[Mitai-announce] Two events next week

[Elan Pavlov]

Hi,
Amnesty is hosting *two* events next week:
1. Combatants for Peace - panel discussion on the Middle East - Mon March 
9 in 54-100
2. Persecution of the Baha'i Faith in Iran - Wen Mar 11 in 4-231

Details:
1. Combatants for Peace is a group of Israeli soldiers and Palestinian 
fighters who have decided to lay down their arms and to realize their 
vision of resolving the conflict by peaceful means. Two Combatants 
representatives are coming to Boston to receive the "Courage of Conscience 
Award" at the Peace Abbey in Sherborne, MA on March 13, 2009.

MIT Amnesty International, MIT Grad Hillel, MIT Students for Israel, the 
Arab Students Organization and the Addir Fellows program are hosting a 
presentation by Combatants for Peace, followed by a panel discussion.
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=52629909460&ref=ts

2. Persecution of the Baha'i Faith in Iran:
The Baha'i Faith (http://www.bahai.us/)) is the youngest of the world's 
independent monotheistic religions. Founded in Iran in 1844, it now has 
more than five million adherents in 236 countries and territories.

One of the largest communities of Baha'is in the world is still located in 
Iran. However, the Baha'i faith in Iran has long been persecuted as a 
minority faith in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

While the persecution of Baha'is is longstanding in Iran, it recently (Feb 
11) reached an unexpected new peak with charges of espionage and insulting 
Islam laid against seven members of the Iranian Baha'i leadership who have 
been imprisoned for almost a year without any evidence supporting these 
accusations. The charge of espionage in Iran carries with it a potential 
death sentence.

In this talk we will discuss the history of the Baha'i persecution in Iran 
with emphasis on the current political situation and jeopardy of the 
Baha'i leadership. We will sign (optional) petitions calling for the 
freedom of these leaders.

This event is hosted by MIT Amnesty, MIT Baha'i Student Association and 
funded by a GSC grant.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=logo#/event.php?eid=52931457502&ref=ts

We hope you can attend one (or both) of these events.

Elan
----
A man can be forgiven a lot if he can quote Shakespeare in an economic
crisis.
 	- Prince Philip