Iran schools ‘told to bring Baha’i children into Islam’

‘Despite constant claims that Baha’is are not persecuted for their beliefs, the Iranian authorities have exposed their true intentions’

THE Iranian government is ordering teachers to identify children of the persecuted Baha’i minority to be converted to Islam, leaked documents show.

The move forms part of a plan to intensify the monitoring and suppression of the Baha’i people, one of the most persecuted religious minorities in the world.

Authorities in the city of Sari, in the northern province of Mazandaran, plan to “conduct strict controls” on Baha’i people and track “their operations”, according to a directive given to officials.

Children are specifically singled out, with teachers directed to “identify Baha’i students” and “bring them into Islam”.

“Clear plans to change children’s beliefs is a galling violation of human rights,” said Diane Ala’i, the representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.

The Baha’i faith originated in Iran in the 19th century, and now has an estimated six million followers worldwide.

According to the UN, there are about 350,000 Baha’is in the Islamic Republic, making them the country’s biggest religious minority, but they are considered heretical by the Iranian regime.

Hundreds of followers have been executed or jailed since Iran’s 1979 revolution, the UN claims. The document, which was handed to the League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran and the International Federation for Human Rights, represents an escalation of Iran’s ongoing war against religious minorities.

They warn that it outlines a “detailed plan” to “rigorously” control aspects of the community, including their “public and private meetings”.

The document was allegedly issued by the Commission on Ethnicities, Sects and Religions in Sari, which operates under Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, a body chaired by the country’s president.

It is thought to stem “from national government entities at the highest levels”, according to Ms Ala’i, and “suggests that similar meetings and directives about the Baha’is may be occurring across Iran”.

“Despite constant claims from the government that Baha’is are not persecuted for their beliefs, the Iranian authorities have once again exposed their true intentions.”

Local officials at all levels received the document, including police and military organisations, educational institutions and economic bodies.

“This revelation is strikingly reminiscent of examples in history when governments have monitored minorities with draconian measures ahead of even more sinister actions,” Ms Ala’i explained.