Seven Iranian Baha’i leaders who have been jailed for a year without formal charge are facing grave new accusations that could result in the death penalty.
Families of the seven have recently been told the leaders could be charged with “spreading of corruption on earth,” said Tessa Scrine, a spokesperson for the Australian Baha’i Community.
“This is the same false accusation used against the Baha’is who were executed in the years immediately following the 1979 Islamic revolution,” Ms
Scrine said.
“We already had grave fears for the safety of these seven, who have been in jail without formal charge for a year, but this possibility makes us even more worried,” she said.
“The general nature of such a charge would be yet another confirmation that these people are innocent of any wrong doing and are victims of blatant religious persecution,” Ms Scrine said.
“By refusing access to their lawyer and failing to bring any official charges, the Iranian Government has denied them the human rights to which they are entitled under international law, including those contained in conventions ratified by the Government itself.”
“This action against the Baha’i leadership reflects the government’s sharply increased persecution of the entire Iranian Baha’i community of more than 300,000 members,” she said.
Ms Scrine said the Australian Baha’i Community was grateful to the Australian Government for its expressions of deep concern over the situation of the seven Baha’i leaders.
Others who have spoken out this year in condemnation of the actions of the Iranian authorities against the Baha’is include the European Union and the Governments of Great Britain and the United States, and Parliamentarians in Brazil, Canada and Germany.
Some family members of the seven jailed Baha’is live in Australia and have expressed their fears for the safety of their relatives.
A spokesperson for the Baha’i International Community in New York, Bani Dugal, said today that the anniversary is an important milestone for the seven leaders.
“We ask that the international community re-state once again in the strongest terms its demand for their immediate release, or, at least, for a fair and open trial that meets international standards of justice,” said Ms. Dugal.