Persecution of Bahá'ís in Iran

On March 9, 2010, Voice of America published an editorial drawing further attention to the plight of Iran’s Baha’i community. In it, Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner is quoted condemning Iran’s post-election crackdown and calling on the country to observe religious freedom, among its other human rights treaty obligations.

“The United States strongly condemns the recent violent and unjust suppression of innocent Iranian citizens,” said Assistant Secretary of State Posner. He called on the government of Iran, among other measures, to uphold its constitutional provisions guaranteeing freedom of worship, end its severe restrictions on the rights to free expression, association and assembly, and respect all of its international human rights treaty obligations.

• Read the full article

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On March 8, the RFE/RL blog “Watchdog” published a Q&A with D.C.-area Baha’i Sovaida Ma’ani Ewing about the persecution of Iran’s Baha’i religious minority. The interview specifically addresses the ongoing trial of seven Baha’i leaders, which is expected to continue in Tehran on April 10, 2010.

Here’s an excerpt of the interview…

RFE/RL: For the seven who are now on trial, do they have lawyers representing them in court, and what is the basis of their charges?

Ma’ani Ewing: The seven right now are being represented by Shirin Ebadi, the famous Nobel laureate, but right now she’s out of the country fleeing for her own life. She has a human rights center in Iran that has lawyers, some of who were appointed to represent the Baha’is. With these seven, the next lawyer they were assigned, Abdolfattah Soltani, was promptly put in prison. They were finally given the dossier of charges, but there’s been absolutely no evidence to support these charges. Initially, they weren’t even going to allow the lawyers into court on February 8, so they had to argue their way in. There is no due process in the way that we understand it here in the West.

• Read the full interview

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On February 23, 2010, Human Rights Watch issued the following statement calling on Iran to end its persecution of the country’s Baha’i minority.

The Iranian government should immediately stop harassing and arbitrarily detaining members of the Baha’i community, Human Rights Watch said today.

The detention of 13 Baha’is on February 10 and 11 follows the arrest of 13 others in early January. The government alleges that those arrested in January helped to organize recent anti-government demonstrations but has not made public any charges against those detained in February. These arrests come during a broad government crackdown on opposition activists.

“The Iranian government seems to be using the post-election unrest as a cover for targeting the Baha’i community,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “These arrests are only the latest chapter in the government’s systematic persecution of the Baha’i.”

• Read the full statement from Human Rights Watch

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The third court session for seven Baha’i leaders imprisoned in Iran is scheduled for April 10, a day earlier than originally announced.

Diane Ala’i, representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva, said attorneys in Iran have now received written notice of the court date, confirming it as Saturday, April 10. The earlier notification was oral.

The seven defendants have been imprisoned since 2008 and only last month were presented with formal charges – including espionage and “corruption on earth” – which they categorically deny.

Read more from the Baha’i World News Service

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The trial proceedings for seven Iranian Baha’i leaders who have been in prison for nearly two years will continue on Sunday, April 11, according to information conveyed orally to their attorneys.

Government-sponsored news media reported that at their first hearing on January 12, 2010, the seven were charged with espionage, propaganda activities against the Islamic order, the establishment of an illegal administration, cooperation with Israel, sending secret documents outside the country, acting against the security of the country, and corruption on earth.

The defendants categorically deny all accusations.

A second hearing, held on February 7, dealt mainly with procedural matters.

The seven are Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm. They were responsible for tending to the spiritual and social needs of Iran’s 300,000 Baha’is, after formal Baha’i institutions were dissolved in 1983.

The court proceedings coincide with the recent arrest of more Baha’is in Iran. Thirteen individuals were arrested on January 3; 10 of them are still in custody. Another 13 were detained last week; 11 of them are still in jail.

Currently, there are at least 60 Baha’is imprisoned throughout Iran.

• Read more from the Baha’i World News Service

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On February 17, Amnesty International issued a statement criticizing Iran for rejecting “important recommendations by the United Nations to improve human rights in the country,” including a recommendation that would end descrimination against the nation’s Baha’i minority.

From the statement…

While accepting a recommendation to cooperate with UN’s human rights experts, Iran rejected several others to allow the Council’s Special Rapporteur on torture to visit the country.

The delegation accepted the recommendation to respect freedom of religion but rejected a recommendation to end discrimination against the Bahai’s.

“By rejecting specific recommendations made by dozens of countries the Iranian authorities showed contempt for international obligations just as they have done in their treatment of their own people,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director at Amnesty International.

• Read the full statement from Amnesty International

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On February 16, “Faith Complex,” a program of the Washington Post and Georgetown University, published an interview with  Baha’i author Sovaida Ma’ani Ewing of Washington, D.C. The 11-minute program provides an overview of the past and present persecution of the Baha’i Faith in Iran. Watch it below or via the Washington Post.

