GRAND ASSEMBLY
SPECIAL ISSUE
JUly 2014
ALL FOR FREEDOM IN IRAN
REGIME CHANGE, THE ONLY OPTION TO STOP IRANIAN REGIME’S NUCLEAR, TERRORIST THREATS AND EXPANSIONIST POLICIES
An overall glance at the Grand Gathering of Some 600 current and former government officials, human rights and political per eight former ministers, and 500 parliamentarians attended the largest-ever gatheri near Paris on June 27, 2014. They were joined by representatives of 300 They voiced support for the 10-point plan presented by Mrs. Rajavi, Alejo Vidal-Quadras Vice President of European Parliament (1999-2014)
The Iranian resistance under the leadership of Mrs. Rajavi and the full and unyielding support of their many friends in democracies all around the world so well represented here today will emerge as the reference Page - 22 for a tolerant and democratic Islam in the Middle East
Giulio Terzi
Former Foreign Minister of Italy The vision of a future Iran enshrined in the ten point plan launched by President Rajavi should attract unconditional support by the whole international community. Page - 29
Struan Stevenson
President of European Parliament Delegation for Relations with Iraq (2009-2014)
None of us will rest until we see the brutal, divisive regime in Tehran removed from power and replaced by a regime led by people Page - 29 like you and people like Madame Rajavi.
Alexander Carlile
Member of British House of Lords, QC The removal of the Iranian mullahs, as well as Mr. Maliki, the removal of their influence from the region, the creation of democracy according to Madame Rajavi’s ten-point plan, these would Page - 29 make a huge contribution to the safety of the world.
Tariq al-Hashimi
Former Vice President of Iraq I ask you to increase your solidarity and cooperation with the PMOI, the organizer of the gathering. Peace and mercy of God Page - 39 be upon you. 2
Jose Louis Rodriguez Zapatero Former Prime Minister of Spain
In Maryam Rajavi’s words we can hear democracy, liberty and human rights. We remember today the Camp Liberty Iranians, and we demand that their security, rights and future be guaranteed Page - 34
Bernard Kouchner
Former Foreign Minister of France I ask the officials of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to come to see you, to come to contemplate you, to come and talk with you, and be amazed like everybody about your Page - 30 number that exceeds 100,000.
Sali Berisha
Former Prime Minister of Albania I salute Madam Rajavi, the president, and all of you, people of the opposition resistance of Iran; the stoutest, the strongest, the oldest opposition of our time fighting for freedom and dignity of its nation. Page - 35
Adrianus Melkert
Former Special Representative of UN Secretary General for Iraq I’m very concerned that Camp Liberty has turned into a place unworthy of its name’s promise, that there is no end in peace in sight, that the international community prefers silence over outcry Page - 36
Azam Al Ahmad
head of Fatah Parliamentary bloc Member of the Central Committee of Fatah I wish to convey our solidarity with the Iranian Resistance Page - 39 to you and all the participants in the annual gathering.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
the Iranian Resistance in Villepinte, June 27 sonalities from 69 countries in five continents, including six former prime ministers, ng of Iranians outside Iran, entitled “All For Freedom,” at Villepinte Exhibition Hall, Iranian Associations abroad and 100,000 people from all over the world. who, as the keynote speaker, called for regime change in Iran. Kim Campbell
Rudy Giuliani
Former Prime Minister of Canada
Former Mayor of New York City
All I can say is, “It [change] will happen and this rally will be one day an election rally.... Pay attention, be brave, and be ready. We’ll be there with you.” Page - 28
Michèle Alliot-Marie
Former Defense Minister of France We are here today simply to tell you that we admire you, to tell you that we support and will continue to support your unwavering commitment to democracy for Iran. Page - 30
At the core of all of these problems is the regime in Iran. It should be changed, it must be changed, it has to be changed. the regime change in Iran Page - 21
Joseph Lieberman Former U. S. Senator
Madam Rajavi did what a great leader does: she set out a path to victory and gave us all a reasonable hope that we will succeed in liberating the people of Iran Page - 21
Howard Dean
Pandeli Majko
Former Governor of Vermont
Former Prime Minister of Albania In the name of all my friends in Albania I have come here to say I am Mojahed
It is time that it is not just a group of Americans and parliamentarians but people from around the world that are asking the United States to keep its word.
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Geir Haarde
Former Prime Minister of Iceland This year this event is taking place in very different circumstances where the Iranian rulers are engulfed by various crises, the latest being recent developments in Iraq. Page - 36
Alain Vivien
Former French Minister of State for European Affairs
Sid Ahmed Ghozali
Former Prime Minister of Algeria Let me first offer my congratulations to Mrs. Rajavi and all of you for what you stand for today with your presence at this very, very important event that symbolizes the struggle for democracy. Page - 38
Mohamed Elorabi
Former Foreign Minister of Egypt The people of Egypt follow your campaigns and your fight for democracy eagerly.
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Saleh Alkalab
President of ALDE Group at the Council of Europe Page-22
Member of Romanian Senate
Page-36
Asta Jóhannesdóttir
Mayor of Magny-en-Vexin (Val d’Oise)
Iceland
France Jean-Pierre Béquet
Provincial Counsellor of Val d’Oise
Page-31
United States
Page-31
Former Foreign Minister of Iceland
United States
Jean-Pierre Muller
Valgerdur Sverrisduttir
Former Speaker of Icelandic Parliament and Former minister
France
Page-38
Member of Palestinian Legislative Council Page-39
Andorra
Mohammad Al-Haj Member of Jordanian Parliament
Page-34
Nejat Al-Astal
Adelean Ben-Oni
Jordan
Page-28
Member of Spanish Senate
Colonel Dr. Gary Morsch
Former US Chief of Military Police Former Commanderof Ashraf and Commander of all Police Page-40 Protection Unit Page-40 operation in6 Iraq
Meritxell Mateu Pi
MP, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Andorra
United States
Member of Canadian Parliament
Margarita Duran Vadell
Romania
member of Italian Parliament
Iceland
Terence Young
Chair of German Committee in Solidarity with Free Iran Page-37
Palestine
Alessandro Pagano
Canada
The Rt Hon. the Lord Eden of Winton
Otto Bernhardt
Italy
United Kingdom
Page-23
Spain
Jordi Xucla
Pedro Agramunt
Germany
Spain
Spain
Page-31
General David Phillips
Page-31
Writer, University lecturer and Jordanian Senator, daughter of the late Egyptian leader former Minister Gamal Abdel Nasser Page-37
Mayor of 1st district of Paris
President of EPP Group at the Council of Europe
President of France Liberte
Egypt
France Hoda Abdel Nasser
François Legaret
Gilbert Mitterrand
Jordan
Ingrid Betancourt
Former French Secretary of State Former Presidential candidate in for Human Rights Page-30 Colombia Page-37
France
Colombia
France Rama Yade
Colonel Thomas Cantwell
Commander of Camp Ashraf protection (2005) Page-40
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
Senator Carl Levin
Senator John McCainChairman, U.S.
Chairman, U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
United States
Louis Freeh
Michael Mukasey
General Hugh Shelton
Senate Committeeon Page-42 Armed Services
United States
Page-42
United States
Chairman, U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Page-42
United States
United States
United States
Senator Robert Menendez,
Former US Ambassador to Page-33 United Nations
Security Advisor to U.S. President Page-13 (2004-2008)
General George Casey
Chief of Staff of the U. S. Army and Com. of Multi-National Force – Iraq (2004-2007) Page-41
Amb. Marc Ginsberg
Colonel Wesley Martin
United States United States Ex- U.S. Under-secretary of State for Arms Control and Int’l Security Page-33
Robert Torricelli
General James Conway
Senator , legal the 34th Commandant of the U.S. Former representative of Ashraf and Camp Marine Corps Page-41 Liberty residents Page-25 United States
United States
Former US Amb. to Morocco and White House Adviser for Middle Page-32 East Policy
Robert Joseph
United States
United States
Prominent Law Professor, Lawyer of Criminal Law Page-32
Former US Ambassador to the UN andGov. of New Mexico Page-20 (2003-2011)
United States
Alan Dershowhitz
United States
Frances Townsend, Homeland Bill Richardson
United States
Former White House Director of Page-13 Public Liaison
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives and U.S. Presidential Page-25 candidate (2012)
United States
Linda Chavez
Page-20
Newt Gingrich
John Bolton
United States
Former Speaker of US House of Page-25 Representatives
Chair, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Non proliferation and Trade
United States
Dennis Hastert
Hon. Judge Ted Poe
United States
United States
Member of Committee on Page-20 Homeland Security
United States
Hon. Loretta Sanchez
United States
Hon. Danny Davis
Member of Committee on Homeland Security Page-20
United States
United States
US Attorney General (2007-2009) Director of FBI (1993-2001) Chairman of the U.S. Army Joint Page-24 Page-24 Chiefs of Staff (1997-2001) Page-41
Patricia Solis Doyle
Amb. Phillip Crowley Former Senior Anti-terrorism/Force Senior Adviser to the Clinton Presidential Assistant Secretary of State (2009-2011) Protection Officer for Coalition Forces, Iraq Campaign in 2008 Page-33 Page-32 Page-40
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Over 300
Iranian Societies the World Participated
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and Associations from all over in this Grand Gathering
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Press Briefing by Maryam Rajavi
IRANIAN OPPOSITION LEADER PREDICTS REGIME CHANGE
Maryam Rajavi, presidentelect of the People's Mujahideen Organisation of Iran's (PMOI) political wing, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), takes part in a rally in Villepinte, near Paris. (Reuters) By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News Saturday, 28 June 2014 aryam Rajavi, head of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, is forecasting a regime change in her home country, claiming that the “mullahs do not represent the Iranian people," she said in an interview with Fox News on Friday. "I am confident that the mullahs’ religious dictatorship ruling Iran will not last in the 21st century and will be overthrown," Rajavi told the American news network during a grand gathering of Iranians and supporters of the Iranian resistance in Paris. She explained what she viewed as Iran’s true intentions of spreading radical fundamentalism, attaining nuclear weapons eliminating opponents by all means. According to Rajavi, this is different from what the Iranians aspire to. “An Iran which is free, democratic and where the ballot box speaks, a
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non-nuclear Iran, with gender equality," she said. The resistance group, also known as the People’s Mujahdin Organization of Iran or MEK, is controversial, since it waged a battle against the Shah but then contradicted itself and turned its calling against the current regime, according to Fox News. Iraq Rajavi identified Iraq’s importance for Iran’s regime, to spread its ideologies and its mullah’s conspiracies. “There is widespread consensus internationally that the current state of affairs in Iraq emanates from Maliki’s monopolistic and suppressive policies. Thus, there is only one solution, which is to oust Maliki, to evict the Iranian regime from Iraq, and to establish a democratic and inclusive government. It is only the Iranian regime that openly supports the continuation of Maliki’s rule,” Rajavi was quoted by the National Council of Resistance of Iran on Friday. Similar to how Iran’s regime killed over 120,000 members and supporters of the resistance council, Rajavi said government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki also massacred its opponents. Maliki’s policies are criticized for dividing the country, through eliminating Sunnis and Kurdish minorities from the Shiite led Iraqi government. The United States and other countries are pushing for a new government to be formed as quickly as possible to counter the insurgency led by an offshoot of al-Qaeda, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
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IRAN OPPOSITION COMPARES ITS STRUGGLE TO THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
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he leader of the Iranian opposition likens its goal to overthrow the regime in Tehran to the war for American independence from Britain, the struggle to abolish slavery in the U.S. and the birth of the civil rights movement in the 1960's. "I am confident that the Iranian resistance, which seeks the proven values of advanced societies, will reach its goal of a free, prosperous, democratic, just and non-nuclear Iran," declared Maryam Rajavi, the head of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, in an exclusive Fox News interview. "The experience is out there, including in the history of the United States, such as George Washington and the people of America who decided to stand up to colonialism to gain independence, such as Abraham Lincoln and the price he paid and the war he waged to abolish slavery and the price the people of America paid during the time of Dr. Martin Luther King for civil rights and the struggle of the people of America for the freedom of women," she says. "These are all historical experiences and I am, therefore, confident. My experience and that of the Iranian people tell us that when a people, a nation, decides to fight and pay the price for the rights it deserves, such as democracy, freedom and equality, when it decides to fight for these and pay the price, for values which shine in history of all human societies and in the progress of human society, it will certainly achieve it." Rajavi, based outside of Paris, is the leader of the largest Iranian resistance group that opposes the current Tehran regime. She is calling for regime change, free, democratic elections, and a non-nuclear Iran. The group held a massive hours-long rally last week, in which a variety of speakers, including many prominent former U.S. government officials, also called for a democratic Iran and tougher restrictions on Tehran in advance of the looming July 20 nuclear agreement deadline. It was Rajavi's group that first exposed the extent of Tehran's clandestine nuclear program back in 2002. "If it weren't for the revelation of the Iranian resistance, the mullahs would have gotten the bomb right now," says Rajavi. She also says Iran should not be given the right of uranium enrichment, which is expected to be part of the agreement, despite six United Nations Security Council resolutions specifically prohibiting that. "I believe any possibility left at the hands of the mullahs paves the way for them to quickly obtain what they want (nuclear weapons) at a time they so choose." ..."My call to the Iranian people has always been not to surrender to the religious dictatorship," she declares. "We have an expression in Farsi that says, 'a viper never gives birth to a dove.’ No moderate will emerge from the mullahs and the clerical dictatorship. The Iranian resistance has said this repeatedly over the past 25 years, and it has been proven correct every time."
IRANIAN EXILES GATHERED IN VILLEPINTE AMID CRISIS IN IRAQ France 3 Regional - 12:00 - June 28
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s every year, the National Council of Resistance of Iran held its annual meeting yesterday at the Parc des Expositions in Villepinte. Thousands of opponents of the Tehran regime attended from all around the world. The Iranian Resistance with its headquarter at Auvers-sur-Oise is supported by the residents and elected French officials. Report Enthusiasm was at its peak. Her arrival is an event. Maryam Rajavi is the icon of democracy for these Iranians from the Resistance. Like every rally in Villepinte, they are tens of thousands that have come from all around the world. In the crowd, there are French people, citizens and elected officials. Jean-Pierre Muller, mayor of Magny-en-Vexin (95) and from the committee in support of the Iranian Resistance: When there is dictatorship, when gender equality is not guaranteed, when there is death penalty, it is everyone’s business. When one sees these people that have come here today from the four corners of the world, when one sees their enthusiasm and their desire to live as we live, how can one not stand next to them? These residents of Val d’Oise province are also with them for years. Claude and her husband founded an association to help hundreds of women as Samaneh, who are trapped in a camp of members of the Iranian Resistance in Iraq. Claude Dupuy, from the Association of 1000 stars for freedom: Our goal is to get them out of the camp located near Baghdad, Iraq, where these women are in danger. They are like prisoners in the camp, they cannot get out. Moreover, they are being threatened with expulsion to Iran. One year after the election of Hassan Rouhani in Tehran, the number of executions of dissidents has increased. For the Iranian Resistance, support from the West is particularly important. Maryam Rajavi, President of the National Council of Resistance of Iran: The fact that citizens and locally elected officials support our cause is essential, because in Iran, people will know about it and it encourages them to resist against the religious dictatorship. These Iranians in exile dream about democracy, abolition of the death penalty, gender equality and separation of religion and state for their country. IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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The Grand gathering in Paris on Social Media – Trending in the world’s top 5 on Twitter for more than 6.5 hours
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significant change in this year’s gathering was two very large screens at the sides of the stage that displayed the conference Twitter Wall for the online campaign in support of freedom and democracy in Iran. Many of the dignitaries participating in the gathering, during or after the meeting, joined the campaign and shared their experience and enthusiasm with their followers on Twitter and Facebook. Based on Hashtracking analysis, over 370,000 tweets were reported during the hours of 12:00 to 21:30 on
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Friday, June 27, using #MaryamRajavi, the main conference hashtag. Over 5,000 Twitter users were reported to have participated in tweeting about the conference. As a result, the conference hashtag, #MaryamRajavi was among the 5 most favourite hashtags in world trending for over 7 hours.
