Baha'i International Community: Those arrested in Qaemshahr were young people deprived of university education
According to the representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations, the 14 citizens arrested in Qaemshahr were young people who had previously been denied the right to enter university.
A statement released on the matter also states that in the past month, Baha'is in Iran have been targeted in "245 cases of repression and harassment."
Simin Fahandezh said in a statement from the Baha'i International Community released on Thursday, September 1: "These young people had gathered at a friend's house to study, discuss, and engage in conversation about the role of education in social progress."
Human rights media had previously announced that these citizens were arrested on Wednesday, September 29, and transferred to the Sari Intelligence Department's central detention center. During the arrest, security agents, in addition to searching their homes, confiscated their cell phones and religious books.
The Baha'i International Community has identified these 14 individuals as Bita Haghighi, Anis Sana'i, Golbon Fallah, Hengameh Alipour, Afsaneh Nematian, Mujir Samimi, Mani Gholinejad, Nazanin Goli, Sam Samimi, Sanaz Hekmatshear, Mahsa Fathi, Samieh Gholinejad, Negar Darabi, and Basir Samimi.
So far, the charges against these individuals have not been announced by government institutions or their affiliated media outlets.
According to Arash Sadeghi, a civil activist and former political prisoner, the Baha'i citizens arrested in Qaemshahr were between 17 and 20 years old, and as of Thursday evening, September 1, only two of them had been released.
Simin Fahandezh, the representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations, said in a statement on the matter: "The cruelty of the [Islamic Republic of] Iran's government is boundless. They not only deprive these young people of entering university and developing their intellectual capabilities, but they also deny them the basic right to gather as a group of young people and discuss and debate the important issues and concerns of their generation."
Human rights sources had announced in recent weeks that after the announcement of the results of the national university exam, dozens of Baha'i citizens were presented with the "incomplete file" option on the Sanjesh Organization's website and faced security incidents when they visited this organization.
The official statement of the Baha’i International Community states: “In the past 32 days, [Islamic Republic] authorities have targeted Baha’is with 245 cases of harassment and repression, including arrest, imprisonment, destruction and confiscation of homes and property… and depriving more than a hundred young Baha’is of university education.”
Despite the fact that approximately 300,000 Baha'is live in Iran, the Islamic Republic does not recognize the Baha'i faith, and its authorities have repeatedly called these citizens "spies and enemies" and, over the past four decades, have issued numerous death sentences, arrests, imprisonments, deprivation of education and business, and the destruction of homes and cemeteries against them.
In a 1991 policy document signed by him, Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, called for the "blocking" of the progress and advancement of the Baha'i community, including banning their presence in universities.
In 2006, the Iranian Ministry of Science and Research also sent a letter to 81 Iranian universities, calling for the prevention of Baha'i citizens from entering the university and their expulsion if they are identified while studying.
Source: Radio Farda
