06 Oct

Posted at 18:18h in International

NEW YORK – 6 October 2023 – The Baha’i International Community sends its sincere and joyful congratulations today to the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi.

 

Ms. Mohammadi is an Iranian human rights and women’s rights activist par excellence. Her first arrest by the Iranian authorities occurred in 1998; since then, she has been arrested 13 times, convicted five times, and faces jail sentences totaling 31 years in prison as well as 154 lashes of the whip.

 

The Nobel committee recognized Ms. Mohammadi for “her fight against the oppression of women in Iran and her fight to promote human rights and freedom for all.” The Baha’i community, whose members have themselves been persecuted for 44 years under the Islamic Republic, is also committed to these values. All women human rights defenders in Iran are also honored by this award.

 

Our congratulations are tempered with sadness that Ms. Mohammadi remains incarcerated in Evin Prison. The Baha’i International Community has in the past called for her release. We are dismayed that this call—along with our call for the full recognition of the rights of all Iranians, including Baha’is and members of other minorities—remains ignored by the Iranian authorities.

 

Two Baha’i women also unjustly jailed in Evin, Mahvash Sabet and Fariba Kamalabadi, will at least be able to celebrate the award with Ms. Mohammadi within the prison. The new Nobel laureate has many times called for the release of Mrs. Sabet and Mrs. Kamalabadi, prisoners of conscience and fellow inmates, both now and when all three were incarcerated during the previous decade. Ms. Mohammadi also added her voice to the recent Our Story Is One campaign that commemorated the 1983 execution of 10 Baha’i women in Shiraz and supported Iranian women’s quest for gender equality and human rights.

 

The international community today offered one of its grandest platforms to Iran’s struggle for gender equality and human rights. We hope that Narges Mohammadi—and all Iranians—will draw strength from this moment and continue their effort for equality and justice in Iran.

 

More information: www.bic.org

02 Aug

Posted at 12:56h in International

BRUSSELS – 2 August 2023 – Unprecedented support: the hashtag #OurStoryIsOne reaches hundreds of millions of views worldwide.

 

Last June, the Baha’i International Community launched a campaign in honour of a tragic event that took place in Shiraz, Iran, 40 years ago and has influenced and inspired many people in their efforts for gender equality, social justice and freedom.

 

Forty years ago, on 18 June 1983, 10 Baháʼí women were executed in a square in Shiraz, Iran, without their families knowing about it. One of them was 17, most were in their twenties. Their crime: believing in a faith that advocates gender equality, justice and truth. They were hanged one after the other, each forced to witness the death of the next, in an attempt to force them to recant their faith. None did.

 

(source : Baháʼí International Community)

The story of Iranian women’s resistance and sacrifice for equality continues. Throughout the four decades following this tragic event, hundreds more Baháʼí women have been persecuted – both as women and as Baháʼís – imprisoned, tortured and executed. Baháʼí women in key positions in the country have been sacked, arrested or killed. Those who survived were excluded from universities, public jobs and virtually all aspects of social life.

 

Today, in the blood, tears and wounds of thousands of young Iranian women fighting for equality, we can recognise the legacy of the ten women of Shiraz whose tragic deaths touched the lives of so many. We see the same spirit and the same choice: to stand up for justice and equality, even if it means making the ultimate sacrifice. Although mistreated and imprisoned, the women of today – just like those who came before them – sacrifice themselves courageously and voluntarily to live in a fairer and more prosperous Iran.

 

Over the decades, thousands of people have given their blood to build a better Iran. And despite the Iranian government’s efforts to sow discord and hatred between groups, Iranians have forged a sense of unity in suffering and resilience, and a unity in their struggle to rebuild Iran, whatever the sacrifices.

 

Beyond Iran, it is together, as humanity, that we share this common destiny. This thirst for justice and freedom is felt by millions of people around the world. Our story is one. #OurStoryIsOne

 

(source : Bahá’í World News Service)

In an extraordinary global response, the #OurStoryIsOne campaign has, in the few weeks since its launch, attracted unprecedented levels of support with a reach of several hundred million views across traditional and social media. The momentum has been reinforced by an avalanche of statements from UN officials, senior dignitaries, government figures, parliamentarians, Nobel Peace Prize laureates, artists, celebrities, members of the public and prisoners of conscience in Iran.