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Excerpts from speeches at the Grand Gathering
Linda Chavez
Frances Townsend
T
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Former White House Director of Public Liaison
he last time that we met one year ago in these halls in Paris, there had been an election in Iran and Hassan Rouhani had been elected president; something that was greeted with great optimism in the West; that was heralded in the newspapers; that was greeted by many Western governments as some sign that there was going to be a new Iran. Well, we have not seen a new Iran. We have not seen any moderation from the Rouhani regime. Instead what we have seen is increased crackdowns, public executions and more persecution. Unfortunately it has also been one more year that we have seen the deterioration of things on the ground, for those 2,800 brave people who are in fact kept in what is nothing more than a prison camp in Iraq, namely Camp Liberty. We have seen more brutal attacks since the last time we met; we have seen 52 brave persons executed at the hands of those aligned with the Maliki government and at the direction of those in Iran. On June 12, UNAMI left despite its directions to be there to oversee the protection of those residents. On June 15, we saw the UNHCR and UNAMI both having vacated the premises of Liberty and they have not yet returned. We have also seen that for the last ten days Iraqi forces who were supposedly on the outskirts of Camp Liberty to protect the residents turned their machine guns against the residents of Camp Liberty. We have seen officers of the Ashraf Suppression Committee at the camp. They are there in fact to begin an attack, when they see the most opportune time, on the residents of Camp Liberty.
Advisor Former White House Homeland Security t is really my honor to be here with you again in Paris. To everyone in the hall from the back to the front, your voices represent the voices of freedom that are in Iran and cannot be heard now. It strikes me that every time we meet here the number of those who have had to give their lives in the cause of freedom goes up, and each time we meet we work harder and we rededicate ourselves. But no one should ever have to perish in the cause of freedom. And we will continue to fight to make sure that becomes true. Linda talked about the deteriorating conditions in Camp Liberty. It also includes there have been no gasoline deliveries. That means there is not the means to run generators and lights. Patients, people who are in dire need with terminal illness, who need cancer treatments, in the last two weeks cannot get medical attention. And what is going on around them outside the camp? There are Quds Force folks who are now training Badr Forces. They continue to plan; the Iranian regime continues to support the activities of those who are outside the fence and directly threaten those in Camp Liberty. I would like to speak to those in Camp Liberty, to the abducted seven, to the families. You remain every day in our hearts and in our prayers, and in our fight. We will fight until you are home and you are safe. We ought to ask government officials around the world every single day, “What have you done to end oppression in Iran?� . Everyone must take up the cause, and we will see that that happens.
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ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM ALL FOR FREEDOM
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, Presidet-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)
ALL FOR FREEDOM IN IRAN “THE FINAL PHASE OF THE RELIGIOUS DICTATORSHIP HAS ARRIVED AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE READINESS OF A RESISTANCE MOVEMENT WHICH CAN STEER THE DEVELOPMENTS TOWARD OVERTHROWING THE RELIGIOUS DICTATORSHIP AND THE LIBERATION OF THE IRANIAN PEOPLE”
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reetings to you personalities, spokespersons and with the consequences of the poison of their defeat in Iraq. representatives of 69 countries who have come here to Owing to its unique geopolitical status, Iraq was considered voice solidarity with the Iranian people and Resistance. the most significant prey for the religious dictatorship ruling Iran since day one in order to export its fundamentalism and IRAQ, THE MOST SIGNIFICANT PREY FOR THE terrorism. Khomeini’s eight-year war, characterized by the RELIGIOUS DICTATORSHIP RULING IRAN motto of “Liberating Quds through Karbala,” was waged We stand at a very sensitive juncture of history of Iran with an eye occupy Iraq and its holy shrines. and the Middle East. This turning point has been impacted At the time, the National Liberation Army of Iran, carried by the most important reality of the present time: the final out 100 military operations, eventually liberated the town of phase of the velayat-e faqih regime has arrived. Mehran and prepared itself for the march towards Tehran, The eruption of popular rage among the Iraqi people has forcing Khomeini to drink, in his own words, the chalice of deeply disturbed the trend of occupation of Iraq by the poison of the ceasefire. velayat-e faqih regime. The devastating war thus ended. However, 15 years later, The 11-year investment of the mullahs’ regime in Iraq has subsequent to the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Iran’s ruling evaporated. The mullahs, who seek to avoid drinking the religious dictatorship saw its long-held dream realized. The chalice of poison of the nuclear agreement, are now grappling terrorist Quds Force and its paid operatives, the names of IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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32,000 of whom we exposed, took control of the Iraqi people’s destiny. Incidentally, what are Qassem Soliemani, the Quds Force commander, and 200 other IRGC commanders doing in Iraq today? More than a decade ago, millions of Iraqis signed statements, underscoring that they first faced a “hidden war and an undeclared occupation” by the Iranian regime, which then evolved into an open occupation and even led to the bombing of the holy Shrine in Samarra. At the time, 5.2 million Iraqis demanded the eviction of the Iranian regime from their country. In December 2006, Ahmadinejad said, “Iran was the beneficiary of the windfall gains of the occupation of the two neighboring countries, Iraq and Afghanistan.” And in August 2008, Ali Larijani declared that all those who rule Iraq “listen to what we say” “Halting the nuclear program and “are our friends.” would upset the regime’s internal And this is an April equilibrium, thus paving the 2004 document that way for the lurking social shows the ruling aluprisings. In any scenario, the Dawa party in Iraq regime is at an impasse. So, requesting weapons in addressing the ruling mullahs, from the terrorist we say, even if all sanctions were Quds Force lifted today, you cannot save your American, European and Arab dignitaries disintegrating and moribund present here have said economy.” repeatedly in recent years that Iraq was handed over to the mullahs on a silver platter. As such today Iraq is a country with - a government under the thumb of the Iranian regime’s Supreme Leader; - repressed freethinkers and intellectuals; - a destroyed Christian community; - a slaughtered Sunni population; - daily bombings, assassinations and explosions; - twenty-six assaults on Ashraf and Liberty coupled with a deadly siege; - many martyrs, wounded and hostages as well as a mass and illegal detention. In August 2007, General Odierno said that 73 percent of US casualties in Iraq were due to attacks by pro-Iranian militias. Indeed, the United States made a historic blunder by considering the ruling religious dictatorship as part of the solution and by acquiescing to its joint governance of Iraq. Conversely, the combatants of Iran’s freedom who were not a party to the conflict in Iraq were heavily bombed and their weapons were confiscated in return for a betrayed promise of protection.
OPPOSITION TO THE IRANIAN REGIME’S DOMINANCE OF IRAQ
Over the past several years, especially since February 2010, the Iraqi people staged hundreds of demonstrations, demanding the expulsion of the Iranian regime from Iraq. Peaceful sit-ins and demonstrations continued for more than a year in six Iraqi provinces. Opposition to the Iranian regime’s dominance of Iraq became the primary issue of contention in that country. The uprisings in Mosul and other Iraqi cities caught everyone, first and foremost Khamenei, off guard and shook the Revolutionary Guards. The Iranian regime made vain attempts to confront the Iraqi people’s uprising by characterizing the rebellion of millions of Iraqis as terrorism and actions of extremist groups. This was while tribal leaders and the people of Iraq have for weeks repeatedly condemned any form of extremism and terrorism as well as any assault and aggression against civilians. They have underscored that they themselves had been at war with 16
terrorism and Al-Qaeda in Iraq previously and are prepared to do so again. But, one cannot ignore the terrorism by the Maliki government and the Iranian regime, which is the root cause of this situation. Regardless of the prevailing analysis or opinions on the present situation, there is widespread consensus internationally that the current state of affairs in Iraq emanates from Maliki’s authoritarian and suppressive policies. Therefore, there is only one solution, and that is to oust Maliki, to evict the Iranian regime from Iraq and to establish a democratic and inclusive government instead. Here, I must emphasize that the only outcome of negotiating with, or seeking assistance from, the religious dictatorship would be that the Iraqi people will sink further into the carnage and civil war. Eleven years ago, I said that the danger of the mullahs dominating Iraq was a hundred times more dangerous than the nuclear threat posed by Tehran. “On behalf of the Iranian people Time proved this to and Resistance, I warn the be correct. Now, the P5+1 that they should not negative consequences engage in deals in Vienna of the mullahs’ losing Iraq are a hundred times and Geneva at the expense of the more lethal than their Iranian people’s human rights and retreat in the nuclear offer concessions to the mullahs.” arena. In all these years, similar to the nuclear revelations it has made, the Iranian Resistance led the way by exposing the Iranian regime’s meddling and the atrocities it commits in Iraq. Despite paying a heavy price, the Iranian Resistance confronted the ogre of fundamentalism and insisted that the Iranian regime is the main enemy of the people of Iran and the entire region and must be overthrown. Hail to the heroes of such perseverance, especially the 52 martyrs of Camp Ashraf, led by the distinguished women, Zohreh Gha’emi, Giti Givechian, Mitra Bagherzadeh, Jila Tolou, Maryam Hosseini and Fatemeh Kamyab, to whom this gathering is dedicated.
US AND THE UN RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE SECURITY OF CAMP LIBERTY RESIDENTS
Allow me here to underscore the responsibility of the United States and the UN Secretary General regarding the security, protection and safety of the Mojahedin who are held as prisoners at Camp Liberty. We have repeatedly called on the United States to transfer the residents of Liberty to the US or to a European country even on a temporary basis. We are prepared to pay for all the expenses of such relocation.
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This is a practical solution and there is a precedent of doing this by the US in the past in Iraqi Kurdistan and in the Balkans. There is no doubt that attacks against Liberty cannot be launched without the Iraq government’s intervention and prior coordination. At the very least, therefore, the United States must prevent the Iraqi regime from carrying out attacks or aggression against Liberty or imposing restrictions on its residents. It must guarantee the security of Camp Liberty, work to end the inhumane siege against it and compel the Iraqi government to release seven Asharfi hostages. Additionally, the refugee rights of the residents of Liberty must be upheld to the last person. The UN must, particularly in the current circumstances in Iraq, station a unit of Blue Helmets at Liberty.
FINAL PHASE OF THE RELIGIOUS DICTATORSHIP IN IRAN
I said that the final phase of the religious dictatorship has arrived, which reveals itself in five major developments: The Iranian people’s preparedness to rise up and attain freedom, the widening rift at the pinnacle of the Iranian regime, the mullahs’ retreat from their nuclear bomb project and the regime’s plunge into two devastating wars in Iraq and Syria. And most importantly, the readiness of a Resistance movement which can steer the developments toward overthrowing the religious dictatorship and the liberation of the Iranian people and their country. Last year, Khamenei failed to impose his own candidate during the sham presidential elections. Fearing a popular uprising, he relinquished the presidency to the rival faction’s candidate. The hidden side of Khamenei’s paranoia was his fear of a Resistance which had nine months earlier succeed in revoking the U.S. terrorist label against it. Rouhani took office with the slogan of moderation, and the regime’s advocates jubilantly claimed that Tehran had found a solution to overcome the crisis it was facing. We said, to the contrary, the ruling theocracy has grown even weaker than before. Nevertheless, the ball is still in the regime’s court. Let us really see what it will do in regards to freedom and human rights, the nuclear weapons program, and the intransigent policies it pursues in Iraq and Syria. In eight short months, Rouhani has gone through the path that took Khatami eight years: He has neither brought the Iranian people economic prosperity nor human rights; neither stability nor strength for the regime. Instead, the degree of suppression and the number of executions have dramatically
increased. About half of the government budget is spent on domestic repression and warmongering because the regime is fearful of popular protests and uprisings. Today, 67 percent of industrial units are shut down. The official currency has plummeted by 80 percent. The banking sector is bankrupt. Agriculture is destroyed. Half of the cities suffer from water shortages. The environment is in ruins. And poverty is so pervasive that most citizens are forced to rely on subsidies equaling only 42 cents a day. The ruling mullahs have spent everything on repression, warmongering and terrorism. This is the main cause for inflation, poverty and hunger in society. These days, Rouhani is trying in vain to preserve this inhumane and decrepit “Syria and Iraq are protective regime through token shields for the regime. subsidies and goods If they are taken down, baskets. That is why we say that then the mullahs defend the economic crisis has themselves in Tehran, where they no other solution than would immediately implode.” the overthrow of the velayat-e faqih regime.
WE WANT A NON-NUCLEAR IRAN
All of you know that the ruling theocracy has always viewed its nuclear project as a guarantee for its survival. It was the Iranian Resistance which blew the whistle on this program more than a decade ago. We have said repeatedly that we want a non-nuclear Iran. We have consistently sought the mullahs’ retreat in the unpatriotic nuclear program, which according to the Economist has cost 300 million dollars so far. One of Ahmadinejad’s ministers recently revealed that the nuclear program causes an annual loss of 160 million dollars for the Iranian economy. It is clear that the regime would not have retreated in the nuclear arena to the extent that it has so far without the Iranian Resistance’s revelations and worldwide campaign and without international pressures and sanctions. This is because the mullahs only understand the language of power and decisiveness. Now that they have fallen in the nuclear trap, if they continue their deception and buy time, the situation will get even worse. Halting the nuclear program would upset the regime’s internal equilibrium, thus paving the way for the lurking social uprisings. In any scenario, the regime is at an impasse. So, in addressing the ruling
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“Now, if anyone doubts that the religious dictatorship is reaching its final phase and going down the slippery slope of being overthrown, they should remember five years ago when the June 2009 uprising took place. The regime was on the verge of being overthrown at that time. But we and our people were betrayed.” mullahs, we say, Even if all sanctions were lifted today, you cannot save your disintegrating and moribund economy. Here, on behalf of the Iranian people and Resistance, I warn the P5+1 that they should not engage in deals in Vienna and Geneva at the expense of the Iranian people’s human rights and offer concessions to the mullahs.
Compel the mullahs to shut down their entire bomb-making, enrichment and heavy water program. Compel them to implement all UN Security Council Resolutions and the IAEA Governing Council statements. This regime must accept the Additional Protocol of the nonproliferation treaty (NPT), and allow unhindered and unconditional international inspections of all its suspected nuclear and military sites.
MULLAHS’ CRISIS IN SYRIA
We spoke of the regime’s fatal deadlocks. But Khamenei’s other crisis is the regime’s involvement in the war with the people of Syria, which has left 200,000 dead and 11 million refugees. Khamenei spent Iranian blood and money in this war in order to prevent the fall of the Syrian dictator. In his own words, the regime’s Supreme Leader uses Iraq, Syria and Lebanon as Tehran’s “strategic depth.” This means that Syria and Iraq
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are protective shields for the regime. If they are taken down, then the mullahs defend themselves in Tehran, where they would immediately implode. We call on the international community once again to support the Syrian revolution, the Free Syrian Army and the national coalition of revolutionary and opposition forces in Syria. Hail to the people of Syria and their martyrs and heroes. Indeed, now, from Tehran to Baghdad to Damascus, from the nuclear deadlock to the crisis of human rights and economic disintegration, deadly and poisonous developments that are to the regime’s detriment are come to the fore one after the other.
REGIME-CHANGE IN IRAN IS A MUST
Now, if anyone doubts that the religious dictatorship is reaching its final phase and going down the slippery slope of being overthrown, they should remember five years ago when the June 2009 uprising took place. The regime was on the verge of being overthrown at that time. But we and our people were betrayed.Indeed, we say the mullahs’ rule is about to reach its end. Our country Iran is not the property of the anti-Iranian reactionaries and the velayat-e faqih regime. Khatami, Ahmadinejad and Rouhani do not represent our nation Iran. The Iranian regime holds a record in the number of executions and is the central banker of terrorism. It must be overthrown.This is the verdict of history. This is what 120,000 martyrs of freedom have called for. This is the message of our gathering today: the religious fascism must be overthrown. The reality is that the engine and primary force that guides the developments is neither the tug-of-war between the regime and the U.S. over the nuclear issue nor the rivalry between the two ruling factions. The main battle has always been and still is being waged between the Iranian people and their Resistance on the one hand and the ruling theocracy on the other. This resistance movement organizes rebellion and protests even in the depths of the regime’s political prisons; it calls on democratic and progressive forces to confront fundamentalism and the velayat-e faqih regime. This movement is the antithesis to terrorism and to the export of fundamentalism. This is a Resistance whose self-sacrificing members have for the past 12 years demonstrated an unprecedented and historic perseverance at the front lines under the most difficult of circumstances. They have led major campaigns, including a 108-day hunger strike, in different countries around the world. They have staged the longest sit-in that has continued in Geneva for more than three years. They have organized numerous daily demonstrations in the four corners of the globe in which Iranian communities and Ashraf supporters have participated. These instances are the clearest demonstration of the capability and capacity of the Iranian people and their organized resistance to bring about regime change. As the Leader of the Iranian Resistance has said, “We offer peace, security, democracy, human rights, stability, rebuilding and a nonnuclear Iran to the region.” Indeed, a Resistance that has successfully passed a range of tests in the past 33 years with flying colors can definitely attain freedom and popular sovereignty. We can and we must. Both inside and outside Iran, the clerical regime has engaged in widespread conspiracies and activities against the Mojahedin and the Iranian Resistance, including the dissemination of thousands of articles, hundreds of books, dozens of films and television series and hundreds of exhibitions. Why is it doing all this? Because it fears the popularity and impact of the Resistance movement. Despite such paranoia, however, the mullahs claim that this Resistance lacks popular support inside Iran. Our answer to the regime: Ensure the freedom and security of members and sympathizers of the Resistance movement to hold a march in the
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streets of Tehran and you will see how people will uproot your regime. The mullahs boast about maintaining power for 35 years and say this is a sign of their strength. Our answer is: halt executions and torture, and everyone will see that this decadent regime cannot survive for even 35 days.
