It is not hard to imagine how Americans would react if they learned that Al Qaeda had hired top lobbyists to help promote its agenda in Congress. Or if they heard that influential active and retired government officials were being paid to attest to Hezbollah's good character. They would be appalled.
But, amazingly, a group similar to Al Qaeda and Hezbollah is doing just that. It is the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), an Iranian exile group that is on the Department of State's list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations alongside other more prominent groups such Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Al-Shabaab.
The MEK wants to be removed from the terrorist list because, by law, its presence there prevents it from directly promoting its agenda in Washington, and most importantly, from fundraising. So it has recruited some of officialdom's biggest names to convince Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to "delist" MEK and free it from the current limitations on its activities. News reports predict that Clinton is seriously considering the move and will make a decision by month's end.
According to the New York Times, among the "luminaries" promoting "delisting" are former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani; former Vermont governor Howard Dean; former NATO commander Wesley K. Clark, President Obama's former national security adviser Gen. James Jones; former F.B.I. director, Louis Freeh; former New Mexico governor Bill Richardson; former attorney general Michael B. Mukasey; and Lee H. Hamilton, the former congressman who was co-chairman of the 9/11 Commission. The Times report notes that the MEK endorsers are paid handsome sums (up to $100,000) for speaking out in its behalf.
The MEK's hired guns say that it does not belong on the list because it long ago abandoned its violent ways. But its record is so long and so bloody that only the very credulous can believe that it turned a new leaf. And there is doubt whether the MEK is even a peaceful movement today. An FBI report from 2004 noted that the agency had reason to believe that the group was still "planning and executing acts of terrorism."
It is hard to keep up with the MEK, which changes its positions and alliances as often as a teenager changes baseball caps. That is, in part, because it is more like a cult than a political organization. (Even its supporters agree with that.) Its members are required to lay aside all personal desires and devote themselves completely to the MEK leader in a manner eerily similar to the Jim Jones Jonestown cult.
The Mujahedin-e Khalq started out supporting the Iranian revolution that drove out the Shah and replaced him with the Islamic Republic of Ayatollah Khomeini. That was in the 1970's, a decade during which the MEK assassinated six U.S. military advisers and civilians in Iran and then participated in the seizure and hostage taking at the American embassy in 1979. It was among Khomeini's most militant supporters and opposed any compromises with the United States which it called "the satanic force threatening the world...."
But it soon broke violently with the Khomeini regime and dedicated itself to overthrowing it. It relocated to, of all places, Iraq and allied itself with Iran's then arch enemy, Saddam Hussein. Saddam gave the MEK a military base inside the country, from which to conduct its war against Iran and Saddam's other enemies.
During the Iran-Iraq war, the Times notes, MEK "served as Mr. Hussein's own private militia....For two decades he gave the group money, weapons, jeeps and military bases along the border with Iran." In 1991, the MEK helped Saddam crush the Shiite uprising in the south and eradicate the Kurds in the north. Reports of Iranian dead at the hands of the MEK range from several hundred to thousands.
Following the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, American forces disarmed the MEK camp, although some 3,400 MEK members remain there today despite the natural determination of the current government to get a pro-Saddam encampment out of the country. (Most observers believe that a large percentage of the people at the camp are being held against their will, with no means to escape or place to escape to.)
And that brings us back to the current effort to "delist" the MEK. One of the ostensible reasons MEK's advocates use is that "delisting" would allow innocent people in the camp to get out and seek refuge in other countries. But freeing the captives can be accomplished through the combined efforts of the U.S. military, the International Red Cross and the United Nations who can go in and separate out the hostages from the terrorists, who should be prosecuted. Delisting is irrelevant in that context.
So why the effort to delist? The MEK wants to be free to ensconce itself in Washington and other world capitals and play the role of a legitimate Iranian opposition, similar to what Ahmad Chalabi and his Iraqi National Congress did prior to the Iraq war. Also like the Chalabi group, the MEK seeks to align itself with American neoconservatives (many of whom already support it) and agitate for a U.S. invasion of their home country.
