Human Rights Watch Criticizes Increase in Detention and Harassment of Baháʼís in Iran

Human Rights Watch released a report titled “Harassment, Torture, and Detention of Baháʼís in Iran,” stating that over the past two months, there has been an increasing trend in the detention of Iranian Baháʼís.

According to a Human Rights Watch report published on Tuesday, October 24, Islamic Republic officials have detained over 20 Baháʼí citizens in the cities of Shiraz, Isfahan, and Karaj over the past two months.

According to the international human rights organization, no specific charges have been announced against these individuals.

Michael Page, Deputy Middle East Director at Human Rights Watch, said: “More than 20 arrests in one month without any explanation demonstrates just how intolerant the Islamic Republic is toward Iran’s Baháʼí community.” He added that Islamic Republic officials escalated their “harassment and persecution campaign” by detaining an elected official who publicly expressed solidarity with detained Baháʼís.

The Human Rights Watch official was referring to the detention of Mehdi Hajati, a member of Shiraz City Council, who was detained for 10 days after posting a message on Twitter about efforts to free two Baháʼís.

In the Human Rights Watch report, multiple cases of Baháʼí detention in Shiraz, Isfahan, Karaj, and several other cities are mentioned, with some of these individuals being held in Ministry of Intelligence detention facilities.

Human Rights Watch continued by recalling that Iran’s constitution does not officially recognize Baháʼís as a religious minority in Iran, stating: “Authorities continuously persecute and detain Baháʼís solely because of their beliefs, continuously desecrate their cemeteries. They prevent Baháʼí students from registering at universities and expel believers of this faith.”

The Deputy Middle East Director at Human Rights Watch concluded the report by saying: “President Rouhani and his cabinet must stop pretending they are not responsible for the persecution of Baháʼís and put an end to these human rights violations.”

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in a speech in recent weeks, characterized Iran as an example of trampling the rights of religious minorities.

He said: “We stand with Christians, Jews, Dervishes, Muslims, Zoroastrians, Baháʼís, and other religious minorities of Iran whose human rights have been violated by the Iranian regime. Their freedom to practice and observe their religious beliefs is of great importance to us.”

The U.S. State Department also referred in its annual religious freedom report in June this year to violations of the right to religious freedom and human rights in 2017 in Iran.

In a section of the State Department report, violations of the rights of Sunni Muslims, followers of the Baháʼí faith, and Christians were mentioned, stating that since 2000, Iranian officials have detained over 600 Christians and converts.

Source: Voice of America