A Letter to My Brother Sasan in the prison

In May 2006, a group of over 80 individuals was arrested in and around the city of Shiraz, Iran. They were involved in a teaching program benefitting underprivileged children. The group had been granted permission for their activities by the Islamic authorities of the city. Muslim members of the group were immediately released. However, 54 Baha’is were detained for a few days, and afterwards released on bail. In August 2007, they were tried by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court. They were charged with “offences against state security”. Three of them were sentenced to four years imprisonment for “organizing illegal groups” and “propaganda on behalf of groups that are opposed to the Islamic system”. The other Baha’is in the group received a one year suspended sentence provided that they participated in a three year Islamic indoctrination course.

Below is a summary of a letter written by Roya, the sister of Sasan Taqva, one of the three individuals now serving a four year sentence. Haleh Houshmandi, whose name is mentioned in the letter, is among those with a suspended sentence. On March 15, 2009, while Haleh and her husband were on a trip, their home was raided by officers of the Ministry of Intelligence.


A Letter to My Brother Sasan
April 17, 2009

By Roya Taqva

To my dear brother Sasan,
It is only a few hours until the start of a new year, Naw-Ruz, and again you are not with us this year. As I write, I am remembering what our father said a few days ago. He sighed and said, “I wish every day of the week was Tuesday (visiting day at the prison), and that the visiting hour would last a long time”.

My dear brother: where in the world is teaching moral values to children and helping them with their school assignments a crime?
God, you know how hard it is to wait for the end of a jail term. You know how this waiting turns hair grey and consumes hearts. Please turn our family’s sorrow into ease. God, we are proud of the acts of service of my brother and the rest of the group. However, they are paying a great price for standing strong and serving underprivileged children. God, you hear the cries and laments of my parents. You know that waiting in sorrow has been their nightly food and sustenance.

Dad, every time I see tears running down your face in the privacy of your home, and see you strong like a mountain in public, I feel very proud to have been born into this family.

Mom, every night that I hear you cry while I am lying in my bed, I raise my hands to the heavens and ask God to turn the darkness of night into the dawn of tranquility.
My dear sister, you live far away, but I know how the absence of our brother has consumed your entire being.
My dear brother, the heart of your little sister, Roya, is full of sorrow. For seventeen months, her dear brother and friend has been the subject of her writing.

My dear brother, this New Year again you are not with us. When our mother placed your picture near to us at the time of the New Year, seeing her sad face and noticing the lump in her throat could have melted stone.

Those souls treading the path of love and unity have been entrapped by the forces of darkness, but God, I know the ocean of your bounty is surging. I am able to bear the hardships surrounding us because I wholly trust in your wisdom. I am certain that we have a bright future ahead of us. The day will come when this group of young adults, now suffering for their acts of service, will lay brick on brick and build a new world, which will be given as a gift to Iran and the world. It is as clear to me as is the existence of the sun in the sky that these imprisonments will bring hope for a glorious future.

You know Sasan, this year Babak and his son are alone too. Haleh Houshmandi is not with them. She is celebrating the New Year in prison, while her Lord watches over her. Before she was taken away, Haleh had been like a dear child for our parents in your absence.

Signed,
Roya

On Minorities and Education, Iran omits Baha’is

by Munib Kiani


At the United Nations Forum of Minority Issues, the Islamic Republic of Iran has published a statement titled “Minorities and the Right to Education.” Documents of this type are produced by many countries, and traditionally pass into history without controversy. This particular document is rendered fascinating by the century-long opposition to Baha’i education in Iran and the government’s denial of any persecution of its largest religious minority. A reading of it demonstrates as much by its phrasing as by its content.

It begins with a supportable argument: ”Education is the primary vehicle by which economically and socially marginalized adults and children can lift themselves out of poverty and obtain the means to fully participate in all spheres of life in socoiety (sic).”

Ipso facto, the reverse must be true: withdrawal of education would depress the marginalized into poverty, and leave their potential unrealized. Fortunately, the Republic documents its successes and continuing dedication to educate all, so it seems that all is well. Unfortunately all isn’t well at all - there is ample proof (

http://denial.bahai.org/) that education is restricted for the Baha’i community, as is illustrated in the many sad stories featured on the pages of Iran Press Watch, of youthful zeal and energy denied.

Even if you were to discount proof presented by the wronged minority as being biased, official internal documents detailing how the Baha’i question is to be answered, the treatment promulgated by the government include “Permit them a modest livelihood” and that “The government’s dealings with them must be in such a way that their progress and development are blocked” (From the leaked 1991/1993 memo) confirming what we already knew, what is intended for the Baha’is includes no aspirations, no excellence — the mother of all glass ceilings. One might wonder at the motivations behind this denial, for which I defer to the pithy analysis of others.
Continuing, the document defines what it means by marginalized groups, identifying different ethnicities, language (groups), nationalities, nomads, culture, races and provincial sects and tribes. Pause… re-read that list!

The Islamic Republic makes no mention at all of religion — the closest it gets is “sects”. This is an omission, which while including Christians and Jews, is specifically directed at Baha’is, inasmuch as they are the only group which is systematically denied higher education and who have repeatedly objected to this and drawn international attention to it. These objections have resulted in many international bodies and groups of prominent individuals issuing reproving messages condemning Iran’s actions, and calling upon them to desist. Iran, though superficially unworried in the face of this deprival, nevertheless responds by changing policies, an example (in our opinion) being the shift from assaulting the Baha’is directly to the covert denial of rights and opportunities previously enjoyed. Re-addressing the document: if the Baha’i Faith is - erroneously - reduced to a mere sect, its members would merit education, however, since this is not the case, we posit that the authors of the document intentionally left religion out, because they were fully aware of the policy towards the Baha’is, and simply used the catch-all term “etc” to refer to all other groups in order to avoid the real issue.

