The Yarsan Civil Activists Advisory Council issued a statement on the ninth anniversary of the self-immolation of three Yarsani protesters, commemorating the memories of Nikmorad Taheri, Hassan Razavi, and Mohammad Ghanbari and emphasizing the fulfilment of Yarsani’s human and civil rights.
A part of this statement reads:
“The movement that started in June 2013, revealed awakening and right-seeking in the culture of Yarsan more than ever and became a model for the rights of the communities that share the same intellectual and geographical borders as Yarsanis. The religion of Yarsan, throughout its history, has been known for its peace, reconciliation, and tolerance, but in this ideology, giving in to humiliation and surrendering to oppression has no place, even if it leads to sacrificing one’s life.”
In June and August 2013, three followers of the Yarsani religion in the cities of Hamadan and Tehran set themselves on fire and lost their lives.
On 3 June, Hassan Razavi, an Azerbaijani Turkic citizen from the village of Pol-e Shekasteh in Hamadan, self-immolated in front of the governorate building in Hamadan.
On 4 June, Nikmorad Taheri, a Kurdish civilian from Sahneh, Kermanshah, set his body on fire.
Also, two months later, Mohammad Ghanbari, an Azerbaijani Turkic citizen from the village of Qarah Dash in Qazvin, died in a similar self-immolation action in front of the Islamic Consultative Assembly building in Tehran.
This chain of self-immolation protests was a deadly reaction to the legal discrimination against the Yarsani people and the insult to their customs.
The forced shaving of the moustache of one of the followers of the Yari religion in Hamadan Prison was the spark that ignited the protests. The shaving of a moustache is an act that is considered an insult to the believers of this religion.
But this is not the only case of such discriminatory legal treatments and insulting behaviours by the government and government officials towards the followers of this religious minority.
The Yarsan Civil Activists Advisory Council, which was established shortly after the self-immolation protests to pursue the demands of the Yarsani community, has repeatedly called for the recognition of the Yarsani religion in the Iranian constitution and an end to discrimination against the Yarsan community in Iran.
