Omid Djalili, British actor and comedian, appeals for support of the Baha’i leaders in Iran who have recently been sentenced to 20 years in prison. These are ordinary people, absolutely innocent of any wrongdoing. They have been held for two years in Evin prison without access to proper legal representation and the trial proceedings were characterized by their lack of due legal process. To learn more, visit “Persecution of the Baha’is in Iran”.

GENEVA, 30 August (BWNS) – A United Nations panel of experts has expressed concern over Iran’s continued repression of ethnic and religious minorities, including members of the Baha’i Faith.

In conclusions issued Friday, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) questioned why Iranian minorities – such as Arabs, Azeris, Balochis, Kurds and Baha’is – are so poorly represented in Iran’s public life.

The Baha’i International Community has welcomed the panel’s findings that categorize Iran’s persecution of Baha’is as a matter of discrimination based on race, ethnicity or religion.

“This finding is important because it represents the opinion of a body of international experts on discrimination – including many from countries that are friendly to Iran,” said Diane Ala’i, the representative of the Baha’i International Committee to the United Nations in Geneva.

“As such, their criticism of Iran, even if couched in somewhat mild diplomatic language, represents further evidence that the world community will not turn a blind eye to Iran’s ongoing persecution of Baha’is, which are that country’s largest non-Muslim religious minority nor, for that matter, to the violation of the human rights of any of that nation’s citizens,” said Ms. Ala’i.

Committee’s concern

In its conclusions about Baha’is and other minority groups, CERD urged Iran to “carry out a study of members of all such communities that would enable the State party to identify their particular needs and draw up effective plans of action, programmes and public policies to combat racial discrimination and disadvantage relating to all areas of the public life of these communities.”

The recommendation followed a series of exchanges on 4-5 August with an Iranian delegation that came before the Committee to defend their human rights record.

Committee members appeared quite skeptical about Iran’s efforts to meet the mandates of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, which the Committee monitors, including a number of members from countries that have generally friendly relations with Iran, such as Brazil, India, and Turkey.

To read the full article online and view images, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/791

For the Baha’i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

GENEVA, 26 August (BWNS) – An increasing number of governments, human rights groups and prominent individuals are raising their voices against the harsh prison sentences handed down earlier this month to Iran’s seven Baha’i leaders.

As lawyers for the prisoners prepare to appeal against the 20-year jail terms, the government of New Zealand has voiced its concern that the trial “was conducted in a manner that was neither fair nor transparent.”

“New Zealand is dismayed that Iran has failed to uphold its international human rights commitments, and its own due legal processes in this case,” said Foreign Minister Murray McCully.

“The sentences appear to be based wholly on the fact that these people are members of a minority religious group,” said Mr. McCully, in a statement issued on 20 August.

“New Zealand calls on the Government of Iran to protect the fundamental rights of all its citizens, and to end its ongoing and systematic persecution of the Baha’i,” he said.

The governments of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States of America – as well as the European Union and the President of the European Parliament – have already condemned the sentencing of the seven.

In the wake of calls from numerous international organizations for the prisoners to be released, groups focused specifically on human rights abuses in Iran –  such as the Human Rights Activists News Agency and United4Iran – as well as Amnesty International, have now launched letter-writing campaigns encouraging supporters to call for justice for the seven. Prominent individuals, including British barrister Cherie Blair, have also been raising their voices in support of the Baha’i leaders.

Minority Rights Group International (MRG) – which campaigns on behalf of disadvantaged minorities and indigenous peoples – has expressed it deep concern over the lengthy sentences.

“Given that independent observers were not allowed to attend the trial, and the history of persecution that the Baha’i community has faced in Iran, the outcome will do nothing to encourage faith in the Iranian justice system,” said Carl Soderbergh, MRG’s Director of Policy and Communications.

“MRG calls on Iran to quash the convictions and release the defendants immediately,” Mr. Soderbergh added.

To read the full article online and view images and links, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/790

For the Baha’i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

NEW YORK — The harsh prison sentences handed down to seven Iranian Baha’i leaders who are absolutely innocent of any wrongdoing is a judgment against an entire religious community, the Baha’i International Community said today.

Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi, whose Defenders of Human Rights Center represented the Baha’i defendants, said she was “stunned” by the reported 20-year jail terms.

