about her horror and dismay at the official manner the Islamic government was taking away all the legal rights and the God-given rights from the Baha'is. In one of her letters written shortly after the revolution, she says: " ... ..Everyday you can see mountains of books on the streets of Tehran all kinds of books representing all kinds of ideologies. this freedom, the Baha'is have no rights. They come and take away Baha'i books from our homes. They come and confiscate the Baha'i Publishing Center and spend months in destroying our books with shredders. One looks desperately for a Baha'i book but cannot find any...." But this was only the beginning. In her later letters she writes of the destruction of the Baha'is themselves. My mother travelled extensively throughout Iran, visiting Baha'i prisoners and their families and those who had lost their all. I would like to quote a part of one of her letters written while visiting Hamadan. She told us about seven Baha'is who had been tortured and executed on June 14, 1981. My mother knew them all very well and visited them several times during their year-long incarceration in Hamadan. She wrote: "....News came at 9 o'clock in the morning that there are seven bodies in the morgue. Everyone went to the morgue to see if the news was true. It was. There were seven bloody bodies thrown on the floor. It was obvious how much disrespect and contempt had been shown even to their lifeless bodies. But more heinous was that their bodies were torn apart and tortured. One had his chest-cage smashed and a piece of it cut with a sharp object. Another had his fingers smashed and a piece of his stomach cut and thrown away. Another had his arm smashed and yet another had his leg completely torn. We asked the authorities for an ambulance to deliver the bodies to the Baha'i cemetery it was refused. But when the Baha'is told the officials that they would take the bodies with their own hands to be buried, they finally agreed to provide an ambulance afraid of inhabitants of the town finding out about the crimes their rulers had committed. But the ambulance that was given to us was an old one with all its windows broken and no doors. Thus, one more time, they wanted to humiliate the Baha'is. But the result was the thousands of inhabitants of Hamadan who came to the funeral procession, became witness to the cruelties heaped upon these seven Baha'is whom they knew and respected. During their stay in prison, their knowledge, behavior and innocence overwhelmed all the prisoners and all who came in contact with them. There were three medical doctors among them who took care of the sick in the prison and even the revolutionary guards would take their families to be examined by them. Another one of the Baha'is would help the prisoners prepare defense material. the friends and refuge of the prisoners...." They were The incredible thing my mother always talked about was the contrast between the actions of the perpetrators of such shameless and savage acts and their victims. The families of these martyred Baha'is showed such dignity and magnanimity. They even took candies and flowers to the prison distributing them among the prisoners and the guards, thanking them for having kept their loved ones company for so many long months. In a telephone conversation I had with my mother about a year ago, she told me that not even Baha'i children are immune from persecution. Later, she wrote in a letter: ". children are facing such inhuman afflictions. Thousands of Baha'i Most of them are very studious, are more knowledgeable than other children of their age. Many people, including their teachers look at them with awe. The enemies of the Baha'i Faith do not deny that the Baha'i children are generally much more advanced than their fellow classmates, but they are not pleased with this fact. Sometimes it happens that when government authorities complain about the Baha'is, they cite as examples the actions of our little ones and how they stand up to the insults from their Muslim teachers and fellow pupils." What do these children do that make them deserve these pressures? Baha'i children know their Islamic religious lessons better than all their fellow students. They can read the Quran and interpret it better than their Muslim counterparts, sometimes even better than their teachers. highest marks in Islamic religious study are given to the Baha'i children. Their teachers are frequently surprised, but at the same time they are extremely resentful. Most The Baha'i children with such intelligence, understanding and knowledge are not favored by the ideologue in the Ministry of Education. According to them, such children should be "guided to the right path." It is certain that this ministry has adopted a detailed and menacing plan to brainwash the Baha'i children. We have so much evidence of such a plan. It is surprising to note that the authorities of the present regime are spending so much time, energy and money to prepare themselves on ways to confront our young children. It is not uncommon for two or three instructors of religious classes or trained ideologists of the Ministry of Education as well as a number of students, to join forces and suddenly attack a Baha'i child of ten or eleven years. With all their power they try to shatter the very foundations of his beliefs. They will argue with him for hours and even use unfair methods to "guide" him. "The other day, I went to visit a Baha'i child, eleven years old, whom I had heard had developed severe headaches. I asked him to relate his experience. He told me that his teacher had begun a barrage of insults and calumnies against the Faith he did not passively accept these insults he gave impressive responses the teacher became speechless this delighted the other children, who applauded and cried "hurrah!" for him. The teacher became angrier and left the classroom and consulted with two other teachers, who came to rescue. They argued and threatened and abused him and took him to a room, gave him a booklet which was written against the Faith, and compelled him to write repeatedly from this booklet certain sentences which attacked the Faith in offensive language. This punishment became so great that he developed severe headaches which the doctor said were caused by nervous pressure. "What an ugly confrontation! On one side three mature and 'educated' teachers with the support and blessings of the people and the government and on the other side an eleven year old Baha'i youth!" In another letter my mother wrote that in Yazd, over one hundred Baha'i children have been expelled from their schools because they are Baha'is and since they attain highest marks and are known for their exemplary conduct, the people of Yazd are asking: "Why should the best be expelled?" These were only a few instances of the persecution of the Baha'is in Iran that have affected my life personally. Our one-hundred-and-thirty-eight year history is filled with unspeakable cruelties and atrocities against the Baha'i community. But, there is a difference. This time, we have a well-planned case of genocide, whereas previously the Moslem clergy and the government authorities ordered the slaughter of the Baha'is and the pillage of their property with pride. They did not hide the fact that we were being persecuted because of our beliefs. Those who carried out these orders did so to "buy" themselves a "favor" in the sight of God and, for the most part, left the families and the properties of their victims alone. Today, they kill and persecute us for the same reason, but officially charge us with outrageously false misdeeds that even the non-Baha'is do not believe. Mr. BONKER. Thank you very much. History and statistics really help to build a case, but the human element, which you have offered this subcommittee with eloquent testimony, really helps in our efforts in investigating more fully that situation and trying to bring Government policy to bear upon the tragic situation that exists in Iran today. Thank you very much. Mr. Mitchell. I think the subcommittee record should note the presence of Congressman Leach, who is the ranking minority member of the subcommittee, and is supporting our efforts to conduct these hearings. STATEMENT OF GLENFORD MITCHELL, SECRETARY, NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF THE BAHA'IS OF THE UNITED STATES Mr. MITCHELL. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. My name is Glenford E. Mitchell. I am secretary and chief executive officer of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States, the supreme administrative body of the Baha'is in this country. The U.S.-Baha'i community has been in existence for more than 80 years. Its beginnings date back to the Columbian Exposition of 1893, at which event in Chicago the name and essential teachings of Baha'u'llah the, prophet-founder of the Baha'i faith, were first brought to public notice in the United States. Although the Baha'i faith originated in Iran, this community was established through |