The external affairs office of the Baha'is of the U.S. is happy to announce the winner of its video contest about the plight of Baha'is in Iran.

The overall winner of the contest is the video “Murder with Impunity” submitted by Bobby Aazami. The panel judging the contest felt that this submission provided a very comprehensive and informative insight into the persecution of Iran’s largest religious minority. (Some 300,000 Baha'is live throughout the country.)

Baha'is have been targets of discrimination and violence in Iran since the inception of their faith there in the mid-nineteenth century. More than 200 Baha'is were killed in Iran between 1978 and 1998–the majority by execution–and thousands more were imprisoned. Currently, there are at least 31 Baha'is in Iran’s prisons, including the seven people who comprised the leadership group known as the Friends in Iran. Those seven have now been in prison more than a year, awaiting trial.

We commend and congratulate Bobby Aazami for his wonderful effort, and also wish to give out special mentions to the submissions “Who are the chosen people” by Notes of Kin and “This is Faith” by a group in Kiev, Ukraine.

The National Spiritual Assembly of the U.S. wishes to thank everyone around the world who participated in this competition and hopes that many will continue to use such creative means to raise awareness about the persecution of the Baha'is in Iran online.