http://www.voicesdivine.com Bahai audio books & podcast recordings of writings, prayers, news, & community messages for lovers of Bahaullah Fri, 13 Jan 2012 00:38:12 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v= Bahai audio books & podcast recordings of writings, prayers, news, & community messages for lovers of Bahaullah VoicesDivine no © 2008-2010 VoicesDivine.com and others VoicesDivine.com Baha'i Podcasts https://www.voicesdivine.com/main/wp-content/plugins/powerpress/rss_default.jpg http://www.voicesdivine.com http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/media-portrayal-women-focus-panel/ http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/media-portrayal-women-focus-panel/#comments Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:45:26 +0000 Leanne Eleff http://www.voicesdivine.com/?p=1067 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/media-portrayal-women-focus-panel/feed/ 0 advertising,baha'i faith,Baha'i World News Service,Baroness Gould of Potternewton,business,cars,communication,girls,Jan Floyd-Douglass,Joyce Gould,marketing,sarah kasule When Jan Floyd-Douglass decided to buy a new car, she bypassed suitable models from eight different manufacturers – and then wrote to tell them why. "I love your car but I didn't buy it because I don't like your advertisements because they demean women, This is a recording from VoicesDivine.com.  To see our other podcasts and our terms of use, go to www.voicesdivine.com.  The following is Leanne Eleff reading from the Baha'i World News Service. NEW YORK — When Jan Floyd-Douglass decided to buy a new car, she bypassed suitable models from eight different manufacturers – and then wrote to tell them why. "I love your car but I didn't buy it because I don't like your advertisements because they demean women," wrote Ms. Floyd-Douglass, who is on the board of the Women's National Commission in the United Kingdom. She told the story during a panel discussion titled "Portrayal or Betrayal: How the Media Depicts Women and Girls" held at the UN offices of the Baha'i International Community. The event was planned in conjunction with the annual session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women which began on 1 March. Along with the other panelists, she noted that sexualized images of women in advertising are so commonplace as to seem innocuous. "My message is, if we don't actually do anything about this, we are complicit in it," said Ms. Floyd-Douglass. Also on the panel was Sarah Kasule, director of the Mother's Union for Uganda, who said that the way women are portrayed in the African media can be equally negative. "They are depicted as symbols of sex. Or as something to do with making men comfortable, or giving care," she said. This trend in the media is a result of both individual choices and institutional forces, added Dr. Michael Karlberg, who is an associate professor in the department of communications at Western Washington University. "On one hand," he said, "people everywhere are choosing to consume media that feeds base appetites that we have inherited from our animal nature. On the other hand, media institutions have been constructed in ways that purposefully stimulate, reinforce, and exploit these base appetites." The result is a "feedback cycle" that has created a media environment that is "unjust, unhealthy, and unsustainable," observed Dr. Karlberg. He said any effort to address the problem must consider the structure of media institutions. "The assumption is that the media is just another commodity. But the media is not just another commodity. It is a process that facilitates democratic deliberations. It is a process that creates culture." Part of the problem, he said, is that the media's real product is not content but the delivery of an audience to advertisers. The result is that the media strives to manufacture audiences in the cheapest way possible, through a "high-sex, high-violence, high-conflict content. It doesn't take talent or research or investigative journalism. Yet it stimulates the appetites, much the same way that a high-salt, high-sugar, and high-fat junk food diet does." The discussion, held on 3 March, was moderated by Baroness Joyce Gould, chair of the UK Women's National Commission. She said recent studies show that images demeaning to women are increasingly used in the mass media and have an unhealthy impact on the psychological development of both girls and boys. "For girls, it is about being told they need to be more attractive to men. And for boys, it is about looking upon girls as sexual objects," said Baroness Gould. Dr. Karlberg spoke of efforts the Baha'i community is making to try to counter the ill effects of exposure to such images in the media by offering moral education for children and young people. "Baha'is, like people everywhere, are struggling to raise and educate children," he said. "They are trying to do this in a way that cultivates their inherent nobility, that releases their spiritual potential, and that helps them recognize the deep sources of purpose, meaning, and happiness in life. "It is clear that such spiritual education can be a very important factor in making children less susceptible to messages in their media environment. VoicesDivine no 5:08 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/trial-seven-bahai-leaders-under-way-tehran/ http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/trial-seven-bahai-leaders-under-way-tehran/#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 16:29:43 +0000 John Iron http://www.voicesdivine.com/?p=897 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/trial-seven-bahai-leaders-under-way-tehran/feed/ 0 Bahai, Baha'i, trial, Iran, Yaran, Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, Mr. Vahid Tizfahm John Iron reads: "The trial of seven imprisoned Baha'i leaders began today in Iran. Initial reports indicate that the trial