IV 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 1008 
Condemning the persecution of Baha´’ı´s in Iran. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 28, 2008 
Mr. KIRK (for himself, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. 
WEXLER, Mr. WOLF, Mr. CANTOR, and Mr. MCNULTY) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Af-
fairs 
RESOLUTION 
Condemning the persecution of Baha´’ı´s in Iran. 
Whereas in 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 
2000, and 2006, Congress declared that it deplored the 
religious persecution by the Government of Iran of the 
Baha´’ı´ community and would hold the Government of 
Iran responsible for upholding the rights of all Iranian 
nationals, including members of the Baha´’ı´ faith; 
Whereas on March 20, 2006, the United Nations Special 
Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Asma 
Jahangir, revealed the existence of a confidential letter 
dated October 29, 2005, from the chairman of the com-
mand headquarters of Iran’s Armed Forces to the Min-
istry of Information, the Revolutionary Guard, and the 
police force, stating the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
21:50 Feb 28, 2008
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR1008.IH
HR1008
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS
•HRES 1008 IH 
Khamenei, instructed the command headquarters to iden-
tify members of the Baha´’ı´ faith in Iran and monitor 
their activities; 
Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur expressed 
‘‘grave concern and apprehension’’ about the implications 
of this letter for the safety of the Baha´’ı´ community; 
Whereas in May 2006, 54 Baha´’ı´s were arrested in Shiraz 
and held for several days without trial in the largest 
roundup of Baha´’ı´s since the 1980s; 
Whereas in August 2006, the Iranian Ministry of the Interior 
ordered provincial officials to ‘‘cautiously and carefully 
monitor and manage’’ all Baha´’ı´ social activities; 
Whereas in 2006, the Central Security Office of Iran’s Min-
istry of Science, Research, and Technology ordered 81 
Iranian universities to expel any student discovered to be 
a Baha´’ı´; 
Whereas in November 2006, a letter issued by Payame Noor 
University stated that it is Iranian policy to prevent 
Baha´’ı´s from enrolling in universities and to expel Baha´’ı´ 
upon discovery; 
Whereas in 2007, more than two-thirds of the Baha´’ı´s en-
rolled in universities were expelled upon identification as 
a Baha´’ı´; 
Whereas in February 2007, police in Tehran and surrounding 
towns entered Baha´’ı´ homes and businesses to collect de-
tails on family members; 
Whereas in April 2007, the Iranian Public Intelligence and 
Security Force ordered 25 industries to deny business 
licences to Baha´’ı´s; 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
22:45 Feb 28, 2008
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR1008.IH
HR1008
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS
•HRES 1008 IH 
Whereas in 2006 and 2007, the Iranian Ministry of Informa-
tion pressured employers to fire Baha´’ı´ employees and in-
structed banks to refuse to provide loans to Baha´’ı´-owned 
businesses; 
Whereas in July 2007, a Baha´’ı´ cemetery was destroyed by 
earthmoving equipment in Yazd, and in September 2007, 
a Baha´’ı´ cemetery was bulldozed outside of Najafabad, 
erasing the memory of those Iranian citizens; 
Whereas in November 2007, the Iranian Ministry of Informa-
tion in Shiraz detained Baha´’ı´s Ms. Raha Sabet, 33; Mr. 
Sasan Taqva, 32; and Ms. Haleh Roohi, 29, for edu-
cating underprivileged children; 
Whereas Mr. Taqva reportedly was detained while suffering 
from an injured leg which required medical attention; 
Whereas on January 23, 2008, the State Department re-
leased a statement urging the Iranian regime to release 
all individuals held without due process and a fair trial, 
including the 3 young Baha´’ı´s being held in an Iranian 
Ministry of Intelligence detention center in Shiraz; 
Whereas the Government of Iran is party to the International 
Covenants on Human Rights; and 
Whereas in December 2007, the Iranian Parliament pub-
lished a draft Islamic penal code, which violates Iran’s 
commitment under the International Covenants on 
Human Rights by requiring the death penalty for ‘‘apos-
tates’’, a term applied to Baha´’ı´s and any convert from 
Islam: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) condemns the Government of Iran for its 
state-sponsored persecution of Baha´’ı´s, calls on the 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
21:50 Feb 28, 2008
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\HR1008.IH
HR1008
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS
•HRES 1008 IH 
Government of Iran to immediately cease activities 
aimed at the repression of the Iranian Baha´’ı´ com-
munity, and continues to hold the Government of 
Iran responsible for upholding all the rights of its 
nationals, including members of the Baha´’ı´ commu-
nity; 
(2) condemns the Government of Iran’s contin-
ued imprisonment of individuals without due process 
and a fair trial; 
(3) calls on the Government of Iran to imme-
diately release 3 Baha´’ı´s: Ms. Raha Sabet, Mr. 
Sasan Taqva, and Ms. Haleh Roohi; and 
(4) calls on the Government of Iran and the 
Iranian Parliament to reject a draft Islamic penal 
code, which violates Iran’s commitments under the 
International Covenants on Human Rights. 
Æ 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
21:50 Feb 28, 2008
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\HR1008.IH
HR1008
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS