Paris, June 30, 2024 – Speaking at the Free Iran 2024 World Summit in Paris, Matteo Renzi, the former Prime Minister of Italy, delivered a powerful speech emphasizing the global imperative of achieving a free and democratic Iran. Addressing the attendees, Renzi highlighted the continuous fight for freedom and the need to support Iran’s people, especially its youth and women.
The former Italian Prime Minister began by reflecting on the events of the past year, noting both the progress and the ongoing struggles faced by the Iranian people. He praised the growing resistance in Iran but lamented the unchanged plight of many students, women, and men who continue to face oppression and imprisonment.
He articulated three key reasons why supporting a free Iran is a moral duty:
- For the People of Iran: Renzi emphasized that a free Iran is essential for the well-being of its citizens, including women, men, students, and young people who desire the freedom to live, study, and express themselves. He underscored the importance of respecting Iran’s rich cultural heritage and ensuring a hopeful future for the next generation.
- For the Middle East: Renzi highlighted the broader implications of Iran’s regime on the Middle East, citing the events of October 7th and the ongoing regional instability. He argued that the Iranian leadership’s actions contribute to the turmoil and violence in the region. Achieving a free Iran is crucial for fostering peace and stability in one of the world’s most historically significant regions.
- For the World: Renzi stressed that the fight for democracy and freedom in Iran is part of a larger global struggle. He pointed out that democracy is at risk not only in countries without it but also in places where it was born. Renzi called for a renewed cultural and educational investment to safeguard democratic values for future generations. He characterized dictatorship as “natural stupidity” and a denial of the values shared by diverse cultures around the world.
The full text of former Italian PM Matteo Renzi’s speech follows:
Madame Rajavi, dear colleagues and friends, ladies and gentlemen, for me it’s really an honor and a privilege to be again here. After one year of our last meeting. What happened in the last year? A lot of things, a lot of things around the world, a lot of things in the Middle East, a lot of things in your country and we can see some very interesting news and you applaud when the numbers of the people who continue to fight in Iran continue to grow.
That is great, but at the same time, nothing happened to the lives of the people in Iran. A lot of students and a lot of women continue to die and continue to stay in jail. So, the reason for which I am here is only one. To repeat with you, we believe it’s possible to fight everyone for a free Iran, free for the reason you described in the Ten-Point Plan.
4-Matteo Renzi:
Democracy is at risk globally – we must fight for it in Iran and everywhere.#MaryamRajavi4FreeIran #FreeIran2024 #FreeIran10PoinPIan pic.twitter.com/JXPHy1B3lv— Iran Freedom (@4FreedominIran) July 11, 2024
We stay at your side, we stay with you, we believe free Iran is a moral duty for three reasons, very briefly. The first, is for the people of Iran, for the women of Iran, for the men of Iran, for the students of Iran, for the guys who listen to music in Iran, for the guys who want to study in Iran. Free Iran is a moral duty because it’s the only way to respect the great tradition of your people and to ensure a possibility of life for your guys, for your son, and for your daughter.
But there is one second reason I consider very important. Free Iran is a moral duty also for the Middle East because of what happened on October 7th and in general in the last 12 months, the consequences of the regime have not stopped at the border of Iran. They continue to spread in the Middle East and continue to create a threat not only for your citizens but also for the rest of the people who live in the Middle East.
Nobody could deny there is a clear responsibility of Iran, of this leadership of Iran in the troubles and in the war and in the crisis in the Middle East today. And the only way to create a new Middle East, one of the most beautiful places around the world, one of the great histories, the only way is fighting all together for free Iran.
The third reason and the last third and the last is not only for the people who live in Iran, not only for the people who live in the Middle East but for the world. The world is in the middle of chaos in a lot of countries. I joke because I’m Italian so I’m an expert of chaos as you can imagine. But if you think about what happened today from single places of this planet to arrive until the great countries of this planet, you understand how it is important to fight for democracy because democracy is at risk, not only in the place in which there is no democracy but let me be very clear with you, also in the places in which democracy is born.
And that means we need a cultural and educational investment for the future of new generations. Because if we are not able to explain the risks not only for the countries in crisis or the countries in which there is a war or there is a dictatorship, but there is a great question for the new generation also abroad, the traditional countries, if we don’t understand that, if we don’t understand how is urgent and important that we risk to lose an unbelievable opportunity for the future of our generation.
.@matteorenzi: "It is important to fight for democracy because democracy is at risk, including in places where it was born. We have different cultures but shared values, as stated in @Maryam_Rajavi’s Ten-Point Plan."#MaryamRajavi4FreeIran #FreeIran2024https://t.co/C7deuJztHh
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) June 30, 2024
So, I think today we live in a time in which a lot of people think about artificial intelligence. I consider dictatorship not artificial intelligence. Dictatorship is natural stupidity, not artificial intelligence. Dictatorship is the denial of the great values of our history and our future.
But at the same time, let me be very clear with you, I think we need to come back to the roots of our culture. Your culture and our culture are different cultures, but we share the same values. The values stay in the list of the Ten-Point Plan of Madame Rajavi, remember, also some minutes ago. I believe my wish for you, and I finish on time, looks very good.
That is also a message for the next. With a little symbol. Your flag has the same colors as the Italian flag. And in Italy, we are used to saying those colors mean three things. Green is the color of hope. White is the color of purity and innocence. Red is the color of passion.
Of course, we have different flags, but the same colors explain to us we have to share together the same hope, the same purity, and the same passion to give a message of freedom around the world. And today, staying on the side of freedom means staying on the side of free Iran. A moral duty for the Iranian people, a moral duty for the Middle Eastern countries, but let me be very clear, a moral duty for the citizens of around the world and around the planet.
So best wishes for you. We will continue to stay on your side to give a message of freedom, hope, and passion.
Thank you so much.
