German parliamentarians, human rights activists and health experts call on Iranian authorities

Appeal to the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the entire Iranian government, as well as to all members of the Iranian National Assembly (Majles)

German parliamentarians, human rights activists and health experts call on Iranian authorities to stop arbitrary detentions and convictions of Bahá’ís immediately

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen,

The International Society for Human Rights (IGFM) and the Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV) as well as the listed German parliamentarians, human rights activists and health experts urgently appeal to you to immediately release the Bahá’ís imprisoned in your country from prison and to drop all charges against followers of this religious minority.

Prisoners are particularly at risk as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, which is also affecting more and more people in Iran. They live in prisons in extremely cramped and often unhygienic conditions, making it generally impossible for them to maintain the necessary safety distance and hygiene rules. In addition, their access to medical care is limited. The outbreak of the virus in some of your prisons puts countless lives in danger.

The Iranian authorities are stepping up persecution of Bahá’ís despite the ongoing health crisis during the Corona pandemic. At least 77 people have been arrested on unsubstantiated charges, tried, charged, sentenced to prison terms of up to 13 years or imprisoned in the past two months. At a court hearing in Shiraz, a justice official threatened to “uproot” the Bahá’í community in the city. Iran’s state-controlled media are intensifying public defamation of Bahá’ís through increasingly coordinated dissemination of disinformation about their faith, using television channels, newspapers, radio stations, websites, and social media to denigrate Bahá’ís.

We call on the Iranian authorities to release the Bahá’ís, who are imprisoned solely for their faith, to acquit them of all charges and to allow them to practice their faith freely.

Signatories:

Dr. Bärbel Kofler, Human Rights Commissioner of the Germany Government MP Gyde Jensen, Chair of the Human Rights Committee in the Federal Parliament MP Filiz Polat MP Frank Heinrich MP Prof. Dr. Heribert Hirte MP Kai Gehring MP Margarete Bause MP Martin Patzelt MP Omid Nouripour MP Yasmin Fahimi MEP Klaus Buchner MEP Michael Bloss Berivan Aymaz, Member of State Parliament Martina Feldmayer, Member of State Parliament Markus Löning, former Human Rights Commissioner of the Germany Government

Dr. Gundula Negele, University Augsburg Helmut Gabel, Representative of Karamat e.V. Prof. Dr. Ingo Hofmann Dr. Kamal Sido, Middle East Officer, GfbV Michael Leh, Board member, IGFM Dr. Shamim Rafat, Transparency for Iran e.V. Prof. Dr. Siegfried Scharrer, Protestant University Nuremberg Rebecca Schönenbach, President, Frauen für Freiheit e.V.

Dr. phil. Christin Çelebi, DGPP, University Potsdam Dr. med. Claudia von Both Dr. med. Daniela Liebscher Dr. med. habil. Hamid Peseschkian, Leader of Wiesbadens Academy for Psychotherapy Dr. med. Hans Martin Noltenius PD Dr. Dr. med. Neysan Rafat, University Medicine Mannheim Dr. med. Roya Schayani-Mühlschlegel