WASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) – U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Mark Kirk, R-Ill., have sent a letter to President Obama to express concern over the ongoing human rights abuses and offenses taking place in Iran. The Senators, along with 21 other U.S. Senators and a number of U.S. Representatives, urged the President to seize the opportunity to raise the issue as nuclear talks with the Iranian government continue.
“Tehran’s continued abuse of its own citizens and targeting of minorities should serve as another reminder of the Iranian regime’s brutality,” Wyden said in the letter sent Thursday, May 22. “The ongoing negotiations with Iran present a unique and timely opportunity for the United States to lead on the issue of respect for basic human dignity around the world.”
“It has been almost a year since Hassan Rouhani became president of Iran, and blatant violations of human rights have continued with no signs of relief for the people of Iran,” Kirk said. “Iranians are increasingly being targeted, harassed and imprisoned for simply expressing their beliefs. These blatant violations of human rights cannot be ignored as the Administration engages with the Iranian regime on ongoing nuclear negotiations.”
“We share the strong sentiments expressed by Senators Kirk and Wyden and the other members of Congress regarding the urgent need for an improvement in human rights and religious freedom in Iran,” said Kenneth E. Bowers, Secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States. “We hope that President Obama will make efforts to prioritize these issues, thereby lending support to the growing domestic movement for human rights in Iran.”
“AJC and its Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights welcome the strong call on President Obama and U.S. officials to press for the immediate unconditional release of all Iranian prisoners of conscience,” said E. Robert Goodkind, AJC President Emeritus, and Chair of the Jacob Blaustein Institute. “In other countries, raising human rights violations has produced results, and should be a guiding principle for U.S. policy makers today in multilateral and bilateral communications with Iran,” added Goodkind.
According to Amnesty International a number of students, journalists and labor rights activists remain prisoners of conscience in Iran. Reports also show that since the beginning of 2014, nearly 200 people have been hanged. Additionally, the Baha’i community, which is Iran’s largest non-Muslim religious minority, have faced extreme persecution for years at the hands of the Iranian regime.
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Preceding provided by Senator Ron Wyden