By Azita Carlson
On Saturday 20th July, thousands of Iranians participated in a major demonstration in Stockholm calling for comprehensive sanctions and a firm policy against the clerical regime in Iran. They also called for the notorious Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Ministry of Intelligence (MOIS) to be listed as terrorist organisations and to be treated accordingly.
But most significantly, they called for the international community to recognise the Iranian people and their wishes for a future Iran.
The participants, supporters of the main democratic Iranian opposition group People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, also known as the Mujahedin-e Khalq or MEK, affirmed their full support for the Mojahedin and for Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). They called on European governments to support the Resistance and Mrs. Rajavi’s ten-point plan for a future Iran.
The ten-point plan is based on democracy, equality, freedom, peace, the respect of human rights, a market economy and a non-nuclear Iran. These have been denied to the people of Iran for so many years and the people inside Iran have made it clear during recent demonstrations and protests that they fully support Mrs. Rajavi. They have also made it very clear to the regime that they are determined to see it collapse.
A number of prominent personalities took to the stage to address the crowds, including Iranian singer Gisoo Shakeri, former French Human Rights Minister Rama Yade, former Minister of Foreign Trade of Finland Kimmo Sasi, Italian Senator Lucio Malan, Member of Swedish Parliament Magnus Oscarsson, former Minister of Environment of Iceland Edvard Julius Solnes, Irish Senator Gerry Horka, and former Irish Minister of State for Small Business John Perry.
The speakers voiced their support for the Resistance movement and emphasised that the people of Iran shun the regime and the terror it is spreading across the region. They also called on EU governments to stop appeasing the Iranian regime and to treat it firmly. Many encouraged sanctions and against negotiating with the regime that will never change its behaviour.
Mrs. Rajavi addressed the crowd, saying that there is no place for the regime’s mistreatment of its people – no place for a regime that denies people the most basic of human rights, no place for a regime that does not consider men and women to be equal, no place for the suppression of minorities, and so on.
The President of the Resistance also called on the European Union to list the IRGC, the MOIS and Khamenei’s Beyt as terrorist entities and to sanction them. She also called on the European governments to expel the regime’s mercenaries from their countries.
All of the speakers agreed that the regime is coming to the end of its days but said that it is still imperative for appeasement to end immediately. Senator Lucio Malan questioned the European appeasement towards Iran, pointing out that the regime’s entire four-decade history is marred.
Many of the speakers also highlighted that the people of Iran are not the only winners when the regime eventually falls – global peace and security will have more potential.
