[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 153 (Wednesday, October 21, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H11549-H11551]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               CONDEMNING PERSECUTION OF BAHA'IS IN IRAN

  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 175) condemning the Government of Iran for its 
state-sponsored persecution of its Baha'i minority and its continued 
violation of the International Covenants on Human Rights, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 175

       Whereas in 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 
     2006, and 2008, Congress declared that it deplored the 
     religious persecution by the Government of Iran of the Baha'i 
     community and would hold the Government of Iran responsible 
     for upholding the rights of all Iranian nationals, including 
     members of the Baha'i faith;
       Whereas in November 2007, the Iranian Ministry of 
     Information in Shiraz jailed Baha'is Ms. Raha Sabet, 33, Mr. 
     Sasan Taqva, 32, and Ms. Haleh Roohi, 29 for ostensibly 
     ``indirectly teaching the Baha'i Faith'' and ``engaging in 
     anti-government propaganda'' while educating underprivileged 
     children and gave them 4-year prison terms, which they are 
     serving;
       Whereas Ms. Sabet, Mr. Taqva, and Ms. Rooshi were targeted 
     solely on the basis of their religion;
       Whereas, on January 23, 2008, the United States Department 
     of State released a statement urging the Iranian regime to 
     release all individuals held without due process and a fair 
     trial, including the 3 young Baha'is being held in an Iranian 
     Ministry of Intelligence detention center in Shiraz;
       Whereas in March and May of 2008, Iranian intelligence 
     officials in Mashhad and Tehran arrested and imprisoned Mrs. 
     Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, 
     Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, 
     and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm, the members of the coordinating group 
     for the Baha'i community in Iran;
       Whereas these seven leaders have been imprisoned for well 
     over a year and are yet to stand trial, the trial having been 
     delayed multiple times;
       Whereas official Iranian media has announced they will face 
     charges of ``espionage for Israel, insulting religious 
     sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic Republic'';
       Whereas these seven Baha'i leaders were targeted solely on 
     the basis of their religion; and
       Whereas the Government of Iran is party to the 
     International Covenants on Human Rights: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) condemns the Government of Iran for its state-sponsored 
     persecution of its Baha'i minority and its continued 
     violation of the International Covenants on Human Rights;
       (2) calls on the Government of Iran to immediately release 
     the seven leaders and all other prisoners held solely on 
     account of their religion, including: Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, 
     Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, 
     Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Vahid Tizfahm, 
     Ms. Raha Sabet, Mr. Sasan Taqva, and Ms. Haleh Roohi; and
       (3) calls on the President and Secretary of State, in 
     cooperation with responsible nations, to immediately condemn 
     Iran's continued violation of human rights and demand the 
     immediate release of prisoners held solely on account of 
     their religion, including Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. 
     Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mr. 
     Behrouz Tavakkoli, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Vahid Tizfahm, Ms. 
     Raha Sabet, Mr. Sasan Taqva, and Ms. Haleh Roohi.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Watson) and the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.


