West Berkshire Bahais call on Newbury MP Richard Benyon for help

Aug. 27, 2010 - PRLog -- Bahá’ís in West Berkshire have written to Richard Benyon, MP for Newbury, to ask him to call for the release of seven Bahá’í leaders in Iran.

The local Bahá’ís are asking Richard Benyon to help win the support of the Prime Minister in a campaign to secure the release of their fellow Bahá’ís in Iran.

“The seven Bahá’í leaders – Fariba Kamalabadi, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi, Saeid Rezaie, Mahvash Sabet, Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Vahid Tizfahm – have each been sentenced to 20 years in jail just because they are Bahá’ís. We are really anxious for their safety and for their families,” said Shawn Khorassani on behalf of the West Berkshire Bahá’ís.

Foreign Secretary William Hague has expressed his concern at the treatment of the Bahá’í leaders. Mr Hague said: “I was appalled to hear of the 20 year prison sentence handed out to the seven spiritual leaders of the Bahá’í Faith in Iran. This is a shocking example of the Iranian state’s continued discrimination against the Bahá’ís. It is completely unacceptable. I call on the Iranian authorities urgently to consider any appeal against this decision, and to cease the harassment of the Bahá’í community.”

The Iranian authorities held the leaders in ‘temporary’ detention in the notorious Evin prison in Tehran for over 18 months before submitting them to a grossly unjust trial. One of the Bahá’ís was held in solitary confinement for 175 days and the other six for 105 days. Iranian law allows authorities to hold prisoners in solitary for a maximum of 20 days. Each of the two women and five men were allowed to see their lawyers for less than an hour in the run-up to the trial.

“We are inviting others to support our campaign for human rights in Iran and to join our prayers for the release of Iran’s Bahá’í leaders,” Mr Khorassani explained.

For more details about the Bahá'í Faith in West Berkshire, please call the West Berkshire’s Bahá'í Community on 07964 676461 or check out http://www.tvbahai.wordpress.com/

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West Berkshire Bahá'i Community and Thames Valley Bahá'i Community meet regularly to discuss Bahá'i teachings and beliefs. The Bahá'i faith is an independent world religion. Its principles include: equality of women and men and universal education.