Violence in Iran continues, killing hundreds, displacing millions, and impacting a small minority of the population connected to a global group, with ties to right here in Alaska.
ANCHORAGE , Alaska - Violence in Iran continues, killing hundreds, displacing millions, and impacting a small minority of the population connected to a global group, with ties to right here in Alaska .“I lived my first 28 years in Tehran,” Lotfi said.
“Growing up, I mean, for a long time, I did not understand how difficult it was living in Iran as a person of religious minority, and also being a woman, and that’s the beauty of being a child and young.”Iran continues to be the home for several hundred thousand Baha’i, who — similar to Lotfi — still face discrimination, and at an increasing rate due to the current unrest in the region. Currently, the United Nations Office of the Baha’i International Community, say Iranian authorities are holding Peyvand Naimi, a young Iranian Baha’i in custody, torturing, interrogating, and subjecting him to mock executions. “Peyvand Naimi is being tortured and even facing mock executions to confess to crimes he did not commit,” said Simin Fahandej, Baha’i International Community Representative to the UN. “The Islamic Republic does not have a single shred of evidence for these accusations.”Naimi was arrested on the morning of January 8 for charges of instigating unrest during the January protests in Iran. After being held for nearly two months, Naimi was transferred to solitary confinement and accused of a violent attack on Iranian Basij security agents. Naimi’s friends, family, and the Baha’i community say Naimi was already in custody at the time of the attack, making it impossible for him to be involved.“We can seek justice through the proper channels and speak up, but we cannot ever instigate any action against the government,” Lotfi said. “So, for this young man to be accused of something that he believed for twenty-five, for twenty-whatever years of his life, is an impossible accusation.”Stories like Naimi’s are not new. Lotfi herself remembers friends and family “disappearing,” never to be seen again. “I have a cousin who was a university professor,” Lotfi said. “He disappeared. He was taken right before entering one of his friends’ home and that’s the only thing they knew.” Following the Iranian revolution of the 1970’s, tensions between Baha’is and the Iranian government grew. “Baha’is have very progressive laws, in regards to women, regarding, how a community should be. We are very welcoming to the diversity and to consultation as a way of, running any agency. So, any of these by itself is something that any totalitarian government would not like.” In addition, the founder of Baha’i — Baha’u’llah — was exiled from Iran, and his grave sits in modern day Israel. Because of this, the Iranian government considers Baha’is spies for Israel. “But he was sent to exile without his wish to somewhere a long time ago when it was Palestine, and there was no Israel,” Lotfi said. “So there is no ties between Baha’is and Israel. We happen to have holy places in Israel, like many other religions. So, the accusations of Baha’is being a spy of Israel has no valid point.”When Lotfi received her Iranian passport in 2002, she said the judge who granted it told her, “do not ever come back,” and she hasn’t. She came to the U.S. in 2003 and has never returned, keeping in touch with her Iranian family.“When I watch Second World War movies, I often find a lot of similarities. And I find myself crying to the point that my son recognizes us. ‘Oh, mommy, you should not be watching this.’” “It hits a certain nerve, I guess. And how quickly we can become the same place if we ignore what’s going on around us.”“It’s a place that you… you become not only responsible for your own life,” Lotfi said. “You become responsible for everybody around you, and that’s a heavy burden to carry.”“I don’t know what we will be if there is no truth,” Lotfi said. “How would we find our path, ever, if you’re not standing for truth? So, for me, it’s something personal. Also, it’s something that I feel like I have to teach my child. I have to practice every day. And maybe that’s why I’m here.” ‘Every fiber of me wishes I could change it all’: Veteran musher posts tribute to dog who died during IditarodAnchorage has finally reach the freezing threshold as temperatures progress near 40 degrees AOTW: From the kitchen table to state supremacy, Ridgeway family leads Mountain City to another championshipAlaska Gov. Dunleavy’s aide and former legislative candidate arrested for drunk driving in Juneau
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