Report on a forum in New South Wales Parliament,
Sydney, Australia
July 14, 2005
Sydney, Australia
July 14, 2005
A meeting in the Parliament of New South Wales in Sydney, which was sponsored and attended by political parties, judicial and political personalities, marked the anniversary of the students’ uprising in July 1999 and covered the results of the ninth sham presidential elections, its consequences as well as human rights violations in Iran and the situation of Iranian women.
A number of the New South Wales MPs, heads of human rights organizations, and social activists participated in and addressed the forum.
Mrs. Sylvia Hale, a Green Party MP in New South Wales, chaired the meeting. Mrs. Hale called on the gathering for a minute of silence to honor those who lost their lives in the recent terrorist bombings in London and also to commemorate the students and democratic people in Iran and the world who have lost their lives defending human rights and freedom, including those slain in the student uprising of July 9, 1999.
Mrs. Hale also pointed out that the meeting was in solidarity with widespread demonstrations that took place two days earlier in solidarity with the anniversary of the student uprising and for the release of political prisoners and those who are on strike, outside Tehran University and Evin prison. She said that unfortunately, this peaceful pro-democracy demonstration was, as always, attacked by the government’s suppressive forces.
Speakers in this meeting included Mr. Peter Murphy, director of the Search Foundation and an official of the National Committee of the Peace Front in Sydney, Australia; Dr. Jocelyn Scutt, writer, prominent legal expert, and former president of the Anti-Racism Committee in the state of Tasmania; Dr. Nina Breach, Vice President of the Democratic Party and a university professor, and Miss Nossrat Hosseini, spokeswoman of the Labor Party Youth, Victoria branch, and a human rights activist
Footage of a public hanging in Khorramabad, western Iran, was also shown which shocked the audience of the extent of atrocities in that country.
Deeply moved by the footage, Mrs. Hale said, “I don’t know what to say after watching these scenes.” She added that 159 street executions had been carried out in the past year in Iran. After China, Iran rates second in the world for the number of executions, although the two countries are incomparable in terms of population.
Miss Nossrat Hosseini speaking on behalf of a group of Iranian-Australian students thanked the participants for their concern over the human rights violations in Iran, especially after the election of the regime’s new president, who was involved in the US Embassy takeover in Tehran.
After enumerating the various aspects of human rights violations in Iran and the suffering of Iranian people under the fundamentalist regime, Miss Hosseini concluded that in order to establish freedom and democracy in Iran, it is essential that the main opposition to the ruling regime, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, to be removed from the list of foreign terrorist groups in U.S. and European Union. Especially that this organization is one of the main victims of assassination and suppression in Iran.
As the next speaker, Mr. Peter Murphy, director of the Search Foundation, spoke about the student uprising in Iran six years ago and the ongoing human rights violations in Iran and pointed out that there are other similar gatherings and demonstrations to commemorate this occasion in 40 countries across the world. He criticized the policy of appeasement towards the Iranian regime by the Australian government as well as the West and called for a firm policy on Iran and said that removing PMOI from the terrorism lists provides the best opportunity to establish democracy in Iran and bring about fundamental changes to that country.
Dr. Jocelyn Scutt evaluated the situation of Iranian women in her intervention and said that in the present situation in Iran, it is impossible for anyone to remain silent. She gave an expert and documented account of the report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Women. The Rapporteur traveled to Iran last year and compiled a detailed report on the conditions of women in Iran. She also referred to her trip to Paris and participation in the women’s conference held in support of Iranian women. After a brief analysis of the dreadful state of Iranian women, Dr. Scutt spoke at length on the views of Mrs. Maryam Rajavi on Islam and the issue of gender equality.
Dr. Scutt also called for the removal of the PMOI’s name from the list of terrorist organizations, declaring that this demand would constitute her primary political activity on Iran.
At the end of the meeting, Dr. Nina Breach presided over a Q&A session.