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On February 15, 2010, the United States and other member-nations of the U.N. Human Rights Council expressed concern over Iran’s human rights record, particularly since the crackdown that followed the country’s disputed presidential election last June. The session was part of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a relatively new procedure that seeks to review the human rights records of all 192 United Nations member states once every four years. This year is the first time Iran has come up for review.

In the U.S. statement, Assistant Secretary of State Michael H. Posner made the following remarks about the status of religious freedom and the Baha’i minority in Iran:

More than 200 Baha’i leaders have been executed since 1979. We are concerned about the welfare and legal rights of seven Baha’i leaders imprisoned for more than a year and now on trial on unsubstantiated charges. Members of these religious communities, as well as Iran’s Sufi Muslims, are increasingly subject to surveillance, harassment, prolonged arbitrary detention, and unsubstantiated legal proceedings.

According to a statement from the Baha’i International Community, many other countries and human rights groups also spoke out in defense of the Baha’is of Iran.

Brazil called for Iran to extend rights to all religious groups in the country, saying Baha’is should enjoy the same rights as everyone. Mexico said all minorities – particularly the Baha’i community – must be able to practice their religion.

“Romania and Slovenia devoted almost the entire allotment of their time to discussing the increasing repression of Iran’s Baha’i community,” reported Diane Ala’i, representative for the Baha’i International Community.

Human rights groups, in documents filed with the Council, made similar points.

“Despite constitutional guarantees of equality, individuals belonging to minorities in Iran are subject to an array of discriminatory laws and practices,” wrote Amnesty International in its statement. “Minorities suffering persecution include ethnic and linguistic minorities such as Kurds, Arabs, Azerbaijanis, Turkmen and Baluchis, and religious minorities such as Baha’is and the Ahl-e Haq.”

“The government systematically denies rights associated with freedom of religion to members of the Baha’i faith, Iran’s largest non-Muslim religious minority. In most cases, including the persecution of the Baha’i community, the government uses ’security’ as a pretext for detaining individuals and denying them basic due process rights,” said a statement from Human Rights Watch.

News media coverage: Radio Free Europe

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On February 14, 2010, English-language news outlets, including the Associated Press, Reuters and Voice of America, reported that at least five more Baha’is have been arrested in Iran. This follows the arrest of 13 Iranian Baha’is on January 3; ten of whom remain in prison. There are currently around 60 Baha’is in prison throughout Iran, according to the Baha’i World News Service.

In one of the articles, Diane Alá’í of the Bahá’í International Community, told Voice of America:

Thirteen Baha’is were arrested after the Ashoura demonstration; three of them were released after 24 hours; 10 of them are still in prison.  We know that they were first moved to Evin (prison) and then they were taken to the Guajardash prison.  Then, prior to 22 Bahman, which is the 11th of February, 12 Baha’is were arrested, but the information keeps coming out of Iran in bits and pieces … and we have absolutely no news of them.

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Seven imprisoned Baha’i leaders appeared in court yesterday in Iran for the second closed session of their trial.

Family members were not permitted into the courtroom and the hearing, which lasted just over one hour, does not seem to have gone beyond procedural issues. No date was given for any future sessions.

The seven defendants—Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm—were arrested nearly two years ago and have been held in Tehran’s Evin prison since that time, spending the first year there without formal charges or access to lawyers.

After several postponements, their trial officially began on January 12, when the seven were arraigned in Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court in Tehran.

That session was also closed to the public, but accounts in government-sponsored news media said the defendants were formally charged with espionage, propaganda activities against the Islamic order, the establishment of an illegal administration, cooperation with Israel, sending secret documents outside the country, acting against the security of the country, and corruption on earth. All the charges have been categorically denied.

• Read more from Baha’i World News Service
• News media coverage: Washington TV

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The Baha’i International Community has issued a statement condemning the trial of 16 individuals in Iran on January 30 as a “violation of all internationally accepted standards of legal due process.”

The statement highlights the lack of proper legal representation for the defendants and the use of unreliable “confessions” in the trial. One of the 16 on trial is a Baha’i.

From the statement published by Baha’i World News Service:

The trial yesterday of 16 individuals in Iran, apparently accused of participating in the Ashura demonstrations on 27 December, stands in violation of all internationally accepted standards of legal due process.

While facts are unavailable to the Baha’i International Community concerning 15 of the defendants in the court proceedings, it can confirm that one individual – identified only as “P.F.” in government reports – is a Baha’i.