That analogy is an especially telling one because the MEK is despised in the nation it would like to "liberate." According to Ray Tayekh, a scholar at the Council on Foreign Relations, the MEK has absolutely no standing whatsoever to play a role in Iran, and not just because Iranians hate the organization for having joined Saddam's war against the country.
At a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing last month, he testified that the group's "alliance with Saddam and its cult-like dispositions have alienated even the radical segments of intelligentsia that once found its ideological template attractive. ... The Iranian populace is seeking ways of liberalizing its society and not embracing yet another ideological movement with totalitarian tendencies."
Given all this, it is amazing that any American would ally himself with the MEK. After all, what end does delisting serve other than to liberate a former terrorist group so that it might more effectively promote U.S. involvement in another Middle East war. That is, in fact, precisely why prominent neocons support delisting, just as they supported Chalabi.
"If the group is taken off the list, not as a result of an objective review, but by virtue of their lobbying prowess, several repercussions can be envisioned," Trita Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council, a pro-democracy group, wrote earlier this year.
Some of these serious repercussions would be felt by the Iranian people. Because the group is despised by Iranians across the ideological, political and social spectrum, legitimizing it here might delegitimize the democracy movement there. As Green Movement spokesman have frequently stated, the regime frequently (and falsely) links opponents and critics to the MEK is a way to silence and discredit them. An American seal of approval on the MEK could take a discredited fringe outfit and taint the whole legitimate opposition with its ugly reputation.
It is likely that most of the people who lend their names to the MEK's campaign have no idea what the group is and simply accepts money from it as an honorarium for making a speech, as if the MEK was like any other group that opposes the Iranian regime and supports U.S. policy goals. It isn't. The MEK is indeed an enemy of the mullahs. But it is also our enemy. In other words, sometimes the enemy of our enemy is not our friend.
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The MEK is nothing more than a cult organization that has shown no characteristics of a democratic organization. If anything it has displayed for the world to see an excellent case study in how to operate a cult.
For those who don't know Masoud Rajavi ordered another member of his organization to divorce his wife so that he, Masoud, could marry her. That woman is Maryam Rajavi. As a demonstration of the cult like nepotism he then named her the President Elect. How someone can become President elect. Even Ahmadinjad has more legitimacy than this so called President Elect.
The MEK is trying to do a Ahmad Chalabi act into fooling the US politicians into a war so that they can come to power. The price is Iran's oil for the Neocons.
Over my dead body!
I'd rather live under a bad regime than the MEK's Saddam taught lifestyle. Under MEK Iran will look a lot more like North Korea.
Fortunately the grand total of all of them put together is probably not even 100,000(a number which they seem to love to use by the way).
Rajavi reed to saretoon mujaheedin chera enghad kharin k nemebenin k kharetoon kardeh o abertoono boordeh?
1- these have been all islamic republic propaganda against MEK for the past 30 years.
2- It looks like nobody cares about number one and the biggest supporter of terrorists which is islamic republic Iran.
3- To all you supporters of mullahs look back at the history and see what they done to their supporters:
A- Behshtie, Rajaie, and all the other 72 who got killed in the bomb attack right after
Rafsanjanie leaves the building with advance notice.
B- Bani sader the ex president had to leave the country other wise be killed.
C- Khatamie another ex president can not leave the country.
D- all those who got to jail after the election 88 like Tajzadeh........
E- Mosavie and Karrobie in house arrest.......
BY SUPPORTING THE MULLAHS MAKE THEM STRONGER THEN THEY SEND THEIR SHARP SHOOTERS FROM LEBNAN AND THEHRAN TO THE STREET OF WASHINGTON, LONDON, .... CHASING YOU AROUND. GOOD LUCK
(The first because, even with the most leading wording they could come up with, couldn't get more than basically an even split when it came to support for the present form of government by the Iranian public, the second because they point out that when a more neutral way of asking the question is used, the Iranian public is as supportive of their form of government as Americans are of the American form of government)
"In fact, our survey found that more than 86 percent of Iranians who said they would vote for Ahmadinejad also chose ensuring free elections and a free press as among the most important priorities they have for the Iranian government.
