During the 90 minute debate on the motion regarding the persecution of the Bahá’ís in Iran, members of all the political parties spoke in favour of the motion. Following is a brief summary of some of the salient remarks made in the House of Commons.
Attacks against the Iranian Bahá’ís have been ongoing since the inception of the Islamic revolution and have intensified over the past few years. These abuses have been independently documented by the United Nations Human Rights Special Rapporteurs and other international human rights organizations.
This particular motion calls to attention the wrongful arrest and detention of seven members of the group, the Friends of Iran, who oversee the needs of the Bahá’í community in Iran. They have been held in the Evin prison in Tehran for over 10 months without formal charges or access to legal counsel or evidence brought against them. The last Bahá’í national assembly was executed and this group is also facing possible execution.
A lawyer and Nobel Peace Laureate, Shirin Ebadi, has been subjected to harassment, death threats and subsequent closure of her offices when she announced her intention to represent the Bahá’ís in court.
These arrests have taken place in the context of an upsurge of arbitrary arrests, raids on homes, expulsion of university students, harassment of school children, destruction of graveyards, and virulent attacks in government controlled media. Bahá’ís are being subjected to intimidation, violence and death threats.
The Bahá’í community in Iran poses no threat to the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The principles of the Bahá’í Faith require its members to be obedient to their government and to avoid partisan political involvement, subversive activity and all forms of violence.
Persecution of religious and ethnic minorities goes beyond the Baha’i community and includes Arabs, Azeris, Baluchis, Kurds, Christians, Jews, Sufis and Sunni Muslims. The rights of women and workers are suppressed; academics, journalists, and human rights defenders intimated; and the Iranian authorities have limited the freedom of expression and the media.
The motion is not against Islam or the people of Iran, but against the repressive Iranian government.
The Bahá’ís have recently been given support by Iranian academics, writers, artists, journalists and activists throughout the world.
In his opening remarks introducing the motion, M.P. Mr. Mario Silva, made the following statement:
I am reminded of the famous quote by Pastor Martin Niemöller who remarked, when referring to the Holocaust, “When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist. When they locked up the social democrats, I remained silent; I was not a social democrat. When they came for the Jews, I remained silent; I was not a Jew. When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out”.
The Motion
Mr. Wayne Marston (Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, NDP):
… It is very important for the people at home who are watching the debate tonight to understand first of all that there was consensus, as the previous speaker just said, in our committee. We all understand the importance of this situation in Iran. I also believe it is important to read the motion that is contained in the report. The motion reads:
Whereas, the House of commons recognizes that on 14 May 2008, six members of an informal group known as the Friends in Iran that oversee the needs of the Bahá’í community in Iran were arrested and taken to the political prisoners section of Evin prison in Tehran, where the seventh member was already being held, following her arrest in Mashhad in March 2008.
And whereas, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in October 2005, uncovered a confidential letter from the Command headquarters of the Armed Forces of Iran ordering the identification and monitoring of all Bahá’ís and their activities.
And whereas, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief stated on March 20, 2006, that she “also expresses her concern that the information gathered as a result of such monitoring will be used as a basis for the increased persecution of and discrimination against, members of the Bahá’í Faith, in violation of international standards … The Special Rapporteur is concerned that this latest development indicates that the situation with regard to religious minorities in Iran is, in fact, deteriorating”.
And whereas, the Bahá’í community of Canada is gravely concerned for the safety of these seven Bahá’ís who have been held without formal charges or access to legal counsel or evidence brought against them and being subjected to harsh treatment and interrogation with very restricted visits from family members for more than nine months.
And whereas, Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi who announced her intention to defend the Bahá’ís in court has since been harassed and her offices have been closed.
And whereas, the Deputy Prosecutor General has announced that these prisoners will be tried by the Revolutionary court on charges of “espionage on behalf of Israel”, “insult to the sacredness (of Islam)” and “propaganda against the regime” – all of which are capital offences.
And whereas, such charges are frequently used by Iranian authorities to target human rights defenders and religious minorities and there is nothing in the history or teachings of the Bahá’í community to lend any credence to such charges.
And whereas, these arrests have taken place in the context of an upsurge of arbitrary arrests, raids on home, expulsion of university students, harassment of school children, destruction of graveyards, virulent attacks in government controlled media.
Therefore, be it resolved that this House condemns the ongoing persecution of the Bahá’í minority of Iran and calls upon the government of Iran to reconsider its charges against the members of the Friends in Iran, and release them immediately or failing this, that it proceed to trial without further delay, ensuring that the proceedings are open and fair and are conducted in the presence of international observers.
This not one of those debates where members try to score points at the expense of other parties in the House. No, Mr. Speaker, as you have listened, you will have heard unity in the House, unity in support of human rights and security for the Baha’i people in Iran.
