Iran: Hallmarks of an Alternative – Part 2
Written by
Alejo Vidal Quadras
iran free resistance uprising 1
The following is the second part of a piece written by Dr. Alejo Vidal Qudras in the book “Iran Democratic Revolution,” published by the International Committee in Search of Justice (ISJ). The first part was published on the NCRI website on April 2, 2023, which can be found below:
IRAN: HALLMARKS OF AN ALTERNATIVE – PART 1
National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)
If we grant the five features outlined above as the constituent elements of an alternative, my experiences and familiarity with the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) have convinced me that in the context of existing political realities in Iran, there is only one movement that satisfies virtually all these characteristics, granting it the status of a viable alternative to the religious tyranny ruling Iran. Among other things, I am basing this conclusion on extensive research about the NCRI/MEK as well as meetings and discussions with their officials and members in Ashraf-1 in Iraq before they were relocated to Albania and Europe.
The first feature was having the organization and being structured to survive the suppression and to operate effectively in such an environment. As the principal organization within the NCRI, the MEK stands out for its network and its resistance units inside Iran.
The current uprising in Iran cannot be separated from its past and forty years of relentless fighting in every sphere, political, social, publicity, military, etc. The MEK has been at the forefront of these campaigns. For example:
The imprisonment and torture of hundreds of thousands of people and the execution of tens of thousands of MEK members and supporters in the 1980s.
The massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in 1988, some 90% of whom were affiliated with the MEK, which the Iranian people still view as the biggest crime of this
The fierce political campaign inside and outside of Iran against the illusion of reform from within the ruling theocracy, from the early 1980s until today. Now, not only the Iranian public but also many politicians and Iran observers have reached the same conclusion that this regime cannot be reformed.
The campaign to expose the regime’s terrorist
Preventing the Iranian regime from arming itself with nuclear weapons by exposing its clandestine nuclear sites and
One can also refer to the Resistance Units that are affiliated with the MEK and have been proliferating across the country, especially in recent years. These units have presented the people with new ways to resist the regime on the ground. Now, the younger generation is advancing these methods nationwide.
In 2013, the Resistance Units began their campaign on a small scale by writing graffiti on walls against regime officials (including the slogan of “Death to Khamenei”). Their activities ranged from simple to complex, from distributing leaflets and writing slogans to tear down photos of regime leaders, chanting slogans in the streets, and torching regime symbols. These units are formed in any neighborhood, school, factory, office, university, and elsewhere. They rely on a popular support base that has thwarted the regime’s efforts to eliminate them.
In July 2021, one thousand Resistance Units joined the Iranian Resistance’s annual Free Iran World Summit online. In 2022, their number had swelled to 5,000 and they linked up to the Summit.
MEK Resistance Units send 5000 messages to Free Iran 2022 campaign
The units were instrumental in the uprisings of 2017 and 2019, and they led the uprising and slogans in many cities. At the same time, they provided real-time and detailed reports on the uprising in different cities and regions. Based on the information these units communicated from inside the country, the Iranian Resistance announced that 1,500 protesters had been killed during the November 2019 uprising, which was later confirmed by the regime. The Resistance also published the names of 900 of the victims.
The Resistance Units played an important role in providing accurate and continuous information during the outbreak of the Coronavirus epidemic. By regularly checking hospitals and cemeteries and obtaining and disclosing internal communications of the regime’s agencies, these units were able to inform the people of Iran and the world about the disastrous human toll of the regime’s criminal mismanagement of the Covid-19 epidemic in Iran.
In recent years, the Resistance Units have spread a new culture among the young generation, i.e., the culture of resistance, by linking the young generation to the 40-year nationwide resistance against the mullahs’ regime. A generation that was not born in the 1980s is now being inspired by the resistance the MEK put up in those years and the price it paid during the massacre of 1988.
The state media and officials have constantly emphasized the role of the MEK and especially these Resistance Units.
NCRI structure
The NCRI has a coherent structure and organization, a well-known leadership, a clear and unambiguous platform, a nationwide network within the country thanks to its pivotal member the MEK, and a diverse coalition that includes a wide range of political tendencies and prominent personalities. It also has extensive bipartisan support internationally.
The principles that the NCRI adheres to, which have been proclaimed since 1981, reject past dictatorships as well as the status quo. It promotes a future based on two original principles, namely freedom, and independence. Another principle is the equality of all in the eyes of the law. For this reason, the NCRI has declared since the outset that it believes in a free and democratic Iran where no one is deprived of equal rights or granted special privileges based on racial, religious, or family affiliations. Therefore, it rejects both monarchical and religious dictatorships and instead seeks a democratic republic.
The NCRI’s goal is to establish freedom, democracy, and a republic based on the separation of religion and state and democratic standards, where all people enjoy equal rights.
Since the outset, the NCRI has announced its views and plans regarding the main issues facing Iranian society. Among them are its plans for Kurdish autonomy within the framework of Iran’s territorial integrity, gender equality in all arenas, religious freedoms, and denial of any privileges to specific religions or beliefs.
In addition, the NCRI has presented a plan entitled “National Solidarity Front” based on three principles. It considers these as the foundational principles for unity among all the republican forces that strive to overthrow the religious dictatorship. These three principles are: Rejection of the religious dictatorship in its entirety; The establishment of a republic; And the separation of religion and state. The plan contains no special privileges for the NCRI and its members. The plan accepts divergence of points of view even with respect to issues that the Iranian Resistance considers extremely important. These are the minimum considerations that are necessary to craft a united coalition to ensure the establishment of a truly democratic republic based on free elections and a popular constitution.
