Bruce Baird (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House:

(1)

notes the serious discrimination that exists in Iran towards Baha’is, Assyrians, Chaldeans and Serbo Mandaeans;

(2)

calls on Iran to recognise the legitimate rights of minorities involving their access to university training and enrolment in professions; and

(3)

requests the United Nations Human Rights Commission to undertake dialogue with Iran over their continued human rights concerns in that country.

Some two years ago I visited Iran as part of the Trade Subcommittee’s visit to look at trade and investment opportunities in Iran. I must say that we were all particularly impressed. It is a wonderful country with very friendly people, and we certainly appreciated the facilitation by the ambassador here in Canberra. There is no doubt, however, that the government remains seriously concerned by the human rights situation in Iran.

Iran must do more to promote and protect the human rights of its people. We have urged them to do so and will continue to urge them to do so. The government is in particular concerned by the ongoing harassment, intimidation and persecution of religious and ethnic groups. These include groups that are not recognised under the Iranian constitution as official religions. Three religions are recognised: Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians are the only ones that are allowed to pursue their faith. Even with those groups there are particular concerns.

Think of the case of Hamid Pourmand, who was a serving colonel in the Iranian army. He was arrested five months ago under the laws of the Islamic revolution which prohibit non-Muslims from holding officer rank. He was charged with deceiving the armed forces by not declaring he was a convert from Islam to Christianity. This was in spite of the fact that he had in his possession a series of documents indicating that his military superiors had acknowledged years ago that he was a Christian.

The verdict was the court did not accept these documents. He had to return to his home town to face charges of apostasy and proselytism before an Islamic court. The sentence automatically discharged him from the army, cutting off his regular income and eliminating nearly 20 years of military pension. The verdict also required his family to vacate their home in military lodgings within a few days, and Pourmand’s wife and two children face destitution as a result. He is a Christian, which is one of the groups that is allowed to practise their religion. So what of those who are not allowed to practise their religion? We have outlined those groups in the motion today.

In Iran today, ethnic and religious minorities are systematically discriminated against in relation to their economic, social and cultural rights. Iran is a signatory to various international treaties in this area and is party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the international Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. This latter convention requires the immediate prohibition of discrimination against minorities and explicitly requires free choice of employment, housing and education, equal access to social services and equal participation in cultural activities.

There is no doubt that Iran is failing to comply with these international obligations. In fact, half of the Iranian population are from minority groups. There is an array of discriminatory laws and practices, including the confiscation of land and property; banning from state employment; restrictions on social, cultural, linguistic and religious freedoms; blatantly unfair criminal trials before revolutionary courts; the use of the death penalty, even on minors; restrictions on movements; and the denial of various other civil rights.

In July 2004 the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing reported on the critical situation facing Iran’s minorities in this area. He observed in his preliminary findings that minorities in Iran were subject to discrimination in the distribution of state resources such as housing provision. Access to water and sanitation is distinctly worse in the areas of the country where these minorities reside. Followers of unrecognised religions such as Baha’i, Ahl-e Haqq and Mandaean are forbidden from practising their beliefs.

There is particular discrimination against Baha’is, and that discrimination is a particularly alarming example of the attitude towards minorities in Iran. The Baha’i community has told of increases in oppression and state condoned cruelty since the change of government. There have been reports of attacks by unidentified assailants, vandalism, destruction of holy sites and government confiscation of property. At least 32 Baha’i are known to have been detained since the election of the current president. We call on the government of Iran to allow religious freedom in this state.

See this speech in context