The above point is strengthened when the proud assertion: “Under the existing laws, all students irrespective of their race, language, ethnicity and nationality are equally entitled to educational facilities in the country.” True, but the Islamic Republic again omits religion — why?

Next, reference is made to the Iranian Constitution — that the country provides free education for all to a secondary level and “higher education to the extent that the country meets its own needs.” It is interesting that a population of 300,000 Baha’is whose teachings give very high value to education and its pursuit, and who before the revolution were one of the most educated groups in the country, provide so few students at the university level, and that Baha’i students who performed excellently on a national level were denied their right to higher education. These statements refer to the laws omitting reference to actuality, and then hypocritically mentioning that “decisions are based on the principles of equality and justice.”

What kind of equity is it when students who have achieved the highest level in national tests are then denied their right to higher education, when Baha’i citizens who desire nothing more than to contribute to their country and to support their families are prevented from earning a decent living, are then denied pensions at the end of their working life, and in the final desecration, whose graves are violated by an unfeeling regime?

Rights groups challenge Iran leader at racism meet

April 19, 2009

Human rights groups on Sunday challenged President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to eliminate severe discrimination in Iran, ahead of his arrival at a UN conference against racism and intolerance in Geneva.
The International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH), the Baha'i International Community (BIC) and the Iranian League for Human Rights (LDDHI) said Ahmadinejad must tackle discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities, women, and halt incitement to hatred.

"By coming to the Durban Review Conference, President Ahmadinejad signals a commitment to the conference's goals of eliminating all forms of discrimination and intolerance," said Diane Ala'i, the BIC's representative at the UN in Geneva.

"His first move on returning home, then, should be to address the severe discrimination and persecution that have flourished under his tenure," she added.
Ahmadinejad is the most prominent head of state scheduled to address the opening of the UN review conference on Monday, which is being boycotted by the United States, Israel, Canada, Australia and the Netherlands.

His virulent anti-Israel statements and comments casting doubt on the Holocaust have prompted fears that his speech could overshadow the primary aim of the conference, to take stock of racial discrimination, xenophobia and intolerance around the world.

The rights groups said religious discrimination was widespread in Iran, notably affecting Baha'is, Christians, Jews, Sufis, Sunni Muslims, and other minorities, through arbitrary arrests, intimidation and harassment.

They also accused Iranian government-controlled media of fomenting hatred against Bahai's, and warned that repression against activists belonging to ethnic minorities including the Kurds was "rising dramatically".

"Human rights have sharply deteriorated in Iran under the presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities, as well as against women, are of grave concern," said Karim Lahidji of LDDHI.

The human rights groups called on governments taking part in the conference, as well as the media, to hold Ahmadinejad accountable for violations in Iran.

Appeal by the Baha’is of Shiraz

April 20, 2009

By the Baha’is of Shiraz

Imprisoned Baha’is in Shiraz are being kept under inhumane conditions. They are held in small cells, in solitary confinement. These cells are about 2.2 meters x 2.2 meters wide, with an open washroom at the corner, and without any sort of windows, openings or ventilation system. Their bedding consists merely of two blankets on the cement prison floor. At present, there are seven Baha’i detained in the city of Shiraz.
Among them, the situation of Haleh Houshamandi-Salehi (arrested March 18, 2009), is the gravest (see http://www.iranpresswatch.org/2009/04/serious-health/). She has a heart ailment and her physician has stated that any stress or trauma will have an extremely serious impact on her health. Under the intense psychological and physical pressures of solitary confinement and ongoing interrogations, she developed numbness on the left side of her body to the point that she could not get herself up from the floor. After 22 days in solitary confinement, authorities transferred Halah Ruhi (detained since October 2007), to Haleh’s cell. Although Haleh Houshamandi-Salehi is being given some medication in the prison, she is in urgent need of proper medical care and the attention of a heart specialist. Her family has taken her medical records to the detention centre, hoping for compassion and understanding.
However, in response to her family’s ongoing inquiries into Haleh’s condition, the judiciary investigator recently said: “What happens if one of you dies, one less the better”.


Sooren Salehi
Haleh Houshmadi-Salehi’s 8-year old son, Sooren, traumatized by the raid of his home and the detainment of his mother, often bursts into tears. The mothers of his classmates help their children with their homework, drop them off and pick them up from school, but the authorities have left Sooren without his mother. He says, “I feel like crying, but I try very hard and stop myself. I worry that my classmates will make fun of me”. He often asks when his mother will be home, but no one has any answers to comfort this broken-hearted child.

On April 4, a bail was set by the Prosecutor General of Fars province for the release of four of the prisoners arrested in the last two months. However, the judiciary investigator stated that under no condition would he accept the instructions of the Prosecutor General and allow these Baha’is to be discharged on bail (see, http://www.iranpresswatch.org/2009/04/imprisoned-bahais-barred/).

A few days ago, an arrest order was briefly shown to a Baha’i that was being questioned by Islamic authorities. The arrest order was entitled: Arrest Warrant of all Connected Individuals. This revelation is very alarming as it indicates the authorities’ intentions to use such broad reaching statements to justify numerous arrests. With such a vague and ambiguous warrant, any and all family members of the detained Baha’is can be considered “connected individuals” and any Baha’i can be considered a “connected individual” by virtue of their faith and their common beliefs. Their use of elusive terminology on warrants allows them to detain, question and arrest any individual for any period of time, at will, and without any further justification or clarification.

It is the urgent hope of the detainees’ families that the ongoing atrocities against Baha’is are stopped, and that their loved ones, detained solely because of their beliefs, are released.