| ←324 | Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1986-2001 Registration of Bahá’í Marriages in Iran |
326→ |
| 28 FEBRUARY 2000 |
To selected National Spiritual Assemblies
325.1 The Universal House of Justice has just received news concerning action by the Iranian government that will have the important effect of permitting the registration of Bahá’í marriages in that country. For quite a number of years, as you know, the Bahá’í community of Iran has been seeking a way by which Bahá’í marriages and the birth of Bahá’í children could be officially registered and also validated on identity cards. The new situation could well have come about because of the high number of Bahá’í marriage cases and the steadfastness of the individuals involved in refusing to register their Bahá’í marriages under any other religious designation.
325.2 It has now been learned that the head of the Iranian judiciary recently issued a circular letter to all registry offices throughout the country, stating that any couple who appear before the latter officials, acknowledging that they are husband and wife, may be registered without being required to state their religious affiliation. An official certification may then be issued and supplied to the couple concerned. At the same time, the judiciary has issued a related instruction to the registry offices with respect to the issuance of birth certificates and identity cards. Couples whose personal status has been validated by the aforementioned official certification are now to have such information entered on their identity cards, acknowledging that they are recognized as husband and wife. Thereafter, they should experience no difficulty in registering children of the marriage.
325.3 This new development removes at a stroke one of the most troublesome problems that has long handicapped the members of the Iranian Bahá’í community. The arrangement provides ample proof of what Bahá’í representatives abroad have consistently maintained; namely, that the government of Iran is able, if it so wishes, to find ways within existing laws and regulations, to accord Bahá’ís the same freedoms enjoyed by all other Iranian citizens. . . .
- DEPARTMENT OF THE SECRETARIAT
