Cross-party Members of Parliament from both the UK and European countries took part in a virtual conference on Thursday, 10 September 2020, to support the global campaign to seek justice for victims of the 1988 massacre of political prisoners in Iran.
Prominent human rights lawyers, a former UN official, the UK Representative of the Iranian Resistance Movement (NCRI), European parliamentarians and dignitaries also participated in the conference, which heard testimonies from the family members of the victims of the 1988 massacre.
Speakers agreed that the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in Iran in 1988 is an ongoing crime against humanity ordered by the highest authority in the country at the time. They also argued that the appalling human rights situation in Iran is a direct result of the failure of the international community to hold the perpetrators of the 1988 massacre to account.
The keynote speaker at this event was Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).
Dr. Jocelynne Scutt joined the Online Parliamentary Conference by Cross-Party UK, European MPs and Prominent Jurists on 1988 Massacre in Iran. In her remarks, Ms. Scutt said, “That 30,000 human beings were killed by the Iranian regime shows what the country’s leaders can do and will do when they believe they are above the law and when the international community simply stands by. “
Dr. Jocelynne Scutt:
Every year, every day after that massacre, the case for international investigation into the 1988 massacre is clear. It has been made time and time again for 30 years, and today for the 32nd year. This was a crime against humanity. It was leveled against political prisoners by a regime that seeks to preserve its own power, at whatever cost to the Iranian people. A crime against humanity lies is a systematic attack against any civilian population.
That 30,000 human beings were killed by the Iranian regime shows what the country’s leaders can do and will do when they believe they are above the law and when the international community simply stands by. This is what happens when a regime has no obligation to honor the lives of its people.
The global denial of these executions, the deliberate worldwide ignorance, cannot be allowed to continue. That the regime responsible remains in power is concerning. This gross lack of action must not continue. These crimes against humanity must be acted upon.
I endorse the call for an official inquiry into the 1988 massacre. It must be held without delay. The silence must end. The outcome of the inquiry must be acted upon.
