Persecution of Bahá'ís in Iran

The following excerpted from a press release issued by the European Parliament Delegation for Iran on July 9, 2009:

Angelika Beer, Chair of the EP Delegation for Iran, has issued a call for the release of the seven leading figures of the Bahá’í religious community who have been in custody more than a year (since May 2008). If in the near future a trial is held, Mrs. Beer urges that the proceedings be free, fair and open. Mrs. Beer says that the leaders of the Bahá’í religious community could be subjected, in the next few days, to a trial that does not even meet the most basic requirements of the rule of law. The Bahá’í leaders have been denied legal counselling for the first eight months of their imprisonment. One of their lawyers has been in incommunicado detention for the last few weeks, while Shirin Ebadi, the well-known lawyer and human rights activist who is also entrusted with their defence, has been out of Iran since early June. The EP has on many occasions expressed concern over the treatment of the Bahà’i religious community in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The EP considers that nobody should be prosecuted on the basis of their religious beliefs and activities. MEPs will debate the situation in Iran following the contested elections next Wednesday during the plenary session in Strasbourg, France.

Tags: Angelika Beer, Baha'i arrests, Bahai, bahai leaders, EP Delegation, European Parliment Delegation, Iran, Yaran