THE SYMBOL OF BREACHING HUMAN RIGHTS AND EXPANDING TERRORISM COMES TO NEW YORK!

An open letter by the Coalition of Iranian Secular Democratic Organizations, regarding the trip of Islamic Regime’s President to the UN.

This open letter is addressed to the awaken soles of the world. Those people who strive against all kinds of discriminations/ Those who believe in separation f Church and state. And those who envision the immanent realization of the Universal Declaration of Human!

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Coincided with the 66th anniversary of the signing and announcing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the participation of Mr. Hassan Rouhani, the President of Islamic Republic of Iran, in the UN general assembly in New York is once again a manifestation of IRI’s multifaceted policies.

This religious-clerical regime, whose constitution - based upon the tenants of a religious sect called the Twelver Shiism – has come into existence just to negate the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, without seeing itself answerable to any of the world authorities. In fact, despite its acceptance of the relevant international laws and regulations pertaining to the issue of Human Rights, it has systematically breached its obligations on a very vast scale in Iran.

This trip of IRI President to New York is also coincided with the issuance of a report by Mr. Ban Ki Moon, the secretary General of the United Nations, on the breaches of IRI with regards to human rights (September 12, 2014). In this report, he writes thatsince the election of Mr. Rouhani, “the application of the death penalty, including in relation to political prisoners and juvenile offenders, has increased. Reports of the arbitrary detention and prosecution of journalists, human rights defenders and women rights activists have continued to be received. Discrimination against minority groups has persisted, in some cases amounting to persecution… The Government made statements and overtures regarding gender equality, media freedom and the easing of online restrictions, but these were not followed by concrete steps to effectively address concerns in those areas…. Approximately 700 persons are reported to have been executed in 2013, a dramatic rise compared with 2012… People on death row were reportedly often deprived of appeal… A number of individuals were also executed in secret, without relatives being informed or given the opportunity for a final visit. In certain instances, the bodies of the victims were not returned to their families for proper burial and religious rituals… The judiciary appeared to be expanding its scope to include political cases and nonviolent economic crimes. On 5 June 2014, a group of special Reliable sources suggest that more than 197 persons were executed between 1 January and 10 June 2014, the majority in secret.”

In addition to the above facts, IRI has no plans for the whole Middle East region but to add petrol on to the fire of hatred and enmities stemming in religious, gender and ethnic differences. Its direct participation in the mass killings of innocent civilians in Syria, and its wasting vast amounts of the Iranian resources on obtaining nuclear weaponry, as well as helping terrorist Islamic factions, opposing democracy and human rights are all very obvious and undeniable facts. The appearance of this regime has been the beginning of the rise of religious fundamentalism and intolerance in the region that now manifests its barbaric nature in the shape of ISIL on the international arena.

It is amazing that instead of trying to refute or correct the contents of Mr. Ban Ki Moon’s report, especially on the issue of the rising numbers of hangings, even to keep the appearances, Mr. Sadegh Larijany, the head of IRI judiciary, has said that hanging is one of the religious and legal pillars of the regime and Mr. Ban Ki Moon has no right to ask for the stoppage of this spiritual right of the people! IRI has repeatedly prevented the trip of Mr. Ahamd Shahid, the UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur to Iran. Their latest label attributed to the UN General Secretary is that he is a CIA agent.

Thus, Mr. Rouhani is the representative and a symbol for a regime that over 36 years of uninterrupted rule and without being answerable to any authority, has tortured and annihilated many of its critics and protesters and sent thousands of its political prisoners to the gallops, calling them heretics and infidels, and burying them in unknown and collective graves. This is a regime that, when killing its political opponents becomes unadvisable, imprisons them, as well as depriving them from all their recognized rights including right of medical treatment. Thus, IRI has turned its prisons into places of horrendous tortures for the people inside and has kept their families as its hostages in outside. Even the lawyers who defend the political prisoners in courts are not immune from prosecution and many of them are already serving time in jails in very lamentable conditions. This situation has put Iran on the top of the list of violators of human rights, receiving repeated warning from international authorities.

IRI is the ultimate symbol of all kinds of religious, gender, conscience, racial and cultural discriminations, causing its population to become increasingly desperate and hopeless. This regime declares itself as the representative of the majority and deprives all its minorities from their rights, turning Iran into a suffering entity ready to explode in pain and hatred.

Now that the president of this blood thirsty regime is on his way to New York, we, the undersigned, the representative of a coalition of Iranian Secular Democrat Organizations in exile, feel the obligation of attracting the attention of all awaken soles, all relevant international institutions and all human rights organizations to the sufferings of the Iranian people.

And we end this open letter with a serious warning to everybody: The continuation of this regime’s life would only result in more chaos all over the world and more sufferings for the Iranian people, in addition to more denial rights of all religious and ethnic groups, as well as those of Iranian women, the educated young stratum of the society, that is deprived of jobs and future, as well as those numerous ‘street children’ who are inflicted by AIDS due to rape and mistreatment.

We warn the world that any kind of compromise with this regime would mean a breach of the provisions of Universal Declaration of Human Rights - the most honorable product of the United Nations.

Dr. Esmail Nooriala, Hassan Etemadi, Jahangir Laghaei, and Eghbal Eghbali representing Secular Democracy Movement of Iran

Mahin Arjomand and Dr. Hassan Kianzad, representing the Pan-Iranist Party – The outside branch

Dr. amir-Houshang Momtaz and Mehdi Zamani, representing the Iranian National fron – The outside branch

Dr. Reza Hosseinbor, representing the Popular front of Balouchestan

Juma Bouresh, representing the Iranian Organization for the defending of rights , Turkman people.

Parviz Zarghami, representing the Union of the Ethnic Groups and Tribes of Southern Iran

Dara Salehzadeh and Mohsen Zakeri, representing the Iranian Green Seculars Network

Kourosh Etemadi and Vahid Aban, representing The advisory Group for Coalition

Mohsen Behzad-Karimi and Mohammad Sartipi, representing The Opposition’s Center for Strategic and Political Studies.

Manoochehr Mohammadi, Sam Sarabi and Rouhollah Zamm, representing the Center of Iranian Human Rights in Exile

Partow Nooriala, representing "The Connecting Hub" for Iranian Secular Democrat Writers, Poets and Artists.