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Iranian human rights group: “From a human rights perspective, you can’t criminalize someone’s choice of religion, much less execute them for that”

Jul 15, 2011 5:00 am By Marisol Seibold

What they are up against, of course, is that Sharia says “sure, we can.” The concept of dhimmitude is a criminalization of non-Islamic belief, packaged as a protection racket. More specifically, Sharia commands the death penalty for apostasy from Islam through Muhammad’s own words. That teaching has clearly survived the centuries in Shi’ite as well as Sunni Islam. The denial of freedom of conscience is but one of many ways in which Sharia is a defective form of governance, and at variance with accepted norms of human rights.

More on this story. “Iranian Pastor Sentenced to Death Could Be Executed if He Doesn’t Recant, Says Verdict,” by Amy Kellogg for Fox News, July 14:

Iran’s Supreme Court says an evangelical pastor charged with apostasy can be executed if he does not recant his faith, according to a copy of the verdict obtained by a religious rights activist group. […]

Recently the U.S. State Department issued the following remarks: “We are dismayed over reports that the Iranian courts are requiring Yousef Nadarkhani to recant his faith or face the death penalty for apostasy, a charge based on his religious beliefs. If carried out, it would be the first execution for apostasy in Iran since 1990. He is just one of thousands who face persecution for their religious beliefs in Iran, including the seven leaders of the Baha”i community whose imprisonment was increased to twenty years for practicing their faith and hundreds of Sufis who have been flogged in public because of their beliefs.”

Christian and human rights groups say apostasy isn’t even codified in Iranian law.

“From a human rights perspective, you can’t criminalize someone’s choice of religion, much less execute them for that,” says Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.

Ghaemi says, “Most churches in Iran operate with some degree of secrecy. They operate in homes. People take their batteries out of their cellphones and leave them at the door. They show up at random times so as to avoid the appearance of a crowd filing in. The current government sees them as a threat.”

Ghaemi says there had been a tacit agreement between the Ministry of Intelligence and the Church of Iran, whereby if worshippers were open, and told the Ministry where they were going, the government would leave them alone. The government appears to have broken that “gentlemen’s agreement.”

Firouz Khandjani said the church wanted to be out in the open, and had asked to have physical churches in which to operate under the previous presidential administration.

“It was in the time of Khatami. We believed it was possible. He was more open to minority groups, but unfortunately, he didn’t have the will. We had believed in him.”

A court in Shiraz, Iran, recently released a group of Christians who had been arrested for subversion. The court ultimately ruled that they were just exercising their right to practice their religion. Human rights advocates say the higher courts should follow their example.

Sources say while the Iranian regime doesn’t look fondly upon conversion, it is proselytizing that really rankles them….

The propagation of non-Islamic faiths is also forbidden under Sharia.

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Filed Under: Iran, Muslim persecution of Christians


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