The recent events -- the early announcements of election returns, the shutting down of communications networks, the massive protests and now the bloodshed -- have the potential to change what was once an electoral contest into a broader struggle for the soul of the Islamic Republic and the future of Iran itself.
Let us be clear: Our polling indicates that the government's actions run counter to the priorities of almost all Iranians, including its own supporters. And our survey
shows beyond dispute that Iranians of all political persuasions want more democratic freedoms, not less."
And that's the point: most Iranians vote not because they see the regime as legitimate, but because it gives them an opportunity, albeit small, to gain more political freedom.
"Nearly 80 percent want the right to vote for all their leaders, including the all-powerful supreme leader, while nearly 90 percent chose free elections and a free press as the most important goals they have for their government -- virtually tied with the top priority of improving the Iranian economy."
Now, do you want to deny that, in Iran, many reporters are in prison simply because of what they wrote?
But I bet if you asked Canadians 'Do you support a system of government where the head of government is directly chosen by the public?' you'd get similar numbers, not because they want the system changed, but because even though we don't directly elect our PM, most Canadians understand that he is in his position thanks to the results of the election, which, as the other questions asked in the TFT and WPO polls shows, is remarkably similar to the understanding amongst the iranian population that the 'SL' has his position thanks to elections (because the people that can simply remove him from office without even having to state a cause are elected)
I'm responding to your comment not because I expect you to change your position (facts, reasoning, logic, none of these will be enough to accomplish that task) but because other people might read it and not be aware of what you want to deny.
1) Money. An obvious answer, and one that usually applies to lobbyists.
2) Lack of any other anti-government group with any way to claim that it has popular support from Iranians. MEK had support due to its anti-Shah position (of course, any group that was anti-Shah at that time had support from Iranians, and their anti-capitalist position gave them a base seeing as the capitalist countries were the ones supporting the Shah), and it is possible to use that long-disappeared support in spin to create the impression tht there is support for it today. The only other alternative is Mousavi and the Greens, but Mousavi is 'tainted' due to his having held power in the post-Revolution government, and having had support from branches of that government in the Presidential election he so badly lost, while the evident difference between the Greens and group that truly does have popular support and faces a dictatorship willing to use brutality to suppress them is pretty obvious (see Bahrain, Syria, Egypt, Tunisia) makes trying to portray them as such in anything other than a background way something too likely to backfire too quickly to be worth it.
To be continued.
So, to sum up, the most likely answers are they're doing it because they don't care what reality is, they're trying to put lipstick on a sow and enter it in the Miss Universe pageant because its the only female they can find, or they're so gullible they have bought into their own propaganda, forgetting that it is propaganda (or would be right at home in North Korea singing the praises of Kim Jong-Il)
That individuals, persons and government shall submit to, obey and be regulated by law, and not arbitrary action by an individual or a group of individuals.
In the most basic sense, the rule of law is a system that attempts to protect the rights of citizens from arbitrary and abusive use of government power
The rule of law is a legal maxim that states no person is immune to law, and no one can be punished by the government except for a breach of the law
A6
The country’s affairs in the Islamic Republic of Iran must be managed on the basis of public opinion as expressed through elections, including the election of the President, the representatives of the Islamic Parliament of Iran, and the members of the councils, and the like, or through referenda
Article 19
All the people of Iran, regardless of ethnic group or tribe, enjoy equal rights;
Article 23
The investigation of the beliefs of persons is forbidden, and no one may be molested or prosecuted for holding a belief.
