[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 74 (Thursday, May 26, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E961]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               A BRUTAL CRACKDOWN AGAINST IRAN'S BAHA'IS

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                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 26, 2011

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I would like to bring to my colleagues' 
attention some extremely disturbing news coming out of Iran. Just this 
past weekend, a coordinated series of raids have been carried out on 
the homes of several Iranian Baha'is. An estimated 14 Baha'is have been 
arrested thus far.
  According to a representative of the Baha'i International Community 
to the United Nations in Geneva, ``All of the targets were homes of 
individuals closely involved with the operations of the Baha'i 
Institute for Higher Education.'' This institution was created to 
provide young Baha'is an opportunity to pursue higher education after 
being systematically denied access to higher learning institutions by 
the Iranian government.
  These attacks--and Iran's general policy of suppressing religious 
freedom--are unacceptable and must stop. The U.S. and the international 
community must vigorously speak out against these acts of injustice 
facing the nearly 300,000 Baha'is living in Iran today--a community 
which, according to the recently published report of the U.S. 
Commission on International Religious Freedom, ``has long been subject 
to particularly severe religious violations in Iran.''
  We must not allow such atrocities to continue unnoticed.

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