“I have read their case file page by page and did not find anything proving the accusations, nor did I find any document that could prove the claims of the prosecutor,” said Mrs. Ebadi in a television interview, broadcast on 8 August by the Persian-language service of the BBC.

The flagrantly unjust sentence has provoked vehement protest from governments throughout the world – including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the U.K. and the U.S.A. The European Union and the President of the European Parliament have also joined the chorus of condemnation, along with numerous human rights organizations – including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and FIDH – as well as other groups, and countless individuals. Read international reaction here.

“The trumped-up charges, and the total lack of any credible evidence against these seven prisoners, reflects the false accusations and misinformation that Iran’s regime has used to vilify and defame a peaceful, religious community for an entire generation,” said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations.

Ms. Dugal noted that the seven have reportedly been transferred to Gohardasht Prison in Karaj, a facility about 20 kilometers west of Tehran. “The reason for the move is not yet known and it is too early to assess the implications for the prisoners,” she said. “It does, however, clearly impose an added burden to their families, who now have to travel outside Tehran to visit their loved ones.”

The seven – Fariba Kamalabadi, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi, Saeid Rezaie, Mahvash Sabet, Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Vahid Tizfahm – were all members of a national-level group that, with the government’s knowledge, helped see to the minimum spiritual needs of Iran’s Baha’i community.

“That these manifestly innocent people should each be jailed for 20 years after a sham trial is utterly reprehensible,” said Ms. Dugal. “We ask the Iranian government: Does such a callous disregard for justice contribute to the advancement of Iranian society? Or does it, rather, further diminish your credibility among your own people and among the nations of the world?”

Ms. Dugal said the Baha’i International Community condemns the widespread injustice perpetrated by the Iranian authorities against others throughout Iran, whether religious minorities, journalists, academics, civil society activists, women’s rights defenders, or others.

To read the full article online and view images and links, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/789

For the Baha’i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

GENEVA, 13 August (BWNS) — The United States of America has said it “strongly condemns” the sentencing of seven Iranian Baha’i leaders to 20 years imprisonment.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton described the act as a “violation of Iran’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”

In a statement dated 12 August, Secretary Clinton said that the United States is “deeply concerned with the Iranian government’s continued persecution of Baha’is and other religious minority communities in Iran.”

“Freedom of religion is the birthright of people of all faiths and beliefs in all places,” she said.

“The United States is committed to defending religious freedom around the world, and we have not forgotten the Baha’i community in Iran.”

“We will continue to speak out against injustice and call on the Iranian government to respect the fundamental rights of all its citizens in accordance with its international obligations,” said Secretary Clinton.

The statement from the United States came as reports reached the Baha’i International Community that the seven Baha’i leaders have been transferred from Tehran’s Evin Prison, where they had been incarcerated for more than two years.

They have been taken to Gohardasht Prison – also known as Rajaishahr Prison – in Karaj, some 20 kilometers west of the Iranian capital.

Other support

Support for the prisoners has also been expressed by the European Union, in a statement made by Baroness Catherine Ashton, the E.U.’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

“The European Union expresses its serious concern about the sentencing of seven Baha’i leaders in Iran to 20 years imprisonment and calls for their immediate release,” the declaration said.

“The verdict appears to be based on the defendants belonging to a religious minority and the judicial process was seriously flawed, respecting neither Iran’s international commitments under the International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) nor its national legislation regarding fair trial rights.”

“The EU recalls that freedom of thought, conscience and religion are fundamental rights which must be guaranteed under all circumstances according to article 18 of the ICCPR which the Islamic Republic of Iran has signed up to and ratified.”

“The EU calls on Iran to put an end to the persecution of the Baha’i community,” said Baroness Ashton.

In the United Kingdom, Foreign Secretary William Hague said he was “appalled” to hear of the prison sentences, describing them as a “shocking example of the Iranian state’s continued discrimination against the Baha’is.”

“It is completely unacceptable,” said Mr. Hague in a statement released on Wednesday.

“The Iranian judiciary has repeatedly failed to allay international and domestic concerns that these seven men and women are guilty of anything other than practicing their faith. It is clear that from arrest to sentencing, the Iranian authorities did not follow even their own due process, let alone the international standards to which Iran is committed. The accused were denied proper access to lawyers, and there is evidence that the trial was neither fair nor transparent.”

