Renowned British Lawmakers Visit Ashraf 3, Support Iran’s Resistance and Revolution

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Written by
Shamsi Saadati

On Thursday, British MPs, the Rt. Hon. David Jones, former United Kingdom’s Secretary of State for Wales and Brexit, and Mr. Bob Blackman, a renowned lawmaker from the UK’s house of commons, visited members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Ashraf 3 in Albania.

Both renowned British lawmakers reiterated their support of the Iranian opposition, particularly Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the president-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), who also attended this meeting. The MPs from the UK also supported the Iranian people’s revolution and highlighted the MEK’s Resistance Units leading role in the revolution in the making in Iran.

Renowned British Lawmakers Visit Ashraf 3, Support Iran’s Resistance and Revolution

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They both echoed the bi-partisan support of many lawmakers from the UK Houses of Commons and Lords of the Iranian people revolution and Mrs. Rajavi’s ten-point plan for the future of Iran. They presented the statement in this regard, supported by 250 UK lawmakers from all political parties.

In her remarks, Mrs. Rajavi praised the British lawmakers’ efforts to “encourage the UK to designate the IRGC as a banned terrorist entity.”

But, Mrs. Rajavi added that “Unfortunately, the West’s long history of appeasing the Iranian regime has allowed the regime to use western markets, companies, industries, the press, think tanks, and even universities to pursue its terrorist warmongering, and unpopular goals.”

“The Iranian people and their Resistance hope that the British Parliament would lead the way in this regard, including designating the IRGC as a terrorist group, closing down the regime’s embassies, expelling the regime’s agents, and revoking their residential documents in the West,” Mrs. Rajavi added.

Renowned British Lawmakers Visit Ashraf 3, Support Iran’s Resistance and Revolution

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The Rt. Hon. David Jones began his remarks by praising “The important role that the women of Iran have played in the struggle for freedom and democracy. They have shown huge courage, dedication, and determination.” He then emphasized that this leading role “is inspired by the leadership of Madam Rajavi, as the president of the Democratic Opposition Movement, the NCRI, and reflects over 40 years of struggle by tens of thousands of female members of the PMOI who have rallied to the cause of the Resistance movement.”

“The PMOI and the NCRI are central to that cause of freedom, as they have been for so many decades. You’re at the forefront of the struggle against the regime, and you’ve been instrumental in mobilizing the people of Iran to stand up for their rights and claim for themselves and for their children the future of the country that they love,” he added.

While referring to efforts by Tehran and its pundits and the remnants of Iran’s deposed monarchy to market the ousted regime of Pahlavi as an “alternative” to Iranians, Mr. Jones said, “It’s absurd to think that men and women who longed for freedom above all else would voluntarily return to a past where they were oppressed, denied their freedom and the opportunity for them and their families and their children to prosper.”

Pointing to the regime’s efforts to demonize the NCRI and MEK, the Rt. Hon. David Jones said: “The truth is that their attempts to censor the NCRI, to deny the support for the NCRI demonstrates beyond doubt that they are afraid of the truth. And the truth is that ordinary Iranians every day are risking their lives inside Iran to spread Madame Rajavi’s message of hope and a better future.”

While highlighting the need to proscribe Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) as the terrorist entity that it is, the Rt. Hon. David Jones said: “We must also continue to support your efforts, the efforts of each and every one of you, to draw attention to the regime’s abuses and refer it to the UN Security Council and press for the prosecution of those accused of crimes against humanity. And that includes the President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi. And I, and both our colleagues in Parliament, will continue to press the British government to proscribe the IRGC as a terrorist organization.”

Renowned British Lawmakers Visit Ashraf 3, Support Iran’s Resistance and Revolution

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Mr. Bob Blackman, who spoke next, joined his colleague in calling out the Iranian regime’s atrocities which are not limited to Iranians. “The fact is that the brutal regime that exists in Tehran has not only spread terror amongst the people of Iran, but it does so across the region, in the Middle East and beyond. It is a direct threat to the United Kingdom and everything we hope for there. And it’s why members of Parliament in both houses, the Lords and Commons, and across all the political parties, hold the view that this regime must be changed for the benefit of the entire free world,” he said.

The renowned Conservative MP also pointed to the “democratic revolution against the shah’s dictatorship in 1979, which was a popular movement by the Iranian people for freedom,” and how Ruhollah Khomeini “hijacked the leadership of the revolution because all other democratic forces and opposition organizations, including the leaders of the PMOI, were executed or imprisoned by the Shah.”

Yet, he underlined how “The PMOI continued this resistance for more than four decades to achieve freedom and democracy, which would be impossible without having popular support and making sacrifices. So today no one can or should ignore the role of PMOI in any development in Iran.”

“So the demands since the uprising started last September have been loudly rejected by both Shah’s one-party dictatorship and the current religious tyranny. One of the main slogans chanting all over Iran during the ongoing uprising has been down with the oppressor, be it the Shah or the supreme leader,” he added.

Denouncing the efforts by the remnants of the deposed monarchy and the religious dictatorship to tarnish the Image of the NCRI and MEK as a viable alternative to the ruling theocracy in Iran, MP Blackman said: “The efforts are deceptive and despicable and only serve Tehran’s agenda by allowing the authorities in Tehran to intensify the violent oppression and the deadly crackdown on the uprising. Moreover, their disinformation campaign against the NCRI and PMOI will only encourage us to increase our support for the NCRI, the PMOI, and in particular, madam Rajavi.”

“The NCRI has all the elements to actually transform Iran in a beneficial way, not just for the people of Iran, but also for the region and the free world,” he concluded, vowing to work with his colleagues to urge the UK government to proscribe the IRGC and recognize the NCRI as a viable alternative to the clerical regime in Tehran.

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