around the world. Only 12 women have ever won the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Nobel Women's Initiative maintains an office in Ottawa, Canada.





To view the photos and additional features click here:
http://news.bahai.org
 
Re: Nobel Laureates call for release of Baha'i prisoners

arthra said:
"We note with concern the news of the arrest of six prominent Baha'is in Iran on 14 May 2008. We note that Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm are members of the informal group known as the Friends in Iran that coordinates the activities of the Baha'i community in Iran; we further note that another member of the Friends in Iran, Mrs Mahvash Sabet, has been held in custody since 5 March 2008; we register our deepest concern at the mounting threats and persecution of the Iranian Baha'i community.

"We call on the Iranian Government to guarantee the safety of these individuals (and) grant their immediate unconditional release."
Click to expand...

Hopefully, hopefully, they will be set free.

"Let there be no compulsion in religion." The Holy Qur'an, Yusuf Ali translation
 
"I went to admit my daughter to a school but..."

Baha’i children in Egypt not being admitted to schools because of their faith

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July 1st, 2008 by Admin
According to “The Egyptian Today,” a prominent newspaper in Egypt, schools in Cairo refused enrollment of Baha’i students after having received instructions not to accept applicants who are neither Muslim nor Christian.
Parents have filed a complaint with the Ministry of Education, but have yet to receive a response from any relevant officials. The deadline for school admissions was yesterday. Parents do not know the fate of their Baha’i children, who are being refused their education (despite them being citizens) simply because of their faith.
Yousef Labib, the child’s parent, said in a statement to al Masry Al Youm: “I went to admit my daughter to a school, but its administration refused to accept students who do not state their religion in their birth certificates.” Only Islam and Christianity are accepted as religions, without allowing Baha’i parents to discuss the matter further.
According to Labib, other Baha’i parents have already filed complains for the same purpose, but no action has been taken and these children do not know whether or not they will be able to receive a formal education during the next school year.
Iranian Baha’is have a similar problem, with citizens being deprived of their education due to their religion. We hope that Egypt will not be comparable with such extreme mistreatment, and that Baha’is will soon be treated as citizens with rights that the government is required to respect.
Why are Baha’is being the denied the right to education? For many years people have been asking this question, and yet still, not a single government official from either Iran or Egypt has offered a legitimate response.
Please leave a comment on this article and express your outrage on the absurdity of children being refused their education simply because of their faith. This is a clear abuse of the most basic human rights!
For further information you may also read this article by the Daily News Egypt. Quoting the source:
The Interior Ministry, however, has been slow in implementing the court decision and producing identity cards with a blank religious affiliation field.
​
We issued a comic inspired by this issue. You may view it again here.


Filed under : Religious freedom, Egypt, Human Rights
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3 Comments »
 
I've said it before, but I'll say it again. Maybe we should all say it over and over and over until there is religious liberty for everyone.

The Qur'an guarantees freedom of religion.

"Let there be no compulsion in religoin." -The Holy Qur'an, Yusuf Ali translation
 
Violence against Baha'is in Iran escalates...

ARSONISTS IN IRAN TARGET BAHA'I HOMES, VEHICLES

NEW YORK, 28 July 2008 (BWNS) -- Acts of arson targeting homes and vehicles are the latest violent tactics directed against the Baha'is of Iran.

"In the early hours of the morning of 18 July, the house of the Shaaker family in Kerman went up in flames, only weeks after their car had been torched and in the wake of a series of threatening phone calls," said Bani Dugal, principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations.

"As would be expected in the light of the mistreatment Baha'is in Iran are routinely receiving, the officials who investigated the fire either ignored or dismissed obvious signs of suspicious activity, including a muffled explosion, simply saying that it was the result of an electrical problem," she said.

At least a dozen cases of arson that target Baha'is have been reported in Iran in the last 15 months, Ms. Dugal said. She gave the following examples:

-- On 15 July at 1:15 a.m., Molotov cocktails were thrown into the front courtyard of the home of Khusraw Dehghani and his wife, Dr. Huma Agahi, in Vilashahr, only months after anonymous threats directly related to her being a Baha'i forced Dr. Agahi to close her clinic in nearby Najafabad where she had practiced medicine for 28 years.

-- On 25 July, the car of a prominent Baha'i in Rafsanjan, in Kerman province, was torched and destroyed by arsonists on motorbikes. Soheil Naeimi, the owner of the car, and 10 other Baha'i families in the town had received threatening letters from a group calling itself the Anti-Baha'ism Movement of the Youth of Rafsanjan that, among other things, threatened jihad (holy war) against the Baha'is.

-- On 10 June, an outbuilding on the property of the Mr. and Mrs. Mousavi, elderly Baha'is living in the village of Tangriz in Fars province, was destroyed by fire when it was doused with gasoline. The Mousavis, along with their two sons who were sleeping close to the building, narrowly escaped injury when the gasoline tank used to start the fire exploded. The Mousavis believe that the perpetrator thought they were all sleeping in the hut when he set the fire. Mr. Mousavi issued a formal complaint against the person they suspected, but the legal office has declined to pursue the case because the suspect swore on the Qur'an that he was not guilty. Out of respect for the Qur'an, the Mousavis have dropped the charges.

-- On 4 April, the home of a Baha'i was set on fire in Babolsar, in the north of Iran.

-- In February in Shiraz, a 53-year-old businessman was attacked on the street, chained to a tree, doused with gasoline, and assaulted by unknown persons who then attempted to throw lighted matches at him.

-- Also in Shiraz in February, several arson attempts were made against vehicles and a home belonging to Baha'is.

-- On 1 May 2007, arson destroyed the home of 'Abdu'l-Baqi Rouhani in the village of Ivil, in Mazandaran.

