Baha'i news: UN Secretary General voices concern over human rights abuses in Iran

[Rob Weinberg <rweinber@bwc.org>]

>Baha'i World News Service

>http://news.bahai.org

>For more information, contact: news@bahai.org

UN Secretary General voices concern over human rights abuses in Iran

UNITED NATIONS, 18 October (BWNS) - The Secretary General of the 
United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, has once again expressed strong concern 
over Iran's ongoing human rights violations, including its 
persecution of Iranian Baha'is.

In a report issued Thursday, Mr. Ban highlighted his continuing 
concerns over Iran's use of torture and the death penalty, its poor 
treatment of women, and repeated violations of due process of law and 
of freedom of assembly, speech and religion.

The report also strongly criticized Iran's failure to protect the 
rights of minorities, including the Baha'i, Sufi, Baluch, and Kurdish 
communities.

Over the last year, Mr. Ban said, there was "a noticeable increase in 
application of the death penalty, including in cases involving 
political opponents and juvenile offenders. Discrimination persisted 
against minority groups and in some cases amounted to persecution."

The Secretary-General has been "deeply troubled" by reports of 
"excessive use of force, arbitrary arrests and detentions, unfair 
trials and possible torture and ill-treatment of opposition activists 
in relation to the post-election unrest in 2009."

This year's report quite specifically highlighted Iran's ongoing 
"discrimination and harassment" of its Baha'i community.

"Members of unrecognized religions, in particular the Baha'i, who 
comprise the country's largest non-Muslim religious minority, face 
multiple forms of discrimination and harassment, including denial of 
employment, Government benefits and access to higher education," said 
the report.

"Some members of the Baha'i community have faced arbitrary detention 
or the confiscation and destruction of their property.

"Fires had been deliberately set to partially or totally destroy 
homes and vehicles, and a cemetery in Marvdasht had been vandalized. 
The incident was allegedly reported to a number of

Government agencies, but no official action has been taken," the 
report said.

The report also took note of the trial and reported sentencing of 
seven Baha'i leaders, observing that the UN High Commissioner for 
Human Rights has expressed "deep concern" over the absence of 
international observers and the lack of due process in that trial, 
which concluded in June.

"The High Commissioner voiced grave concern that the criminal charges 
brought against the above-mentioned individuals appeared to 
constitute a violation of the Islamic Republic of Iran's obligations 
under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, in 
particular those of freedom of religion and belief and freedom of 
expression and association," said the report.

Mr. Ban's report was released in response to last year's resolution 
of the UN General Assembly on human rights in Iran. That resolution 
specifically asked the Secretary General to report on any progress 
Iran makes during the year on human rights issues. It is the third 
such report that Mr. Ban has issued on human rights violations in 
Iran in as many years.

"What is surprising is the degree to which the government of Iran has 
completely ignored these annual reports from the UN Secretary 
General, who has so clearly articulated in them the international 
community's concerns about Iran's failure to meet its human rights 
obligations," said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the 
Baha'i International Community to the United Nations.

"For three years now, Mr. Ban has called attention to Iran's abusive 
and illegal treatment of women, juveniles, minorities, and 
journalists, not to mention common citizens who merely wish to voice 
their own concerns.

"Mr. Ban has also repeatedly expressed concern over Iran's systematic 
and on-going persecution of the Iranian Baha'i community, who are 
discriminated against solely because of their religious belief.

"We believe that the time has come for the UN General Assembly - to 
which this report is directed - to appoint a special envoy to monitor 
the human rights situation in Iran," said Ms. Dugal.

To view this article online, go to: http://news.bahai.org/story/796