Joint statement by Members of the European Parliament and of European National Parliaments On the situation of Baha’i women in Iran

Statements

Joint statement by Members of the European Parliament and of European National Parliaments On the situation of Baha’i women in Iran

Brussels—30 January 2025

We, members of the European Parliament and of European National Parliaments, stand with the eighteen UN Special Rapporteurs and UN Working Group experts who have issued a landmark joint letter of allegations denouncing the Islamic Republic of Iran for the recent rise in attacks against Baha’i women - who face intersectional persecution in Iran as both women and as Baha'is.

We echo the statement of UN Rapporteurs & Experts who have expressed “serious concern at what appears to be an increase in systematic targeting of Iranian women belonging to the Baha’i religious minority throughout the country.” Since the protests ignited by the tragic death of Mahsa Jina Amini, the targeted persecution of Baha’i women has grown, with two-thirds of all Baha’is persecuted in Iran being women. They face a cruel range of abuses, including arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, family separations, limitations on their freedom of movement, raids on their home and denial of education.

The United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on Iran and the ‘Boot on my Neck’ report by Human Rights Watch detail the abuses Baha’is endure in nearly every aspect of life, with the latter classifying the Iranian government’s treatment of Baha’is as the crime against humanity of persecution. These findings highlight the Iranian government’s disturbing pattern of systematic and state-sponsored persecution of the Baha’is through discriminatory laws, policies, and practices. The plight of Baha’i women in Iran demands urgent attention and action from the international community. We strongly urge the Iranian authorities to put an end to the persecution of Baha'i women, and safeguard their human rights.

The 125 co-signatories endorsing the statement include Members of the European Parliament (MEP) and Members of Parliaments across Europe.

Abir AL-SAHLANI, MEP


Marino ALBANI, MP San Marino


Norbert ALTENKAMP, MP Germany


Marie-Noëlle BATTISTEL, MP France


Petra BAYR, MP Austria


Wouter BEKE, MEP


Simone BILLI, MP Italy


Lord St John of Bletso


Júlia BOADA, MP Spain


Lynn BOYLAN, MEP


Michael BRAND, MP Germany


Helmut BRANDSTÄTTER, MEP


Sen. Susanna CAMUSSO, Italy


Rt. Hon. Alistair CARMICHAEL, MP UK


Marián ČAUČÍK, MP Slovakia


Silvia CECCHETTI, MP San Marino


Veronika CIFROVÁ OSTRIHOŇOVÁ, MEP


Per CLAUSEN, MEP


Marie DAUCHY, MEP


Benedetto DELLA VEDOVA, MP Italy


Elio DI RUPO, MEP


Meri DISOSKI, MP Austria


Ondřej DOSTÁL, MP Slovakia


Paolo FORMENTINI, MP Italy


Emma FOURREAU, MEP


Johannes GASSER, MP 

Austria


Michael GAHLER, MEP


Hanna GEDIN, MEP


Niels GEUKING, MEP


Mary GLINDON, MP UK


Elisabeth GÖTZE, MP Austria


Hermann GRÖHE, MP Germany


Stéphane HABLOT, MP France


Ayda HADIZADEH, MP France


Peter HEIDT, MP Germany


Alojz HLINA, MP Slovakia


Markus HOFER, MP Austria


Martin HOJSÍK, MEP


Ján HORECKÝ, MP Slovakia


Senator Gerry HORKAN, Ireland 


Evin INCIR, MEP


Yannick JADOT, MP France


Igor JANCKULÍK, MP Slovakia


Zora JAUROVÁ, MP Slovakia








 

Beáta JURÍK, MP Slovakia


Fernand KARTHEISER, MEP


Kadir KASIRGA, MP Sweden


Billy KELLEHER, MEP


Seán KELLY, MEP


Dana KLEINERT, MP Slovakia


Wolfgang KOCEVAR, MP Austria


Łukasz KOHUT, MEP


Mária KOLÍKOVÁ, MP Slovakia


Ingrid KOSOVÁ, MP Slovakia


Stephanie KRISPER, MP Austria


Juraj KRÚPA, MP Slovakia


Gudrun KUGLER, MP Austria


Merja KYLLÖNEN, MEP


Robert LAIMER, MP Austria


Vladimír LEDECKÝ, MP Slovakia


Miriam LEXMANN, MEP


Lord Alton of Liverpool


Antonio LÓPEZ-ISTÚRIZ WHITE, MEP


Max LUCKS, MP Germany


František MAJERSKÝ, MP Slovakia


Milan MAJERSKÝ, MP Slovakia


Lukas MANDL, MEP


Vladimíra MARCINKOVÁ, MP Slovakia


Vicent MARZÀ IBÁÑEZ, MEP


Gabriel MATO, MEP


Sigrid MAURER, MP Austria


Tilly METZ, MEP


František MIKLOŠKO, MP Slovakia


Fabian MOLINA, MP Switzerland


Giuseppe Maria MORGANTI, MP San Marino


Michele MURATORI, MP San Marino


Paul MURPHY TD, Ireland

Francesco MUSSONI, MP San Marino

Sen. Luigi NAVE, Italy


Hannah NEUMANN, MEP


Joe O’BRIEN TD, Ireland


Jan-Christoph OETJEN, MEP


Maria OHISALO, MEP


Fernando MEDINA, MP Portugal


Nikos PAPANDREOU, MEP


Jutta PAULUS, MEP


 

Sen. Cinzia PELLEGRINO, Italy


Simona PETRÍK, MP Slovakia


Lucia PLAVÁKOVÁ, MP Slovakia


Ondrej PROSTREDNÍK, MP Slovakia


Nicola RENZI, MP San Marino


Nela RIEHL, MEP


Cristina RODRIGUES, MP Portugal


Andrea ROSSI, MP Italy


Tommaso ROSSINI, MP San Marino


Michal SABO, MP Slovakia


Agustín SANTOS, MP Spain


Rodrigo SARAIVA, MP Portugal


Silvia SARDONE, MEP


Frank SCHWABE, MP Germany


Günther SIDL, MEP


Nuno SIMÕES DE MELO, MP Portugal


Branislav ŠKRIPEK, MP Slovakia


Martin ŠMILŇÁK, MP Slovakia


Inês SOUSA REAL, MP Portugal


Anne SOUYRIS, MP France


Villy SØVNDAL, MEP


Sen. Luigi SPAGNOLLI, Italy


Peter STACHURA, MP Slovakia


Zuzana ŠTEVULOVÁ, MP Slovakia


Anna STROLENBERG, MEP


António TÂNGER CORRÊA, MEP


Barbara TEIBER, MP Austria


Marie TOUSSAINT, MEP


Andrea TURČANOVÁ, MP 

Slovakia


Derya TÜRK-NACHBAUR, MP Germany


Sebastian TYNKKYNEN, MEP


Eric VAN DER BURG, MP Netherlands


Diederik VAN DIJK, MP Netherlands


Veronika VESLÁROVÁ, MP 

Slovakia


Martin VICKERS, MP UK


Marián VISKUPIČ, MP Slovakia


Sophie WOTSCHKE, MP Austria


Lucia YAR, MEP


Dainius ŽALIMAS, MEP