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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-04-08 Daily Xml
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BAHA'I SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY

Ms SIMMONS (Morialta) (16:03): I commence by thanking the house for the many good wishes that Ken and I have received. We are very grateful for that. I am looking forward to next week and I am sure that we will have a wonderful day and a wonderful life together.

I was very privileged on Sunday to be invited to attend a very special prayer evening organised by the Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'i community of Campbelltown. This prayer evening was especially for the seven leaders of the national coordinating committee of the Baha'i faith in Iran, who have been held in Tehran's notorious Evin prison since early 2008.

Iranian officials have recently announced that the seven will face trial this month on charges of espionage for Israel, insulting Islam and propaganda against Iran. Three of these leaders have close relatives living in Australia. I was very pleased to meet Mr Amin Tavakoli on Sunday. His brother is one of the leaders incarcerated in what he tells me are appalling conditions.

There has been an international reaction to the recent announcement made by the Iranian government that the seven Baha'i leaders are to face court. A number of governments, international organisations and prominent individuals have reacted to the announcement of a trial of the seven members of the Friends in Iran. Among those issuing statements are the European parliament, the UK Foreign Office, the US State Department, Germany, the Human Rights Commission in Brazil, the European Union, the government of Australia, a Canadian parliamentary committee and Amnesty International.

It took more than eight months for the Iranian government to accuse these individuals of any crime during which time no evidence against them was brought to light. They were accused of espionage for Israel, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic republic. It has been announced that their case will soon be submitted to court with a request for indictment.

The international headquarters of the Baha'i faith is based today within the borders of modern day Israel, purely as a result of the banishment of the faith's founder by the Persian and Ottoman empires in the mid-19th century. In 1868, 80 years before the state of Israel was founded, the leader was exiled to perpetual imprisonment in the city of Akka.

At no time during their incarceration have the seven leaders been given access to their legal counsel, Nobel Laureate Mrs Shirin Ebadi. Mrs Ebadi has been harassed, intimidated and threatened since taking on this case and has not been given access to their case files.

On 25 March 2009, Australia's peak interfaith body, the Australian Partnership of Religious Organisations, released a statement requesting that the government of Iran respect the human rights of Baha'is and supported the Australian government's deep concern for the seven. The signatories to the statement included Australia's major Christian ecumenical organisation, the National Council of Churches and national representatives of the Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish and Sikh communities.

This followed a statement by the Australian government delegation to the UN Human Rights Council on 17 March 2009, expressing deep concern at the discrimination against Baha'is in Iran and calling on Iran to adhere to its international human rights obligations.

The Australian Partnership of Religious Organisations said that the detention of the seven Baha'i leaders, without access to lawyers or the laying of formal charges, is a clear breach of their rights under international law. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in February 2009 that it is hard to believe that there is any basis to the charges or that they will receive a fair trial.

On 19 December 2008, Australia was one of more than 40 countries that co-sponsored the General Assembly resolution which expressed deep concern at serious human rights violations in Iran. I urge the house to condemn the incarceration of these seven Baha'i leaders.

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