Religious freedom threatened beyond Illinois

http://www.kirk.senate.gov/?p=news&id=216#

Religious freedom threatened beyond Illinois

Chicago Tribune

Thursday, Jun 9
Attacks on religious freedom ultimately cannot succeed once they are exposed to the world.
Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk recently called on the international community to "strongly condemn" Iran's raids on the Bahá'í Institute for Higher Education and pledged to "redouble our efforts in the Senate on behalf of the Iranian Baha'i community and all the citizens of Iran who yearn for human rights, freedom and democracy."
Was anyone listening?
May and June are usually joyous times for university students, who are wrapping up their academic year. At DePaul University, where I teach, students are completing papers, taking exams, and contemplating a summer of new opportunities.
My friends who volunteer to teach online for the Bahá'í Institute for Higher Education (BIHE), however, witness a different experience for their students.
Three thousand young Iranian Bahá'ís are pursing university-level study through BIHE because the Islamic Republic of Iran has systematically denied them opportunities to attend that nation's colleges and universities.
Normally, the spring semester would be heading toward its end. Instead, the Iranian secret police has raided houses where classes are held, seizing computers and arresting local faculty and administrators.
I have watched class discussions on my wife's computer when she taught for BIHE. The eager voices of students practicing their English over Skype have echoed through my house. Because the Bahá'í Faith places a very strong emphasis on education, Iranian Bahá'ís of college age have made great sacrifices to attend BIHE, riding for hours on busses to get to classes in other cities and struggling to learn English by computer so they can take online classes from instructors who live outside Iran.
Even though BIHE cannot be accredited-the Iranian government tried to break it up in 1998, 2001 and 2002-dozens of its graduates have come west and been accepted into prestigious doctoral programs. Many of these courageous academics and researchers then return to Iran to volunteer for BIHE to keep up the high standards set by the first cohort of instructors-Baha'i professors who were fired from their positions in Iranian universities at the same time that Baha'i students were expelled following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The BIHE has been described by the New York Times as "an elaborate act of communal self-preservation." It is one of the most remarkably creative nonviolent responses to religious persecution in history.
Fortunately, the voices of support have been vigorous. Previous attacks on BIHE generated protests from the presidents of universities such as Harvard and Princeton, condemnations from many governments and governmental bodies, and publicity by Amnesty International and other human rights organizations.
Meanwhile, Iran's Bahá'ís remain determined to educate themselves and contribute to the development of their country.
Now Kirk has sounded an alarm. Listen.
 
By: Robert Stockman


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Kavian S. Milani, M.D
Human Rights Reporting on Iran


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Culture, Philosophy and History

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