Paris: Press conference on human rights abuses in Iran

NCRI, 15 December 2009 – Human rights violations by the religious fascism ruling Iran was the topic of a press conference in Paris marking the International Day of Human Rights (December 10). Disclosing cases of abuse and condemning the clerical regime for its rights record in Iran, speakers also shed light on rights violations in Camp Ashraf, Iraq, where 3,500 members of the main opposition, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) reside.
Participants at the conference released a statement calling on world governments, the United Nations, and human rights organizations to immediately intervene to prevent crimes against humanity in Camp Ashraf and to stop the suppression of the Iranian people by the clerical dictatorship.
Speakers at the press conference voiced support for persistent nationwide protests in Iran, particularly by students, as well as the residents of Camp Ashraf. They invited the international community to condemn the widespread arrests in Iranian universities as well as the Iranian regime’s pressures to relocate Ashraf residents and heighten an inhumane siege against them, efforts which have been stepped up after the December 7th uprising in Iran.
Dr. Saleh Rajavi, the representative from the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) in France, disclosed details about a suppressive organ led by Ali Khamenei, the regime’s Supreme Leader, which was created in recent days to confront the uprisings by Iranian youth and general public. He added that such efforts by the regime will fail to save it from inevitable demise.
Describing the regime’s designs against Ashraf City as another side of the coin of its suppressive measures aimed at curbing the popular uprising inside Iran, Dr. Rajavi noted that the plots against Ashraf reflect the weakness and futility of the regime in the face of the determination of the residents of Ashraf.
Francise Cotta of the International Committee of Jurists in Defence of the Victims of Crackdown on Iran Uprising, and Catherine Legna, the Committee’s Coordinator, disclosed a report prepared by the committee on the suppression of the popular uprising by the clerical regime. The report was published after a four-month review by the committee.
Ms. Cotta noted that opinions elicited by the committee’s investigations indicated that the uprising will persist and strengthen, a finding confirmed by recent events in Iran.
Bishop Gaillot, a prominent French Bishop, said: In my opinion, the Nobel Peace Prize should be given to Iranian students because they deserve it. The Iranian people no longer fear terror. They showed that they will continue their movement until the end.
One can never use terror and intimidation to stop a people that is prepared to die to defend its dignity, Gaillot added.
Pierre Bercis, President of the French New Human Rights, said: I express my deepest solidarity with the people and resistance of Iran. Now is the time to prepare for the future. A list of torturers and murderers must be produced and they must be placed under international judicial investigation.
Regarding the role of the PMOI in struggling for freedom in Iran, Bercis noted: I have witnessed that during the past 30 years, the PMOI has never once abandoned its efforts in defense of its people.
Renee Le Mignot, Co-Chair of MRAP, said: In order to help the Iranian people, resistance must be supported everywhere. We are asking governments to end appeasement and negotiations with the regime. Neither war nor appeasement is the solution. There is a third option, which is represented by the Iranian Resistance, namely overthrow of the regime by the Iranian people accompanied by international pressure and boycott of the regime.
Ms. Le Mignot emphasized: Placing the PMOI on the terror list was the greatest gift to the regime. This sort of approach must end. There was a time when some called us idealists just because we spoke of the regime’s overthrow. Today, nobody doubts that the regime’s days are numbered and the Iranian people have shown themselves to be capable of uprooting the regime.