A ROADMAP TO FREEDOM
Indeed, our roadmap to freedom is that we are ready for all the sacrifices tied to enduring suppression, incarceration, torture and execution; We are ready for whatever accusation, demonization and betrayal we may face; We are ready for countless tests and trials. Indeed, in the battle for freedom, we are ready for hundreds of other obstacles and challenges. Today, I spoke about the failures of the religious dictatorship and the achievements of the Iranian Resistance. But the regime’s biggest defeat in 2013 was its attempts to deliver a blow to the leader of the Iranian Resistance. Last year at this gathering, I referred to the conspiracies by Khamenei and Martin Kobler’s attempts to obtain information about Massoud Rajavi. In parallel, a campaign of demonization reached new heights, paving the way for the September “The Iranian regime 1, 2013 massacre at Camp Ashraf. holds a record in the The regime’s leaders said number of executions that as far as they were and is the central banker concerned, the September 1 of terrorism. It must be attack on Ashraf was more important than the effort overthrown. This is the verdict of history. This is to thwart the Resistance’s military operation Eternal what 120,000 martyrs Light 26 years ago. They had of freedom have called sent a traitor to join Maliki’s for. This is the message of security forces to quickly guide them to the Command our gathering today: the Headquarters at Camp religious fascism must be Ashraf. But they failed to overthrown.” reach their primary objective. Of course, following the attack on Ashraf, the regime’s officials heightened their venomous propaganda against the Resistance’s Leader. What Massoud Rajavi founded, including the National Council of Resistance of Iran, the National Liberation Army of Iran, confronting the regime’s export of terrorism and fundamentalism and underscoring the regime’s geopolitical Achilles’ heel, has blocked the ruling clerics’ advances everywhere. Indeed, what he has founded is the tradition of no surrender in the face of adversity. It is the tradition of sacrifice and honesty. It is a lesson in keeping one’s promise. It is because of this ideal and this generation that the mullahs are paranoid of being overthrown. They see in their own eyes that the
generation which Massoud Rajavi has nurtured is determined to bring the Iranian people their freedom no matter what the cost. From this huge gathering today, we send our greetings to political prisoners and their brave families, those who through their resistance brought the issue of human rights abuses by this inhumane regime to the forefront. The barbaric raid on Evin Prison’s ward 350, the location of rebellion that was dubbed “Ashraf 350”, was an attempt to intimidate political prisoners and the larger Iranian society. Hail to the martyr Gholamreza Khosravi, who crossed the regime’s red line and introduced himself as a Mojahed, courageously targeting the regime at its heart and paying the ultimate price and becoming eternal. Gholamreza had said, “I am a proud sympathizer of the People’s Mojahedin of Iran.” The people of Iran felt proud of his heroism and youth learned lessons of perseverance from him. Indeed, all brave prisoners, Gholamreza, other Mojahed and activist prisoners, the Kurdish, the Arab, the Baluchi and Sunni prisoners who are on the verge of execution these days, proved that their resistance, with their hands tied while incarcerated in the depth of prisons, is part and parcel of the struggle to overthrow the mullahs’ regime. This is a struggle in which the henchmen fall to their knees in the face of the prisoner’s resolve and determination. History has testified that so long as there is such a struggle, there will be no deliverance for dictators. Hail to the martyrs and to all those who stand their ground. Let us hope that the freedom of the nations of Iran and the Middle East would arrive as soon as possible. I hail the martyrs of the Iranian people’s uprising and call on all my compatriots to resist and rise up against the religious tyranny ruling Iran. This is a call for the liberation of the fettered Iran and the building of a free Iran, a republic based on the separation of religion and state, gender equality, where death penalty is abolished, and is non-nuclear. At the heart of this nation lies only the blossoming of delight and a people granted the inalienable right of freedom in every corner of their land.
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TED POE, JUDGE TED POE, CHAIR, SUBCOMMITTEE ON TERRORISM, NON-
PROLIFERATION AND TRADE, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES n behalf of this bipartisan delegation from the United States Congress, we want to thank you for what you do. And to the daughters of Iran and the sons of liberty, to you young people that are here, thank you for your energy. You are the ones who will lead the fight for a free Iran. In my former days I was a judge. Justice is what I believe in, it is what America believes in. But if the Iranian government was put on trial today it would be found guilty of injustice; it would be found guilty of murder; it would be found guilty of the arrests of political and religious opponents; it would be found guilty of encouraging worldwide terror, and it would be found guilty of meddling inthe affairs of other nations. That is why The choice is real the Iranian government has got to go. simple. Let the Last time I was in Iraq I visited Maliki and I asked, as other members of people of Iran Congress did at the time, we wanted to go and see firsthand the situation in Camp Ashraf; to see how those people were living. And he said no, no, no. He refused to let members of determine their Congress see Camp Ashraf. Why? Because he wanted to hide the truth. He did not want us and the world to own destiny, not know what was taking place in Ashraf any more than he wants the world to see what is taking place in Liberty. He condemns the attacks but no one is held accountable. Nobody has been arrested. Nobody has gone to jail. the dictators. And the attacks continue. There is no liberty in Camp Liberty. And I am proud to have sponsored legislations Rouhani is no with a hundred cosponsors in the House of Representatives condemning the attacks on innocents in Camp Liberty. Maliki is complicit in the attacks with the government of Iran. friend of liberty, Since we have delisted the MEK we ought to go ahead and list the Iranian government as a foreign terrorist he is the big bad organization. Last week the United States Senate took steps to pass legislation to help address the safety of wolf of the desert the residents in Camp Liberty, and that is good. It is a first step; make Camp Liberty safe because it is the responsibility of us to do so. It has been said it is the moral obligation of the world but it is also the legal obligation of the United States and others to make Camp Liberty safe and then expedite the removal of the residents of Camp Liberty where they want to go. And the United States needs to quit just talking about that; we need to act.
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Loretta Sanchez,
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
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ello, freedom fighters! Hello to my lawyers and doctors, entrepreneurs, our teachers, our mothers who instill the values to the children of the future; ordinary people doing extraordinary things to the people in the streets of I am here for the Tehran. To all of you, you are the true freedom fighters. 116 residents who Many of you know that I fight for human rights around the world. Today, I were killed and am here for the 116 residents who were killed and the more than 1,000 residents the more than who were wounded in seven different attacks since 2009. These refugees have been declared protected persons under the fourth Geneva Convention in 2003 by the 1,000 residents United States and they must be protected. To those refugees who were moved to who were wounded in seven Camp Liberty, to the more than 2,900 Iranian dissidents in Camp Liberty who remain in danger, as a member of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, I different attacks have concerns about the way Iraq is treating our refugees there and we need to get [on Camp Ashraf them to stop that. and Liberty] since I am a co-sponsor of House Bill 3707 as my colleagues are, ensuring the emergency protection of Iranian dissidents living in Camp Liberty and to provide for their admission as refugees to the United States of America. Almost 400 of 2009. those residents have already gone to Europe and I thank my European counterparts and it is time that the United States does that starting today. Continue to be the voice for those people in the streets in Tehran. Thank you and God bless you.
Danny Davis,
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives I thank you for giving me the opportunity to experience the biggest single demonstration for democracy that I have ever had.
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people united will never be defeated. I want to commend this coalition which will go down in history as one of the greatest demonstrations for equality, for opportunity, for liberation, and for justice that this world has seen in a long, long time. You inspire and motivate not only yourselves, but you are telling people all over the world that you don’t have to sit back and take it, that all you have got to do is to organize your neighbors, organize your friends, organize young people, organize students, and I guarantee you that democracy will prevail every time. I thank you for giving me the opportunity to experience the biggest single demonstration for democracy that I have ever had. 20
The U.S. Congressional Delegation attended the Grand Assembly at the invitation of the Organization of Iranian American Communities (OIAC). IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
Rudy Giuliani
Joseph Lieberman
Former Mayor of New York City
Former Member of the U.S. Senate,
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his is quite an impressive gathering. From standing here it seems to be an endless number of people. And I think we’re all here and we realize what a critical time this is for all of us, a critical time with a civil war in Iraq, almost 3,000 of your people, our people, stranded there at risk of their lives, some of whom have already lost their lives, and only stranded there because of the broken promises of the United States and the United Nations. That’s a shame. That’s a tragedy. That shouldn’t happen. Similar catastrophe going on in Syria, and we are on the verge of Iran achieving what it has always wanted to achieve, becoming a nuclear power. So we couldn’t be here at a more important time. At the core of all of And it is quite obvious that at the core these problems is of all of these problems, no matter what the regime in Iran. It solutions we can try to figure out for all should be changed, of them and more, at the core of all of it must be changed, these problems is the regime in Iran. It it has to be changed. should be changed, it must be changed, it has to be changed. We are just fooling the regime change ourselves and fooling the world if we don’t in Iran? realize that and recognize it. And in this particular case the alternative is clear. In Egypt, in Libya, the alternative to regime change was not clear. In Syria, because of our dithering and our inability to make decisions the regime change and the alternatives in Syria became very difficult. And now we have let the same thing happen in Iraq by failing to act early enough in getting rid of Maliki. But the regime change in Iran is easy. There is an alternative. There is an alternative in Iran that stands for democracy, stands for freedom, stands for human rights, stands for the rights of women, is led by a woman. And most importantly at this time in our history it stands for a non-nuclear Iran. And that is of course the MEK and Madame Rajavi. For those of us who have been involved with you for so many years now, what is happening in Iraq is no surprise. It amazes me that people are saying they didn’t know about ISIS; they didn’t know about the influences that were taking place in Iraq; they didn’t know Maliki had become a client of Iran. What do you mean they didn’t know? This has been going on for two years, three years. Just like he killed our people, your people, our people, just like Maliki killed them at Ashraf and Liberty he also kills his own people. He has attempted to wipe out huge, huge amounts of the Sunni population, of the Kurds, and the people who oppose him. He is a dictator, a murderer, a killer and a client of Iran. How can we allow him to remain there? How can we possibly seek to engage Iran in trying to solve the problem of Iraq? cont. on pg44
Democrtic Party nominee for Vice President in 2000 presidential election am honored to join you today in a great cause, which is the cause of freedom and human rights and independence for the people of Iran. I am honored to stand at this podium after President-Elect Rajavi. But it is not so easy to follow such a great speech. It was brilliant; it was honorable; it was visionary. Madame Rajavi did what a great leader does: she set out a path to victory and gave us all a reasonable hope that we will succeed in liberating the people of Iran. I want first to thank each of you in this massive crowd for the effort you have made to come here from all over the world to be part of this resistance. In doing so, I hope you know that you are not just attending another meeting, you have chosen to There is only one sure be part of history, part of changing way to secure the history. And it is a long history of world from the threat patriotic and courageous people who that this regime in have fought for and achieved their freedom. It is a history that goes back, Tehran represents. if I may say so, to the emancipation It is for the Iranian of the Jewish people from slavery in people to overthrow ancient Egypt. It is the same fight, these tyrants and for the same fight that was waged by the brave Americans who won our freedom-loving people independence through revolution in throughout the world the 18th century; to all the French to support this next patriots who fought for and won great revolution. their freedom in their revolution in the 19th century; to the brave soldiers who defeated Nazism and fascism in the Second World War; to the heroic people whose revolutionary uprisings collapsed the Soviet Union in the 20th century; to the people of the Arab world who have risen up for their freedom and opportunity in our time. By choosing to be here today you join that history and advance it, because you and we are engaged in a historic struggle to liberate the people of Iran, a great nation with a proud history, from the evil regime that is holding them hostage. And we will do it. Madame Rajavi referred to the religious fundamentalists who are temporarily at the head of the Iranian government. They are religious, but in the American review they are leading a government that is profoundly sacrilegious. And they are doing that because they are denying the people of Iran the human rights to life, liberty and happiness that the American Declaration of Independence makes clear is the endowment of every individual on earth not from the government but from God Almighty. cont. on pg 44,45
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Europe ALEJO VIDAL-QUADRAS,VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT (1999-2014)
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he international community and in particular the government of the United States, the United Nations, the European Commission, the member states of the European Union are in part responsible for the suppressive measures at Camp Ashraf and Liberty who led to the loss of 136 lives. While the government of the United States is sending 300 advisors to Iraq it no longer has any excuse not to prevent another attack on Liberty. The Iraqi people’s uprising has destroyed the Iranian regime’s 11 year plots and meddling in Iraq. Maliki under the mullahs influence ruthlessly eliminated his opponents, especially the Sunnis. But the Iraqi people rose up and Maliki’s army has melted. To rectify this blow, they are saying that terrorist ISIS controls everything. But let me point out three facts in
relation to this. The first fact is that ISIS is a terrorist group; by exploiting the crisis, this group has taken over some parts of Iraq. But to claim this group could destroy a major army in a matter of a few hours and control one-third of Iraq is a bald-faced lie intended to drag the U.S. in the Iraqi quagmire. ISIS is like the weapons of mass destruction in 2003 which was used as a pretext for a war from which the world is still suffering.The second fact is that the three main forces involved in the uprising are the general military council, a patriotic force comprised of professional officers who are waging the military campaign in a conventional manner, the council of tribes and its military The Iranian resistance under forces and the association of Muslim scholars led by a moderate Sunni cleric. the leadership of Mrs. Rajavi and the full and unyielding And the third fact is that these groups have repeatedly declared that the support of their many friends people that have risen up against oppression have nothing to dowith ISIS. in democracies all around They want a government chosen by the people, a government of the people, the world so well represented and for the people. And these positions are consistent with democratic here today will emerge as the standards. And if the aim is to weaken terrorism they must be supported. reference for a tolerant and And I want to remind now some elements related to Camp Liberty. While democratic Islam in the Middle the monitoring of Camp Liberty was supposed to be 24 hours a day and 7 East days of the week, UNHCR since June 12 and UNAMI since June 15 have left Camp Liberty and have not returned with the residents left to the wolves. It is over ten days now that the Iraqi forces supposed to protect the camp have turned their machine guns towards the residents. At the request of the Iranian regime there is a plan that when the tribes approach Baghdad, Camp Liberty residents are to be attacked. Logistics and forces have been prepared for this purpose.
Jordi Xucla, Member of Spanish Parliament, President of ALDE Group in Council of Europe
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would like to use this opportunity to express my solidarity to the Iranian resistance under the leadership of Mrs. Rajavi. I have been supporting your movement and the PMOI for many years both in the Spanish Parliament and also in the Council of Europe and in the liberal group where I am now the president in the Parliamentary I really appreciate your Assembly of the Council of Europe. I would like fight for the democratic to congratulate you for this great magnificent and secular values, the meeting today. I really appreciate your fight for the democratic rights of the ethnic and and secular values, the rights of the ethnic and the the religious minorities religious minorities and your engagement for the and your engagement women’s rights. You are a progressive movement, for the women’s rights the antithesis of the Islamic fundamentalist rulers in your country, who are also a global threat for the world. We will continue to support the rights of our brothers and sisters in Camp Liberty. I am sure that freedom will come to Iran much sooner than we may think. I am convinced that after freedom, free and fair elections will be held very soon in Tehran. We will meet one day, one morning, and I will say, good morning Mrs. President Maryam Rajavi. Freedom, freedom, freedom for Iraq, freedom for Syria, freedom for Palestine, freedom for Iran, freedom for all the nations of the world. 22
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STRUAN STEVENSON, PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DELEGATION FOR RELATIONS WITH IRAQ (20092014)
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here are three clear messages that have emerged from this marvelous gathering today: Maliki out. Rouhani out. Khamenei out. Now there are a hundred thousand of you in this hall; let us hear all of your voices so that Maliki can hear you in Baghdad, so that Rouhani and Khamenei can hear you in Tehran. Maliki out. Rouhani out. Khamenei out. Wonderful. I have been warning for the past five years that Maliki was the problem, not the solution. It is crazy that the Americans have been arming Maliki. It is crazy that they are fighting the same people in Iraq that they are supporting in Syria. You couldn’t make it up. We have to send this powerful message from this conference today that the only solution for this crisis, the failed state that Iraq has become, is for Maliki to go; executive government to be put in place until such time as they can hold free and fair elections under the supervision of the United Nations. There can never be free elections under Maliki. None of us will rest until we see the brutal, divisive regime in Tehran removed from power and replaced by a regime led by people like you and people like Madame Rajavi.