The show trials in the aftermath of the June 2009 presidential election, at which defendants have been forced to read statements incriminating themselves, have completely discredited “confessions,” such as the one purportedly made by “P.F.,” both inside and outside of Iran. It is well known that such confessions are obtained while prisoners are under extreme duress, often after being exposed to such appalling tactics as food and sleep deprivation, fake executions, threats against their families, and worse. Rather than accepting responsibility for the turmoil in the country, the Iranian government organizes such show trials in order to lay the blame on innocent citizens and others.

While it is claimed that the court proceedings are open, not even the families of the defendants are notified of the trial of their loved ones.

News media coverage: Associated Press (via MSNBC), Washington TV

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In an Associated Press article published January 28 in the Washington Post, Iranian prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dowlatabadi reportedly announced that a group of postelection detainees, including an unknown number of Baha’is, would go on trial Saturday, January 30.

From the article:

He said the trial will demonstrate the role of “leftists, Bahais and those who were directed by foreign hands” in the postelection turmoil. He did not say how many new defendants would go on trial.

Iranian authorities regularly accuse the U.S., Britain and other foreign enemies of fueling the unrest in a bid to oust the country’s clerical leaders. They have also accused followers of the Bahai faith, which is illegal in Iran because it is seen as heretical.

At least 47 Baha’is are currently in prison throughout Iran, including 10 who were arrested on January 3 in the wake of the Ashura Day protests last December.

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On January 24-45, News X of India broadcast an in-depth documentary series on the persecution of Iran’s Baha’i community. The series includes an interview with human rights attorney and Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi, who is the lead defender of seven Baha’is currently on trial in Tehran.

View the series on YouTube:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=newsxlive#p/u/2/5qJYCASlMtk
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=newsxlive#p/u/3/mxntEAdRW5w
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=newsxlive#p/u/4/QkPQIN7t4eg
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=newsxlive#p/u/1/P3PTpRnMsUE

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Human Rights Watch again included the persecution of Iran’s Baha’i community in it’s annual report, World Report 2010, which evaluates human rights in 90 countries and territories throughout 2009.

Below is an excerpt from the report on Iran, mentioning the situation of the Baha’is:

The government continues to deny members of the Baha’i faith, Iran’s largest non-Muslim religious minority, freedom of religion. In May 2008 authorities arrested seven leaders of the national organization of Baha’i based on fabricated security related accusations. The government accused them of espionage without providing evidence and has denied their lawyers request to release them on bail and promptly conduct a free and fair trial. As of November 2009 the seven remain in detention.

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On January 27, the Baha’i World News Service published the following article concerning the “lack of information about the status of 10 Baha’is who were arrested earlier this month in Iran.”

From the article:

In addition to worry about their safety, there are fears that charges against these 10 will be used to create false evidence in court against the seven Baha’i leaders who have been held since 2008 and whose trial is set to resume on 7 February.

“Our concern is that in the absence of any evidence against the seven leaders, the authorities may be attempting to build a case by perhaps forcing these newly arrested Baha’is to ‘confess’ that they were involved in organizing December’s Ashura demonstrations under orders from their ‘leadership’,” said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations.

“Any such claim would be absurd, given that the seven leaders have been in prison for the last two years,” she said.

Since their arrest on 3 January, statements have been made in Iranian state-sanctioned media that the 10 possessed arms and ammunition in their homes as part of an anti-government plot related to the December demonstrations.

The 10 have virtually disappeared into Iran’s detention system, said Ms. Dugal.

Read the full story from Baha’i World News Service

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On January 22, The New York Times published the following article, written by religion columnist Samuel G. Freedman, about the persecution of the Baha’i Faith in Iran from the perspective of a D.C.-area Baha’i whose brother, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, is among seven Baha’i leaders who are currently on trial in Tehran.

From the article…

In 2001, after his own arrest and interrogation, after the ransacking of his office, after the confiscation of his car and his books, Mr. [Rezvan] Tavakkoli used connections to gain a passport to Abu Dhabi. From there, he went on to the United States to reunite with his wife and children and to learn the particular anguish of survivor guilt.

Behrouz had remained behind in Iran and was ultimately named a member of the Yaran, an unofficial leadership body for Iran’s 300,000 Bahais. Security agents arrested and jailed him for four months in 2005. Then, in the spring of 2008, he was arrested and charged along with all seven members of the Yaran.

After several postponements, their trial began on Jan. 12 with the reading of the charges, according to reports that reached the Western news media. The proceedings are expected to resume Feb. 7. A chorus of condemnation from around the world — the European Union, the United States State Department, Amnesty International — has done nothing to derail the trial.

Mr. Tavakkoli heard a week or two ago from his sister about a visit she made to Behrouz in prison. She said that he looked old and weak, like he was 80, this boy who showed movies on the wall.

