Seven prominent figures of the Baha’i faith in Iran were imprisoned in Iran after recent raids on their homes, an event reminiscent of 1980 when nine Baha’i leaders were abducted and never heard from again.

For South Surrey resident Farrah Marasco, the news has hit close to home: one of the detainees is her cousin.

Marasco, 50, was contacted in May by a member of the family, and was told that Afif Naeimi had been arrested. He and the six others in custody comprised the entire membership of a co-ordinating committee that saw to the needs of the 300,000 Baha’is in Iran, where the dominant religion is Islam.

According to the Baha’i International Community website, government intelligence agents spent up to five hours raiding the members’ homes in Tehran before taking them to the notorious Evin prison. It was reported on June 19 that each were allowed to make a brief phone call to family. No formal charges have been laid against them.

Marasco was shocked when she first learned of the situation.

“The first three days, I was very tearful. I thought, ‘God, he’s not going to get out of jail alive.’”

Although she hasn’t lived in Iran for more than two decades, Marasco still remembers her childhood there.

Growing up in Bandar Abbas, on the Persian Gulf, she remembers visiting her second cousin, Naeimi, in Yazd, located in the centre of Iran. Naeimi’s family had a large backyard where they raised rabbits and chickens – the perfect place for summertime visits.

Because the Baha’i faith promotes equality between men and women, Marasco never covered her face while walking the streets of her hometown. She remembers, however, being teased by other children who threw rocks at her because she was ‘different.’

Marasco lost touch with Naeimi after she finished four years of post secondary education in the Philippines. She had left the country right before the revolution, when it became the Islamic Republic of Iran. When Marasco tried to reapply for a passport at the Iranian embassy in order to extend her student visa, she was denied when she claimed Baha’i as her religion. Instead of returning home, she came to Canada under the sponsorship of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Canada, eventually settling in South Surrey where she married and had children.It was 26 years before she returned to Iran, which had become a different place under the new regime.

Every woman had to be covered, no matter their beliefs, and Baha’is were not allowed to attend university or work government jobs.

Marasco returned because her father was dying, and it was Naeimi who facilitated her stay.

“I was always fearful going back,” she said. “It was very nostalgic. It was going for a pilgrimage almost, to a land I wasn’t allowed to go for 26 years.

“The new culture was foreign to me.”

Naeimi made sure Marasco got around safely, and insisted on seeing her to the airport when she left.

“He’s the nicest person you could meet. Honest, contributed to society,” she said.

That was four years ago, and the last time she saw Naeimi.

Now, she looks at a picture of him taken at the side of the six other Baha’i leaders in Iran, and thinks of his wife and two sons.

Marasco was initially upset when she heard about her cousin, but the sadness soon turned into inspiration.She became more aware of other people in peril around the world, and felt an urge to help.

“This hit a chord, but I realized it’s about all of us, it’s not just about my cousin,” she said. “It seemed like I became more compassionate and I started thinking about other people.

“I had become more tender-hearted and I became aware of these things happening around me.”

When China and Myanmar were recently struck by devastating natural disasters, Marasco hosted an interfaith prayer gathering to pray for those affected. Although she’s not sure what exactly her role is in making a difference, she wakes up every morning wondering how she can be a better person than the day before.

“There’s something that I need to be doing, but I don’t know exactly what it is,” she said.

“I want to make a difference where not many people go to make a difference.“I can do a lot of things that others can’t do in countries that aren’t free.”

Many of the values Marasco cherishes have come from her Baha’i faith. Some Baha’i beliefs are that all humanity is one family, all prejudice is destructive and must be overcome, science and religion are in harmony and world peace is the crying need of our time.

“The Baha’i religion has been misrepresented,” she said, adding she feels connected to all of humanity, not just people from the countries she has lived in.“I am a citizen of this planet, of this world. I don’t identify myself with one country.”

Despite the destruction felt around the world – whether natural or manmade – Marasco has hope that the tides can turn.

“I’m very hopeful because as human beings, that’s what keeps us going – to do better every day.”

She now looks at Naeimi’s imprisonment and the oppression of Baha’i’s as a wake-up call to humanity – that it’s time to become aware of these issues.

“These things have not made me sad. If anything, suffering and pain should bring joy to your heart because you become a better person as a consequence.“I think it has made me a strong person. It has made me more compassionate.”