{"id":6012,"date":"2016-05-13T23:25:45","date_gmt":"2016-05-13T13:25:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stumblingpast.com\/?p=6012"},"modified":"2022-08-04T00:24:22","modified_gmt":"2022-08-04T00:24:22","slug":"enough-australian-lawyers-call-on-iran-to-release-bahai-seven","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stumblingpast.com\/2016\/05\/13\/enough-australian-lawyers-call-on-iran-to-release-bahai-seven\/","title":{"rendered":"Enough! Australian Lawyers Call on Iran to Release Baha’i Seven"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"2<\/a><\/em>On Wednesday night I attended\u00a0an annual human rights event which I hope I never have to attend again. It marked yet another year during which Iran\u2019s authorities have trampled on the human rights of its own people. <\/span><\/p>\n

The event in Sydney highlighted the unjust imprisonment of the seven leaders of Iran\u2019s Baha\u2019i community. Every\u00a0year the anniversary of the unjust imprisonment of these five men and two women is marked by events around the world. Each additional year marks an increasing burden of injustice felt by the prisoners, their families and their communities. Each year the Iranian government brings more shame on themselves and besmirches Iran\u2019s reputation world-wide.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Baha\u2019i seven have now been unjustly incarcerated for eight years. Those gathered at New South Wales Parliament House heard a message from Australia\u2019s foreign minister, Julie Bishop calling for the release of all prisoners of conscience in Iran, including the seven Baha\u2019i leaders. Concern about the persecution of Iran\u2019s Baha\u2019is has been expressed by both sides in Australia\u2019s parliament over a number of years<\/a>. The Secretary-General of the United Nations<\/a> has also expressed concerns about the treatment of the seven Baha\u2019i leaders, as have governments and human rights campaigners<\/a> around the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Fariba<\/a><\/p>\n

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There are many persecuted groups in Iran – religious and ethnic minorities, women, journalists and more. In my last post<\/a> I wrote briefly about the many years of persecution faced by the Baha\u2019i community which is one of the largest non-Muslim religious groups in Iran. The seven Baha\u2019i leaders, commonly referred to as the Yaran, were arrested in 2008 on spurious charges and were sentenced to twenty years in prison – the longest term of any prisoners of conscience in Iran. <\/span><\/p>\n

An open letter signed by some of Australia\u2019s leading lawyers was launched at the event which was held at the New South Wales Parliament House. They have written to Iran\u2019s Ambassador to Australia urging his government to obey Iranian law and release the prisoners of conscience immediately. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As members of the legal profession, we are gravely concerned about the plight of the seven former leaders of the Baha\u2019i community in Iran, who since 2008 have been unjustly imprisoned\u201d, said the twenty-eight signatories. <\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The group of prominent Australian lawyers pointed out that the treatment of the Yaran transgressed many clearly expressed Iranian laws. Amendments to Iran\u2019s \u00a0penal code in 2013 means that according to Iranian law, the Yaran should be released immediately. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Australian legal experts noted that the seven Baha\u2019i leaders were put on trial with \u201cvague charges for which no evidence has ever been presented\u201d. \u201cTo this day, they have not been presented with formal charges or a judgment in writing, in clear violation of the Iranian constitution\u201d, they said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Saeid<\/a>As I briefly mentioned in my review of the memoirs of an Iranian Baha’i refugee<\/a>, it is only the most courageous lawyer who will dare to represent Baha\u2019is in the Iranian legal system. In their open letter, the Australian lawyers observed that two lawyers who represented the Yaran, Nasrin Sotoudeh and Abdolfattah Soltani were subsequently imprisoned, Soltani is still in prison and in poor health<\/a>. Nobel Laureate, Shirin Ebadi and Mahnaz Parakand also represented the seven Baha\u2019is and have been forced to live in exile from Iran. Human rights lawyers are another group in a long list of Iran\u2019s persecuted people.<\/span><\/p>\n

John Dowd AO QC, former Chief Justice of the NSW Supreme Court and one of the signatories of the open letter spoke at the event on Wednesday night. The jailing of the Baha\u2019i leadership, he observed, \u201cis a symbol of religious persecution in Iran\u201d. He recommended that we take the time to read the US State Department\u2019s work on religious freedom around the world. The State Department\u2019s 2014 report on International Religious Freedom<\/a> says that the Iranian government, \u201cdiscriminated against all religious minority groups in employment, education, and housing. Government rhetoric and actions created a threatening atmosphere for all non-Shia religious groups, most notably for Bahais.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

John Dowd spoke of the importance of holding events like this, of speaking out about human rights abuses. I first heard about the Baha\u2019i Faith because of an article written in the <\/span>Time <\/span><\/i>magazine about their persecution in Iran in the mid 1980s. For years I, along with many others around the world, have been taking whatever action I can to\u00a0join other voices in a chorus of condemnation of the persecution of the Baha\u2019is of Iran. There are many other groups in Iran who also need our support. If Iran\u2019s government changes their current practices and abides by the country\u2019s laws and observes basic human rights principles, this will not only help the country\u2019s Baha\u2019i minority. It will help all people in Iran. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"Behrouz<\/a>It is easy to become despondent about the state of human rights in the world. There are so many people in so many countries on our planet who desperately need help. Those who have the freedom to voice concern about human rights abuses need to be committed and tenacious so that these stories continued to be heard. <\/span><\/p>\n

Over many years of persecution since 1979, Baha\u2019is from Iran have found refuge in countries around the world. Several relations of the imprisoned seven Baha\u2019i leaders now live in Australia. Addressing the gathering, the brother of one of the Baha\u2019i seven, reminded the audience that the persecution of Baha\u2019is in Iran has occurred for a very long time. Amin Tavakoli from Adelaide described the jailing of the Yaran as \u201ca blatant abuse of power\u201d by the Iranian authorities. Mehrzad Mumtahan from Sydney who is the nephew of jailed Saeid Rezai, described the impact their imprisonment has had on their families. \u201cEight years of injustice is enough\u201d, he said. \u201cRelease these people and let them return to their families.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Mahvash<\/a>In their egregious treatment of Iran\u2019s Baha\u2019is and other groups in Iran such as women, journalists, ethnic and other religious minorities, the Iranian government is writing itself into the world\u2019s history books for the wrong reasons. <\/span><\/p>\n

#ReleaseBahai7<\/span>Now<\/span>
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Further Information<\/h2>\n