We know from our bitter experience that people in Camp Liberty were the ones on the front lines who have suffered. They have suffered the prison-like conditions of Camp Liberty; they have suffered the constant attacks, massacres and bloodshed. Now for the past two weeks they have been denied gasoline which they need for vehicle movements even to move disabled and sick people inside the camp. Just now it is 45 degrees Celsius heat. For two weeks patients even suffering from cancer have not been allowed to visit the hospital in Baghdad. This is a crime against humanity and it is going on under our noses.
A few weeks ago I went to Tirana and visited more than 300 Ashrafis who have been rescued by the wonderful Albanian government. And let us say thanks; thank you to Albania; thank you to the two former prime ministers that are here today; thank you to the young doctors and professionals who have given their love to these people. But let us also say to the rest of the Western world: look at this tiny country of Albania who had the courage to rescue 300 people and hang your heads in shame that you have not followed their example. It is disgraceful. None of us will rest until we see the brutal, corrupt, sectarian, divisive regime of Maliki exposed for what it is and replaced by an executive government. None of us will rest until we see the brutal, divisive regime in Tehran removed from power and replaced by a regime led by people like you and people like Madame Rajavi. Long live liberty; long live the PMOI; long live Madame Rajavi. Malaki out; Rouhani out; Khamenei out.
Pedro Agramunt, President of the EPP Group in Council of Europe
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ast year we invited Madame Rajavi to a hearing in the EPP, People’s Party Group, meeting in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. She spoke about her vision for the future of a democratic Iran and also the plight of the 3,000 residents in Camp Liberty This shows that in Iraq who have resisted all the pressure by Maliki and this regime has no the Iranian regime. Since then things have developed. prospect for reform Over 800 people have been executed in Iran since the and the mullahs so-called moderate Rouhani became president. This must go. After that shows that this regime has no prospect for reform and a secular democratic the mullahs must go. After that a secular democratic government must be government must be formed. That’s why I’m very happy to be here in this great formed. country to be able to express my best wishes for Madame Rajavi, your movement and the Iranian people. We are getting close to the moment that the people of Iran can breathe freely with no fear as they deserve; they have waited for this day for far too long. I can assure you that I will continue to support you in the Council of Europe as well as in the Spanish Parliament.
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USA
Michael Mukasey
Louis Freeh
The 81st Attorney General of the United States
Former Director of the F.B.I.
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wo times, two separate times when the United States Secretary of Defense was in Iraq, the residents of Ashraf were attacked by the Iraqi army with weapons and with vehicles that had been provided by the United States. And what did we do about it? We did nothing. We kept MEK on a list of foreign terrorist organizations that it should never have been on in the first place. The State Department, We will bend every under pressure from a law suit brought effort to protect by MEK got Ashraf residents to move to a camp with a misleading name— your safety as we Camp Liberty. They moved on the false promised to do, because in doing so promise that being close to the airport somehow made them safer and that we will restore our there was a plan to evacuate them in an honor emergency. And then they were taken off the list. By the way, who said that? Who said that being, they would be safer closer to the airport and that there was a plan? Well folks, it is time to name names. That was said by a two-faced paper pushing bureaucrat in the State Department named Dan Fried. And what did we do? We did nothing.
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ess than 48 hours ago, 18 years ago the Iranian government acting through the IRGC blew up Khobar towers in the eastern province of Saudi Arabia, killing 20 U.S. airmen, wounding 372, and killing and wounding many other nationals. This is a message for our negotiators in Vienna who are sitting across the table from the representatives of the IRGC. There is a letter that I have here today. I won’t read the whole thing to you, but it is dated quite appropriately June 7, 2014 The United States to the president of the United States. It is signed by 38 of the most prominent has failed to support American politicians, military leaders, and fulfil every statespersons, and academics. It says, “For assurance it has three years, approximately 3,000 men extended to these and women of the exiled Iranian dissident residents organizations have been confined in very austere and perilous conditions at Camp Liberty.” And the letter concludes, “We call upon you, Mr. President, to adjust the policy that is failing to produce the intended results and instead continues to invite lethal attacks against unarmed civilians we pledged to protect, monitor, and relocate expeditiously. U.S. credibility and honor are diminished with every casualty incurred by these residents.”
Howard Dean
Bill Richardson
Former Governor of Vermont and Chairman of the Democratic National committee (2005 - 2009)
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Governor of New Mexico (2003 -2011), former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations
ost of you know that I ran the Democratic Party and the Democratic national convention in 2008. There are more people in this hall than there were at the Democratic national convention in 2004 and the Republican national convention in 2004.So all those State Department people say, trying to keep America from keeping its promises, “Oh, the MEK doesn’t have any support.” Oh, yeah? Come on over here State Department and see about all this Now we are going to support. make this President Last year when I came here, I said to Madame Rajavi, “You need a better Obama’s responpresence on social media.” They went to sibility and he will answer for what he work. You see these tweets? Let me tell you how successful you are. Not only does were you in the top six for every hour since this has begun, for 15 minutes you were the biggest tweeters in the entire world; number one. So the first thing we are going to do is more tweeting and I want you to use two hashtags. One is hashtag Mariam Rajavi. But there’s another hashtag I want you to use: hashtag Iran. Why? Because the Mullahs used hashtag Iran and now you have made so many tweets that we have taken hashtag Iran away from the Mullahs so you used hashtag Mariam Rajavi and we are going to use hashtag Iran because first we take their hashtag and then we take their country back. 24
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have two questions for you. One of them requires a yes and the other one requires a no. My first question: Has there been any change since Rouhani came to office? No! The second question: Is there hope for change for Iran? Yay! It is a great honor for me to participate with Governor Dean and so many bipartisan leaders from the United States and around the world, but you are the stars here today. The first question: Has there been any change? The answer is no. There has been more There has not executions under Rouhani. There has been been any serious more repression. They said they were going to change in nuclear release political prisoners. It did not happen. negotiations with Did they change their behavior? The answer the West and with is no. They continue to repress with genocide the United States. the people of Syria. They continue to fight against human rights in the entire Middle East. They refuse to say to Maliki that you should have an inclusive government of Shia, Sunni, and Kurds to save Iraq. There has not been any change with Rouhani. There has not been any serious change in nuclear negotiations with the West and with the United States. But the most important question for us here: Is there any chance of change for Iran? And the answer is yes, because it is you. It is the MEK. It is Maryam Rajavi. It is the freedom loving people of Iran that are in this room that want democracy, that want human rights. I have been coming here for many years. I have never seen such a big crowd.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
NEWT GINGRICH, Former Speaker of the US House of Representatives and the Presidential candidate for the 2012 election
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hen the dictatorship finally collapses, when the people of Iran are finally free, your work, your commitment, and your voice will have been a serious part of why that happened. As an American, I am here to tell you how much we need your voice. For 35 years we have followed a failed strategy of appeasement. We’ve tried to appease a What you are doing religious dictatorship which has said again and again that its goal is to defeat us. We focus is vital. I urge you now temporarily on a nuclear weapon issue, but there is a deeper fundamental issue. We will don’t despair, don’t never be safe until the dictatorship is replaced and a free government exists in Iran. Syria will never be peaceful as long as the dictatorship in Iran continues to fund and get frustrated, and to help sustain the civil war. Iraq will never be peaceful as long as the dictatorship in Iran don’t get impatient. continues to fund. And remember for all the talk about American advisors; there are more Continue to fight for Iranian advisors in Iraq today than American and in fact it is the Iranians who dominate freedom in Iran Maliki and he is their puppet. Finally, we need your help in getting across to the American State Department that it has to be clear about who its friends are and who its enemies are. The people at Camp Liberty are our friends. They are our allies. They deserve our support. They deserve our help. And we must convince the American State Department that it has it exactly backwards. It keeps finding excuses to work with Maliki, excuses to tolerate the dictatorship in Iran, excuses to do a whole range of things that are destructive not just to the United States, but to the future of freedom across the planet. What you are doing is vital. I urge you don’t despair, don’t get frustrated, and don’t get impatient. Continue to fight for freedom in Iran.
JOHN DENNIS HASTERT , Former Speaker of the US House of
Representatives
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ou are the free people of Iran. You breathe free air every day. Now is the time to extend that freedom to the people of Camp Liberty and to the country of Iran. Freedom to your countrymen, to your friends, your fathers, your sisters, your children, all who Now is the time to live today at Camp Liberty under the thumb of the Iraqis and Iran. Tomorrow, if you extend that freedom are successful at Camp Liberty, next you can be successful in Iran. But your actions here, your actions tomorrow, and your actions when you leave this place, will be able to open to the people of the doors of freedom to the people at Camp Liberty. This is one of the greatest and largest Camp Liberty and to political assemblies that I have ever seen. But political assemblies create political rhetoric. We want political action. the country of Iran Let me tell you how you can be effective tomorrow when we leave this place and create political action. We will start with the United States of America. There is a bill; this bill right here; that is in the House of Representatives. This bill is 3707. It guarantees, if this bill passes out of the House of Representatives and the Congress and goes to the president that the United States must keep its word and free the people at Camp Liberty. This bill also guarantees that the United States must work with the United Nations and make sure all those people in Camp Liberty find a home and freedom around the world. How do we do this? You have friends, you have family who live in the United States. They must insist at the doors of the U.S. Congress that this bill be passed out of committee next week. This is what political democracy is all about. You can make change. You can make freedom. If you can open the doors at Camp Liberty you can open the doors of freedom to Iran and this next meeting will be in Tehran.
ROBERT TORRICELLI, Former Member of the US Senate
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eople of the Mojahedin allow me to introduce myself. My name is Bob Torricelli and I am a soldier in the liberation of Iran. I will never tire. I will never stop. I will never give in. I will see a free Iran. Hear me well, For those of you in the bleachers in the back: Will you ever give in? Will you ever give mullahs, soon we will up on the struggle to free Iran? To those of you on my left: Are you committed to the destruction of the mullahs’ regime? To those of you on my right: Will you come here as come to the streets long as it takes until we meet in Tehran with a free Iranian people? of Tehran by the To the mullahs: First we gathered in Frankfurt and London and Paris and New York by millions and take the hundreds. Then we came to Paris by the thousands. Hear me well, mullahs. Soon we back the future of will come to the streets of Tehran by the millions and take back the future of the people the people of Iran of Iran. The mullahs may talk to Merkel or Obama. They may negotiate with Hollande or Cameron. They can talk all they want. We as a people of those nations know there is nothing left to say. The regime must go. And to the people of Camp Liberty: South Africa has its Robin Island. The French have their Bastille and the Russians have the summer palace. In America, we have Yorktown. For a 1,000 years, school children in Iran will learn that when their country was enslaved, when patriots were sent to the gallows, when brave men and women were killed, a free people still lived in Camp Liberty. You are our inspiration. There is a free Iran and we will join you in Tehran. God bless you all. IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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European and U.S. Dignitaries Resistance’s President-elect,
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IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
with Maryam Rajavi, the Iranian at the Villepinte, June 27, 2014
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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Canada
The Canadian delegation
Kim Campbell
Terence Young
Former Canadian Prime Minister
Member of Canadian Parliament
The Canadian Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on International Human Rights called for the UN to immediately establish a permanent presence inside Camp Liberty to protect the residents
John Baird reviewed the year of Rouhani’s presidency and made it very clear that not only were no promises kept, but everything is worse and the betrayal is very severe...
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hen we look at Iran, the question is how will it come apart? We know now that the sanctions against Iran are the toughest sanctions that have ever been imposed on any country in the world, and we know they are hurting. We know there is a crisis now with the uprisings in Iraq and Syria and Iran has issues, etc. We just don’t really quite know how it will happen. But I think it is important for us all to understand that the break may come when we are least expecting it. And that is why we have to be ready. We have to be watching, because something somewhere is going to give..... When Rouhani was elected, one of the reasons I think that so many countries in the West were prepared to give him a little bit of room is because they thought, “Do you think he might be the Iranian Gorbachev?” And he sure did a good job of trying to, “I’m a new guy. I’m going to be kind of moderate.” Well, just earlier this month the Foreign Minister of Canada, John Baird, published an article in Foreign Policy Magazine, where he reviewed the year of Rouhani’s presidency and made it very clear that not only were no promises kept, but everything is worse and the betrayal is very severe... All I can say is, “It will happen and this rally will be one day an election rally.... Pay attention, be brave, and be ready. We’ll be there with you.” 28
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e assemble here today from all over the world as one voice to speak for the many voices silenced by the Iranian regime. Political representatives joining a great people come together in their faith to remake their homeland, to call the Iranian regime to account for its appalling human rights violations, to insist Iran cease its support for terrorism at home and abroad, to insure peaceful resolution to the nuclear issue. We stand with the Iranian people in their quest for the rule of law, in their demands for democratic freedom and justice and human rights. On June 16, the Canadian Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on International Human Rights called for the United Nations to immediately establish a permanent presence inside Camp Liberty to address the humanitarian crisis and protect the residents and to launch an independent and impartial investigation into the September 2013 ,1 massacre at Camp Ashraf. Without such an investigation, this crime would be committed with impunity. And the world is watching events at Camp Liberty for safe and secure settlement for those stranded there. So, what is our long-term hope? To see Iran blooms as a truly free and pluralistic state in education, the arts, science, commerce, and every other area of endeavor. Why will the people succeed? Because of faith.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
United Kingdom
Lord Carlile of Berriew Prominent Member of British House of Lords and Co-Chair of the British Parliamentary Committee for Iran Freedom
The removal of the Iranian mullahs, as well as Mr. Maliki, and their influence from the region, the creation of democracy according to Madame Rajavi’s ten-point plan, these would make a huge contribution to the safety of the world.
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come here with the delegation of Parliamentarians and jurists from the United Kingdom. And also we have with us Parliamentarians from Ireland, Malta and Lithuania. We are here to help you to bring a new dawn to Iran, to turn ambition into a reality, to turn determination to Iran’s future democracy. And I foresee a gathering like this in the future, not here in Paris, but in Tehran, where we should be able to stand together and to cheer the return of Iran to the rule of law and the family of nations. That is the reality that brings us here. In these difficult days, the focus is on developments in Iraq, and events are changing hourly. But what we must make the world, including our own governments to understand, is that Mr. Maliki is a client of the mullahs in Iran. We must persuade our own governments that the Iranian regime is the core of the problem and Mr. Maliki a detail which must go. The continuation of the Maliki government in Iraq and the influence which he accepts from Iran threatens the whole of the region; indeed probably threatens extensive war in the region. So
let us urge our governments to righteously support the Iraqi people’s call for Maliki’s departure. Let us support the end of Iran’s influence not only in Iraq, but in the whole region. The regime in Tehran is nothing less than a monster. Mr. Maliki is one of the tentacles of that monster. His political survival supported as currently by the United Kingdom government, the US government, and the UN is an obscenity that must end. All politicians crave a legacy. For the future of the whole region, today’s first step towards progress must be for Mr. Maliki to realize that his greatest legacy would be to step aside now. The removal of the Iranian mullahs, as well as Mr. Maliki, and their influence from the region, the creation of democracy according to Madame Rajavi’s ten-point plan, these would make a huge contribution to the safety of the world. But our final message from the United Kingdom is that we send our support, minute by minute, day by day, to those brave friends we have in Camp Liberty. And we say to them, “We are with you.”
The negotiations of the nuclear program should not deflect our priorities from the need to restore freedom and democracy. Sanctions should only be lifted when international obligation concerning human rights are fully implemented.
Italy
Giulio Maria Terzi Former Foreign Minister of Italy
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he vision of a future Iran enshrined in the ten point plan launched by President Rajavi should attract unconditional support by the whole international community. And we have to work altogether in the direction shown by President Rajavi. Systemic violation of fundamental rights in Iran is a matter of grave concern. Last April, European Parliament passed a resolution calling on the European Union to mainstream human rights in all of its relations with the country. The negotiations of the nuclear program should not deflect our priorities from the need to restore freedom and democracy. It has been wisely proposed that sanctions should only be lifted when international obligation concerning human rights are fully implemented.
