hatzel
19th December 2010, 10:49
I'll just start by copy-pasting directly from the Facebook event (http://www.facebook.com/#%21/event.php?eid=157513337628659):
1st April 2011 marks the 32nd anniversary of the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran, after the Iranian Revolution in 1979. In this time, 202 adherents of the Bahá'í faith have been killed, and many more have found themselves imprisoned, attacked or otherwise persecuted. Some have even been forced to flee the country. The reason? Because their faith is officially outlawed in Iran, where they are considered enemies of t...he state, apostates, traitors. Any host of adjectives effectively translating to one thing: in Iranian eyes, the Bahá'í faith is a vessel of ultimate evil. All this, in fact, directed at a religion which holds peace between those of different faiths to be of paramount importance, who have given the Iranian leadership no reason to enact such destructive forms of oppression and persecution against them.
For many Iranians, 1st April may be held up as a source of great pride, but for the Bahá'ís, it is no cause for celebration. For us, also, there should be no cause for celebration, instead for collective mourning. On this day, 1st April 2011, we call for as many people as possible to join solidarity demonstrations, expressing our support for the Bahá'ís in Iran. A vast show of public disgust as Iran's persecution of its religious minorities is urgently required, so that those who suffer for their faith may never be forgotten.
We call for anybody, wherever they may be, to join these demonstrations. In any city with an Iranian embassy, consulate or other building, we hope to see as many people as possible gathered around them, showing solidarity with Iran's persecuted minorities, and calling for harsher measures to be taken by the international community in condemning these actions. Therefore, we call for individuals in each city take it upon themselves to organise local demonstrations. To facilitate this, we have set up a temporary forum at www.bahaisolidarity.prophpbb.com (http://www.bahaisolidarity.prophpbb.com/) - please participate in organising demonstrations in your area! There are still over three months until the date, giving us plenty of time to organise effective and efficient demonstrations. Confirmed demonstrations will appear below as they are organised.
PLEASE HELP THE CAUSE BY INVITING ALL YOUR FRIENDS TO JOIN THIS GROUP, EVEN IF YOU CANNOT YOURSELF PARTICIPATE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION.
My group and I will be personally involved in organising the demo in London, should anybody wish to participate. We'll be contacting the local Bahá'í community, amongst other groups, but we welcome any input from anybody else with ideas, contacts or networking opportunities. If any comrades living elsewhere would be interested in taking the lead and organising simultaneous demonstrations in their home countries, we would be very pleased. Solidarity, please, solidarity! If you're interested in getting involved in any way, be it organisation or participation, just let me know. Cheers.
1st April 2011 marks the 32nd anniversary of the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran, after the Iranian Revolution in 1979. In this time, 202 adherents of the Bahá'í faith have been killed, and many more have found themselves imprisoned, attacked or otherwise persecuted. Some have even been forced to flee the country. The reason? Because their faith is officially outlawed in Iran, where they are considered enemies of t...he state, apostates, traitors. Any host of adjectives effectively translating to one thing: in Iranian eyes, the Bahá'í faith is a vessel of ultimate evil. All this, in fact, directed at a religion which holds peace between those of different faiths to be of paramount importance, who have given the Iranian leadership no reason to enact such destructive forms of oppression and persecution against them.
For many Iranians, 1st April may be held up as a source of great pride, but for the Bahá'ís, it is no cause for celebration. For us, also, there should be no cause for celebration, instead for collective mourning. On this day, 1st April 2011, we call for as many people as possible to join solidarity demonstrations, expressing our support for the Bahá'ís in Iran. A vast show of public disgust as Iran's persecution of its religious minorities is urgently required, so that those who suffer for their faith may never be forgotten.
We call for anybody, wherever they may be, to join these demonstrations. In any city with an Iranian embassy, consulate or other building, we hope to see as many people as possible gathered around them, showing solidarity with Iran's persecuted minorities, and calling for harsher measures to be taken by the international community in condemning these actions. Therefore, we call for individuals in each city take it upon themselves to organise local demonstrations. To facilitate this, we have set up a temporary forum at www.bahaisolidarity.prophpbb.com (http://www.bahaisolidarity.prophpbb.com/) - please participate in organising demonstrations in your area! There are still over three months until the date, giving us plenty of time to organise effective and efficient demonstrations. Confirmed demonstrations will appear below as they are organised.
PLEASE HELP THE CAUSE BY INVITING ALL YOUR FRIENDS TO JOIN THIS GROUP, EVEN IF YOU CANNOT YOURSELF PARTICIPATE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION.
My group and I will be personally involved in organising the demo in London, should anybody wish to participate. We'll be contacting the local Bahá'í community, amongst other groups, but we welcome any input from anybody else with ideas, contacts or networking opportunities. If any comrades living elsewhere would be interested in taking the lead and organising simultaneous demonstrations in their home countries, we would be very pleased. Solidarity, please, solidarity! If you're interested in getting involved in any way, be it organisation or participation, just let me know. Cheers.