Asked by: Alistair Carmichael (Liberal Democrat - Orkney and Shetland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the increased use of Tazir laws by the Iranian courts to sentence Baha'i people; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
We are aware of continued reports of harassment and mistreatment of members of the Baha'i faith in Iran, including the recent increase in arrests from August 2018 onwards. We regularly call upon Iran to cease harassment of all religious minorities and to fulfil its international and domestic obligations to protect freedom of religion or belief.
Asked by: Louise Ellman (Independent - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Iranian government on the 1991 policy which requires that Baha’i students are blocked from admission to universities or expelled once it becomes known that they are Baha’is; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The human rights situation in Iran is of serious concern. This includes the treatment of Baha'i students following the 1991 memorandum. The Foreign Secretary raised our human rights concerns with the Iranian Government during his visit to Iran on 9-10 December, as did I during Iranian Foreign Minister Aragchi's visit to London in February this year.
Asked by: Louise Ellman (Independent - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the report entitled Faith and a Future: Discrimination on the Basis of Religion or Belief in Education, published by Christian Solidarity Worldwide in February 2018, whether he has has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of that report's conclusions on discrimination against Baha’i students and school-children in Iran; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The human rights situation in Iran is of serious concern. This includes the treatment of Baha'i students and schoolchildren. We encourage the Iranian authorities to end discrimination against students from all minority backgrounds. The Foreign Secretary raised our human rights concerns with the Iranian Government during his visit to Iran on 9-10 December, as did I during Iranian Foreign Minister Aragchi's visit to London in February this year.
Asked by: Jo Stevens (Labour - Cardiff Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Iranian counterpart on the suppression and imprisonment of Baha’i people in Iran; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The treatment of followers of the Baha'i faith in Iran is a serious concern and I discussed these concerns directly with my Iranian counterpart during my visit to Iran in August this year. The British Government calls on Iran to respect the rights and freedoms of all its citizens no matter what their religion or belief.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on the rate at which the Iranian Government has forced Baha'i shops and businesses to be sealed; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
We are aware of reports that over 100 Baha'i owned shops and businesses were forced to close for observing Baha'i holy days and, in particular, for observing the bicentenary of the birth of Baha'u'llah earlier this year. Reports estimate that there have been over 1,170 incidents of economic suppression against Iranian Baha'is since 2005. The British Government calls on Iran to respect the rights and freedoms of all its citizens no matter what their religion or belief.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has received reports on an increase in the number of expulsions of Baha'i university students in Iran since June 2017, and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The treatment of the Baha'i community in Iran is of particular concern. This includes recent reports of an increased number of Baha'i students being expelled from university, as well as the denial of access to higher education for adherents of the Baha'i faith, and reports of students being forced to renounce their faith in order to further their education. The British Government supports the UN Special Rapporteur's assessment that discrimination against the Baha'i community in Iran is aggravated by lack of recognition for the Baha'i faith in the Iranian constitution. We call on Iran to respect the rights and freedoms of all its citizens no matter what their religion or belief.
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the treatment of the Baha'i community in Iran.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The treatment of the Baha'i community in Iran is of particular concern. During the recent Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran at the UN, the UK raised the treatment of religious minorities, including the Baha'i. The British Government supports the UN Special Rapporteur's assessment that discrimination against the Baha'i community in Iran is aggravated by a lack of constitutional recognition and the absence of other legal protections for adherents of this faith. I recently met with representatives of the Baha'i community to discuss this.
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will ensure that the UK Mission to the UN in New York makes representations on the situation of the Baha'i community in Iran during its statement at the Third Committee meetings of the UN General Assembly.
Answered by Alistair Burt
I recently met representatives of the Baha'i faith to discuss the issue. The human rights situation in Iran remains deeply worrying and this includes Iran's approach to freedom of religion and belief. The treatment of the Baha'i community is of particular concern. The latest report of the Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran sets out the repression and harassment that Baha'is suffer in Iran. This includes restrictions on the types of businesses and jobs Baha'is can have, unequal treatment of Baha'i employees, and seizures of Baha'i businesses and property. We hope to highlight the situation of the Baha'i with the UN General Assembly Third Committee in New York.
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions (a) Ministers and (b) officials have had with the Special Rapporteur on Iran, Ms Asma Jahangir, or with the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion, Dr Ahmed Shaheed on the treatment of the Bahá'ís in Iran.
Answered by Alistair Burt
At the Human Rights Council in March 2017, the UK strongly supported the renewal of the mandate of the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief. We look forward to engaging with the UN Special Rapporteur on Iran during the interactive dialogue in the UNGA Third Committee. The British Government supports the UN Special Rapporteur on Iran's assessment that discrimination against the Baha'i community is legally sanctioned by a lack of constitutional recognition and the absence of other legal protections for adherents of this faith.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations (a) the British Ambassador to Iran, (b) Ministers and (c) British consular officials have made to their Iranian counterparts on the persecution of people of the Baha'i faith in Iran.
Answered by Alistair Burt
I raised concerns about the persecution of religious and ethnic minorities, including the persecution of followers of the Baha'i faith, with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi during my visit to Tehran on 5 August.