“I’m hoping for the light of justice to shine on the men in power,” Mr. [Rezvan] Tavakkoli said, “because they say they are people of religion.”

And, if not, then Bahai theology has provided an answer. “It’s the mystery of self-sacrifice,” he said, “for the world to have a better future.”

Read the full story from The New York Times

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Iranian authorities have notified the lawyers of seven imprisoned Bahá’í leaders that the next session of their trial will be held on February 7, 2010, the Bahá’í International Community announced today.

After 20 months in prison, with limited access to their attorneys, the defendants— Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm—had their first court appearance on January 12, at which time their charges were read to them.

According to accounts in Iran’s state-sponsored news media, the charges against the seven prisoners were: espionage, “propaganda activities against the Islamic order,” the establishment of an “illegal administration,” cooperation with Israel, sending secret documents outside the country, acting against the security of the country, and “corruption on earth.”

“While we know little about what actually took place inside the court, we can now say for certain that these seven innocent Bahá’ís stood up and firmly rejected all of the charges against them,” said Diane Alá’í of the Bahá’í International Community.

Six of the seven defendants were arrested on May 14, 2008, at their homes in Tehran. Mrs. Mahvash Sabet was arrested on March 5, 2008, while in Mashhad. They have been held in Tehran’s Evin prison ever since, spending their first year there without formal charges or any access to lawyers.

Read more from the Baha’i World News Service

Read news coverage: Washington TV

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On Monday, January 18, 2010, The Washington Post published the following article indicating that Iran was “moving toward sentencing” seven Baha’i leaders who have been accused of espionage and collaboration with Israel, among other unfounded charges.

Iran’s judiciary is deciding on prison sentences for seven leaders of the Bahai community, who are being put on trial behind closed doors in Tehran, the semi-official Iranian Students News Agency reported. Bahai is an outlawed faith in the Shiite Muslim republic.

Arrested in 2008, the five men and two women, who acted as an unofficial leadership council for the faith’s Iranian community, are accused of espionage and collaboration with Israel, Iran’s archenemy. Bahai representatives have denied the charges.

“Iran’s own law says that you can’t be in jail without charges for over two months,” said Shastri Purushotma, human rights officer for the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahais of the United States. “Iran has violated their own law by keeping them in jail for so long.”

Purushotma, in Washington, dismissed the idea that the Bahais on trial had acted against the Iranian government and said they were scapegoats. “This is purely a case of religious persecution.”

Read the full story from The Washington Post

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The commencement of the trial of seven Baha’is in Iran was highlighted this week by the PBS program Religion & Ethics Newsweekly:

In Iran, a trial there has drawn international condemnation. Seven leaders of the Baha’i community are accused of spying for Israel, charges that have them facing the death penalty. The accused have been imprisoned since 2008. The US State Department has protested the trial and the treatment of the Baha’is. The Baha’i community abroad is calling for prayer. The Baha’i faith was founded in the nineteenth century in what is now Iran, but the religion is banned there, and adherents have long been persecuted.

Read the rest of this week’s headlines from Religion & Ethics Newsweekly

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The trial of seven Iranian Baha’i leaders, which began January 12,  has drawn widespread attention from the international community. According to a Baha’i World News Service article published today, public statements of concern on behalf of the seven have been issued by the governments of Brazil, Canada, India, the United States, and by the European Union. Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Laureate and the lead attorney defending the seven Baha’is, also commented about yesterday’s trial proceedings in an interview with Washington TV, a web-based news service based in the United States.

Below are excerpts of her statements as reported by the Baha’i World News Service:

“If justice is to be carried out and an impartial judge should investigate the charges leveled against my clients, no other verdict can be reached save that of acquittal,” said Mrs. Ebadi, in comments posted on WashingtonTV.

Mrs. Ebadi, who is one of the lawyers for the seven, said she had carefully read the dossier of charges against them and “found in it no cause or evidence to sustain the criminal charges upheld by the prosecutor.”

…

In the WashingtonTV interview, Mrs. Ebadi, who is currently outside Iran, also offered a glimpse of what happened yesterday inside Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court, where the “first session” of the trial was held.

She said only two lawyers of the Defenders of Human Rights Center, which she established, were able to be present in the court. And that in spite of a request for an open hearing, the court was closed.

The charges against the seven were reiterated yesterday in news accounts in government-sponsored news media. They were given as: espionage, “propaganda activities against the Islamic order,” the establishment of an illegal administration, cooperation with Israel, the sending of secret documents outside the country, acting against the security of the country, and “corruption on earth.”

Diane Ala’i of the Baha’i International Community said the seven have consistently and categorically denied such accusations. “We can be certain that they also did so in front of the judge yesterday,” she said.

Read the story from Washington TV

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