Mr LEESER (Berowra) (11:46): I would like to thank the member for Stirling for this motion to celebrate the bicentenary of the birth of the Baha'i faith and to welcome wonderful members of the Baha'i community here to the House of Representatives today. There are more than five million Baha'i worldwide, found in almost every country. The bicentenary we are celebrating today marks 200 years since the Bab was born. The Bab was the prophet who came before Baha'u'llah, the founder of the Baha'i faith. When I last visited Israel, I had the privilege of having a tour, led by Australia Baha'i, of the beautiful Baha'i gardens in Haifa, where the Bab is buried. The first Baha'i came to Australia in 1920, which means that next year we'll be celebrating the centenary of the Baha'i in Australia. I have two Baha'i spiritual assemblies in my own electorate—one in Castle Hill and one at Hornsby. The Baha'i faith uses the texts and traditions of other religions, forming a tradition which combines in many respects the best elements of all and emphasising the unity and equality of all people. Through their acts of community service, the Baha'i community make an important contribution to Australian society, with a focus on building a cohesive community that ensures all belong. Baha'i seek to serve their community through cooperation and support to achieve good social outcomes. Baha'i have a particular focus on young people, teaching the virtues of love, truthfulness and justice and seeking to guide young people on how to live a fruitful and productive life. Despite being people of faith who celebrate, promote and preserve peace, community service and inclusion, sadly the Baha'i community are a highly persecuted people, especially in Yemen and Iran. The Baha'i community form the largest non-Muslim faith group in Iran, yet over the last 40 years they have been subjected to systematic state-sponsored persecution. Government-led attacks have been particularly severe since 2005. Raids are carried out on the workplaces and homes of the Baha'i. Their property is confiscated. They're arrested and subjected to long periods of solitary confinement and interrogation. Since 2005, more than 1,234 Baha'i have been arrested in different parts of Iran, with at least 95 arrested just last year. Beyond facing the constant threat of arrest, Baha'i people face financial persecution, impingement on their right to an education, attacks on their burial grounds and constant persecution provoked by anti-Baha'i material disseminated by the Iranian regime. Baha'i are not allowed to hold government jobs, and private sector employers are often pressured to fire their Baha'i employees. Their business licences are often refused and their businesses are shut down. This has been the fate of more than 490 Baha'i owned shops since 2016. Baha'i students are constantly prevented from undertaking a university education, despite the fact that many of them pass the national university entrance exams. Even if they get into university the government requires expulsion as soon as they are identified as Baha'i. Attacks have prevailed on Baha'i cemeteries in various parts of Iran, and in some cities Baha'i people are not allowed to perform burials or are ordered to bury their loved ones in cities far from their homes. Some in the West regard President Rouhani as a reformer, but nothing could be further from the truth. Under Rouhani the persecution of the Baha'i has ramped up a notch. Since President Rouhani was elected in 2013 more than 36,000 anti-Baha'i articles, videos, television programs and webpages have appeared in government controlled or sponsored media. The propaganda often scapegoats Baha'i as the reason for Iran's economic and political problems or suggests that the Baha'i community stands in opposition to the government or to Islam. This ongoing persecution, unfortunately, has spread to Yemen. One Baha'i man, Hamed Kamal bin Haydara, was recently sentenced to death by public execution after facing severe mistreatment since his arrest in 2013. In 2016, 60 men, women and children were arrested while participating in an educational conference. Their homes were raided to seize phones, passports and other documents. In 2017 the authorities called for the arrest of 25 Baha'i. Six are still imprisoned, and many others have been forced to go into hiding. The Houthi insurgency also incites hatred against the Baha'i by labelling them as satanic and calling for their followers to wage war against them. Much of this persecution is being directed by the authorities in Iran. This is an appalling assault on the Baha'i community and their humanity. Today in the House of Representatives, in the parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia, in the strongest possible terms I condemn the Iranian and Yemeni government treatment of the Baha'i community and their complete disregard for their basic human rights, I call for an end to the systemic persecution of the Baha'i in Iran and Yemen and I call for the immediate release of Baha'i prisoners imprisoned for their religious beliefs. At a time which should be a cause for celebrating a peace-loving community it is so sad that we have to reflect on the persecution of Baha'i around the world.