By Baroness Cox
Source: The Church of England Newspaper, April 4, 2008
At a time when the Iranian regime has been sanctioned for the third time over its nuclear weapons programme, the Iranian opposition group which first exposed Tehran’s programme could offer a solution to the crisis that now faces us.
From 2002 when the world’s attention was drawn to Iran’s nuclear programme till the current day scarcely a day seems to pass when Iran does not hit the headlines. From comments made by President Ahmadinejad to its terrorist activity and nuclear programme Iran is world news day in, day out.
However, during a period when Iran is condemned over such activities we must not forget those who have suffered most at the hands of this callous regime. The Iranian people and most significantly Iranian women have been brutally suppressed over 29 years of the Mullahs rule.
From public executions to stoning to death, Iran has long been one of the worst perpetrators of human rights abuses in the modern world. However, one story struck me more than most earlier this month. An Iranian man had stoned his 14-year-old daughter to death over his belief that she had been conducting a relationship. A young girl was brutally killed by a man’s belief in Islamic fundamentalism, a belief instilled in him by this Iranian regime. The ideology of Islamic fundamentalism has led to young women being beaten and bloodied in Iran’s streets by Iran’s notorious Bassij forces for failing to adhere to the regime’s strict dress-codes.
Such savage acts are only a few of the truly horrific crimes carried out in Iran. However, there is hope for the Iranian people, a hope which shows itself in the thousands of demonstrations that have taken place across Iran over recent months. Intriguingly, the female population which has been most suppressed has now become the most forceful in its resistance, as women lead their male counterparts in demonstrations and strikes, which have on occasion brought much of Iran to a standstill.
The Iranian resistance movement, whether internal or external, now has women at its heart. The largest Iranian opposition group, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), best known for exposing Iran’s nuclear programme, is led by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi. The female leadership of such a significant exiled group has been built on by the female population inside Iran who see such leadership as a great sign of hope for their future.
Unfortunately, the Iranian women’s movement has been deeply hampered by a spate of recent arrests of Iran’s leading women’s activists. Many currently remain in Iran’s prisons where there can be little doubt that they will face some of the many forms of torture used by this Iranian regime.
Clearly there is an intrinsic link between Islamic fundamentalism and the Iranian regime. Therefore, any solution to one problem cannot occur without a solution to the other. It is for this reason that we must look to the people of Iran for an answer. The Iranian people are clearly demanding democratic change in their nation and we must support them in this struggle.
This is what has now become the ‘third option’ of Maryam Rajavi. Her leadership of Iran’s largest opposition group offers great opportunity. However her work and that of her Parliament in exile has been hindered by a terrorist label on the largest member group of the NCRI, the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI).
This terror label has now been struck down by the UK’s Proscribed Organisations Appeal Commission (POAC) and the European Court of Justice (ECJ). With two courts of law finding in the group’s favour it is evidently time for this illegitimate terror tag to be removed.
An option for democratic change in Iran clearly exists. The women of Iran offer a hope that must not be lost as we search for a solution to these international crises. The irony may well be that the female population, which this regime views with such scorn, will be the downfall of its rulers.
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Baroness Caroline Cox was Deputy Speaker of the UK House of Lords from 1986 to 2005