Trial had been postponed until October 18th, but now it is indefinite according to the Baha'i News Service:
"Although the trial of seven Baha'i leaders imprisoned in Iran for more than 17 months was scheduled for today, when attorneys and families arrived at the court offices in Tehran they were told it would not take place. No new trial date was given.
"The time has come for these seven innocent people to be immediately released on bail," said Diane Ala'i, the Baha'i International Community's representative to the United Nations in Geneva.
"The seven, whose only 'crime' is their religious belief, are once again in legal limbo, held with no idea of the legal process ahead of them. The whole charade cries out for an end to their unlawful detention," she said.
The seven are Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm.
Official Iranian news accounts have said the seven are to be accused of "espionage for Israel, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic republic." They have also been charged with "spreading corruption on earth."
Last week, it appeared likely that the trial would indeed be postponed again, since attorneys for the seven had not yet received the proper writ of notification.
"The fact that their attorneys did not receive proper notification and that there is no new date for the trial is just one among many gross violations of Iran's own legal procedures, not to mention the violations of due process recognized by international law, that have marked this case from the beginning," said Ms. Ala'i."
The Baha'i International Community categorically rejects all charges against the seven, stating that they are held solely because of religious persecution.
The Bahá'í Faith is the largest non-Muslim religious minority in Iran, with over 300,000 adherents.
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
PREVIOUSLY:
The plight of 7 Baha'i prisoners in Iran rises to the surface this week.
A public "trial" on espionage charges begins tomorrow (Tuesday).
As CNN reports:
The case of the seven Baha'is has drawn global attention. Roxana Saberi, the Iranian-American journalist freed from Evin prison earlier this year, spoke on their behalf, as have Human Rights Watch and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent bipartisan federal commission.
The defendants face the death penalty if convicted of the charges against them.
Six of the defendants were arrested in May 2008 at their Tehran homes, and one was arrested in the eastern city of Mashad in March 2008, said Diane Ala'i, the Baha'i International Community's representative to the United Nations. The defendants were held under solitary confinement for the first five months of their incarceration, she said.
The investigation into the charges against the prisoners concluded months ago and the trial was initially scheduled to start in July, but Iran has continued to hold them in Evin prison without access to their lawyers and with minimal contact with their families, Ala'i said.
On youtube, "We Are Not Spies":
Part 1
Part 2
Iran Press Watch reports in translation from an August 28, 2009 report from the Committee of Human Rights Reporters:
The trial of three Baha’i citizens by the names of Vesal Yusufi, Payam Yusufi and Anvar Moslemi was convened on August 17.
The condition of Mrs. Vesal Yusufi has been reported as most worrisome. She is unable to stand and suffers greatly from pains in her stomach and back. Because of her grave condition, after the repeated insistence of her family during the past several days, the authorities have consented for a physician to see her.
According to various reports, her 18 year old son, Payam Yusufi, has been physically tortured in order to exact from him various confessions and to compel him to sign documents. So far, the files of these prisoners have not been shared with their lawyers and they remain in prison without charges formally brought against them.
No comments:
Post a Comment