"The care of human life and happiness

Obama will have to face the issues..

Human Rights and in particular the rights of Iran's largest Religious minority will be a major stumbling block, for the IRI and its

Cleric leadership, in any Future negotaitions between The US, Iran and the rest of the world.

iran is high on Presidenr elect Obama's list of priorities, hence Human Rights and in particular the Bahais will be  a Factor..

Yes:

"O has so much things to worry about" but   he will have to  have time to deal with Human Rights and the persecution of Bahais  in Iran. 

Faryarm 

O has so much things to worry about

O has so much things to worry about that he would not have time to deal with Bahais problems in Iran.

My heart

My heart goes out to all Iranians -- be they religious, atheists, reformers, academics, illiterate, women, men, youth, children, and old -- that are suffering in Iran. While the Bahais face harsh abuse and systematic persecution, the emotional oppression is being felt across Iranian society, irrespective of religion, gender, and age -- whether directly or indirectly.

On YouTube, I came across a modern interpretation of a beautiful prayer on patience, written by the daughter of Bahaullah. As our sadness and anger increases at the spiraling plight of our county, let us channel our energy on things that we can do to serve humanity and better the conditions of the communities that we live in. I don't think that there is stronger or more enduring force that can fight the type of oppressors as we see in Iran.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZifFF9KGtA8

well said toofan

i know BO is the coolest thing since the iphone was invented...but he is still a politician/lawyer, not to mention a product of the most corrupt political machine/state in the U.S.

that said, i hope he does bring up the plight of bahai's in iran when he meets with president ahmadinejad

Iran and Iranians have many problems, but

Iran and Iranians have many problems, but the 3 main problems have been, are and will be the following:

1) Oppression of women for the past 800 years.

2)  Systematic oppression and persecution of Bahais for the past 165 years.

3) Gutless men who have either benefited from #1 and/or #2 or don't have the balls to take action to change the system.

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was the poster boy for #3.

Oh believe you me, there are many many other problems; way too many to mention here.  But you solve #1-#3 and the rest will take care of itself. Mind you, all these problems are due to Islam, the Arab culture and their inclusion in the Iranian society.

No he wont

And its not his or any other foreign leaders job to ask questions about it. That is our job, mine and yours.

Pluss, the US has been trading and empowering one dictatorship after another for the last 100 years, you think that Amnesty International is running the Pentagon? The world does not work like that, sad to say.

Mehran-001 - Yes there are Baha'is in other Mid-East ....

...countries and their status varies from country to country. In all instances they are deprived of a legal status and do not enjoy civil rights as this in most instances is reserved for Christian and Jewish religious minorities.  The degree that this is then enforced is very much dependent on the specific circumstances in each country.

For example, most on this site are informed about the specific nature of the persecutions in Iran both before and after the 1979 revolution.  Egypt has a long standing record of restrictions on Baha'is and during the past two years has passed laws that have significantly jeopardized the access of Baha'is in Egypt to every component of Egyptian civil society, including healthcare, education, registration, property ownership, and pensions,  through the national ID card program that limits its issuance to Moslems, Christians and Jews. 

Saudi Arabia has always had a restrictions for other Faiths and while many Baha'is do live there, they lead very quite and confined lives.  The Emirates and Kuwait have large Baha'i communities and have enjoyed freedom in private enterprises, and while they don't face active persecution, they also lead lives that limit their interaction and dependence on the organs of civil society.

Small Baha'i communities have existed in Iraq, Syria and Jordan for over a hundred years and it appears that they depend on their private enterprises for livelihood also.  There does not appear to be any limitations on higher education and/or healthcare.  Their numbers are quite small, and date back to the early believers that came into contact with Baha'u'llah and Abdu'lBaha as they were exited to the former Ottoman penal colony of Akka,  in Palestine.

So, in short, the Baha'is of the Middle East experience limitations to varying degrees. In the case of Iran and Egypt it is of the more virulent form of persecutions.

Hope that answers your question.

Alborz

LOL glossing over some stuff

"Iran is Liberated" 

Yes, when liberation is an American leader's priority, we have seen how fantastic the results are. I can't wait for a civil war in iran. We can't even get it together here on a message board. So I'm sure this "liberation" will be nothing short of gardens and pastries with tea. Yum. 

Alborz

Do you know whether there are Baha'i in other middle eastern country and what is their status there? Are they suffering from the same mistreatment that they do in Iran?

Will Obama care about the Baha'is and others?

Obama is quite familiar with the principles of the Baha'i Faith and has close Bahai friends in Illinois.  The US Baha'i Administrative Center is located in Wilmette, IL and he has visited the Baha'i House of Worship, just north of Chicago.

The Baha'is will remain at the heart of the human rights record of the IRI and the ebb and flow of their plight will depend on both Iran's sense of isolation and the visibility to their violations.

Members of the US Congress along with the members of the Canadian and European Parliaments have played a significant role in maintaining a high level of visibility on Iran's record.  However, during the past few years the dismal human rights record of the US in Iraq, Afghanistam, and Gitmo, has diminshed the credibility of US.   It is everyone's hope that this credibility is regained in the coming months and years.  Human rights can significantly benefit from such a resurgence.

The isolation of IRI in the international community has emboldened Iran to take more coercive actions against the Bahai's and today has far less at stake in repairing this dismal record.

In the mean time, Barbara Boxer is only one of the many members of Congress who have sympathecized and voted to pass pass resolutions against Iran's human rights record, on many occassions.  Her response is balanced, as one would expect from any politician.  Utlimately the wording of any resolution and its timing is what determines the support it gets when it is put to a vote.   As always, it will be inclusive of all that are deprived from the rights as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

It would be unreasonable to expect an official response, which becomes a permanent record, to be "hot and heavy" on sentiments. 

Alborz

Of course he cares

What exactly does Obama need to do, in your opinion, to help Iran?  Considering that even Iranians don't seem to agree with what needs to be done, what do you want Obama to do?

Obama's priority should be

Obama's priority should be to help Iranians get rid of the IRI regime. That way:

1- The problem of Islamic Fundamentalism goes away.

2- Iran is liberated.

3- The security of America is guaranteed.  

will he ask? does he care?

i hope so...but probably not. These western leaders, who are so influenced by their special interests/lobbies, never gave a damn about iran and her people (imho). I think they throw around the notion of "human rights" just to sound compassionate.

btw...senator boxer (the old battleaxe) comes off as completely insincere in that letter. Anyone else get that vibe?

Tell that to Trita Parsi!

A whole bunch of his advisors including some real heavyweights like Brzezinsky are telling him to ignore Iran's human rights issues and focus on nukes ONLY. Who do you think he will listen to?