The slogans of the people of Iran that echo in the streets of different cities these days are manifestations of these demands, especially the slogans of “Death to Khamenei,” “Death to the principle of Velayat- e Faqih (absolute clerical rule),” and “Death to the oppressor, be it the Shah or the Supreme Leader,” and ” Neither monarchy nor the Supreme Leader, yes to democracy and equality.”
The Ten-point plan presented by Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, at the European Council in 2006, outlines the NCRI’s plans for the future of Iran.
The mere presentation or announcement of a platform does not mean that it will be implemented in the future. Rather, a credible alternative must demonstrate in practice that it is and will continue to be committed to its plans. A cursory review of the NCRI’s actions and conduct over the past 40 years shows that it is committed to this platform in action and practice while it has remained in the opposition.
For example, when the NCRI talks about equality between men and women on its platform, it implemented such an outlook in practice before anyone else. About 57% of the members of the NCRI are women. The President-elect is a woman, and the main member organization, the MEK, is led by women. Or, when the NCRI declares that it believes in a non-nuclear Iran, it has taken action and exposed the mullahs’ nuclear projects. These revelations have acted as the main obstacle for the regime to obtain a nuclear bomb.
In addition, during more than four decades of rule by the clerical regime, it is no secret that most of the political prisoners slain during the struggle for freedom have been affiliated with the MEK. More than 100,000 members and supporters of this organization, including 30,000 who were killed in the massacre of political prisoners in the summer of 1988, have given their lives for the resistance against the mullahs’ regime.
The NCRI and MEK have a wide network of supporters around the world. More than any other group and by a wide margin, they have carried out extensive activities to inform the world about the severe violation of human rights in Iran, and to garner the support of parliaments and international political dignitaries for the people of Iran.
Among the NCRI’s activities have been the organization of hundreds of annual meetings, gatherings, and protests, and the holding of massive annual rallies – known as ” Free Iran World Summit”- that are attended by more than 100,000 people, including hundreds of prominent political figures from the United States, Canada, Europe, Arab countries, Australia, and other countries. In their speeches, these dignitaries voice support for the people and resistance of Iran. The NCRI also conducts extensive activities and meetings with hundreds of parliamentarians and political figures around the world. These are but a short summary of the vast activities conducted by the NCRI and its extensive support network around the globe.
The dazzling results of these wide-ranging activities have been the comprehensive disclosure of the regime’s crimes and human rights violations and the ratification of 69 UN resolutions condemning human rights violations in Iran; the advancement of the global Justice Movement campaign for the victims of the 1988 massacre of political prisoners; support from majorities in national parliaments of European countries; majority backing in the US House of Representatives and the US Senate; and support from thousands of political figures, jurists, artists, Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of non-governmental human rights organizations, who have expressed their solidarity with the Iranian people and their resistance movement.
120 years of struggle for freedom by the people of Iran
Conclusion
A political alternative is not something that can be spontaneously created overnight. As a viable alternative, the NCRI has grown deep roots during an arduous and long battle against the ruling religious
tyranny. This is a coalition that has defied religious fascism, developed a structure and organization, created a plan, and paid the price for resistance day after day. During all these tumultuous years, even as the conditions have become more difficult, the NCRI’s commitment and perseverance have strengthened. It has remained loyal to its values and to that which it rejects as authoritarianism and dictatorship, past or present. It has remained wholly dedicated to democratic and freedom-loving principles and values, protecting these ideals from assaults waged by the enemy.
The ruling regime, on the other hand, tries to present its own narratives consistently, both in rhetoric and in action. Recently, the deputy of the regime’s judiciary revealed that there is not a single meeting with European countries in which Tehran fails to raise the issue of pressuring the MEK and the Iranian resistance. It has also waged a massive psychological war and demonization campaign across the world against this movement. More than a thousand books, and hundreds of movies and TV series, have been produced to confront this alternative. Moreover, during the last 40 years, the slogans of “Death to the Hypocrites [MEK],” have never stopped echoing in the official meetings of the Iranian regime, its Friday prayers all over the country, or its parliamentary sessions. Even a small percentage of such propaganda is not waged against any other movement.
If it were not for such dogged determination to stand up to religious fascism at any cost in all cultural, social, and political aspects, the fate of the Iranian people today would have been radically worse off, particularly because the tyrannical and blood-thirsty regime would have secured its dominance with no serious contenders on the scene.
The history of this resistance movement, which is full of critical chapters and high-risk and consequential decisions, has today brought the regime to such a vulnerable and shaky crossroads, defined by desperation in the face of an uprising and an alternative that will secure the regime’s demise and a democratic future for the Iranian people. The alternative presented by the Iranian resistance is now in a position of maximum advance.
The proven capabilities and competencies of the National Council of Resistance of Iran during its battle against the mullahs’ regime, as well as its success in preserving the culture of struggle and liberty, means that a long series of issues and problems impacting the fate of the people and the revolution have their solution in this alternative. The existence of this alternative and the overthrow of the regime will guarantee peace, stability, unity, and territorial integrity of the country on the one hand, and the fundamental rights and liberties of the Iranian people, on the other. Such unity and its promise can already be seen in the slogans chanted by the Iranian people, including “From Zahedan to Tehran, I sacrifice my life for Iran” or “From Kurdistan to Tehran, I sacrifice my life for Iran.”
Dr.-Alejo-Vidal-QuadrasAlejo Vidal-Quadras, a Spanish professor of atomic and nuclear physics, was vice president of the European Parliament from 1999 to 2014. He is currently president of the Brussels-based International Committee in Search of Justice (ISJ)