Continued Detention and Legal Limbo for Saeideh Khadoei, Bahai Citizen in Tehran
Hrana News Agency – Today, Monday, April 1, 2022, Saeideh Khadoei, a Bahai citizen residing in Tehran, remains in detention and legal limbo despite 21 days having passed since her arrest. Ms. Khadoei was arrested on April 11 following her appearance at the Evin Courthouse.
According to a report by Hrana News Agency, the news organ of the Human Rights Activists in Iran group, today Monday, April 1, 2022, Saeideh Khadoei, a Bahai citizen residing in Tehran, continues to be held in detention and legal limbo despite 21 days having passed since her arrest.
Despite repeated follow-ups by her family, there is still no information regarding her place of detention and the charges against Ms. Khadoei, and officials at the Evin Courthouse are refusing to provide any information on this matter.
Arslan Yazdani, Ms. Khadoei’s son, announced in a post on his personal page information about his mother’s contact yesterday. According to him, Ms. Khadoei was not permitted to clarify her place of detention.
Ms. Khadoei was arrested on April 11 after appearing at the Evin Courthouse. This Bahai citizen was summoned at the beginning of the current year through a summons to Section 2 of the Investigation Division at the Evin Courthouse, and after reporting to this section, she was asked to appear again on Saturday at this section.
Saeideh Khadoei is the mother of Arslan Yazdani, a Bahai citizen who was arrested by security forces in Tehran on September 1, 2021, and transferred to one of the security detention centers in Evin Prison. Security forces conducted a home search at the time of his arrest and confiscated several of his personal belongings. He was finally released on October 16, 2021, after posting a bail bond.
Ms. Khadoei’s home was searched by security forces on September 28, 2020, and several of their personal items including a laptop, mobile phone, electronic devices, photos, and documents were confiscated.
Bahai citizens in Iran are deprived of freedoms related to religious beliefs. This systematic deprivation occurs despite Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which state that everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion, and to manifest their religion or belief, individually or in community with others, in public or in private.
According to unofficial sources in Iran, there are more than 300,000 Bahai citizens; however, Iran’s Constitution recognizes only Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism, and does not recognize the Bahai faith. For this reason, the rights of Bahais in Iran have been systematically violated over the years.
Source: Hrana