is marked by numerous violations of legal due process..." The trial of seven imprisoned Baha'i leaders began today in Iran. Initial reports indicate that the trial is marked by numerous violations of legal due process. VoicesDivine no 2:58 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/713_one_year_new_accusation/ http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/713_one_year_new_accusation/#comments Tue, 12 May 2009 18:19:35 +0000 Leanne Eleff http://news.voicesdivine.com/?p=358 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/713_one_year_new_accusation/feed/ 0 arrested,Baha'i,Baha'i World News Service,Durban,human rights,Iran,Mr. Afif Naeimi,Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli,Mr. Hassan Haddad,Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani,Mr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,Mr. Saeid Rezaie The seven Baha'i leaders currently imprisoned in Iran are facing the anniversary of their arrest this Thursday, along with new and extremely grave accusations, after spending a year in jail without formal charges or access to their lawyer, Shirin Ebadi. 12 May 2009, NEW YORK, N.Y., U.S.A. (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=107001268033865952759.000467d7fa436430d35d6&ll=40.759741,-73.972321&spn=0.453007,0.601501&t=k&z=11) - The seven Baha'i leaders currently imprisoned in Iran are facing the anniversary of their arrest this Thursday, along with new and extremely grave accusations, after spending a year in jail without formal charges or access to their lawyer, Shirin Ebadi. "Despite their obvious innocence and the call by many for their immediate release, these seven men and women have been in legal limbo for a year now, against all international human rights standards," said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations. "Moreover, their families have recently been told of a possible new charge - 'the spreading of corruption on earth,' which goes by the term 'Mofsede fel-Arz' in Persian and carries the threat of death under the penal code of the Islamic Republic of Iran," said Ms. Dugal. "The sequence of events surrounding their detention exposes a shameless travesty of justice. Notwithstanding their having been subjected to intensive interrogations, it took a full seven months before they were given even a single pretext for their detention. On February 10, 2009, the Iranian Student News Agency quoted Tehran deputy prosecutor Hassan Haddad as having said that the investigation of these individuals was complete and that 'the case will be sent to the revolutionary court next week' and that these Baha'is are accused of 'espionage for Israel, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic Republic.' The international protest expressed by governments and civil society was immediate and widespread, causing the Iranian authorities to review their approach. "Now a new wrongful accusation reportedly has been added some three months after the investigation was supposed to have concluded. The charge of being spreaders of corruption was used against the Baha'is who were executed in the years immediately following the Islamic revolution. That it may now be resorted to in this case is a further demonstration that the authorities have no basis for any allegation against these seven individuals, other than blatant religious persecution. This action against the Baha'i leadership reflects the government's sharply increased persecution of the entire Iranian Baha'i community of more than 300,000 members. "The upcoming anniversary of their arrest offers an important milestone and we ask that the international community re-state once again in the strongest terms its demand for their immediate release, or, at least, for a fair and open trial that meets international standards of justice," said Ms. Dugal. Ms. Dugal also noted that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has frequently emphasized the importance of "justice and human dignity" and "the establishment of a just world system," such as when he addressed the UN Durban Review Conference in Geneva (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=107001268033865952759.000467d7fa436430d35d6&ll=46.212031,6.139126&spn=0.103464,0.150375&t=k&z=13)last month. "How can the calls of the Iranian leadership for justice in the international sphere be taken seriously if they do not grant justice to their own citizens? In Iran, by all accounts universally agreed upon human rights are routinely ignored, not only for Baha'is but also for women, journalists, and others who only seek dignity and justice," she said. The seven are Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm. All but one of the group were arrested on 14 May 2008 at their homes in Tehran VoicesDivine no 4:34 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/bahais-and-rights-groups-ajmadinejad-must-address-discrimination/ http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/bahais-and-rights-groups-ajmadinejad-must-address-discrimination/#comments Sun, 19 Apr 2009 01:29:03 +0000 John Iron http://news.voicesdivine.com/?p=320 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/bahais-and-rights-groups-ajmadinejad-must-address-discrimination/feed/ 0 Baha'i,Durban II,Durban Review Conference,Federation of Human Rights,FIDH,Iran,Iranian League for the Defense of Human Rights,LDDHI,Mr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,President,UN,United Nations The Baha'i International Community and two human rights organizations in call on Iranian President Ahmadinejad to address discrimination in his own country. (http://news.voicesdivine.com/wp-content/uploads/news/20090419-BWNS-708-Durban-II-Statement-150.jpg) 2009 April 19, GENEVA, Switzerland (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=107001268033865952759.000467d7fa436430d35d6&ll=46.230916,6.129684&spn=0.100935,0.264359&t=k&z=13) - The Baha'i International