Michèle Alliot-Marie, former MEP and French Minister of Defense and Foreign Affairs, addressed a webinar by European lawmakers on October 7, 2020, on the human rights situation in Iran.

Online Conference held under title, “Iran’s Ongoing Crimes Against Humanity, EU’s political and moral obligations”. The online event was on October 7, 2020. Dozens of members of the European Parliament attended and spoke at the conference.

MEPs made their remarks in order to condemn the horrific human rights violations witnessed on a daily basis across Iran. In addition, MEPs called on the European Union to fulfill its moral and political obligations in the face of human rights violations in Iran. They called for a firm policy by the European Union against the mullah regime in Iran. Also, they pointed out, It is high time to stand alongside the Iranian people and support their justified aspirations for a free, democratic, and non-nuclear Iran.

Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran(NCRI), was the keynote speaker at this conference. Her message welcomed as a democratic solution to Iran’s future. Mrs. Rajavi’s ten-point plan has widespread support from the majority of MEPs for a long time.

Michèle Alliot-Marie, former MEP and French Minister of Defense and Foreign Affairs

Maryam Rajavi asked me to speak once again in front of you concerning the situation in Iran. I am doing so willingly because I’ve known Maryam Rajavi for years and I really appreciate her determination, her constancy, her sincerity with regard to defending values, which are also my values, values of freedom, freedom to come and go, freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom to vote, and also defense of democracy, which means that relations between men and women in a country can be on a free and equal basis, and also her defense of the rights of women.

Today, the whole world is becoming aware of a number of constraints imposed on women, everyone is trying to ensure that every single one can live more freely to make bad choices, and to feel well. That’s something that’s important in life.

Maryam Rajavi, in fact, also says that part of our program is the defense of human rights, which really is at the core, at the heart of the concerns that we all have. It’s the defense also of non-religion. I think that it’s important to defend this way of life, which means that religion is private, in other words, secularism.

Mrs. Rajavi asked me to talk about Iran. I appreciate that she asked me to talk about it. Its history and its culture have also always ensured it had an important role in the region.  I am convinced that in coming years, Iran on condition that a number of principles will be applied. Iran will be able to find this rule of stabilization and establishment of peace in a region that’s a very unstable and in a world that is going through a number of constraints.

We can see this once again with a COVID practice. I deplore what is going on in Iran today. It’s in contradiction with the values that I had, to the values that also those of the European Union. From that point of view, I regret very sincerely that the European body is the defender of freedom, democracy and secularism. The heart of their actions are to silence, to take into consideration certain acts, which contradicts the values and acts that are unacceptable.

I’m well aware of this principle of non-response. It’s one of the basis of international relations. And of course, it’s for the Iranians to decide precisely what kind of regime should rule every wrong and what should be their governments, but at the same time, it’s also our responsibility to denounce a number of unacceptable things, the executions, when we’re against pain of death, tortures, arbitrary imprisonment, and also terrorist actions, including on the European territory.

I had the opportunity to say so during my last speech that diplomat will be arrested by the police in Belgium for having prepared terrorist action. It’s really a premier. It’s an extraordinary, number one event. The international policy and from a moral point of view, it’s something we can’t accept. Therefore, having been European parliamentarian, I know that there are a number of debates, but what strikes me always is that as far as unacceptable actions are committed in Iran, they’re far less to condemnation and the actions are far less strong than those relating to acts that are committed in other countries.

So, today, I say so in front of European parliamentarians, I believe that it’s indispensable for this kind of behavior to be condemned by the various European bodies. And also, it’s indispensable for us to come to some concrete response.