The leader of the Qatari Baha’i community, Remy Rowhani, has been sentenced to five years in prison by Qatar’s Supreme Judiciary Council. Always very active in defending the rights of this religious minority, Ramy was accused of publishing posts that ‘call into question the foundations of the Islamic religion.’ This event represents, once again, how this religious group is forced to suffer continuous violations and limitations of religious freedom in many Middle Eastern countries.
The Bahá’i religion, founded in 1860 by a Persian nobleman, is based on the idea that all religions represent stages in the revelation of God’s will. This leads, therefore, to the union of all faiths and peoples. Since its foundation, this religion has attracted criticism from the Shiite fringe of Islam, thus initiating a repression that has continued to this day. Persecutions against the Baha’i communities take the form of hate speech against them, forced deportations, family separations, denial of marriage licenses and enrolment in public schools. These kinds of persecutions are most evident in Iran, but also in Arab Countries, the followers of this faith face the same treatment.
Among these, there is Qatar, where the Baha’i community is not too big. Its members, anyway, constantly face serious restrictions to their religious freedom by the government, which is one of the most repressive against this faith. Remy Rowhani, leader of the Qatar Baha’i community, has always fought for the freedom of religion of his people and made extensive use of social media to denounce the repression by Qatar authorities. For these reasons, he had already been arrested twice on charges of fundraising for Qatar’s Baha’i National Assembly and writing posts regarding Baha’i writings and holidays. The persecution of Rowhani continued for many years, with arrests, checks by the authorities and false accusations. The last arrest took place in April 2025, shortly after he had served a one-month prison sentence in January.
The repression of the Baha’i community taking place in Qatar is worrying. In recent years, this country has begun to play an increasingly prominent role on the global stage, seeking to present itself as a country undergoing change and progress. However, knowing that this type of persecution continues within the country shows that this narrative is merely a façade. Qatar is, in fact, far from being a different and progressive country, and the repression that the Baha’i community continues to face only serves to demonstrate the inconsistency behind what it wants to portray.
As if this were not enough, Qatar’s constitution guarantees everyone the freedom to practise their religious faith, provided that this does not endanger public stability and security. The Baha’i community does none of this, presenting itself as a peaceful community. Despite this, the country’s authorities continue to violate the freedom of its members and unjustly persecute their leader. We are therefore faced with targeted persecution that does not stop at the country’s laws or even at the international ones.
No state and no authority should restrict the right of other faiths to practise their religion. The Bahá’ís in Qatar must be able to practise their faith freely and not live in constant fear of repression and discrimination. Their leader, Rowhani, also has the right to lead his religious community in peace and without suffering the persecution he has endured to date. It is essential to continue to talk about these incidents so that people know what is really happening in Qatar and are not deceived by the positive image it wants to project.