August 4, 2005

Iranian persecution of Baha'is -- lack of Islamic confidence.

Several score Baha'is, including women and teenage girls, were imprisoned in the fall of 1982 because of their faith by the Islamic Revolutionary authorities in the Iranian city of Shiraz. The prisoners endured months of abuse, interrogation and torture as the Islamic judges and their revolutionary guards attempted to force them to deny their religion. All refused.

Particularly shocking . . . was the execution of ten of the women who were Baha'i children's school . . . teachers. They were secretly sentenced to death by hanging on June 18, 1983. In a final effort to break their wills, the authorities hanged the women one by one as the others were forced to watch.

The youngest was a beautiful sixteen year old girl named Mona Mahmudnizhad. Mona asked to be the final victim executed so that she could pray for the strength of each one who was hanged before her. When her turn came, she kissed the rope and put the noose around her own neck. Before she died, Mona said, "What makes me happy is that I see that we have been chosen by God to be strong." . . .

While Mona was still in high school, she wrote an essay protesting the persecution of her family's Baha'i faith. School authorities promptly confiscated the paper, her home was raided . . . . First Mona's father, and later Mona herself, were hanged by the authorities. But her first notes for the essay were smuggled out of Iran by members of the Baha'i community and published in the west.

[Emphasis added.] Read her message here: American Daughter.

And oil and clean your 9 mm. after you check out the pictures there of these brave, brave women condemned to die for their faith.

One is struck by the pathetic lack of self confidence in these perpetrators of judicial murder. They simply cannot tolerate an alternate viewpoint. The size of the ummah must not be allowed to diminish and the ultimate sanction of death -- even vigilante execution -- must be employed to keep adherents from leaving.

Nor can criticism from without or within be tolerated:

These are the results of the anti-blasphemy law, which has been in force in Pakistan since 1986. The law punishes those who offend the Koran with life in prison, and foresees the death penalty for those who insult Mohammad. Since its enactment, dozens of Christians have been killed for having slandered Islam . . . .

From: "Anti-blasphemy law: harassment and violence for all religions alike," Asia News.

No comments: