NCRI – On October 25, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi addressed in Brussels a meeting by international jurists and lawyers in defense of People’s Mojahedin’s rights in Iraq. Marc Muller, chairman of the Bar Human Rights Committee from Great Britain, gave the following speech :
I do want to just remind people that I am the chairman of the Bar Human Rights Committee and I thank the conference for the invitation to come here to speak.
On any view, the situation in Iraq is dire. The Bar Human Rights Committee has for a number of years now been utterly concerned with the human rights abuses that are ravishing that country and the recent descent into sectarian violence. And we are also concerned with the impact of a hasty coalition withdrawal for the civilian population. And it’s in that context that we share the humanitarian concerns that have been echoed today about the people who are resident in Camp Ashraf.
Mrs. Rajavi is entirely correct when she says that this is a humanitarian issue that could turn into catastrophe and that all relevant UN agencies and the Red Cross should be concerned not only about the residents, but the wider impact of something occurring to the camp.
Of course, I have read Lord Slynn, an eminent judge and legal academic in Britain, and his opinion on the protected status of PMOI members at Camp Ashraf. That opinion has been accepted and of course we all know about the agreements that have been concluded. They are now protected persons under the Geneva Convention and of course as Lord Slynn rightly recognized also under the Iraqi Asylum Act of 1971 their status as political refugees were recognized. So I share his deep concerns about the recent declaration by the Iraqi Prime Minister on July 19 concerning the possible extradition or whole-scale transfer of people from Camp Ashraf to Iran. On any view, whether or not one supports the PMOI, what is clear is if any of these people go back to Iran, they will face certain death and torture. And that in respect of basic human rights and the principles under the Geneva Convention should not be allowed to happen by the international community.
It is of course right to say that Iraq has not sign the Geneva Convention on Refugees, but Article 33 under that convention has now attained the status of the preemptory norm under international law. There is no basis whatsoever for accepting that people can be returned to Iran given the Principle of Non-Refoulement and Article 33. And so I just want to echo everything that has been said by eminent jurist and lawyers today. We should ensure that Article 33, and the Principle of Non-Refoulement, is adhered to. Human Rights organizations should ensure that the basic rights of protected persons should be respected by the Iraqi government. We would urge the Iraqi government to recognize this as a humanitarian issue and to actually continue to recognize the political refugee status of those that have been accorded that status under Iraqi law.
I should just add one other reflection, perhaps, and that is something that Mrs. Rajavi also mentioned, and that was the issue of proscription lists. Because, in a sense, underlying all of this, is the use of proscription lists which many human rights organizations have become increasingly concerned about. Some states have sought to use proscription lists by proscribing various organizations as an aspect of foreign policy. The Bar Human Rights Committee is quite clear about this. Those organizations that are involved in terrorism should be rightly proscribed but plainly the manner in which they are proscribed and the evidence to support the proscription has to be tested in accordance with principles of natural justice and the right to a fair hearing. And also it has to be in accordance with international law and basic concepts of the rule of law. But, we do share the concerns that many eminent jurists have uttered about the use of certain proscription lists in relation to the issue concerning Iran. They does seem to be evidence that the PMOI was placed on the list as a consequence of the Clinton administration wanting to extend an olive branch to president Khatami and also as a consequence of the EU Three’s negotiations concerning uranium enrichment. And so we would just utter a note of caution that it must not be the case that people who have protected status in Camp Ashraf are to be criminalized and isolated as a consequence of the proscription lists. There are many challenges going on in relation to those lists and we have to await the outcome of those legal challenges. But, in my respectful submission, what should not be confused is the humanitarian nature of the claim that those in Camp Ashraf have, the fact that they have political refugee status and the fact that the US authorities have recognize their protected person status under the Geneva Convention. And I hope that the two issues do not becoming embroiled or that the Iraqi government uses the various proscription orders as a basis for turning what is essentially a humanitarian issue into a politicized issue.
So, I thank you for listening to me. I just want to echo Lord Slynn’s concerns and the Bar Human Rights Committee’s concerns about those people who possibly face certain death as a result of any moves by the Iraqi government to return protected persons back to Iran. Thank you very much.
