Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. McNamara and his colleagues. When I have engaged with the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Ireland, I have found its members to be fair and reasonable. What Mr. McNamara has outlined to us is very disturbing. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has assured us in replies to parliamentary questions and briefings that it takes the opportunity to raise the assembly’s concerns at every relevant forum at official and political level. Through our membership of the UN Human Rights Council, we have another opportunity to raise these concerns.

Do the assembly’s European counterparts engage with their own parliamentary committees? Has there been engagement with the foreign affairs committee of the European Parliament? It is important to have other European national parliaments and assemblies support the Baha'i position and outline the disturbing position of Baha'i members in Iran. It has been pointed out that there have been more difficulties for the Baha'i community there in the past ten years than in the previous ten years.