A recent surge in the number of arrests and detainments of Baha’is in Iran is a disturbing trend, a spokesperson for the Australian Baha’i Community, Natalie Mobini, said today.
The new development is worrying to all Australian Baha’is and particularly to the many who have family members in Iran, Dr Mobini said.
The arrest last week of five innocent Baha’is in Tehran has boosted by a third the number apprehended by the authorities since June, she said.
Dr Mobini said that another indication of the worsening trend was that an appeal by 20 Baha’is sentenced to a total of 58 years in prison had been upheld.
“This appears to have been the result of instructions to the judge, who had admitted that the Baha’is were being treated unjustly,” she said.
“An official told lawyers for the Baha’is: ‘The accused are members of a hostile sect who have no citizenship rights’.
“These harsh developments are an ominous sign that the systematic persecution of Iran’s biggest non-Muslim religious minority is picking up pace.
“More than 100 Baha’is are currently in prison on false charges related entirely to their religious beliefs,” she said.
“This is despite assurances given to the world by the new president that there would more attention paid to human rights in Iran.”
Dr Mobini said there had been no evidence produced against the Baha’is because they had done nothing wrong.
“We are grateful to the Australian Government and the United Nations, who have been steadfast in their condemnation of this shameful persecution of innocent people on religious grounds.”
For more details on the latest developments visit https://news.bahai.org/story/1015