“I call on the Iranian authorities urgently to consider any appeal against this decision, and to cease the harassment of the Baha’i community. I further call on the Iranian Government to ensure that the rights of all individuals are fully protected, without discrimination, and that it fulfils its obligations to its own citizens as set out in the Iranian constitution,” said Mr. Hague.

The Netherlands’ Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maxime Verhagen, expressed his country’s concern at “the poor execution of the judicial process in the case of the seven Baha’i leaders” and its fears that the arrest and sentence is “based solely on discrimination of religious belief.”

“That these people seem to be condemned because of their faith is shocking,” said Mr. Verhagen.

“I urge the Iranian authorities to abide by their international human rights obligations. The Baha’i leaders have a right to a fair trial and they must be released as soon as possible.”

Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the President of the European Parliament earlier expressed strong statements of concern at news that Iran’s seven Baha’i leaders have each received prison sentences of 20 years, as reported by the Baha’i World News Service on 11 August.

To read the full article online and view images and links, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/788

For the Baha’i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

GENEVA, 11 August (BWNS) – Reports that seven Iranian Baha’i leaders have each received prison sentences of 20 years have been met with condemnation from governments and human rights organizations around the world.

Australia, Canada, France, Germany – and the President of the European Parliament – have all expressed strong statements of concern.

They are calling for the prisoners to be released on bail, for an annulment of the judgment, and for Iran to demonstrate that the trial was fair and in accordance with international standards.

Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lawrence Cannon, said that his country was “deeply disturbed” by the sentences that were “passed without either written judgments or due process.” He urged Iran to grant bail to the prisoners.

Germany described the outcome of the trial as a “massive setback for all those who engage themselves for the promotion of human dignity and human rights in Iran.”

Markus Loning, commissioner for human rights and humanitarian aid at Germany’s Foreign Office, said Iran must annul the judgment and “provide a fair and transparent court procedure.”

“There are major doubts as to the compliance with the basic legal rights during the judicial proceedings,” he said.

France expressed its “consternation” at the 20-year jail term.

At a press briefing, Christine Fages, a French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, stated that Iranian authorities should stop persecuting Baha’is and other religious minorities and “respect the freedom of religion and conscience as defined by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran has freely signed up.”

Australia has also shared its deep concern at the sentences. “We continue to call on Iran to ensure that all trials are fair and transparent and are conducted in accordance with Iran’s international obligations,” said a spokesman for the Australian government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

In a statement issued today, the President of the European Parliament – Jerzy Buzek – called the sentences “a shocking signal and an immense disappointment for all who have hoped for an improvement of the human rights situation in Iran.”

“Iran has committed itself to international standards and I underline that this includes also the respect and protection of religious freedom,” he said.

International human rights organizations have additionally joined the chorus of protest against the reported prison sentences.

To read the full article online and view pictures, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/787

For the Baha’i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/

NEW YORK, 8 August (BWNS) – The Baha’i International Community has received reports indicating that seven Iranian Baha’i leaders have each received jail sentences of 20 years.

The two women and five men have been held in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison since they were arrested in 2008 – six of them on 14 May and one of them two months earlier.

“If this news proves to be accurate, it represents a deeply shocking outcome to the case of these innocent and harmless people,” said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations.

“We understand that they have been informed of this sentence and that their lawyers are in the process of launching an appeal,” said Ms. Dugal.

The prisoners – Fariba Kamalabadi, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi, Saeid Rezaie, Mahvash Sabet, Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Vahid Tizfahm – were all members of a national-level group that helped see to the minimum needs of Iran’s 300,000-strong Baha’i community, the country’s largest non-Muslim religious minority.

The trial of the seven consisted of six brief court appearances which began on 12 January this year after they had been incarcerated without charge for 20 months, during which time they were allowed barely one hour’s access to their legal counsel. The trial ended on 14 June.

The defendants were accused of espionage, propaganda activities against the Islamic order, and the establishment of an illegal administration, among other allegations. All the charges are completely and categorically denied.

To read this article online and view the photograph, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/786

For the Baha’i World News Service home page, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/