-- In Karaj, the burial section of a Baha'i cemetery was set on fire.

"These latest attacks follow the authorities' attempts to deprive the Iranian Baha'i community of its leadership," Ms. Dugal said, referring to the arrests in March and May this year of the seven members of Iran's national Baha'i coordinating group, all of whom are still locked up in Evin Prison in Tehran without any charges and without access to an attorney or to their families.

"As Baha'is worldwide watch with alarm this escalation in violence," she added, "their fears that a sinister plan of persecution is unfolding become increasingly confirmed. Their only hope is that enough voices of protests are raised around the world to compel the government in Iran to put an end to this violence."


To view the photos and additional features click here:
http://news.bahai.org
 
Near unanimous support from US House of Representatives

Bahais in Valley are grateful for support

August 9, 2008 The Bahai Community of the Lehigh Valley is grateful to Rep. Charlie Dent and the U.S. House of Representatives for their Aug. 1 nearly unanimous vote on House Resolution 1008 condemning Iran for its persecution of the members of the Bahai Faith. In May, seven Bahai leaders were arrested, held incommunicado, and now stand falsely accused of being Zionist conspirators.

Since its founding in 1844, the Bahai community has been subject to severe repression in Iran. Especially since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, it has been the victim of the unrelenting wrath of fanatical clergy and government.

While the Lehigh Valley Bahai community is confident in the ultimate victory of good over evil, we fear that the immediate future poses a grave threat to this beleaguered community. Though the much-appreciated House Resolution may not persuade Iran's officials, one hopes awareness of these grave injustices will cause the good people of America, Iran and the world to stand firmly against this fanaticism, hatred and intolerance.

Jim West

Source:

Bahais in Valley are grateful for support -- themorningcall.com
 
Barred from college...the story of Sattar Khoshkhoo:

"Sattar Khoshkhoo came to the United States from Iran four years ago, escaping a government that would not allow him to attend college because of his Baha'i faith.
His family had been living a comfortable life in Iran, his dad working as a dentist, his mom as a homemaker. But they realized that if their older child was going to get a college education, they had to leave.
"The Muslim majority does not recognize my religion as an official religion," Khoshkhoo said. "They can take away your rights, make it difficult to get jobs. I could not go to a university."
After spending nine months in Turkey waiting to be granted refugee status, Khoshkhoo and his family settled in Moorpark, where an uncle already lived. Two days after moving here, Khoshkhoo started classes at Moorpark High School, speaking only conversational English.
From the start, Khoshkhoo flourished in math and science classes, which rely more on numbers than language. Then, over the following summer, he took two English classes so he could keep up in English and history.

Read more at

Barred from college in Iran, Moorpark resident excels at studies in the U.S. : Local News : Ventura County Star
 
Re: Barred from college...the story of Sattar Khoshkhoo:

arthra said:
"Sattar Khoshkhoo came to the United States from Iran four years ago, escaping a government that would not allow him to attend college because of his Baha'i faith.
His family had been living a comfortable life in Iran, his dad working as a dentist, his mom as a homemaker. But they realized that if their older child was going to get a college education, they had to leave.
"The Muslim majority does not recognize my religion as an official religion," Khoshkhoo said. "They can take away your rights, make it difficult to get jobs. I could not go to a university."
After spending nine months in Turkey waiting to be granted refugee status, Khoshkhoo and his family settled in Moorpark, where an uncle already lived. Two days after moving here, Khoshkhoo started classes at Moorpark High School, speaking only conversational English.
From the start, Khoshkhoo flourished in math and science classes, which rely more on numbers than language. Then, over the following summer, he took two English classes so he could keep up in English and history.

Read more at

Barred from college in Iran, Moorpark resident excels at studies in the U.S. : Local News : Ventura County Star
Click to expand...
The resiliance of the human spirit regardless of faith, is phenominal.

/r

Q
 
Irrational fears and prejuduces being spread...

IRANIAN MEDIA ATTACKS ON BAHA'IS AND NOBEL PRIZE WINNER SHIRIN EBADI SEEK TO STIR "IRRATIONAL FEARS AND PREJUDICES"

NEW YORK, 12 August 2008 (BWNS) -- Fraudulent claims in the Iranian news media about seven imprisoned Baha'i leaders and the efforts of Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi and others to defend them represent an effort by the government to prevent Baha'is from having adequate legal representation - and also to stir up "irrational fears and prejudices," the Baha'i International Community said in a statement today.

"Reports published in government-run news outlets point to an effort on the part of the authorities to use the mass media to spread accusations that the seven prisoners have engaged in subversive activities, and to continue to deprive these Baha'is from any access to legal counsel by maligning Mrs. Shirin Ebadi, the well-known Iranian human rights lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize winner who, together with her colleagues, has stated her readiness to defend the Baha'is," said the statement.

The statement, posted to the Baha'i International Community's United Nations Office Web site, responds to allegations that Mrs. Ebadi's her daughter has become a Baha'i, that Baha'is are agents of Zionism, and that when Iranian Baha'is communicate with the Baha'i Faith's international governing body in Israel, it is somehow a "conspiracy."

"The Iranian government seizes every means at its disposal to stigmatize the Baha'is and then, within the poisoned atmosphere it has itself created, when it wants to discredit someone, it asserts that the person is a Baha'i," the statement said. "Mrs. Ebadi is not the first individual upon whom this tactic has been used. As a lawyer, Mrs. Ebadi defends individuals and groups of many different backgrounds; this does not mean that she necessarily espouses their beliefs. What, then, is the state-sanctioned press trying to insinuate when it contends that her daughter is a Baha'i?"

The full statement can be read at:

http://bic.org/statements-and-reports/featured/Iran-Intensifies-Disinformation.htm



To view the photos and additional features click here:
http://news.bahai.org
 
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