Iran: Information on human rights violations of Iranians belonging to "Mandaean" faith, such as discrimination at institutions of learning and in employment, physical assaults, disappearances, deaths, detentions, lack of legal protection
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 February 1995 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | IRN19941.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Iran: Information on human rights violations of Iranians belonging to "Mandaean" faith, such as discrimination at institutions of learning and in employment, physical assaults, disappearances, deaths, detentions, lack of legal protection, 1 February 1995, IRN19941.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6aba90.html [accessed 25 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
In a telephone interview on 23 February 1995, C. Chaqueri, Assistant Editor of the Encyclopaedia Iranica, stated that members of the Mandaean faith, also known as Sabaeans, are ill-treated and discriminated against by the Iranian authorities, given that they fall into the category of "undesirables." C. Chaqueri, who is also the author of a not yet published study entitled The Rise and Decline of the Neo-Islamic Regime in Iran, makes reference in the attached extract from this study to the Iranian constitution on the question of religious minorities. The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran states that
Zoroastrian, Jewish, and Christian Iranians are the only recognized religious minorities, who, within the limits of the law, are free to perform their religious rites and ceremonies, and to act according to their own canon in matters of personal affairs and religious education (32).
For general information on Mandaeans in Iran and Iraq, please consult Response to Information Request IRQ12041 of 29 October 1992 and the attached documents.
This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this information request.
References
Chaqueri, C. Assistant Editor, Encyclopaedia Iranica, Columbia University, N.Y. 23 February 1995. Telephone interview.
Iran. The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 15 November 1979. Amended 28 July 1989 and published in official translation by the Islamic Propagation Organization.
Attachments
Chaqueri, C. Assistant Editor, Encyclopaedia Iranica, Columbia University, N.Y. 27 February 1995. Extract from his not yet published study entitled The Rise and Decline of the Neo-Islamic Regime in Iran, received by the DIRB.
Contemporary Religions: A World Guide. 1992. Edited by Ian Harris et al. The High, Harlow, Essex: Longman Group UK, p. 221.
Iran. The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 15 November 1979. Amended 28 July 1989 and published in official translation by the Islamic Propagation Organization, p.32.
Los Angeles Times. 6 October 1991. Walter Putnam. "Mandaean Sect Preserves Its Ancient Water Rituals." (NEXIS)
Additional Sources Consulted
Les droits de l'Homme dans le monde arabe. 1987. Paris: L'Harmattan.
Encyclopedia of Islam. 1990. Leiden: Brill.
L'état des religions. 1987. Paris: La découverte.
Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Reports. Daily.
Human Rights Watch. 1994. Human Rights Watch World Report. New York: Human Rights Watch.
News From Middle East Watch [New York]. Monthly.
Religion in Politics. 1989. London: St. James Press.
World Directory of Minorities. 1990. London: Minority Rights Groups International.
On-line searches of news articles.
Oral sources.