The international community is still unable to find a solution for the Iranian refugees in Camp Liberty, the protected person by the UN and the U.S. An unprecedented number of executions and massacres, the most tragic last September 1st, has occurred with the obvious complicity of Iraqi authorities. Seven kidnapped PMOI members are still missing. Iran has requested the extradition of all residents in Camp Liberty. I hope very soon people who have been responsible will be brought to justice. Developments in Iraq are dramatically affecting the entire region. They make protection and rescue of all the residents in Camp Liberty more urgent than ever before. They must be given refugee status in our countries. Maliki is not really committed to an inclusive democratic Iraq respectful of human rights. He only wants to please and serve Iran. The enormous energy of this gathering shows that the NCRI is ready to meet the steep challenges faced in Iraq and Iran. Only the freedom you are advocating will change Iran and the whole region.
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France
Michèle Alliot-Marie
Bernard Kouchner
Former Defense Minister of France
Former Foreign Minister of France
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nce again, you are gathered here in Paris to show your commitment to freedom, democracy and respect for rights of men and women in your country. There are many politicians, philosophical and intellectual from the democratic countries that have come to show their solidarity. Iran is a country playing a role in the balance or troubles in the region. We can see it in Syria, in Iraq, in Lebanon, where the current Iranian regime is unfortunately a source of concern due to its support for destabilizing elements in these countries. And that today It is the Iranians themselves that have to bring about this change under the impulse of courageous women and men like Maryam Rajavi.
goes well beyond this region. We need the countries and leaders who contribute to international security, peace and democracy, and we need a democratic Iran with a secular regime, an Iran that respects international commitments and guarantees the rights of its citizens. And this is not the case today with the regime in Tehran. So yes, this must change. But it is not for us French, Americans, Algerians, or Europeans to change the regime from outside. It is the Iranians themselves that have to bring about this change under the impulse of courageous women and men like Maryam Rajavi. It is for those who live in Iran to bring about these changes through the democratic process and it is for those - like you - who live in our countries and who bring us so much through their cleverness, energy and dynamism. So we are here today simply - from all forms and all walks of life - to tell you that we admire you, to tell you that we support and will continue to support your unwavering commitment to democracy for Iran. 30
ased on what was said by Mrs. Rajavi – I ask the officials of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to come and see you, contemplate you, and talk with you, and be amazed about your number that exceeds 100,000, to repeat the words of all speakers here which form on the contrary a chain embracing the values of the French Republic. You are fighting – with Maryam Rajavi at the forefront - for the equality between men and women, for the role of women in politics. And that is extraordinary in the Middle East. You have a very clear vision of the need to separate mosque and state, you do not want the mixing of religious and political leaders. This is exactly what the French Republic in its creation also wanted. You are an example for the entire Middle East and beyond. It is necessary to overthrow the Republic of mullahs. It is not possible to mix these two words, republic and mullahs. Instead, as you Thank you for being so brave, so persevering, and for having dared to confront everywhere - this infamous regime which will vanish.
ask for, representatives of the Iranian people must only be appointed through elections. What is happening now in Iraq is the direct consequence of the mistakes and oppression of Mr. Maliki›s regime. We can only rely on the eviction, the departure of the President, the Prime Minister Maliki. I hope you will be in Tehran next year. Thank you for choosing France for this wonderful gathering. Thank you for being so brave, being so persevering, and as stated by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, for having dared to confront everywhere - at home in Iran, in exile here and around the world - this infamous regime which will vanish.
Rama Yade
Former French Secretary of State for Human Rights
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hat do the Iranian people want? Only freedom. This wish seems simple, but it is a major challenge. You all want profound changes in Iran. What you want, what we want, is a democratic revolution. Do not be naive; there is no third way within the current regime in Tehran. It is the regime itself that must change, change completely. We share your dream of a republic based on the separation of church and state, like in France. This is the only way to guarantee individual freedoms. This is not an option but a matter of necessity. We share your dream of a republic based on the separation of church and state. This is not an option but a matter of necessity.
Public opinion should be aware that there is no democratic space in Iran, no freedom of expression. 800 executions were announced last year, the internet is censored, the different UN bodies have adopted close to a hundred resolutions condemning violations of human rights in Iran. This proves that the regime is incapable of reforming itself. Let me tell you a few words about women›s rights in tomorrow’s Iran. There is no revolution without women. We can appreciate the degree of progress in a society through the role of women in that society. So many of them have been executed just for opposing the regime; so many of them lead the resistance, especially now at camp Liberty. Those women, have proved their courage after the June 2009 national demonstrations. They refused the misogynist laws and medieval punishment implemented by the theocracy ruling Iran under the pretext of Islam. They are fundamentally contrary to the genuine teachings of Islam as well as its message of tolerance and compassion.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
Gilbert Mitterrand, President of France Libertés Danielle Mitterrand Foundation
Jean-François LEGARET Jean-Pierre BÉQUET Mayor of the 1st Paris district
Provincial counsellor of Val d’Oise
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he France Libertés -Danielle Mitterrand Foundation- salutes you and supports this great gathering of Iranian patriots and their friends from all over the world to celebrate and claim the values that the Iranian nation aspires, values of freedom and human rights. The French Republic is proud to support this noble struggle joining the struggle of all democrats from all over the world. This fight was that of Danielle Mitterrand, who stood on your side for 30 years. I am proud to extend her memory by sending you this message to which I add one of solidarity and friendship. Maryam Rajavi said about Danielle Mitterrand that she was the true face of France: Resisting from the beginning against the fascist infamy of Nazi rule and standing with the oppressed people of the world. Today, one of the most oppressed people is the Iranian people that she would continue to support if she were present among us as she did in June 2003 in Auvers-sur-Oise when she rushed to help the members of the Iranian resistance on hunger strike to call for justice for the NCRI.She knew she was bearing the confidence Maryam placed on her and France Libertés Foundation. She wanted to share this confidence to alert how much the Iranian people were oppressed at home, how much it was our daily duty to reveal the truth and how much we should respect what they think is a good strategy to overthrow a very oppressive, totalitarian and fanatical regime in their country. This fight was that of
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a r e 14,000 French elected representatives, including 7,000 mayors; we are here faithfully to support your gathering. We are here to listen to you, to testify, and to be vigilant on the plight of prisoners of Ashraf and Camp L i b e r t y. We are here to denounce the persecution; we are here beyond the divisions of political families because we are gathered around the values of the republic, democracy and defence of human rights. We will be here until Iran is a democratic nation where human rights are respected. We will be here until Iran is a state that proclaims respect and friendship among peoples, cultures and religions. We are here and will be here until Iran is free. To us you are the
Danielle Mitterrand, who
freedom and democracy.
years.
Martine Valleton Mayor of Villepinte
ou have c o m e from the other side of the world, Australia, Canada, the United States. You have come from Val d›Oise or Villepinte›s neighboring towns. You are all carrying the same message: peace for the world, especially for the Middle East that is burning, democracy and human rights in Iran! I am proud to be with you in this long journey for the rule of law in your country, Iran, with many elected officials, parliamentarians, mayors, local representatives. We started in Val d›Oise, and now we could mobilize opinion everywhere in France that widely supports your cause. This mobilization and support - for your activities in France and for the protection of your brothers and sisters in Camp Liberty and before that in Ashraf – will continue until the day you return to your homeland, a free and democratic Iran. We are 14,000 French elected representatives,
resistance; you are
stood on your side for 30
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including 7,000 mayors to support your gathering.
Jean-Pierre MULLER,
I am proud to be with you
Mayor of Magny-en-Vexin (Val d’Oise)
in this long journey for the rule of law in your country, Iran.
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s the mayor of Villepinte, I am very glad today to welcome you inthis exhibition center . You know how much your movement is dear to me, since I was with you, here in Villepinte in 2007. And I came to be with you today to bring you again my support, to you, to the Iranian people and its resistance.
hat an honour to see you here in Villepinte in thousands supporting the struggle, the just cause of the NCRI and Maryam Rajavi›s commitment to freedom and democracy in Iran. We look forward to seeing you free; in perfect harmony with the NCRI program, a free, democratic and secular Iran that assures the abolition of death penalty, the full equality of rights between men and women and free elections. The mullahs can scream; they can curse; they may seek any flaw in our determination to support you but they will not succeed. To us you are the resistance; you are freedom and democracy; you are the ones who help to ensure that peace may one day be a sustainable reality not only in the Middle East but also in the rest of the planet. As indicated behind me: All For Freedom.
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USA
Alan Dershowhitz Professo, Prominent Lawyer of Criminal Law
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s someone who has taught and practiced human rights for half a century, I can represent to you today that the worst human rights offender in the world today is the regime in Iran. They are also the worst state sponsor of terrorism, responsible for thousands of murders of people all over the world. They are the worst threat in the world in terms of nuclear weapons and the worst violators of international law. They have taken diplomatic hostages, attacked embassies, and they violate the law with absolute impunity. Now they are trying to take over a broken Iraq. They are zeroing in on Sunnis and on Camp Liberty. And what’s worse is they are using walls erected and promises made by the USA to help effectuate their genocidal plans. The USA has an obligation to keep their promise, and all of us here today from the United States are committed to making our country comply with its contractual obligations. We will stop at nothing. If we have to sue our own government in an American court, we will do so. Patriotism to one’s country includes making that country keep its moral promises. We should today be bringing Iran’s leaders into the dock of justice in front of the International Criminal Court. History will judge us harshly if we stand idly by the innocent victims of the Iranian regime. We cannot rest until Iran becomes a democratic non-nuclear nation with a commitment to human liberty.
The regime in Iran is the worst threat in the world in terms of nuclear weapons and the worst violators of international law.
Ambassador Marc Ginsberg Former U.S. Ambassador to Morocco and White House Adviser for Middle East Policy
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believe that the voices you have brought here today need to be heard not only in Tehran, not only in Baghdad, but throughout Europe as well as in the United States. The president of the United States has the power today to make the decision to bring Camp Liberty residents who are our brothers and sisters to freedom and security. Mr. President, let our people come to the United States. They deserve to have their voices heard. I do not want to stand here again and to have to provide any more alibis or excuses as to why the United States is not fulfilling its humanitarian and liable obligations as well as the commitments that were made by our military to those brave people who are in Camp Liberty. It is time for the president and his administration to stop leading from behind and to get in front of saving the people who you and I know deserve freedom.
It is time for the President and his administration to stop leading from behind and to get in front of saving the people who deserve freedom.
Patricia Solis Doyle Senior Adviser to the Clinton Presidential Campaign in 2008
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here is always someone out there saying no. They will argue that the principles of women’s rights are unrealistic or unreliable, that the diplomatic situation is more complicated than you understand or that larger interests like cheap oil matter more than women’s empowerment. That’s how it was back in 1995 when Hillary wanted to attend the International Women’s Conference in Beijing. Her message was simple enough: women’s rights are human rights, and human rights are women’s rights. But President Clinton’s National Security Council tried to block the trip anyway, listing a dozen ways Hillary might disrupt relationships with the Chinese. Hillary gave the NSC an ultimatum: help her go as First Lady or watch her go as a U.S. citizen. Like Hillary’s argument in Beijing, Madame Rajavi’s argument is simple enough—the fight for women’s equality is indistinguishable from the fight for global peace. In this way Maryam and Hillary are very similar; they both have devoted their careers to the same cause, fighting for women to have access to information, fighting for gender equality and political and social economic arenas, and fighting for the universal declaration of human rights. 32
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
Like Hillary’s argument in Beijing, Madame Rajavi’s argument is simple enough: the fight for women’s equality is indistinguishable from the fight for global peace.
Ambassador John Bolton Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations
This is a time for the USA to support all the legitimate opposition forces that commit to a nuclear free Iran and representative government as Madame Rajavi's platform for the future does.
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ombined with the Iranian regime’s role in financing terrorism for 35 years, the Ayatollahs have been the principal cause for the destabilizing of the Middle East, resulting in conflicts that are erasing national boundaries and fostering the collapse of the regional states. As chaos and terror spread in Iraq, the USA must follow policies that do not enhance the power of the regime in Tehran. Even as we address other terrorist threats in the region like Al Qaeda or ISIS in Syria and Iraq, which are becoming increasingly urgent, the responses should be undertaken with a clear strategy to defeat the terrorists without directly or indirectly aiding the regime in Iran and legitimizing either it or its nuclear weapons program. It is a myth that the Iranian people support the ayatollah’s nuclear weapons program. They know better than anybody else that nuclear weapons for the ayatollahs and the Pasdaran are their trump card to stay in power. In fact for the last ten to 15 years it has been the MEK that has brought to the public attention of the world key aspects of the Ayatollah›s nuclear program to make it clear just how dangerous a threat it is. This is a time for the United States and the West as a whole to support all the legitimate opposition forces that commit to a nuclear free Iran and representative government as Madame Rajavi’s platform for the future does. The only sound approach is that the declared policy of the United States should be the overthrow of the mullahs’ totalitarian regime as soon as possible.
Ambassador Robert Joseph Former U.S. Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security
Madame Rajavi, you are the catalyst for the establishment of a free and democratic Iran.
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t is a true honor for me to participate in this great event celebrating the cause of freedom in Iran, and remembering the sacrifice of the thousands of martyrs. I have been working the nuclear issue for 12 years, ever since the MEK revealed the existence of the program and exposed the regime, its true objectives and the true threat that it represents. The Iranian regime consistently used diplomatic negotiations to buy more time to advance the program. There is a lot of speculation and hope that there will be an agreement. But this is a false hope because if there is an agreement, it will not stop the advance to the nuclear program. If there is no agreement that program will advance. So the only issue is how do we change, how do we overthrow the regime in Tehran? I would just recommend three steps, one is to restore the sanctions and to add additional sanctions to break the back of this government. Second, we must support the resistance, the opposition both within and outside of Iran, starting with protecting those who we have promised the safety, most importantly your brothers and sisters in Camp Liberty. And finally we must recognize and promote the essential role that the MEK can play as a catalyst for change. Madame Rajavi, you are the catalyst for the establishment of a free and democratic Iran, the establishment of what my 16th president said would be a government of the people, by the people and for the people.
Phillip Crowley U.S. Assistant Secretary of State 2011-2009
Change is not automatic. But it is inevitable. Because you have something that cannot be taken away, freedom from fear. And that will continue to fuel this opposition all the way to Tehran.
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hen someone said there is a hundred thousand people in the audience you don’t really appreciate its dimension and power until you stand in this very spot. We stand with you for seeking to be a part of the force that will ultimately change Iran for the better. The process of genuine and lasting change is difficult and takes time. But change is inevitable; it is happening across the region. No country is immune, least of all Iran. We are here to stand with you in supporting change in Iran. The people of Iran want something better, they deserve something better; a country that is a positive actor in the region and not a pariah; a country that supports human rights rather than subverts them; a country that gives its citizens a real choice in how it will be governed and by whom. We all want that for the people of Iran and we recognize that change comes only with great cost and sacrifice. Clearly we see that not just in Iran but in Iraq and Syria as well, where leaders have placed sectarian interests above their national interest. Now I hope Madame Rajavi is right, that change will come sooner rather than later. But we have to stay resolute. Change is not automatic. Change is not self-ordering. But it is inevitable. Because you have something that cannot be taken away, freedom from fear. And that will continue to fuel this opposition all the way to Tehran. IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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Spain Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero Former Prime Minister of Spain
In Maryam Rajavi’s words we can hear democracy, liberty and human rights. These are words that resound with strength in Iran.
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e know that freedom›s course is a fair course. We know that the fight for freedom is often painful, but it is worthwhile. Democracy through justice and dignity does not accept the superiority of anyone. No faith, no interpretation of God, no culture is superior to humankind’s free will to live together. In Maryam Rajavi’s words we can hear democracy, liberty and human rights. These are words that resound with strength in Iran. The whole world is waiting for a completely democratic Iran, a non-nuclear Iran committed to peace in the Middle East. In a region where violence, fanaticism and death are
growing, like in Iraq, Syria and many other areas, we exhort you to maintain a strong commitment to peace, free speech, dialogue and tolerance. Religion must look after religion and politics after politics. If politics is used in the name of religion it isn›t politics for everyone. And if politics isn›t for everyone there is no freedom. I also ask you to maintain a steadfast commitment to equal rights for women. Women have lived under domination and humiliation. And still today in most countries women suffer violence and injustice. Democracy does not exist without full rights for women. Justice does not exist if women are not free. No faith, no ideology, no culture, no party can justify discrimination against women.
I personally believe Madame Rajavi is an exemplary leader in the Middle East. Her secular, democratic platform is may be the only hope to millions in Iran.