Article 27
Public gatherings and marches, held without carrying arms, are allowed, provided they are not injurious to the fundamentals of Islam.
http://en.parliran.ir/index.aspx?siteid=84&pageid=%203053
None of the above laws are honored by the rulers in Iran, women earned their rights in 1929 in Britain by legal means, the rule of law is the key to have a democratic government, not replacing one with another lawless group
You have a right to your opinion and you are free to write any fictional stories you like, however you have no right to equate the struggle of Iranian people for human rights, freedom and dignity with "terrorism" . Over the past 30 + years over 100,000 of MEK members and supporters have been killed by the mullahs' regime. in 1988, thousands of political prisoners (majority of which were supporters of MEK) were killed by Ayatollah Khomeini's orders in a matter of a few months. MEK is the most organized and dedicated opposition group who has been seeking to overthrow the mullahs' dictatorship. How come, you ignored to mention that, MEK through 7 long court hearings in UK and EU , were cleared of all the "Terrorism" charges and were removed from the EU and UK terrorist list in 2008. There is NO GLORY to helping the mullahs' regime by spreading lies and garbage charges against MEK. Just remember, the mullahs have not just killed in Iran, they have killed many innocent people throughout the world, they are the enemy of everyone.
Mr. Rosenberg, I am sure that you, as an American, cherish the freedoms we enjoy under the Constitution of these United States. And one of the most important ones, the Amendments to the Constitution, is freedom of expression and freedom of the press, and you are a journalist.
What I’d like to ask you is to let ideas and exchanges that are not contrary to the values we hold so dear flow freely. You may oppose a group or its modus operandi or what may be perceived as this group is doing wrongly or may have done in the past. But this should not be the cause for interdiction of comments expressed that are not in contravention of our core beliefs.
I guess what I am trying to establish here is that if we lose this precious privilege to evaporate away, then God only help us. And finally, I like to ask you to wait a few days and watch the march on Washington, and then let us know if you still believe that the MEK is only an irrelevant force not to be reckoned with, within and without Iran.
CNGS
1- They Support the MEK
2- They tolerate the MEK
3- They passionately dislike the MEK
I guaranty you will find that option 3 will be the vast majorities option. That's for Iranians outside Iran just to prove that even those who live outside and dislike the clerical regime dislike the MEK even more.
We all know the MEK were Saddam's tools and did his dirty work while Iranian boys fought to save our land from falling into the hands of Saddam. An Iranian solider fighting an external enemy and the MEK comes and fights on the enemies side. How can you even tolerate yourselves MEK? You should all be ashamed. No honor in you it seems.
Velayate Fagheh Khamenehi have room next to Ghazafi .
Working hard to save Iranian government doesn't help.
Iranian will bring Islamic fundamentalists down.
Mojahedin is only hope for me and Iranian .
Get your non since idea for your self.
The MEK are a disgusting group and have absolutely zero(statistically probably significant) support in Iran and outside Iran among Iranians. Those who support them are completely brainwashed and if they oppose the group they are punished severely.
Most Iranians avoid telling them to their face that they dislike them because the MEK response is always violent and completely empty of logic.
I promise you if you just do a random poll of Iranians in the US a majority will tell you they are not fans of the current government but close to 100% will tell you they are disgusted by the MEK.
These US politicians should be investigated for their support of a terrorist organizations.
All you supports of Massoud ANN and Maryam ANN go to hell, Iran will never allow you devils to come to power.
All your supporters combined won't amount to more than 0.05% of the whole Iranian population.
You have always been traitors and you continue to prove it with your actions.
MEK and Mullahs are two sides of the same coin.
Further you say, MEK has no standing whatsoever in Iran & there are 3400 people in Ashraf which more than 70% of then are forced to stay.., Now this means that about 1100 people are providing you & Trita - plus the power which has hired you two namely Repugnant mullahs - , all these worries and troubles???!!!! (when audience stopped laughing from his shameful lies, I will continue.). Nauseating Mozdoor = Repulsive Hired Gun (you & Trita) the reality that you disgracefully are trying to hide & muddy up with your plots, IS “ the time for the incorrect, futile appeasement policy is clearly OVER “ . The incapability of crisis loving/living/making mullahs is indefensibly obvious & excuses are OVER. This more than two decades wrong policy (appeasement) to mullahs which started at Clinton’s time (goodwill jester) was illogically listed heroic resistance of Iranians with baseless acquisitions, that in a court of law would be as reversed with apologies to MEK, and Iranian Resistance in no time. Just like France, Britain ( Europe) for two years now have done so. The time is running out for your dark days, in opposite to the Resistance shinning, clear than sun’s rays of light.