Annual Report: Widespread Persecution of Christians Continues in Iran

The annual report on the status of the Christian community in Iran indicates "punishment for faith" and continued "widespread violations" of their rights in the country despite "denial" by the Islamic Republic's authorities.

The authors of the report wrote that the "different decisions" regarding the cases of Christians with identical charges indicate the "inconsistencies" that have plagued Iran's judicial system, and that not only does it not show any "progress" but also depends on the individual opinions of different judges.

The issuance of heavy bails, some of which amount to 220,000 US dollars, the deprivation of freedom of all imprisoned Christians with electronic wristbands, the continued detention and baseless accusations against them, the persecution of Christians and their forced escape from the country to escape long-term imprisonment and their seeking refuge in neighboring countries despite poor living conditions, are other reported cases of discrimination against Iranian Christians.

A new joint report prepared by several human rights organizations, including the international organization Middle East Concern, the Christian organization Open Doors, and Article 18, emphasizes that Persian-speaking Christians in the Islamic Republic are being "punished" because of their "faith."

The report states that Christians in Iran are being persecuted, even though the Islamic Republic's judiciary, in an official response to senior UN experts in January 2021, claimed: "No one in Iran is persecuted for religious reasons."

However, in the same response, the judiciary explicitly admitted that it would take legal action against members of "enemy groups" and "private churches" that it accused of being members of a "Zionist Christian sect" with "anti-security goals."

"Harassment, arrest, interrogation, and pressure to renounce or commit to refraining from meeting with other Christians or participating in Christian activities" are among the other cases mentioned in the report.

The report states that if these Christians want to "gather for worship, prayer, and Bible study" in a space other than official churches under government supervision, they may be charged with "acting against security."

The amendment of Articles 499 and 500 of the Islamic Penal Code in February 2021 and the possibility of punishment of up to five years in prison for religious minorities under headings such as "deviant propaganda that is contrary to the holy religion of Islam" are other cases that, according to this report, have led to the indictment of a number of Christians.

The report also assessed the November 2021 ruling by the Supreme Court of Iran to review the sentences of nine Christian converts as a "positive development," but at the same time wrote that it remains to be seen how the revolutionary courts will review these cases.

The report also commended and positively assessed the ruling issued by one of the branches of the Revolutionary Courts in Dezful, which considered the decision to convert eight Christian converts to Islam a "crime" only from a religious and not a legal perspective.

However, that same month, the Supreme Court rejected the appeal of a Christian couple who had been sentenced to 10 years in prison for participating in a house church, according to the report.

The human rights organizations that produced the report have called on the Islamic Republic to immediately and unconditionally release Christians who have been detained on "trumped-up charges related to their faith or religious activities."

Stopping the criminalization of organizing and membership in house churches, confiscating church property and confiscating Christian property, unjustly detaining minority followers, as well as guaranteeing the right to a lawyer for those detained and allowing the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran access to these cases are other suggestions and requests in this annual report.

The aforementioned report also called on members of the international community, during political-economic negotiations with the authorities of the Islamic Republic, to urge them to facilitate and guarantee freedom of belief and religion for all in the country, based on their international obligations.

The ongoing persecution of religious communities in Iran, including the Christian community, has also been widely reported in the reports of Javed Rehman, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran.

There are various statistics on the number of Christians in Iran. The Iranian State Statistics Center says that 117,000 Christians live in Iran, but some estimates say that the actual number of Christians is much higher than the official figure.

According to the World Christian Database, there are about 547,000 Christians in Iran. Another Christian organization, Pastors of Elam, says that there may be between 300,000 and 1 million Christians in Iran.

These statistics are presented at a time when, due to the persecution of Christian converts in Iran, their number is unknown.

Source: Radio Farda