Margarita Duran Vadell, Member of Spanish Senate
I
am really proud to speak on behalf of the Spanish delegation here in Paris; the Spanish delegation which includes members of the Spanish Parliament, and the European Parliament. All of us want to express our solidarity with this great congress today for Iran freedom. We were happy to have Mrs. Rajavi in Spain in December 2012. Many of us have attended the meetings of NCRI in Brussels, Geneva, and in Paris. I know you are suffering from the attacks on Camp Liberty and Ashraf, the seven hostages and the 52 martyrs in Ashraf. I personally believe Madame Rajavi is an exemplary leader in the Middle East and we think that she must be supported by Western countries. Her secular, democratic platform is may be the only hope to millions in Iran. We admire her support for human rights and democratic values. And also we admire 34
the courage of all these people like you who risk their lives and their freedom for a free Iran. Delusion of the so-called moderate mullah Rouhani in Iran is fading very fast. The execution of the 800 prisoners during the last 12 months is one of the highest numbers in the last year. Increasing repression of women, journalists, web bloggers and internet user show that the only solution is a regime change for a democratic Iran. And now I would like to conclude by expressing our best wishes to the brave people in Camp Liberty, as brave as the lion of your flag. They have always been in danger. I know, but now in this moment, this destiny can be worse. We are very concerned about them. Their resistance to all those inhuman actions by the government of Iraq, the government of al-Maliki, is an inspiration to all of us. We are engaged with you and we will keep supporting you until the day Iran is free. Viva Iran libre!
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
Albania Sali Berisha
Pandeli Majko
Former Prime Minister of Albania
Former Prime Minister of Albania
People who came from Camp Liberty are an extraordinary, excellent community, they did enjoy a lot the hospitality of my nation.
A
llow me to salute Madame Rajavi, the president; to salute all of you; people of the opposition resistance of Iran; the stoutest, the strongest, the oldest opposition of our time fighting for freedom and dignity of its nation. I came here to express my deep admiration for your struggle, for your extraordinary efforts, for your fight for the dignity of persons of your great nation. I admire you and I know very well what great challenges and difficulties you and your movement face. I came with great pleasure today to be with you and to bring the greetings of your fellow citizens in a small excellent community which one year ago left the Camp Liberty and came to our capital. You have to be proud of them. One year ago, I was approached by your leading people, U.S. government, and your European friends, and they asked me to take a decision and definitely I didn't hesitate at all to stand on the side of human rights. But my concerns were will this Iranian resistance people be happy and pleased in my country? And I could tell you and all the world they are an extraordinary, excellent community, they did enjoy a lot the hospitality of my nation. I wish that the actual government of Albania will do its own decision in favor of other compatriots from the Camp Liberty also to go to friendly countries but most of all to further Communist countries which know very well what dictatorship means, what exile and refugee means, as long as we are so much supported by free countries. Let us take the initiative to ease your burden, to end as soon as possible Camp Liberty; not to allow it to be turned into an infernal one by forces which have nothing to do with freedoms and democracy.
In the name of all my friends in Albania I have come here to say I am Mojahed.
M
y dear friends, Iranian brothers and sisters, two years ago we were here in such a podium only two people. I finished my short speech saying that next time we Albanians will come in front of you with 22 people. But it looks that we have passed the borders of our promises. But our delegation is different. Here you don't have only politicians, members of Parliament, but you also have doctors, professors, lawyers, people that consider Iranians who have come to our country like part of our family. You want it or not, you have involved us in your story, in your drama, in your tragedies, and we understand you very well. This is the reason that we have all come here. Some years ago in the middle of the Cold War, American President Kennedy was in West Berlin. West Berlin was more or less like Ashraf Camp in the middle of the Communist world. And from Berlin this politician, this great man declared his very famous expression, ich bin Berliner. I am a Berliner. And in the name of all my friends in Albania I have come here to say I am Mojahed.
Delegation from Albania
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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Iceland
Delegation from Nordic countries
Geir Haarde, Former Prime Minister of Iceland
And when the mullahs are gone the leaders or the Western countries have some explaining to do for why they have stood by the religious dictatorship in Iran.
I
would like to say on behalf of the Nordic delegation that we are very pleased and proud to be able to be here today at this annual rally, which is basically a parade. It's a parade of politicians and public in favor of your great cause, in favor of democracy and freedom in Iran. This year this event is taking place in very different circumstances where the Iranian rulers are engulfed by various crises, the latest being recent developments in Iraq. They understand and we understand that for them to be able to pursue their aggressive policy they need to have a puppet dictator in Iraq, and he must go. And when the mullahs are gone the leaders or the Western countries have some explaining to do for why they have stood by the religious dictatorship in Iran, why they had failed the people of Iran while their rights had been trampled for
Romania Ardelean Ben-oni
such a long time. There will be some explaining to do by the United States, by a number of other countries who have been more interested in dealing with the Iranian rulers rather than working in the interest of the ordinary people in Iran. Madame Rajavi, we want you to know that we have been and continue to be on your side until you achieve the human rights of all your people in full and you can put your ten point plan into action. And we believe that your longstanding and relentless efforts for democracy will soon come to a successful end.
Nederland Adrianus Melkert, Former leader of the Dutch
Senator from Romania Delegation from Romania and Moldavia
Labour Party and Special Representative of UN Secretary General (2009 to 2011).
The humanitarian imperative and the cause of human rights should prevail over political considerations
I I hope next time this delegation will go to Iran and celebrate the freedom, democracy and a free Iran. It is not only your cause. It is our cause and we want to celebrate with you a free Iran.
I
have with me here distinguished members from the Romanian Parliament and from the Moldovian Parliament and I really thank them and all the others that couldn’t come tonight for their support for you and our cause because it is a common cause for all of us. I think we are the ones who understand you the most because we used to live under a dictatorial regime, very similar to what is happening right now in Iran. It was a regime that was putting people in prison; it was a regime that was killing people; it was a regime that executed people; it was a regime that was very much of an oppressive type of regime that spread the fear cont. on pg 45 into the nation. 36
'm grateful for the opportunity to express at this truly impressive meeting my feelings of deep sympathy with a cause of freedom, the need for reconciliation and the promise of peace, democracy and social progress in Iran and the Middle East that is in such turmoil today. And to express my strong hope that the humanitarian imperative and the cause of human rights should prevail over political considerations to which no individual should be held hostage. Sadly, this continues to be the case for those that were uprooted in Ashraf. I remember during my term as special representative of the UN Secretary General that we encountered no spirit of compromise that seemed to provide the minimum of guarantees necessary to recognize the humanitarian primacy that was and is the future of the Ashraf residents. That is why I urged time and again Prime Minister Maliki to relieve the unacceptable pressure and to help look for peaceful and genuine solutions. Some three years later I'm very concerned that Camp Liberty has turned into a place unworthy of its name's promise, that the international community prefers silence over outcry. On top of that, matters are now worsening in the wake of the bitter confrontation in Iraq and Syria. With so many gross violations of human rights, who will still dare to knock at the door of justice and provide safe shelter for the Liberty residents? For the cause of human rights and to obey the humanitarian imperative, let us double our efforts to find solutions and set free in safety the Camp Liberty people that should not be left alone.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
Germany Otto Bernhardt
Delegation from Germany
Chair of German Committee in Solidarity with Free Iran
It should become our common goal to have all our Camp Liberty friends relocated to a safe third country.
W
e all have the opportunity to live freely and in peace. But every day that passes, our friends in Camp Liberty are living under rising threats. It should become our common goal to have all our Camp Liberty friends relocated to a safe third country before the next annual gathering in 2015. Today, we have with us delegations from 69 countries. I do not believe I have the right to criticize but it is true that from these 69 countries only two have accepted a sizeable number of Camp Liberty residents. At the forefront is Albania which has accepted 200 residents and has hence earned my respect. We in Germany
have accepted around 100 residents and I had the opportunity to personally welcome almost all of them. Therefore, I address all the delegations from those countries that have not yet accepted any of the Liberty residents: let us go back to our countries and start our attempts from next day to ensure that every country will accept a number of Camp Liberty residents. The greatest gift to our president Mrs. Rajavi will really be if next year we declare that we no longer have a Camp Liberty problem and that all the residents currently in Camp Liberty are living in safety.
Ingrid Betancourt,
Colombia
former Presidential candidate in Colombia
Show to the world this gathering of worldwide leaders and free Iranians living freely in Europe, defying with their presence the deadly craziness of the mullah.
T
o all those who believe that the people of Iran have been silenced, let them have a look at what is happening here. Show to the world this gathering of worldwide leaders and free Iranians living freely in Europe, defying with their presence the deadly craziness of the mullahs. In spite of more than a hundred thousand of executions, women, kids, men killed because they dared to say no, no to the whip, no to the gallows, no to the prohibition of happiness, of music, of joy, here is the free people of Iran responding to the call, standing up to confront the murderers of Tehran. The day of liberty, of true liberty, of freedom, is now close. We are the witnesses of the resurrection of a democratic, secular, gender equalitarian free Iran. Thank you Madame Rajavi, my sweet and admired friend, thank you for being the leader, for having the courage and the vision for your people and for giving us the opportunity of sharing the day of glory that is near for all Iranians and for the friends of Iran. Thank you, thank you so much, I love you, I love you.
Egypt Hoda Abdel Nasser,
Writer, University lecturer and daughter of the late Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser
I
must say I am amazed by the level of this meeting and the number of participants particularly the youth. I am from a nation that understands the problem of Iran. Iran has presented a dangerous sample to the region. This sample is a religious rule which has intensified the grief and agony of our region. I had pinned hopes on Iran’s revolution but what came out was reactionary and medieval. Every Sheikh in Egypt imagined himself as a Khomeini. But we were lucky that the religious rule lasted only for a year in Egypt; we were
I am with Iran but with Iran's Resistance and not with its regime.
lucky that our people revolted and said that they did not want the regime and they opposed it; we were lucky that as we struggled for liberating ourselves from a religious rule, the army stood by the people. We needed an instrument to succeed and that instrument was the army. I am very much impressed by Maryam Rajavi’s character and her speech. I love Iran as I have Iranian blood in me; my grandparent was Iranian who was born in Isfahan and migrated to Egypt. Inside me, I am with Iran but with the Iranian Resistance not with the Iranian regime. Hope is the most important thing. I hope that next year we will celebrate Iran’s return to its true nation with its rich culture, civilization and well-known magnificent history.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
37
Algeria
Egypt Sid Ahmed Ghozali
Mohammad el-Orabi,
Former Algerian Prime Minister
Former Egyptian foreign minister
This regime will fall because the Iranian people have an organization that defends their honour and dignity.
The people of Egypt follow your campaigns and your fight for democracy eagerly.
I
salute all Maryam Rajavi’s followers in a struggle for freedom and democracy that has exceeded a third of a century. It is a struggle that is not only in the interest of the Iranian people and the Iraqi people. All Arabs and Muslims are directly affected by this struggle. Ten years ago, you were a few thousand, then tens of thousands. For the last three years, you have exceeded a hundred thousand. And soon the day will come when you will be 500,000, of course not in Villepinte, but in Tehran, just as you were at Massoud Rajavi’s last meeting in Iran in 1980. As the result of this struggle, the day that this regime falls will come inevitably because it is unjust; this regime will fall because the Iranian people have an organization that represents and fights for and defends their honour and dignity. We are concerned for the Iraqi people who have suffered martyrdom because of the criminal actions of the clerical regime and the government of Maliki with the complacency of the American administration. We fear for the safety of our brothers in the concentration camp called Camp Liberty. The U.S. administration is responsible for the safety of our brothers in Liberty and must take its responsibilities.
L
ast year, in my speech, I mentioned that on June 30 of 2013, the people of Egypt will remove the Muslim Brotherhood from government. They did so in a very peaceful manner. Today’s Egypt could be exemplified by other countries seeking peace and democracy. I believe the people of Egypt will achieve their goals and Egypt will find its leadership role in the region, leadership for peace, democracy and human rights. The people of Egypt follow your campaigns and your fight for democracy eagerly. They wish you the best and pray for your victory. I wish you success and convey the Egyptian people’s greetings to you. Happy Ramadan.
Jordan
Mohammad Al-Haj Member of the Jordanian Parliament
T
he events that are taking place in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Bahrain, Lebanon, Palestine and other countries in the region undoubtedly indicate the track and trace of the Iranian regime in all these countries. Iran, assisted by a clear US vigilance, has institutionalized its influence in Iraq and has been instrumental in provoking religious and ethnic differences among the people of Iraq. The people of Iraq, fed up with their government, have decided to make necessary changes. Maliki’s and the Iranian regime’s propaganda machine call them terrorists to deceive the world. It is the Iranian regime which provides financial and military support for such terrorist 38
The people of Iraq, fed up with their government, have decided to make necessary changes. Maliki’s and the Iranian regime’s propaganda machine call them terrorists to deceive the world.
groups, not only in Iraq but also in Syria. I would like to urge my American and European friends to speak to their respective governments; try to convince them to divert their appeasement policy towards Iran. Greetings to the Mojahedin in Camp Liberty. I call on the UN and US to provide basic living requirements for the camp residents since we regard them as those responsible for the safety and security of the residents.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
Iraq
Palestine
Azam Al Ahmad,
Tariq Al-Hashimi,
head of Fatah Parliamentary bloc Member of the Central Committee of Fatah
Former Vice-President of Iraq
I wish to convey our solidarity with the Iranian Resistance to you and all the participants in the annual gathering.
I
wish to convey our solidarity with the Iranian Resistance to you and all the participants in the annual gathering. I like to take this opportunity to send our greetings and wishes to you and all the brothers in the National Council of Resistance of Iran. We wish you further progress and success in your struggle. I would have liked to have participated in your annual gathering, but as you know we are experiencing difficult times specially after the formation of a government of national consensus and Israel’s hysteric campaign regarding the disappearance of three Jewish residents. They are exploiting this incident with a series of collective punishments against the Palestinian people especially in Jerusalem through acts of murder torture and mass arrests. The aims of these actions are to obstruct the work of the Palestinian government of national consensus and to continue the occupation. I wish you success in your endeavors. Respectfully yours.
T
PMOI showed unique example of courage, = patience and tolerance, and did not lose hope in wakening the international community.
he rights organizations have described the attack on Fallujah as a genocidal crime against humanity. But despite that the international community, particularly the EU, U.S. and Russia remained silent which led Maliki to consider it as a green light to continue his attacks against other provinces. These attacks included the political refugees members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran who have been Iraq’s guests for many years, such that Maliki’s terrorism at the behest of Tehran’s mullahs have been imposed on them 24 hours a day sometimes using the army and sometimes using terrorist militia affiliated with the Iranian regime. They showed unique example of courage, patience and tolerance, and despite their difficult conditions, they did not lose hope even for a moment in wakening the international community in their responsibility so that they are treated in accordance with the international law regarding the injustice on them in Iraq. I call upon all those interested in the future of Iraq including our brothers and friends and those who are sympathetic to the lives and blood of the Iraqi people. I ask you in this gathering to stand with us in order to do our duty which has remained unfinished since 2003. I thank you and wish you great success and victory in your gathering. I ask you to increase your solidarity and cooperation with the PMOI, the organizer of the gathering. Peace and mercy of God be upon you.
Delegation from Palestine
Nejat Al-Astal,
Member of the Palestinian Parliament
W
e are coming to you from Palestine, the land of prophets and messengers of god, the land of fight for democracy and an independent Palestine with Qods as its capital. One day we will free our country and freedom and human dignity will return to us. We have a clever leader that has been able to unite us all towards our goals. We have said no to regimes like Iran which are against unity and peace and we have rejected them all. We, the parliamentarians from Palestine who represent the people of Palestine, announce our support for Madam Rajavi’s attempts
We, the parliamentarians from Palestine announce our support for Madam Rajavi’s attempts for peace, democracy and human rights, and the fight for a regime change in Iran.
for peace, democracy and human rights, and the fight for a regime change in Iran. We salute the resistance of our sisters and brothers in Camp Liberty. We salute the dead and pray for the wounded. Due to policies of Maliki’s regime, supported by the Iranian regime, Iraq is stepping forward to face big changes. We will be triumphant in this fight.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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USA
General David Phillips
Colonel Wesley Martin
Colonel Thomas Cantwell
Former US Chief of Military Police and commander of all Police operation in Iraq
Former commander of Anti-terrorism Force Protection for all Coalition Forces in Iraq and commander of U.S. protection at Camp Ashraf
Former Commander of Ashraf Protection
M
y comments today are directed right at Camp Liberty, specifically Madame Mojgan Parsaei. It was ten years ago this month, in June of 2004, when I sat across the table and handed you the first promissory note on behalf of the United States government that you and the over 3,000 other members at Camp Ashraf were protected persons under the Geneva Convention. Unfortunately, both you and I know a significant number of the people who were seated around that table in June 2004 have since been murdered. There was no protection. Well, I was there when the promise was made to you ten years ago and I will be there when that promise is ultimately fulfilled.
