Josh Burns (Macnamara, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

NS () (): I rise to speak on this important motion moved by the member for Moncrieff and I congratulate her for raising this matter. It is an important matter in this place. Support for the brave people of Iran and opposition to religious persecution is something that unites Australia and the Australian parliament. I have great admiration for the Baha'i people. Dr Vahid Master is a Baha'i leader in my electorate, an extraordinary doctor. He has welcomed me to his home on many occasions to celebrate the Baha'i community and faith. The things that strike me in my time with the Baha'i community locally is their sense of self-respect, dignity and peace as well as their deep appreciation and love for the Australian people and the Australian community more broadly. I also have stood on top of the Baha'i World Centre in Haifa and seen the most breathtaking gardens that really speak volumes to the self-respect and imagination of the Baha'i people.

Yet for the last 40 years in Iran, the birthplace of the Baha'i faith, the Baha'i have not enjoyed the same freedom that they do here in Australia. Ever since the regime of the Ayatollahs came to power in 1979, the Baha'i have been persecuted for their beliefs. They been subject to arbitrary arrest, their businesses have been closed down, their homes and places of worship have been raided. They have been denied entry to university and they have been unable to travel. Even their cemeteries have been desecrated.

This year protests have surged across Iran demanding greater freedom, particularly for women. In the wake of the murder of Mahsa Amini by Iran's so-called morality police in September, the regime has responded by increasing its persecution of the Baha'i. Many Baha'i have been arrested, some were detained at their homes while others were rounded up with other protesters in the streets. Like many of the arrested demonstrate, these Baha'i have been locked up without specific charges and have not been allowed to meet with their families.

I recently spoke with representatives of the Baha'i community locally who told me of their great concern for their families and friends in Iran and I'm sure other members share with me those grave concerns. They also told me that they were very grateful for the support that the Australian government and people have expressed in giving Baha'i people and indeed all of the persecuted people their voice of solidarity against what is occurring in Iran.

I thought I would take a moment to outline some of the things that have already occurred in response to the action of Iran. We have time and time again called for Iran to respect the human rights and cease the discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities. Australia's ambassador to Iran has raised our concerns in Tehran, and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has raised concerns with the Iranian embassy in Canberra.

Australia has made it clear that Iran's treatment of women and the protesters is incompatible with their membership of the UN Commission on the Status of Women. The government has been engaging with the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Australia and we will continue to advocate for the human rights of the Baha'i in Iran.

Australia as a member of the core drafting group for the UN General Assembly Third Committee resolution on the human rights situation in Iran did play an active role in shaping the language of the resolution, including regarding the Baha'i and other minorities. What we have here in Australia is a wonderful part of Australian society. We are proud of our Baha'i and we celebrate our Baha'i people here in Australia. I acknowledge those who have come to join and listen to this debate tonight. But I also know that, for them, a part of them is not complete without the Baha'i community feeling safe and free from the persecution that is occurring in Iran. So we stand with the Baha'i people in Australia and of course with the Baha'i in Iran. We raise our Australian voices to say that the persecution of the Baha'i people is unacceptable and that we hope for better days in the years to come.

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