By The International Committee in Defence of Dervishes and Students of Iran

Mr. Mohammad Sadegh Larijani,

With greetings

More than one year have passed since the destruction of the Shiite Muslims prayer house and the surrounding cemetery in Isfahan which belonged to the followers of Nematollahi Gonabadi. This heinous act was not only disrespectful to the prayer house of the Shiites, but also irreverent to the Muslim cemetery in the famous city of Isfahan. Insulting news and photos related to this event have been spread via international media and have been translated in Greek, English, Turkish, French, Arabic and  Persian. This event has not been looked into by the officials in the Islamic Republic and has brought further shame to the ninth regime.

A destroyed house of worship of the Gonabadi dervishes in Isfahan - February 2009

Since justice had lost its meaning in the system during the period that Mr. Mahmoud Hashemi Shahrudi was the head of the justice department, the voice of the Sufi Dervishes was not heard by the government and all attempts to take action according to the laws of the Islamic Republic failed: the Sufis became more oppressed than ever!

Inevitably members, supporters, and those interested in the "The International Committee in Defence of Dervishes  and Students of Iran" aroused and started to inform the international community about the difficulties of the Sufi Dervishes in Iran.

Demonstrations have been held, marches and sit-ins in various cities throughout Europe, (and) America and Canada. They have expanded awareness around the globe and have made contact to relevant authorities in the section of human rights and the international communities.

To have praying houses, (and) to respect the wish of the people to be buried in the cemetery in the city one lives, and to preserve the sanctity of these places are basic rights of citizens all around the world. International conventions and agreements related to these cases have been signed by "The Islamic Republic". Inevitably "the regime" is obliged to comply and act accordingly; otherwise, the international community will ask questions demanding answers from Iran: we witnessed an example of this in the Geneva meeting with your brother Mr. Mohammad Javad Larijani.

For these reasons we request from you as a new steersman in the department of justice to make the right choices and restore these forgotten rights of the Nematollahi Gonabadi Sufis. We ask you to hand out necessary and urgent orders, especially such concerning the reconstruction of the praying house of the Nematollahi Gonabadi Sufi Dervishes in the cemetary of "Takhte Foulad" in Esfahan and the tomb next to it- belonging to the late "Mr. Izad Goshap - Dervishe Naser Aly".

We would like to inform you that the members, supporters and those interested in "The International Committee in Defence of Dervishes  and Students of Iran " will - if all that is requested will not be put into action by the end of this year - make new movements in the new year in a chain of coordinated actions spreading the truth. These actions will include sit-ins and hunger strikes in front of the Agency's offices, embassies, businesses and bank- buildings affiliated to the regime of Iran around the world, protests and handing out flyers in front of popular buildings in various cities and countries, as well as spreading the awareness via meetings and conferences, inviting news sections and the famous personalities from various fields. Necessary measures will be taken in order to attract the public opinion to protect the rights of dervishes, to denounce and condemn the perpetrators and the cause for these un-human behaviours.

The Light that shines on the way for the supporters of the " The International Committee in Defence of Dervishes  and Students of Iran", is the word of the The great third Imam of Shiite Muslims, "Hossein son of Aly" that "even if you do not have any religion, at least be humans"

God is behind those who are fighting for peace and justice

The International Committee in Defence of Dervishes  and Students of Iran
Brussels - Washington - Toronto
15 Esfand 1388
Tuesday, second of March, 2010

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