“Every person has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. This right includes the freedom to change one’s religion or belief, and the freedom to express one’s religion or belief, individually or collectively, in public or in private, through teaching, worship, and observance of religious rituals and ceremonies.”
Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Iran is a land full of diversity. From linguistic differences to various cultures, religions, and sects, there is a wide range of diversity present in Iran. Although a handful of religions are officially recognized in Iran, the violation of the rights of followers of religions and sects, even official religions, has been a widespread issue in the past forty years.

According to Article 12 of the Constitution, the only official religion in Iran is Islam and the Twelver Shia denomination, and this religion is unchangeable and eternal. The four Sunni schools of thought are also respected. According to Article 13 of the Constitution, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism are recognized as religious minorities and are allowed to practice their religious rituals and ceremonies according to the law. Christianity and Judaism are among the Abrahamic religions and are considered the foundation of Islam, and Zoroastrianism is an ancient Iranian religion. Therefore, after the revolution, they were also recognized as official religions alongside Islam. These official religions are entitled to civil and political rights according to the Constitution, but in practice, except for followers of Islam/Shia, the rest are often denied their rights. In addition to these four official religions, there are other religions and denominations in Iran such as Baha’i, Babism, Mandaeism (Sabianism),

The Baha’i minority in Iran is one of the religious minorities that faces the most violations of rights and suppression, both by the government and society. Baha’is were among the first groups to face severe oppression since the early days of the Islamic Revolution. Baha’ism is not only not recognized in Iran, but its followers are deprived of practicing their religious ceremonies and rituals, citizenship rights, the right to education, and employment in government institutions and offices. In the past four decades, many members of the Baha’i community in Iran have been executed, some have been forcibly disappeared by the government, and many others are still being detained for various reasons such as being accused of being agents of hostile countries, blasphemy, acting against national security, or receiving heavy prison sentences. In numerous cases, their properties and possessions are confiscated by the government.
In addition to the historical roots of conflict between Islam and the Baha’i faith, the Islamic Republic has systematically intensified this conflict and denied and

The leaders of the Islamic Republic, including Ayatollah Khomeini and the current leader, Ali Khamenei, have taken a strong stance against the Baha’is, which has allowed security forces and the judicial system to continue oppressing the Baha’i community. In the third volume of the book Sahifeh Imam, page 237, Khomeini describes the Baha’is as follows:

“This group is stray, infidel, and unclean, and it is not permissible to marry them or enter the Muslim’s bathhouse with them.”

Ali Khamenei also has a similar view towards the Baha’is and calls them “impure” and “misguided”. In the section of the website for the leader of the Islamic Republic’s fatwas, his opinions about the Baha’is are expressed as follows:

“All followers of the misguided Baha’i sect are condemned to impurity, and in the event of contact with them, observance of cleanliness in relation to them is necessary for matters that require purity. However, the behavior of managers, teachers, and coaches towards Baha’i students must be based on legal regulations and Islamic ethics. All believers must confront the deceit and corruption of the misguided Baha’i sect and prevent others from deviating and joining them.”

By officially not recognizing the Baha’i faith in the laws of Iran and also due to the propaganda of the leaders of the Islamic Republic against followers of the Baha’i faith, it can easily be imagined that Baha’i citizens in society do not have access to their most basic rights and are completely oppressed as a minority, and are subject to violence from the community, especially from Muslim institutions and government entities, particularly security and judicial institutions.

In addition to the Bahá’ís, followers of the Yarsan faith, Mandaeans, Babis, Sikhs, Yazidis, and Raelians have a similar fate. Not recognizing these religions and faiths has led many of them, such as the followers of the Yarsan faith and Mandaeans, to fill this legal void by introducing themselves as followers of official religions and thus obtain their most basic rights. In fact, they are forced to deny/hide their religious identity and live with a fake identity in order to obtain the minimum rights in society.

In recent years, many followers of these faiths have been arrested multiple times and have been sentenced to imprisonment, exile, and confiscation of their properties solely because of their belief in a religion other than Islam. In many cases, their religious and sacred places have been destroyed or forcibly closed. Therefore, many followers of these religions and faiths have resorted to secretly practicing their religious ceremonies and obligations.

Followers of the Sunni sect in Iran are the second largest religious group after Shiites. Although they have fewer problems compared to other religious and ethnic minorities, they are deprived of having a mosque for their religious activities outside of Sunni-populated cities such as Tehran, the capital. Over the past four decades, many Sunni citizens and scholars have been arrested, imprisoned, and even executed for various ideological and political reasons, especially in provinces such as Sistan and Baluchestan, Kurdistan, and Kermanshah.

The religious minorities of Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians have the permission to practice their religious ceremonies and activities, and some of their places of worship are still open, but they are heavily controlled and do not have the right to enjoy many civil and political rights. They are not even allowed to introduce or promote their religion. Those who convert to one of these three legal religions in Iran and are considered to be leaning towards it, will be recognized as apostates (someone

The Gonabadi Dervishes, who are from the Sufi order of Naqshbandi and are Shia Muslims, are among the religious minorities in Iran who have been subjected to severe oppression in recent years. In 2017, during the Golestan Haftom incident, hundreds of dervishes peacefully gathered in front of the house of their leader, Nour Ali Tabandeh, to prevent his arrest. However, they were violently attacked and many of them were arrested and imprisoned by security forces. During the protests, at least 180 Gonabadi dervishes were injured. Some of them are still in prison. Mohammad Salas, who was arrested during the 2017 protests, was sentenced to death by the court.

In the past years, a large number of citizens of different religions, including Sunni, Baha’i, Christian, and followers of other religions, have been executed in Iran under the rule of the Islamic Republic for various reasons and accusations. Currently, there are also many prisoners of conscience who are followers of these religions and sects, being held in prisons throughout Iran.

What is clear and evident is that the suppression, non-recognition, detention, and heavy sentencing of religious minorities in Iran has turned them into vulnerable groups in society. Among the most destructive consequences of these actions towards religious and ethnic minorities is the severing of their sense of belonging to society, leading to further isolation and confinement for these oppressed groups.

Discrimination and deprivation of religious minorities from their legal, citizenship, social, and human rights turns them into second-class citizens, depriving them of a sense of security and peace in society. One of the most prominent forms of this oppression against religious and ethnic minorities is forcing them to practice their religious rituals and duties in secret and underground in Iran. For example, Christian converts, out of fear of imprisonment and facing heavy sentences, not only hide/deny their change of religion, but also seek refuge in home churches to perform their religious duties.

Bahais in Iran, who are not allowed to receive education, are forced to resort to secret schools or private lessons. One of the most severe oppressions against Bahais in the past 10 years was the case of “Bahais of Golestan” during the presidency of Hassan Rouhani, who had promised to end the oppression of religious minorities during his election campaign. In this case, 22 Bahais who had been arrested in Golestan province were collectively sentenced to a total of 237 years in prison. This was not only one of the largest mass arrests of Bahais, but they were also severely tortured during interrogations.

A healthy and harmonious society will only be achieved when all segments of that society, from religious and ethnic minorities to gender and sexuality, ethnicity, language, and so on, have equal rights.