                             General Leave

  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. WATSON. I yield myself as much time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, and I would 
like to thank my good friend, the gentleman from Illinois, Congressman 
Mark Kirk, for his leadership in introducing this important resolution.
  H. Res. 175 condemns the Government of Iran for its state-sponsored 
persecution of its Baha'i minority and of its continued violation of 
the international covenants on human rights.
  Mr. Speaker, resolutions in support of the much persecuted Baha'i 
communities in the Middle East have a long and proud tradition in the 
House of Representatives and in the other body. While past resolutions 
have chronicled the abuse and harassment Baha'is have experienced in 
several Middle Eastern countries, nowhere is the situation as dire or 
does it require more urgent action than in Iran, where Baha'is are 
routinely arrested and face the death penalty.
  Iran's Baha'i community forms that country's largest religious 
minority. It is difficult to know the exact number because Iran has 
banned communal Baha'i institutions since 1983, but it is estimated 
that they number over 300,000.
  Since 1979, some 200 Baha'is have been executed, and thousands have 
been imprisoned. They have been systematically denied jobs, pensions, 
access to higher education, and the right to inherit property. All 
Baha'i cemeteries, holy places and other community properties were 
seized soon after the 1979 revolution. Many sites of the greatest 
historical significance to the Baha'is have been destroyed, and the 
graves of Baha'is have been desecrated throughout the country.
  In the spring of 2008, seven individuals who had been serving as 
leaders of the Baha'i community on an ad hoc basis were arrested and 
were put in Tehran's notorious Evin prison. Their trial date has been 
repeatedly postponed, and it is still unclear if and when they will 
face trial.
  Official Iranian news agencies have reported that they are charged 
with espionage for Israel, insulting Islam and with propaganda against 
the Islamic republic. Family members have been informed of a fourth 
charge, that of spreading corruption on Earth. Some of these charges 
could carry the death penalty. The circumstances of this possible trial 
are particularly worrying because the Government of Iran has arrested 
and executed the Baha'i leadership on three previous occasions.
  In addition to the seven Baha'i leaders, some 25 other Baha'is also 
remain in prison, including three young people in Shiraz who were 
arrested in 2006 for indirectly teaching the Baha'i faith and for 
engaging in antigovernment propaganda while merely carrying out a 
literacy program for underprivileged youth. These young people are 
currently serving 4-year sentences under very harsh conditions.
  As the United States and the international community seek to engage 
Iran on the crucial issues of nonproliferation, we must not forget 
about the basic human rights of the Iranian people. International 
attention to the persecution of the Baha'is in Iran has been critical 
to preventing an even worse deterioration of their situation.
  As large sections of the Iranian population are now being 
increasingly repressed and denied the opportunity to have a voice in 
their own country, it is crucial that others in the international 
community speak out on their behalf and support them. I urge all of my 
colleagues to support this important resolution.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to thank the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Kirk) for bringing forward this important resolution.
  I rise today in strong support of House Resolution 175, which 
condemns the Iranian regime's continuing persecution of members of the 
Baha'i faith, Tehran's notoriously cruel regime, which for decades has 
denied the people of Iran their fundamental human rights and civil 
liberties.
  While the most recent demonstration of the regime's brutality and 
authoritarianism was the crackdown in the aftermath of the June 
leadership selection process; for years, Iran has

[[Page H11550]]

made a special example of the Iranian Baha'is, oppressing them without 
respite.
  In addition to seizing Baha'i communal property, the Iranian 
Government prohibits the community from officially assembling; bans 
them from practicing or teaching their religion; excludes them from the 
national pension system and from public universities; prevents them 
from inheriting property; and jails them on account of their faith or 
on trumped-up charges of espionage.
  Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to adopt this resolution, which 
condemns the Iranian regime's despicable conduct.
  Mr. Speaker, totalitarian regimes everywhere, hiding behind the false 
excuse of state sovereignty, are eager to combat any progress in human 
rights and freedoms and are eager to expand their repression as far as 
others will allow them to do.
  The Baha'is and countless other Iranians have been robbed of a better 
future for almost 30 years by a regime which offers nothing but more 
misery. Therefore, the United States must continue to make clear in 
both word and deed that the spread of religious freedom and human 
rights worldwide is not merely an ideal but an imperative. Now is the 
time for all responsible nations to stand four-square with the Baha'is 
of Iran in their moment of need.
  With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk), a member of the Committee on 
Appropriations and the author of this measure.
  Mr. KIRK. Mr. Speaker, as the author of this important resolution, I 
rise in strong support, and I urge its adoption.
  I want to thank the chairman and ranking member for bringing up this 
resolution on the floor today, and I want to thank Mr. McGovern for 
helping garner bipartisan support for this effort.
  As many of my colleagues know, my district is home to the North 
American Baha'i Temple located in Wilmette, Illinois. The Baha'i faith 
was founded in Iran 165 years ago on principles of peace and tolerance. 
Baha'is are a gentle and nonviolent people. They follow the teachings 
of Baha'u'llah, who taught respect for Moses, Jesus and Mohammad, 
teaching respect and tolerance around the world.
  Yet, since the Iranian revolution of 1979, the Government of Iran has 
committed a deliberate campaign of discrimination, harassment, 
detention, arrests, imprisonment, and the execution of one of their 
largest religious minorities. Based solely on their religious beliefs, 
Baha'is in Iran are now denied jobs, are robbed of pensions, are 
stripped of property rights, and are forced to endure the barbarous 
desecration of their holy sites as well as forced to watch their 
leaders being imprisoned and executed.

                              {time}  1300

  Last spring, seven leaders of the Baha'i community were arrested and 
detained in Tehran's notorious Evin prison. Their trial date has been 
repeatedly postponed as they languish in prison without legal resource. 
Although no charges have been publicly filed, Iranian news agencies 
report that these individuals will be charged with ``espionage for 
Israel, insulting Islam, propaganda against the Islamic Republic, and 
spreading corruption on Earth.'' Conviction of these crimes carries a 
penalty of death.
  We know what happened the last time the Iranian regime struck the 
Baha'i community leadership. In August of 1980, all of the members of 
the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is were executed. We should 
do all we can to prevent such a crime against humanity from being 
committed again.
  As the President pursues his negotiation policy with the brutal 
Iranian dictators, we should not forget the kind of people we are 
dealing with. Iran denies its citizens basic human rights and is 
persecuting its minorities and executes what they call apostates. If 
our diplomats ignore Iranian Baha'is and silence the voice of Iranian 
human rights activists, America will have failed a great moral test in 
Iran.
  Today, the House of Representatives sends a signal to the Iranian 
regime, and it contains an important message. The U.S. Congress will 
expose this regime that murders innocent women and children in the 
streets and denies citizens basic human rights. To the dictators in 
Iran we say, release your political prisoners, especially release your 
Baha'i prisoners, and end your ignorant and uncultured persecution of 
the peaceful Baha'is.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Ken Bowers, the secretary general of the 
National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is, and Juana Conrad, the 
deputy secretary, for their steadfast devotion to their fellow Baha'is 
worldwide. I also want to thank the Local Spiritual Assemblies in 
Arlington Heights, Deerfield, Glencoe, Glenview, Northbrook, Palatine, 
Vernon Hills, Waukegan and Wilmette for contributing to our community 
and calling attention to this human rights abuse.
  Thank you also to Hans Hogrefe from Chairman Berman's hardworking 
staff and Jeff Philipps and Richard Goldberg of my staff for bringing 
this to the floor. A special thanks to Kit Bigelow and Shastri 
Purushotma from the National Spiritual Assembly of Baha'is of the 
United States for their dedication and pursuit of religious freedom and 
human rights for Baha'is worldwide.
  I cannot for the life of me think of what's going on in Iran that she 
would commit such crimes against 330,000 peaceful Baha'is in Iran. I am 
worried that the Iranian intelligence service and ministry has now 
registered the address of every Baha'i and every Baha'i business in the 
country. I am worried that they have already labeled Baha'i businesses 
as ineligible for government contracting.
  We have seen the bureaucracy of a new Kristallnacht formed in Iran. I 
worry that with this bureaucracy now fully formed, we could see a 
tremendous human rights abuse occur against hundreds of thousands of 
peaceful individuals. That's why this resolution is so important, not 
just to call attention to crimes that have been committed, but to a 
potential crime against humanity, which, in my judgment, the dictators 
of Iran are fully capable of committing. That's why this institution 
rises to its fullest potential, underscoring the point that America is 
not the most powerful, best nation in the world because we are rich or 
have a large military, but because we represent the moral authority of 
a democratic people representing the dignity of each individual on this 
planet.
  I urge adoption of this resolution and thank the Members.
  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, having no more speakers on the subject, 
again, I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois for bringing forward 
this very important resolution and urge my fellow Members to adopt it.
  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of defending the 
human rights of everyone throughout the world. The United States must 
seek to uphold and protect human rights here at home as well as abroad. 
I stand in solidarity with the people of the Baha'i faith and all 
faiths that endure persecution based on their religious beliefs. As 
such, I strongly support the stated intention of this resolution.
  As we aim a critical eye to the Iranian government's human rights 
violations, we can only do so with credibility if we turn the critical 
eye on our own country. For example, institutionalized discrimination 
based on gender and sexual orientation persists throughout the U.S. All 
human beings deserve security and equal protection under the law.
  Furthermore, supporting the Baha'i faith by condemning Iran is 
antithetical to principles that are central to the Baha'i faith. The 
Baha'i teachings are built on the values of peace and unification. 
Condemnation, or the act of placing blame, separates and antagonizes. 
Condemnation of Iran with intent to rattle the sabers of war would not 
be something I support; nor do I believe it would be supported by those 
of the Baha'i faith.
  In the spirit of honoring the Baha'i faith we, should work to end 
persecution. Rather than condemning Iran in order to forward an 
aggressive agenda, this body would do better to support the efforts of 
the Administration to engage Iran in high-level diplomatic 
negotiations. Engaging Iran diplomatically honors the spirit of unity 
that is central to the Baha'i faith and brings us closer to peace.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time.

[[Page H11551]]

  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Watson) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 175, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. KIRK. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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