Y
ou provide a testimonial by your endless commitment to democracy in Iran and the pain being suffered by our brothers and sisters at Camp Liberty. We will keep this fight going no matter what lies, what antics Maliki and his regime tries to pull. The latest many of you have heard is the Iraqi government is now claiming the residents of Camp Liberty are tunneling outside the camp to help the ISIS forces. That is totally impossible because the water cable is only six feet down. We stand together today, we stood together on the deserts of Diyala province, and we will stand together always, and one day in Tehran.
M
y name is Tom Cantwell, and in 2003, I drove on to Camp Ashraf for the first time. I want to tell you briefly about the people that were at Camp Ashraf at that time. In short they were people of honor and integrity. Today in 2014, a large group of them are now interred at Camp Liberty. They are the same people of honor and integrity, and I will not forget you.
Colonel Dr. Gary Morsch Former Commander of Ashraf Protection
I
want to say hello to my dear friends and fellow patriots in Camp Liberty and Albania. When I left Ashraf in 2004 the last thing I said to my friends there was that I will see you again in a free Tehran. And I am going to save my speech until then. I’m going to hang on to it, because I will see our friends there.
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IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
I was there when the promise was made to you ten years ago and I will be there when that promise is ultimately fulfilled. - General David Phillips
General Hugh Shelton
General George Casey
General James Conway
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (2001-1997)
Chief of Staff of the US Army and Commander of Multi-National Force – Iraq (2007-2004)
The 34th Commandant of the Marine Corps
The Iranian regime is not just a challenge for the people of Iran, of Iraq or for the region. It is a challenge for the international community.That regime must go.
My commitment is to resettle the residents of Liberty and to change the US misguided policy.
A
s a former United States Army officer I am embarrassed to stand here in view of my country’s broken promise. The U.S. Army, acting on behalf of the US government, made a solemn vow, a promise to protect the residents of Ashraf. The United States has failed to keep its commitment. Later, Ambassador Dan Fried came out to Camp Liberty and made all types of promises regarding the safety and resettlement. Every one of those has been disavowed. It is an absolute disgrace. It is also disgraceful that the U.S. is asking the residents of Liberty to renounce the MEK in order to be admitted into the United States. The MEK would not and should not tolerate such a disgraceful policy by the current administration. This must be changed, and I can assure you that myself and my colleagues continue to fight until it is changed as a policy because this also dishonors the US Army; it dishonors our nation. Washington, wake up. The real solution is to cut off the mullahs hands in Iraq, end Maliki’s rule in Iraq and allow for a national unity government. My commitment and the commitment of my colleagues today is to resettle the residents of Liberty, to change the US misguided policy and adopt a policy that supports the MEK and Mrs. Rajavi in her quest for regime change in Tehran and for democracy in Iran.
I
believe the Iranian regime’s goals in Iraq were two-fold. One, that they wanted a friendly supportive Iraqi government in place. But two, they wanted the US government to fail in its efforts to help the Iraqis build a government that was fairly representative of all of the ethnic and sectarian groups in Iraq. And I believe that type of government is fundamentally important to stability, not only in Iraq but also in the region. I watched how the regime pursued those goals aggressively through a three-pronged approach. First they built political influence by financial contributions to Iraqi political parties and political leaders. Second, they built public support by economic contributions to communities, especially in the southern part of the country. And third, they fostered sectarian violence.I can tell you that given that experience, the Iranian regime will be destabilizing the region for some time to come, and that Iranian regime is not just a challenge for the people of Iran, for the people of Iraq, or for the region. It is a challenge for the international community, and there can only be one conclusion and you have heard it many, many times already today. That regime must go.
I am more concerned than ever before for the safety and security of your country men at Liberty.
I
was one of those people who made a promise to your countrymen That is why I am here with you today. I have for you three quick points: First of all, as a nation we follow some of our immigration laws, others we choose to ignore. Those people at Liberty clearly meet the definition for political asylum and yet we somehow are not allowing that to happen. I am more concerned than ever before for the safety and security of your country men at Liberty when the world is distracted by other events, Syria, the attacks into Iraq, there is ample precedent for bad people doing bad things, so I am concerned for their safety and security if the Iranian presence in the Maliki government is diminished in time to come as they leave Iraq, what on towards thing they may be capable of, again with regard to your country. My third point is that, and this is really to nations that represented today here, many of whom have superb records for humanitarian assistance, I ask that you consider doing the right thing for those people who again in my mind are in increased levels of jeopardy before the real danger approaches. So please as you go back to your nations tell them what you see here today and try to make a difference.
IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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USA
Excerpts of video messages of solidarity Senator John McCain
Senator Robert Menendez
Foreign Relation Committee and Armed Services Committee
Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
Senator Carl Levin
I
want to acknowledge the important role played by the MEK leadership in exposing the duplicity of the regime in Iran. We all know who ultimately holds power in Iran and who makes decisions. Iran’s leadership has deliberately armed and trained Iraqi Shiite militias to bleed US forces into Iraq. It is a state sponsor of terrorism and this will not change regardless of what takes place at the negotiating table in Vienna or what happens in Iraq. I have made clear to US administration officials that the safety and security of MEK members of Camp Liberty must continue to be a priority. For that we stand in solidarity together.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Armed Services
I
join in your cause on Iraq to secure the safety of the residents of Camp Liberty to prevent further harm from those who are doing the harm to those who still live there and to hold accountable those responsible for violence against the camps residents. While a small portion of the Camp Liberty residents have been resettled safely outside of Iraq, it remains imperative that the international community including the United States provide a safe home for all the camp’s residents.
W
e can’t allow the negotiations over a nuclear agreement overshadow the human rights situation in Iran that grows worse and worse each day. As the Iranian regime continues to suppress the rights of its citizens it fosters instability throughout the region and sponsors terrorism across the globe. It’s vitally important that the United States do more to assist the residents of Camp Ashraf and Camp Liberty. I promise I will never give up until everyone in Camp Ashraf and Liberty are free to go wherever they want, hopefully many to the United States of America.
We can’t allow the negotiations over a nuclear agreement overshadow the human rights situation in Iran that grows worse and worse each day. - John McCain
Congressman Ed Royce Chair, Foreign Affairs Committee
I
know that some thought the election of President Rouhani might be a turning point. I would hope it would be, but I think we should remember that this is a man who called on the regime’s Basij militia to ‘crush mercilessly and monumentally’ the student protesters. He is the man who appointed, as Minister of Justice, a person responsible for the summary execution of scores of people in the late 1980s without trial or due process. If Iran and the P5+1 come to an agreement next month that allows the regime to retain much of its critical nuclear infrastructure in place, the Obama Administration will essentially be trusting a regime that holds the noose in one hand to hold the keys to a nuclear bomb in the other.
Senator John Boozman Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
I
am an active member of the Iran Human Rights and Democracy Caucus, which aims to shed light on the efforts of the Iranian people to bring change and democracy to their country. I agree that the US must adopt a firm policy towards the ruling regime in Iran and I support the Iranian people’s desire for the establishment of a democratic government.
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Excerpts of messages of solidarity Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher
Chair, Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa
I
have worked continuously to impose sanctions against the regime, not just for its illicit nuclear program, but for its support for terrorism and its flagrant human rights abuses. I am the author of the toughest sanctions currently codified in U.S. law against Iran, and I will continue to oppose the regime and any warming in relations between the U.S. and Iran while the Supreme Leader remains in power. I have also been engaged and extremely vocal in my support for the residents of Camp Liberty, and have been outspoken against Iran, Iraq and the UN for failing to uphold their obligations in this humanitarian crisis we see currently at the Camp. We must keep up the pressure on the U.S. Administration, the UN, the Iraqis and the Iranians.
Congressman John Howard Coble
T
he current rulers in Iran are dedicated to destroying those elements who wish to see the people truly empowered. They continue to support terrorism abroad and crackdown on dissent at home. I commend you for standing up to the Mullah regime and supporting the residents imprisoned in Camp Liberty. As a Member of the US Congress, I have worked to secure the safe release of the MEK members held Iraq. I hope to see them safe soon.
Congressman Mike Coffman
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
O
Chair, Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia and the Emerging Threats
Congressman Tom McClintock
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
n behalf of the citizens of North Carolina’s Sixth District, I would like to express solidarity with the National Council of Resistance in Iran (NCRI) and with those who support a democratic change in that nation. We fully support restoration of a secular, nuclear-free democracy in Iran. Our office also shares a great concern for the Iranian dissidents currently held at Camp Liberty and asks that the United States and the United Nations immediately allow their resettlement to willing countries.
Y
our struggle for democratic change in Iran, and your pledge to adhere to international norms and laws as the basis of your own judicial system, is the glimmer of hope that is much needed in the troubled lands of the Middle East. It is therefore an essential element for United States national security to ensure true democratic change in Iran. Protection of your fellow countrymen at Camp Liberty in Iraq, particularly in light of the promises of protection that U.S. forces had given them on the ground in Iraq, is an essential step. We need to combat the same type of vicious aggression the people of Iran have to deal with on a daily basis.
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
I
am a cosponsor of LI.Res.89 that condemns terrorist attacks against members of the Iranian opposition and requests that the safety and security of the residents of Camp Liberty be assured. I am eager to see the United States help to resettle these individuals out of Iraq, including the United States. All those who value liberty around the world send their good wishes and prayers to those who now struggle for it in Iran. The people of Iran can take confidence that their cause is just and, in the full measure of time, just causes always prevail. I am committed to pursuing policies that will bring about the free and democratic Iran that we all desire.
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Rudy Giuliani From page 21
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ow absurd, how stupid is that? Iran has solved the problem of Iraq, for Iran. They have Maliki, that is their solution. We are seeking to engage them in helping us in Iraq, and three days ago the Ayatollah gave a speech and said, you know what, the United States should stay out of Iraq, because he wants to control Iraq; because he is perfectly happy with the solution that now exists with Maliki in control. It all gets back to the same thing; we cannot solve the problem in Iraq without solving the problem in Iran. And the same thing is true for the negotiations for a nuclearfree Iran. Please remember that until the interim agreement the whole struggle was to keep Iran from having nuclear capacity, any form of nuclear capacity. Iran does not need the peaceful use of nuclear power. That would be like Saudi Arabia needing the peaceful use of nuclear power. It is absurd. They have got plenty of energy. They are not a state starving for energy. They do not need the peaceful use of nuclear power. You would have to be an idiot to accept that argument. You would have to be foolish, childish and immature not to realize that what they want to do is to be recognized and allowing them to have the peaceful use of nuclear power. Then they want to do to us what they did to us before, in 2003, and 2005, they want to cheat, they want to fool us again. Remember, we went through this before. They promised they were not going to enrich uranium. And then they were caught red-handed three times enriching uranium. Who was in charge of that program for Iran? Rouhani the reformer, who brags about it in his memoirs that he fooled us, that he cheated us, that he lied to us. And who caught him? Who caught him in his lies? You did, the MEK. So let's tell the world what's going on inside Iran right now, under the reformer. More oppression than even when Ahmadinejad was there. More executions than even when Ahmadinejad was there. You think those executions are happening by accident? Those executions are happening because the Ayatollah and Rouhani want to present a picture of a reformer to the rest of the world with a big smiling face, but they don't want the people of Iran to misunderstand the message. They don't want the people of Iran to start believing maybe he really is a reformer, because they know how fragile their regime is. They know what happened several years ago
when the U.S. turned their back on the people of Iran. They know that dictatorships, oppressive murdering dictatorships like the theocracy in Iran are always resting on a very, very, very thin reed, always right on the precipice of being overthrown. They know that because they know what is going on inside Iran and they are killing people for two reasons, to make sure the people of Iran don't get the wrong message and start to believe that Rouhani is a reformer. Apparently they've been able to convince the administration in my country that he is a reformer. Apparently they've been able to convince parts of Europe that he is a reformer. But they want to make sure the people of Iran don't make that mistake. They want the people of Iran to know he is as big a murderer, as big a killer, as big an executioner as you have ever had in Iran. So let's reiterate, what do we need out of a nuclear agreement with Iran? Here is what we need out of a nuclear agreement with Iran. Number one, no nuclear capacity for Iran, none. So long as the Ayatollah is there, so long as Rouhani is there, they cannot be trusted with nuclear capacity. No nuclear capacity. Inspection at any and all times. And never ever, for any reason, never ever in any negotiation for any reason give up the principle of regime change in Iran because ultimately it is the only solution. Last thought. These very big issues that affect the peace that Iran, the United States and the world are engaging. But we can't let this moment pass without remembering our people who are left behind in Iraq; they are the ones paying the price. The people now at the concentration camp, Never ever, for any at the killing field known reason, never ever in any as Camp Liberty. Camp negotiation for any reason Liberty, they should be give up the principle of ashamed of themselves regime change in Iran for calling it Camp because ultimately it is the Liberty. The United only solution States should be ashamed of itself, the UN should be ashamed of itself and the people in charge in Iraq should be in jail. They are war criminals. They have gone into Ashraf and murdered. They have gone into Liberty and murdered. They are war criminals. They have committed crimes against humanity. And we negotiate with them and we talk to them and we prop them up. So to the people at Liberty, please understand we are here for you, we remember you, we will fight for you. We wish we could deliver you. I wish my country would live up to its promise. I wish my country would not continue to dishonor itself by having promised you freedom and protection and denied it to you. I wish I could make that happen. But no matter how strongly we all feel about it, and you see these people who are here with us today, no matter how strongly we feel about it, there is one person who feels it every minute of every hour of every day. She is a great woman. And when the history of your country is written, Madame Rajavi will be known as the great liberator of Iran. It is my honor to present to you Madame Rajavi.
Joseph Lieberman From page 21
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hat is why the American revolutionaries in the 18th century, men like Jefferson and Franklin, declared that resistance to tyrants is obedience to God. And so I say today to the people of Iran, the people of the resistance, and I say it also to the tyrants who today rule over
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Iran, never forget resistance to tyrant is obedience to God. In resisting the current regime in Iran, we must be realistic. We must not close our eyes to what they do or our ears to what they say. It is a year now since the soft smile of Rouhani has replaced the threatening grimace of Ahmadinejad. But I ask you, my friends, has anything else about the policies of Iran changed in the last year? No! I couldn’t agree with you more. They have not changed. Iran under Rouhani continues to directly support mass murder of the innocent people of Syria. Iran under Rouhani continues to fund and train violent murdering terrorists in the Middle East and beyond. Iran under Rouhani continues to insist on maintaining its nuclear capability and the systems and weapons to deliver it. Iran under Rouhani continues to punish imprisoned Iranians who simply want to speak their minds. And it does more than that. As Madame Rajavi said so powerfully, in increasing numbers it kills the dissidents by hanging. Iran under Rouhani continues to leave the people of Iran suffering economically from poverty and unemployment. And yet in spite of all that as I say we can see with our eyes, we can hear with our ears, there are those outside Iran, including people in high places, who want to see Iran as they wish it would be not as it is today. And I am afraid some of those are in the United States of America. Those who meet with the regime, who trust its representatives, who consider working with Iran and Iraq, deceive themselves. But more than that they endanger the rest of us. Their hopes blind their eyes to the truth nothing has changed in Iran under Rouhani and Khamenei. They are the enemies of freedom, the enemies of America, and the enemies of the people of Iran. There is only one sure way to secure the world from the threat that this regime in Their hopes blind their eyes to Tehran represents. the truth nothing has changed It is for the Iranian in Iran under Rouhani and people to overthrow Khamenei. They are the enemies these tyrants and of freedom, the enemies of for freedom-loving America, and the enemies of the people throughout people of Iran the world to support this next great revolution. You of the National Council of Resistance of Iran know all this and have fought valiantly and effectively to wake up the world’s leaders from their sleep and illusions before it is too late. I thank you for that. And I want to thank you as an American for all you have done to enable America to have the intelligence necessary to protect our people and our allies from Iranian-backed terrorism and Iranian nuclear weapons. We could not do it without your help. So it is time for America to come to our values, America which we proudly call the land of the free and the home of the brave; it is time for us to give full support to the brave Iranians of the resistance for today fighting to be free. Remember the warning from Dante that the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who in time of moral crisis preserve their neutrality. There is a moral crisis in Iran today. There is a moral crisis at Camp Liberty in Iraq today. And for anyone, including particularly America, to remain neutral in the face of these moral crises is just plain wrong. I want to say to you that the program of the National Council of Resistance of Iran is totally consistent with American values. You are not just the enemy of our enemies, you are our friends, our allies, our brothers and sisters, our partners in pursuit of freedom, human rights, and the rule of law. The spread of freedom is our shared goal, and it is our destiny. And I will tell you, as you can see by the extraordinary group of American leaders that are here today, that support for the resistance is growing in America. As a matter of fact I said to one of my friends from America today that in Washington these days you don’t see this kind of bipartisan delegation that you see here in France in support of the Iranian resistance. Now let me say finally really to echo the moving words of Madame
Rajavi, we know that the battle ahead will not be easy but we will not surrender. And I hope you will take comfort and encouragement in the words of one of the original freedom fighters in America, Thomas Paine, who said, “Tyranny is not easily conquered yet we have this consolation, the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph.” So, let us go forward from this extraordinary event prepared to pay any price and bear any burden to assure a glorious triumph of liberty for the people of Iran that will make the world a better and safer place for us and our children.
