BAHA'I NEWS: Baha'is imprisoned in Yemen may face deportation to Iran

[Brad Pokorny]

Baha'is imprisoned in Yemen may face deportation to Iran

 

 

PRESS RELEASE

Baha'i International Community

27 August 2008

For Immediate Release

For more information, contact Bani Dugal in New York at (office)
212-803-2500 or Diane Ala'i in Geneva at (office) +41 (-22) -798-5400 

 

Or go to: http://news.bahai.org

Email: news at bahai.org

 

 

 

Baha'is imprisoned in Yemen may face deportation to Iran

 

NEW YORK (27 August 2008) - Three Baha'is currently imprisoned in Yemen are
facing the possibility of imminent deportation to Iran, where Baha'is are
intensely persecuted and they would likely face imprisonment or torture.

 

"We are gravely concerned about the fate of these three Baha'is, who are
being held without charges in a case that is clearly based on religious
persecution," said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i
International Community to the United Nations.

 

"Although the three have lived in Yemen for more than 25 years, they hold
Iranian passports and we have come to believe that the Yemeni government may
be planning to deport them to Iran, where the government is waging a
systematic campaign against Baha'is.

 

"While calling for their immediate release, our primary concern today is to
ask that the Yemeni government resist any impulse to deport these three
Baha'is to Iran - or any other country. Deportation to any country for three
individuals with well established businesses and families for their
religious beliefs would be grossly unjust, but deportation to Iran, where
they face the possibility of torture, would be a clear violation of
international human rights law," said Ms. Dugal.

 

The three Baha'is were arrested in June, apparently in relation to their
belief in and practice of the Baha'i Faith, along with a Baha'i of Iraqi
origin. 

 

The three Baha'is of Iranian origin who were arrested are Mr. Zia'u'llah
Pourahmari, Mr. Keyvan Qadari, and Mr. Behrooz Rohani. A fourth Baha'i, Mr.
Sayfi Ibrahim Sayfi, was also arrested and faces the possibility of
deportation to Iraq.

 

The three Baha'is of Iranian background all have successful businesses in
Yemen, and their families are well established there.

 

The arrests occurred in the capital, Sana'a, on the night of 20 June 2008,
when some 20 armed security officers carried out raids at several Baha'i
homes. During the raids, papers, CDs, photographs and a computer were also
confiscated.

 

Although no formal charges have been filed, government officials have
indicated that the Baha'is were arrested on the suspicion of "proselytizing"
in a manner against Yemeni law, which the Baha'is deny.

 

Since their arrest, the Baha'i International Community has been working
through diplomatic channels to obtain their release.

 

"Our hope has been to prevent this case from becoming a major human rights
matter, over the issue of religious persecution. Deportation to Iran would
certainly be a matter for international concern, and such an action would be
out of character with the Yemeni government's past record on human rights
issues.

 

"Under international laws on the freedom of religion, there is no question
that Baha'is - and others in Yemen - should be free to practice their faith.
While the situation is still unfolding, we stand by the right of Baha'is in
Yemen and elsewhere to practice their religion in all aspects, without the
fear of being forced to leave their adopted country," said Ms. Dugal.

 

There are approximately 250 registered Baha'is in Yemen, and the community
has enjoyed relative freedom for its members to quietly practice their
faith.

 

- END -