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BAHA'IS FACE CONTINUING HARASSMENT IN IRAN
EFL: Some 300,000 Baha'is live in Iran, where their religion was founded in the mid-19th century. Iran is also where Baha'is have long faced harassment and persecution for their beliefs. "Baha'is have no rights in the Islamic republic, even rights that other recognized [religious] minorities enjoy in Iran," said Abdolkarim Lahiji, vice president of the International Federation of Human Rights Leagues. "For example, a Baha'i teenage cannot enter Iran's universities; either he would have to lie and say that he is not a Baha'i, or else be deprived of the right to higher education. The Baha'i community of Iran had organized computer-based correspondence classes for youth, the authorities have repeatedly disrupted these [classes] and confiscated teaching materials and generally they have made life for the Baha'i minority difficult."
Diane Alai is the United Nations representative of the Baha'i International Community. "For 20 years, Baha'is have been imprisoned, condemned to death," Alai said. "Their properties have been confiscated. People have been expelled from their jobs. Elderly people are not receiving their pensions. Baha'i properties have been confiscated. Baha'i holy places have been demolished, cemeteries desecrated."
The Baha'i faith was founded by Mirza Hussein Ali Nuri, known as "Bahaullah" -- Arabic for "the Glory of God." The unity of all religions, the unity of humanity, and the equality of men and women are among the main teachings of Bahaullah.
Men and women as equals? We can't have that now, can we?
Some Muslims consider Baha'is to be heretics. Many see theological conflicts with Islam as the main motive for the persecution of Baha'is. Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad is "the end of prophesy." The Baha'i faith, founded several centuries after Islam, states that divine revelation will continue.
"People are free to choose their way, and the Holy Koran has clearly stated: 'There is no compulsion in the religion,'" said Abbas Mohajerani, a professor of Islamic theology and philosophy in London. "The Baha'is or any other sect are free to take the direction they want, but when it comes to the principles of a religion and law you have to bear in mind that Islam explicitly says that Muhammad is the last prophet sent by God and whoever does not believe it is not a Muslim."
"And must be killed!"

Baha'is believe that God has revealed himself to humanity through a series of divine messengers. The messengers have included Abraham, Krishna, Zoroaster, Moses, Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad. According to the Baha'i faith, Bahaullah is the latest of these messengers. The Baha'i faith has about 5 million followers in more than 200 countries and territories throughout the world.
Posted by: Steve 2004-12-07
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=50663