Community (http://bic.org/) joined two human rights organizations in calling on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to address discrimination in his own country when he speaks this week at the conference known as Durban II. The statement was issued as a joint news release by the Baha'i International Community (http://bic.org/), the Iranian League for the Defense of Human Rights (LDDHI), and the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) (http://www.fidh.org/). In addition to calling on the Iranian president to address discrimination against ethnic minorities, women, and religious minorities, the three organizations also ask him to redress the problem of incitement to hatred. "Of particular concern is the manner in which the government-controlled news media has vilified adherents of the Baha'i Faith," the statement said, citing the hundreds of articles, radio and television programs, Internet postings, and pamphlets containing hate speech that have been disseminated in Iran in recent years. The Durban Review Conference (http://www.un.org/durbanreview2009/index.shtml) is being held under the auspices of the United Nations (http://www.un.org). The purpose is to evaluate progress towards the goals set by the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in Durban, South Africa, in 2001. The following is the news release issued by the three organizations (http://news.voicesdivine.com/wp-content/uploads/news/20090419-BWNS-708-Durban-II-Statement.pdf): Baha'i Internation Community United Nations Office (http://bic.org)Iranian League for the Defense of Human Rights (LDDHI) International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) (http://www.fidh.org/) For Immediate Release President Ahmadinejad must redress grave discrimination in Iran GENEVA, 19 April 2009 - If he desires to lend genuine support to the Durban process, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad should address the severe forms of discrimination faced by minority groups in his own country when he speaks at the Durban Review Conference here this week, said the Baha'i International Community (BIC), the Iranian League for the Defense of Human Rights (LDDHI) and the [International Federation for Human Rights] Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l'homme (FIDH) today. "By coming to the Durban Review Conference, President Ahmadinejad signals a commitment to the conference's goals of eliminating all forms of discrimination and intolerance," said Diane Ala'i, the BIC's representative to the United Nations in Geneva. "His first move on returning home, then, should be to address the severe discrimination and persecution that have flourished under his tenure." Karim Lahidji of LDDHI said: "Human rights have sharply deteriorated in Iran under the presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities, as well as against women, are of grave concern. Our hope is that governments, the news media, and other Durban Review Conference participants will hold President Ahmadinejad accountable on these points." The BIC, LDDHI, and FIDH called particularly on President Ahmadinejad to redress: Discrimination against ethnic minorities Repression against activists belonging to ethnic minorities is rising dramatically in Iran. Kurds and other groups are accused of terrorism, attacks on national security or treason, without concrete evidence. The authorities do not seem to make a distinction between peaceful advocacy for the rights of minorities and terrorist attacks by armed groups. Over the past year, John Iron no 6:45 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/egypt-officially-changes-rules-for-id-cards/ http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/egypt-officially-changes-rules-for-id-cards/#comments Fri, 17 Apr 2009 17:19:09 +0000 John Iron http://news.voicesdivine.com/?p=314 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/egypt-officially-changes-rules-for-id-cards/feed/ 0 Baha'i,Baha’i International Community,Egypt,Egyptian,Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights,Egyptian Supreme Administrative Court,EIPR,government,ID Cards,Ministry of Interior,Ms. Bani Dugal,United Nations Egypt's Ministry of Interior has published a decree allowing individuals to obtain government documents without identifying their religious affiliation. (http://news.voicesdivine.com/wp-content/uploads/news/20090417-BWNS-707-Egypt-ID-Cards-150.jpg) 2009 April 17, CAIRO, Egypt (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&t=h&msa=0&ll=30.057506,31.227264&spn=0.235346,0.273972&z=12&msid=107001268033865952759.000467d7fa436430d35d6) - Egypt's Ministry of Interior this week published a decree that allows individuals to obtain government documents without identifying themselves as belonging to a particular religion. The decree is the result of a recent Egyptian Supreme Administrative Court ruling - in a case involving Baha'is - that on government ID cards and other documents, individuals may put a dash in the field denoting religious affiliation. "We are very pleased that the Egyptian government has moved to officially change the regulation that prevented Baha'is and others from realizing their rights of citizenship," said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations. The computerization of ID cards introduced by the government had locked out all religious classifications except Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.  This had meant that Baha'is were unable to get documents essential to day-to-day life. The decree was signed by General Habib al-Adly, Egypt's Interior Minister, and dated 19 March 2009, and was published on 14 April in the official gazette.  According to the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), which represented Baha'is in many of the recent court cases concerning religious affiliation on government documents, the decree amends the Implementing Statutes of Egypt's Civil Status Law of 1994.  