Ardelean Ben-oni From page 36
One of the things that I want to share with you tonight is that I represent in the Senate of Romania the city of Timisoara where the revolution started that changed the regime at that time. Romania was the only country within eastern Europe that had a dictatorial regime that was overthrown by a bloody revolution. In all the other countries in the eastern Europe, there was a soft revolution. In Romania there was a bloody revolution; the people at that time couldn’t stand the regime anymore, so they decided to rise against it and the regime chose to kill the people. Timisoara was surrounded with forces from the dictator in order to erase it from the face of the earth. But at that time people resisted. People stayed there in the streets and protested. People were willing to give their lives because they knew they wanted freedom. It will be a time when all of you will be very happy because Iran will be free. I hope this time will be very soon and I hope next time this delegation along with other members of the Romanian and Moldavian Parliament will go to Iran and celebrate the freedom, democracy and a free Iran. That’s what we want. That is our march together. It is not only your cause. It is our cause and we want to celebrate with you a free Iran.
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Turkey
Pakistan
India
Nursel Aydogan
Fouzia Saeed
Ranjana Kumari
Member of Turkish Parliament from Peace and Democracy Party
Renowned Gender Equality activist, Former adviser to Pakistan’s Prime Minister on Gender right issues.
Women’s rights activist and head of Center for Social Research in new Deli.
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special salute to Mrs. Rajavi who symbolizes this resistance and leads it. Likewise I salute the women who are extremely oppressed; I very well know your resistance is extremely enduring, because our countries are in the same neighbourhood in the region. I must emphasize on this very important fact that in any movement in any place in the world, if led by women, it will prevail and success becomes achievable.I believe in your victory in Iran. Dear friends, in our view, the Islam represented by the mullahs is not the true Islam, because it does not respect freedom in Iran, it does not respect the freedom for women. In Iran, the state ideology rules and if one does not agree with them, is doomed. If you have a government that is against its own people, the people should fight against it. We feel ourselves as partners with you in your fight. We support this fight, led by Mrs. Rajavi, a fight for the liberation of women, a fight for peace and democracy, the women of Turkey are with you in this fight and are certain of your victory.
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Bring greetings from the largest democracy. We just had a regime change with the most peaceful and democratic method of vote. I think in the 21st century, the global community has to choose and stand by democracy, freedom and human rights. We have to reject all forms of religious fundamentalism; we have to reject tyranny, all kinds of oppressive regimes. There is no place, no place for this undemocratic regime that kills people and exploits people and is really something that the Iranian people are fighting against under the leadership of Mrs. Maryam Rajavi. I think the future belongs to the people of Iran and to its leadership, So I think it is important that all kinds of stories, messages, the brutalities that the Iranian people are facing should come closer home to Indian people, 1.2 billion people. Democratic people need to support you and stand by you in your struggle for this very important freedom, democracy, liberty and also the dignity of the people of Iran. So, I really extend the full support of the Indian women and people to you.
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come from an area where we have very strong women leaders. So, we have had a tradition of women taking on these very brutal dictators. Currently in Pakistan, our biggest challenges are fundamentalism and extremism and Terrorism. I truly believe that it is it would be the women of Pakistan that will take on this battle in this country and especially after the day before yesterday, witnessing the power of a woman leader and other women leaders who are very good organizers and in this region, the way forward is for the women to lead and others to join the battle against fundamentalism and extremism. I must say that I was very touched with the spirit and commitment that I have seen here and with the inspiration that Madame Rajavi has inculcated in both men and women. I have a gender bias; I find it very amazing to see so many empowered women and all these speakers, I think that is the way forward.
In The Presse
Iran resistance leader predicts regime change in exclusive Fox News interview By Eric Shawn It is a blunt call for regime change in Tehran.
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he largest gathering of the Iranian resistance starts Friday with "I believe any such possibility left at the hands of the mullahs paves the the annual convention of the Council of Resistance of Iran. The way for them to quickly obtain what they want, (nuclear weapons), at sponsors expect 100,000 people to assemble in a massive hall outside a time they so choose," she warned. "For this reason, it is imperative Paris for hours of speeches, demonstrations and protests aimed at that Security Council resolutions are implemented fully by the mullah's toppling the Iranian government. dictatorship. Otherwise, any concessions to the mullahs will no doubt "I am confident that the mullahs' religious dictatorship ruling Iran enable them to find a way to cheat in order to secretly continue its will not last in the 21st century and will be overthrown," predicts activity to reach the nuclear bomb...this is unacceptable." the group's leader, Maryam Rajavi. "It really begs logic to expect this Tehran has long denied that it seeks nuclear weapons, and says that it religious dictatorship, the founder of terrorism and fundamentalism only wants nuclear capability for the generation of electricity, a claim in the whole of the region and is seeking nuclear weapons, to take many critics deride. Rajavi worries that a potential agreement would international policy hostage, to continue and endure." still leave an opening for Iran to quickly develop a bomb. In an exclusive Fox News interview, her first for American television, "We hope that in these negotiations, the international community Rajavi methodically laid out what she sees as Tehran's intentions: to would succeed in halting the bomb making of the mullahs, which spread radical fundamentalism, obtain a nuclear weapon and do is what we, the Iranian resistance and the Iranian people, want. whatever it can to eliminate opponents, including continued executions Regrettably, the direction of the talks does not show such a thing." of her supporters to silence the opposition. She also said that Iran's goal is to expand its brand of religious "The mullahs do not represent the Iranian people," she said. "What the fundamentalism at the expense of the West, a prospect that has Iranian people are yearning for and what represents them, is an Iran emboldened Bashar al-Assad in Syria and Nouri al-Maliki in Iraq. which the Iranian resistance envisions: an Iran which is free, democratic "One of the regime's strategic pillars is the export of terrorism and and where the ballot box speaks, a non-nuclear fundamentalism. Many regime officials have stated Iran, with gender equality, where women and "They cannot be trusted," officially that Syria and Iraq represent the strategic men and youth enjoy equal rights and do not Rajavi insisted. "It is depth for the regime. Therefore, the focal point of threaten and endanger the world with war and abundantly clear that the what is happening in Syria and Iraq, is Tehran," challenges." she said. The group, also known as the MEK, or Peoples' mullahs' regime is after the She added that goal is now playing out on the Mujahdin Organization of Iran, first waged a nuclear bomb. Thus we are world stage with the collapse of the Iraqi army and battle against the Shah of Iran and then turned demanding an end to the the embattled prime minister reportedly receiving nuclear program." its calling to opposing the current regime. Iranian help. She says al-Maliki "should step aside," But the group is not without controversy. It was and that "the formation of a national coalition listed as a terrorist organization for years, and was only de-listed by government is the only way to resolve the present crisis in Iraq, all of European and U.S. governments in the last six years. Its officials say the which point to Tehran and its eviction from Iraq. listing was a concession by Western governments to appease Tehran, "The mullahs in Iran received Iraq on a silver platter and has greatly and Iranian officials have long reportedly targeted it in negotiations interfered in every aspect of life in that country, such that it is common with the West. knowledge that al-Maliki is an Iranian operative who advances the The group says during its struggle, more than 120,000 of its members religious dictatorship's agenda, including the countless killings of the and supporters have been killed in Iran, most recently a supporter who Sunnis and Shiites who do not support al-Maliki, the massacre of Iranian authorities hanged in prison. Christians, making them homeless, as well as the mass killings and It says Iraqi authorities also massacred dozens of its members at the imprisonment of many in Iraq," she charged, adding, "all of these have behest of Iran at Camp Ashraf, its former encampment in Iraq. In occurred at the behest of the mullahs." 2002, the group was the first to publicly expose the extent of Iran's Rajavi's group has begun to attract widespread bipartisan support in clandestine nuclear program, and has been working, say its officials, to Congress and has garnered allies among many former high-ranking expose Iran's real intentions ever since. U.S. officials. Among those who work with the group and will appear "They cannot be trusted," Rajavi insisted. "It is abundantly clear that at the convention are former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, the mullahs' regime is after the nuclear bomb. Thus we are demanding former Vermont Governor and presidential candidate Howard Dean, an end to the nuclear program." former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, former With a looming deadline of July 20 for Iran and the six Western powers Connecticut senator and vice presidential candidate Joseph Lieberman, to come to an interim agreement on the disputed nuclear program, former U.S. Attorney General Mike Mukasey, former chairman of the Rajavi said any deal must reflect the six United Nations Security Joint Chiefs of Staff General Hugh Shelton and Army Chief of Staff Council resolutions that call for Iran to suspend its nuclear enrichment General George Casey, among others. The council has also opened a capability. Iran has not only repeatedly defied the Council's mandates, lobbying office near the White House. but may actually be allowed to partially maintain the right to enrich The Council's heightened prominence has not gone unnoticed in under the current framework. 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Rajavi: Iraqi people’s revolution against Iran hegemony over their fate Western politicians call for no-deal on Iran nuclear program Dr. Osama Mahdi At an annual event with the participation of 100,000 Iranian dissidents in exile held today in Paris, Iranian opposition president Maryam Rajavi said events in Iraq are the beginning of the end of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki’s rule. Osama Mahdi from Paris: While Iranian opposition leader Maryam Rajavi described the current revolution in Iraq as the beginning of the end of Maliki’s rule and Tehran’s hegemony over their fate, adding it is on the verge of complete annihilation, Western politicians held Maliki responsible for a war that his country is currently facing and called on Western countries to not give in to Tehran’s demands regarding its nuclear program. At an annual rally and a massive gathering held today
EXCERPTS By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times Sunday, June 29, 201 An array of high-level former U.S. officials, both Democrats and Republicans, were in France over the weekend calling for regime change in Iran and throwing their collective weight behind an Iranian dissident group “You’ve got an assortment of former generals and senior politicians from all over the world here,” Howard Dean said as he headed to the annual rally held by the National Council of Resistance of Iran.The event was scheduled to include former U.N. Ambassadors John R. Bolton and Bill Richardson, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Sen. Joe Lieberman and others. “I think the thing that brings us together is human rights,” Mr. Dean, a former Democratic National Committee chairman, told The Washington Times when asked how such a diverse collection of U.S. dignitaries agreed to speak at the rally. Mr. Bolton went further, telling The Times that the event,was about raising “the larger issue of the illegitimacy of Iran’s mullahs and their regime in Tehran.” “My personal view,” Mr. Bolton said, “is that it ought to be U.S. policy to overthrow the regime in Tehran because I think it is still our principal opponent in the Middle East.” The organization’s leader, Maryam Rajavi, said outright during a speech at the rally Friday that the message of the gathering was that the “religious fascism” governing Iran “must be overthrown.”
Iranian Resistance President: What is taking place in Iraq is a revolution that will overthrow Tehran’s rulers in Paris with the participation of 100,000 Iranians in exile, along with 500 Arab, Islamic and Western dignitaries from 69 countries, the deplorable status of human rights and increasing executions in Iran under the current president Hassan Rouhani, and Iran’s meddling in Syria, Iraq and Lebanon, in addition to this regime’s threatening nuclear program for world peace were evaluated. Western officials Former New York Mayor Rudi Giuliani, a former US presidential candidate, said the current war in Iraq has endangered the lives of thousands of Iraqis and the responsibility is on the shoulders of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki and Iran, while Tehran is playing in its talks with the West. He added that efforts must be focused on destroying and overthrowing this alliance. He reiterated that Iranian president Hassan Rouhani has not changed the regime’s repressive policies and efforts to obtain nuclear weapons. The West must not bargain with Iran over its nuclear program. He called on the US government to work with the Iranian people and liberate them of 48
this regime. This is a regime that has focused its efforts to destroy this people’s current lives and future, he added. Rajavi: Iraq revolution has placed Iran hegemony on brink of destruction National Council of Resistance of Iran leader Maryam Rajavi said the Iraqi and Syrian people’s revolution has brought the region into a new phase that speaks of the overthrow of the Iranian regime. She emphasized the current Iraqi people revolution is challenging Khamenei in Tehran.
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Paris hosts gathering of Iranian opposition
Iranian opposition leader Maryam Rajavi calls onIraqi PM Maliki to step down. July 1,2014 | Reuters
by Madeleine Davies, Church Times 04 Jul 2014 AN OVERTURE preceded the arrival of the leader of the opposition in Iran, Maryam Rajavi, on the stage of Paris Nord Villepinte, an exhibition centre in Paris, last Friday. From the ceiling hung golden lions bearing sabres - the symbol erased from the Iranian national flag after the revolution of 1979. The front rows were filled with dignitaries from 69 countries, journalists, and activists. Mrs Rajavi is the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, the parliamentin-exile of the Iranian Resistance. It is a coalition of five opposition groups, of which the largest is the People's Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI), Mrs Rajavi is convinced that the Ayatollah's regime is on the brink of collapse. "The most dangerous crisis engulfing the regime", she said, "is popular outrage, and the readiness of the Iranian people to overthrow this brutal regime." Fury, as much as hope, emerged as the dominant emotion. To the left of the stage were portraits of the 52 residents of Camp Ashraf - the former home of exiled PMOI members in Iraq - shot dead in September last year (News, 13 September). Among the 52 were young Iranians who grew up in Camp Ashraf, and decided to return, after being evacuated to Western countries during the first Gulf War. Dr Masumeh Bolurchi's son, Rahman, was 33 when he was shot in September, after returning to Ashraf from Germany. "He told me, 'I have many opportunities, all the things I want . . . but the Iranian people have not,'" Dr Bolurchi told me. "But I know that this is the price of democracy and freedom in Iran." Shahzrad also lost her son in September. She showed me photos of him and his twin brother growing up in Ashraf; then another photo of him, handcuffed, face down, executed. "He was 29," she said.
Retired Marine Corps General:
The leader of a major exiled Iranian opposition group called on Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to step aside on Friday (June 27), as retired top-ranking U.S. military personnel said no peace was possible in the country while he was still in place. In a giant exhibition hall on the outskirts of Paris festooned with flags, tens of thousands of supporters of the National Council of Resistance of Iran gathered for an annual rally where Maliki was roundly criticised. The France-based group is led by Maryam Rajavi who laid the blame for instability in Iraq -- which has seen militants seize control across Sunni regions in the north and west of the country -- squarely at the door of the Iranian government which she accused of meddling. "As there is an international consensus -- as well as regional and internal in Iraq -- Maliki should be removed from power as the Iraqi people demand," she told journalists before the rally. Colonel Wesley Martin served in the military police in Iraq from 2003-4 as the anti-terrorism officer for all of the coalition forces in the country and he was invited to attend the rally. He too said that Maliki needed to leave if any stability was to be recovered there. "There is no future in this country with Nuri al-Maliki in charge," he said. "If Maliki stays in, the country is going to sink deeper and deeper into chaos. It's already a civil war, it's going to be a reign of terror," he added. Marine and former commander of U.S. and British forces in Iraq General James Conway said on Friday that the Iraqi army was perfectly capable of seeing off the opposition from insurgents in the north, but that they lacked the right support and direction from the government. "If a government doesn't fight for its army, the army won't fight for the government, and I think that's what you're seeing," he said, citing a lack of morale.
Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, addresses thousands of exiled Iranians in Villepinte, north of Paris, Friday June 27, 2014. (AP Photo/Rermy de la Mauviniere) Tens of thousands of people rallied Friday in support of the France-based group, including top former U.S. government officials and generals.
'The Worst Of The Insurgency In Iraq Is Over Meanwhile, Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran -- a coalition of Iranian opposition groups -- called for Maliki, who is close to the Iranian regime, to go. Washington itself has stopped short of calling for him to step down, but has left little doubt it feels he has squandered the opportunity to rebuild Iraq since American troops withdrew in 2011. IRAN LIBERATION - www.ncr-iran.org/fr - JULY 2014
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We will turn all the papaver into songs. We will turn all the galaxies into rivers. We will send your names to all the skies. Tribute to the martyrs of freedom in Iran.
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