Acknowledging the truth is of highest merit. Concealment and distortion of facts, particularly if it is made by a politician, can not be forgotten. Ms Ana Gomes, a Euro MP from Portugal is one such example.
Last week, Ms Gomes was leading a series of unsuccessful attempts to get a resolution or some amendments passed by the European Parliament in order to open the gate for the Iranian regime and its proxies in Iraq to suppress, expel, extradite or forcibly displace the residents of Camp Ashraf in Iraq, members of the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK).
Acknowledging the truth is of highest merit. Concealment and distortion of facts, particularly if it is made by a politician, can not be forgotten. Ms Ana Gomes, a Euro MP from Portugal is one such example.
Last week, Ms Gomes was leading a series of unsuccessful attempts to get a resolution or some amendments passed by the European Parliament in order to open the gate for the Iranian regime and its proxies in Iraq to suppress, expel, extradite or forcibly displace the residents of Camp Ashraf in Iraq, members of the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK).
The attempt was meant to prevent the adoption of a joint resolution tabled by four political groups in the European Parliament, in support of the rights of Ashraf residents, or at least to turn it round against them. The resolution which was adopted on 24 April has a clear objective that is to avert a humanitarian catastrophe which could occur at any moment by the mullah's regime and its agents in Iraq. Therefore in order to make ominous and illegitimate attempts of Ms Gomes and few colleagues of her look justifiable, it was necessary to feed everyone with a bunch of fabricated information which could easily be proven void by all those who are closely acquainted with the issues of Iran, Iraq and the Iranian resistance.
The backbone of the claims by Ms Gomes is that the people are staying in Ashraf against their own will and that opponents are being tortured and harassed. Therefore they ought to be interviewed outside Ashraf and have access to the international organizations. In simple words, she claims that rights of the Ashraf residents are being violated by the PMOI and not Iran's regime and its proxies in Iraq.
There are numerous reasons to show that such claims are very far from the truth. It is hard to believe that Ms Gomes and her colleagues are unaware of the fact since they could easily find out the truth through inquiring from other informed colleagues or searching on internet as well as asking the offices of the National Council of Resistance of Iran. However, regrettably, truth is the only thing which does not interest Ms Gomes. Here are some of the relevant facts which could have easily been found by her:
1. In a letter on 27 May, 2005, to Human Rights Watch which was published in the US Congress Record on 21 June 2005, Colonel Phillips, Commander of 89th Military Police Brigade, who was responsible for the protection of Ashraf throughout 2004, reiterated that he had made investigations on rumours about torturing, harassment and imprisonment of the opponents in Ashraf and found out that they were all lies.
2. In another document dated 22 August 2006, Lieutenant Colonel Julie Norman, JIATF Commander, who was responsible for the protection of Ashraf, underscored, "Normally, PMOI members invite their families, friends, and colleagues who live in Iran or foreign countries to Ashraf for visits. These visitors are welcomed to a secure environment and hosted by the PMOI. On occasion and with the visitor's permission, the PMOI may extend an invitation to the JIATF staff to meet with them….. There exists no prison or any obligation to stay in Ashraf". The document is published in the book, Iran: Foreign policy, Challenges and Choices.
3. As reported by Radio Farda, spokesperson for the International Committee of Red Cross stated on 24 December 2008, "We have visited Camp Ashraf three times over the past three months and have talked to the camp's residents …… Anyone who wants to talk to ICRC can do so. Anyone who wants to speak to us privately without anyone else's presence to raise his/her demands with us can do so".
4. Ashraf has been visited by five delegations from the European parliament over the past six years. Most recent delegation, headed by the European Parliament's Vice-President, Dr Alejo Vidal Quadras, and consisted of four members from different political groups, visited Ashraf last October. Ms Gomes is well aware of these trips and the outcome of the investigations. All the five delegations observe Ms Gomes's remarks untruthful.
5. Iraqi Foreign Minister, Mr Hooshyar Zebari stated in an interview with Al-Arabiya Television, on 27 March, "Iraqi government delegations from the Ministry of Human Rights, Interior Ministry and Foreign Ministry went there [Camp Ashraf] to encourage them [Ashraf residents] to return [to Iran] or to help them to go to other countries but we failed except in some limited cases… They vehemently refused to leave the region or go out of Iraq or go back to Iran".
6. In March and April 2009, Iraqi Ministry of Human Rights held private interviews with each individual in Ashraf, at the presence of US forces and outside Ashraf, and proposed to them to leave Iraq for Iran or a third country. However 99.7% of them emphasized that their only choice was Ashraf. This was also referred to by the vice-Commissioner at the plenary session of the European Parliament on 24 April.
There are tens of other reasons which Ms Gomes would have been able to know and certainly is aware of some of them. The question then raises that whose interests made her invert the truth? We hope that Ms Gomes will be brave enough to explain this. These interests will not remain hidden for ever. We only make the following points which could be of help to realize the truth.
After it became public that the European Parliament will soon have adoption of a resolution about Ashraf on its agenda, the clerical fascism ruling Iran assigned its foreign ministry and ministry of intelligence as well as its proxies in Iraq and lobbyists in Europe to do their utmost to prevent the adoption of this resolution or at least turn it round against Ashraf. To that end, several meetings took place in Tehran, Brussels and some other European capitals between the Iranian authorities and European Union's officials as well as some members of the European Parliament.
What appeared in Ms Gomes's proposed amendments has exactly the same content as a letter addressed to the European Parliament which appeared on a web-site affiliated with the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence, on 17 April, 3 days prior to when Ms Gomes's proposed resolution was tabled and 6 days prior to when her proposed amendments were tabled. This letter asked the European Parliament to include the same issues in the resolution on Ashraf as later appeared in the proposals made by Ms Gomes. Is this sequence of time and similarity in content only a coincidence?
* Shahin Gobadi is a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)