It specifically instructs officials to place a dash (--) before the line reserved for religion in the official documents of citizens who can show that they, or their ancestors, were followers of a religious belief other than the three recognized by the state. To see the original article at the Baha'i World News Service (http://news.bahai.org) go to http://news.bahai.org/story/707. (http://news.bahai.org/story/707) Photo by Hans Zinsli (http://www.flickr.com/photos/hanszinsli/2444822869/) (http://news.voicesdivine.com/wp-content/uploads/cc/cc-by-nc-nd-80x15.png) VoicesDivine no http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/un-general-assembly-concerned-about-human-rights-in-iran/ http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/un-general-assembly-concerned-about-human-rights-in-iran/#comments Thu, 18 Dec 2008 17:19:08 +0000 John Iron http://news.voicesdivine.com/?p=40 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/un-general-assembly-concerned-about-human-rights-in-iran/feed/ 0 arrest,arrested,Baha'i,community,general assembly,human rights,Iran,leaders,prison,United Nations The United Nations General Assembly today adopted a resolution expressing “deep concern at serious human rights violations” in Iran. (http://news.voicesdivine.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/unseal.jpg) 2008 December 18, UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations General Assembly today adopted a resolution expressing “deep concern at serious human rights violations” in Iran. The resolution, which passed by a vote of 69 to 54, specifically criticized Iran’s use of torture, the high incidence of executions, the “violent repression” of women, and “increasing discrimination” against Bahá’ís, Christians, Jews, Sufis, Sunni Muslims, and other minorities. “Iran should reflect upon and glean from this vote that, sadly, countries from Finland to Fiji are more concerned about the rights of ordinary Iranian citizens than the Iranian government itself,” said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations. “The General Assembly is the world’s most representative body, and the fact that this represents the 21st such resolution expressing concern over human rights in Iran since 1985 should leave no doubt that this is not about ‘politicization,’ as the Iranian government likes to say, but a genuine concern for universally acknowledged rights. “Regretfully, despite outcries like this and the recent report of the UN secretary general, the human rights situation in Iran grows worse each day. Nevertheless, we remain hopeful that expressions of concern like this will cause Iranian leaders to rethink their stance on human rights in respect for the rights that have been so widely accepted by other nations,” she said. Ms. Dugal also noted that Iran comes up for Universal Periodic Review in the Human Rights Council in 2010. Iran should take note of the international community’s concern and make all efforts to improve its deplorable human rights record. Today’s resolution was put forward by Canada and co-sponsored by more than 40 other countries. It also specifically takes note of the recent report by Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, issued in October, which also expressed concern about human rights in Iran, and calls on Iran to address the “substantive concerns” voiced therein. In that report, Mr. Ban said “there are a number of serious impediments to the full protection of human rights” in Iran. It likewise expressed concerns over torture, executions, the rights of women, and discrimination against minorities. [To read the full report, go to: http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=a/63/459] The resolution asks the secretary general to prepare an update on Iran’s progress over the coming year. It also calls on Iran to “end the harassment, intimidation and persecution of political opponents and human rights defenders, including by releasing persons imprisoned arbitrarily or on the basis of their political views” and to “uphold due process of law rights and to end impunity for human rights violations.” The resolution takes particular note of attacks on Bahá’ís, noting “increasing evidence of efforts by the State to identify and monitor Bahá’ís, preventing members of the Bahá’í Faith from attending university and from sustaining themselves economically, and the arrest and detention of seven Bahá’í leaders without charge or access to legal representation.” Ms. Dugal noted that there are at least 20 Bahá’ís currently in jail, including the national Bahá’í leadership of seven members who were arrested last March and May and are being held in Evin prison without charges. More than 100 others have been arrested and released on bail over the last four years as part of a stepped-up government effort at persecution. John Iron no 4:12 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/international-community-rejects-iranian-allegations-on-recent-arrests/ http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/international-community-rejects-iranian-allegations-on-recent-arrests/#comments Wed, 21 May 2008 18:19:30 +0000 John Iron http://news.voicesdivine.com/?p=203 http://www.voicesdivine.com/news/international-community-rejects-iranian-allegations-on-recent-arrests/feed/ 0 Bahai, Baha'i, Bahá'í, arrest, Iran, persecution, prison, spies, United Nations, Yaran, Zionist, Bani Dugal Allegations by Iran that six Baha’is were arrested last week “for security reasons and not for their faith” are utterly baseless and without documentation, said the Baha’i International Community today. This is a recording from VoicesDivine.com. To see our full range of podcasts and our terms of use, go to www.voicesdivine.com (http://www.voicesdivine.com/). This is John Iron (http://johniron.com/) reading from the Baha’i World News Service VoicesDivine no 6:25