E/CN.4/1999/58 page 19 Indonesia 63. In North Aceh province, in the north of Sumatra, a Muslim religious figure was reportedly arrested for failing to read out the Friday prayer, as required by an agreement concluded between the authorities and the mosque's religious leaders. In February and May 1998, riots were allegedly aimed at non-Muslims (attacks on individuals, places of worship and private property), and especially Christians and Buddhists and girls and women of the Chinese community (rapes, murders, etc.). 64. In an extremely detailed document, Indonesia explained that President B.J. Habibie had expressed, on behalf of the Government and people of Indonesia, his profound regret and had denounced the atrocities committed during the May 1998 riots. He had pointed out that the results of investigations had enabled human rights organizations, including the National Human Rights Commission, to establish that the acts perpetrated essentially against the Chinese community were committed by organized groups. In addition to steps taken to investigate the cases of human rights violations, the Government has taken a series of measures to provide assistance to the victims and forestall any incident (inter alia: creation by the Ministry for Women's Affairs of a forum comprising a psychiatrist's association, a legal aid body and religious and Chinese leaders to formulate recommendations on assistance and prevention to the Government; creation of a task force to protect women from violence; creation of a National Committee for the Prevention of Violence against Women; establishment of investigation teams; the President's promise of better protection for Sino-Indonesians; and incorporation of the National Programme on the Elimination of Violence against Women into the 1998-2003 National Human Rights Plan). 65. Indonesia went on to say that “Although the May riots appeared to be characterized by a phenomenon of racial discrimination and religious intolerance, which targeted mostly non-Muslim Indonesian ethnic Chinese, the long-established Indonesian tradition of mutual respect and dialogue among diverse religious believers, without racial distinction, remains unchanged.” The Special Rapporteur takes note of the measures adopted by the new authorities and hopes that they take appropriate steps to ensure that freedom of religion, especially that of minorities, is effectively protected. Iran 66. An initial urgent appeal concerned the case of three Baha'is, namely, Mr. Ata'ullah Hamid Nasirizadih, Mr. Sirus Dhabihi-Muqaddam and Mr. Hidayat-Kashifi Najafabadi, who were reportedly condemned to death in secret because of their religious beliefs and ran the risk of execution. A second urgent appeal connected with the first alleged that Mr. Sirus Dhabihi-Muqaddam and Mr. Hidayat-Kashifi Najafabadi had been informed by the Mashad prison authorities that their sentence had been upheld. In these two communications, the Special Rapporteur “urgently appealed to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to ensure that the sentences were not carried out and that all judicial remedies and guarantees required by international human rights standards be provided to the above-mentioned persons”. A third urgent appeal concerned allegations of the hanging of a