 

Various events and activities are also being organised in all the countries. Discussions, concerts, art exhibitions and service initiatives are all opportunities to celebrate the unity of humanity and promote the universal values of peace and love.

 

And what is most encouraging is the spirit of joy and unity that animates this campaign. It’s a sign of hope for the future, and shows us that we can all contribute to creating a fairer and more peaceful world. Together, we are proving that unity is our greatest strength.

 

Link to the campaign website: https://www.ourstoryisone.bic.org/  and Bahá’í World News Service: https://news.bahai.org/fr/story/1686/

16 Sep

Posted at 13:07h in Belgium, International

BRUSSELS – 16 September 2022 – The Baha’i Community of Belgium yesterday morning delivered a letter addressed to His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of the State of Qatar, expressing the concerns of the Baha’is of Belgium regarding the discrimination, restrictions, and human rights violations which have been suffered by their co-religionists in Qatar for decades, and asking him to intervene on behalf of the Baha’is in his country.

 

The letter was hand-delivered to the Qatari embassy in Brussels by a representative of the Baha’is of Belgium.

 

The action was taken after noting the increasing discrimination and restrictions against the Baha’i community in Qatar. Millions of Baha’is live in almost every country in the world and work for the unity of humanity and the unity of religions.

 

“For several years we have observed an alarming pattern of discrimination and human rights violations against Bahá’ís in Qatar,” says Annemie Vanormelingen, representative of the Bahá’ís of Belgium. “Transmitting these concerns to the Emir of the State of Qatar, in writing, shows the seriousness of this moment. We risk seeing the elimination of another religious minority in a Middle Eastern country. This is why all the Bahá’ís of Belgium hope that His Highness, the Emir, will be able to intervene on behalf of their co-religionists before they are expelled from his land.”

 

Bahá’ís have been resident in Qatar for more than 70 years, even before the State of Qatar became independent, but despite this long presence they have experienced decades of discrimination.

 

For many years, the Qatari authorities have systematically attempted to expel Bahá’ís from Qatar, including blacklisting them and issuing expulsion orders, and denying them business licences or work permits even when they have already received job offers from Qatari companies. A number of Bahá’ís have also been denied “certificates of good conduct” – even though they have done nothing wrong – which then disqualifies them from access to employment or other aspects of life.

 

Some Bahá’ís in Qatar have even faced unspecified and false criminal and national security charges. Blacklists and expulsions have separated married couples and families and forced some Qatari citizens to leave their home countries to avoid being separated from their non-Qatari spouses.

 

Qatar’s Baha’is have also been barred from working in so-called “sensitive” sectors, particularly education, despite having worked and contributed for decades in the medical sector, banking, engineering, sports, media, entrepreneurship, public policy, oil and gas, crafts and trades, justice, health and security, and the arts.

 

The discrimination bears a striking resemblance to the treatment faced by Bahá’ís in Iran and Yemen. Most of the Baha’is in Qatar who have been blacklisted and expelled were born and raised in the country, in families that have lived there for generations and have known no other home.

 

A 2019 report by the UN special rapporteurs on minority issues and freedom of religion or belief said Qatar was “undermining human rights in the areas of religion and culture”, referring to the situation of Baha’is, in “what appears to be a disturbing pattern of discrimination against individuals on the basis of their religion or belief”.

 

The Special Rapporteurs added that they were “particularly concerned about the deportation and blacklisting of individuals on the basis of their membership of a minority religion”.

30 Oct

Posted at 11:25h in Belgium, International

On 29th and 30th October 2019, in countless settings and places throughout the world, people celebrated the 200th anniversary of the birth of the Báb, whose revitalizing message prepared the way for the coming of Bahá’u’lláh, the founder of the Bahá’í Faith.

The world centre in the Holy Land released a film to mark the occasion, which can be viewed here. A web page has also been dedicated to this historic event.