General status of Baha’is in Iran according to a “confidential” memorandum

In 1991, the Iranian Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council (ISRCC) drew a memorandum on the “Baha’i Question” which referred to the general status of Baha’is in the country, as well as their cultural, educational, legal, and social status. Dated 25 February 1991, this document which was stamped “confidential” was drawn up at the request of the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (b. 1939) and President Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani (1934–2017).

The major summary of the memorandum is as follows:

1. General status of the Baha’is within the country’s system:

a. They will not be expelled from the country without reason.

b. They will not be arrested, imprisoned, or penalized without reason.

c. The government’s dealings with them must be in such a way that their progress and development are blocked.

2. Educational and cultural status:

a. They can be enrolled in schools provided they have not identified themselves as Baha’is.

b. Preferably, they should be enrolled in schools which have a strong and imposing religious ideology.

c. They must be expelled from universities, either in the admission process or during the course of their studies, once it becomes known that they are Baha’is.

d. Their political (espionage) activities must be dealt with according to appropriate government laws and policies, and their religious and propaganda activities should be answered by giving them religious and cultural responses, as well as propaganda.

e. Propaganda institutions (such as the Islamic Propaganda Organization) must establish an independent section to counter the propaganda and religious activities of the Baha’is.

f. A plan must be devised to confront and destroy their cultural roots outside the country.

3. Legal and social status:

a. Permit them a modest livelihood as is available to the general population.

b. To the extent that it does not encourage them to be Baha’is, it is permissible to provide them the means for ordinary living in accordance with the general rights given to every Iranian citizen, such as ration booklets, passports, burial certificates, work permits, and so on.

c. Deny them employment if they identify themselves as Baha’is.

d. Deny them any position of influence, such as in the educational sector, and so on (BIC, 2008, p. 22).

This memorandum came to the attention of the international community in 1993 when it was disclosed by the United Nations Special Rapporteur (UNSR). However, the Iranian government claimed that this document was a forgery.

(Baha’is in Post-revolution Iran: Perspectives of the Ulema by Ankita Sanya)