The European Parliament on Wednesday (20 November) hosted an event organized by the Friend of a Free Iran, which featured speeches from several members of the parliamentary intergroup as well as Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran. The democratic opposition leader used the occasion to outline her coalition’s vision for Iran’s future and also called upon the international community to support the Iranian people’s struggle against the ruling religious dictatorship.
Rajavi and her European supporters emphasized that this support has historically been held back by misplaced fears of instability in the wake of any effort to overthrow the existing Islamist dictatorship. This is a mere scare tactic to maintain power, she said adding that a viable alternative exists—the NCRI, fortified by decades of struggle and an expansive network ready to ensure a smooth transition.
This sentiment was echoed by the Spanish politician and former vice president of the European Parliament Alejo Vidal-Quadras, who last year survived an assassination attempt believed to have been organized by the Iranian regime. In his speech at Wednesday’s event, Vidal-Quadras attributed that attempt on his life to his “unwavering support for Iran’s democratic opposition” and said that Rajavi’s ten-point plan for Iran’s future, along with “the vast network of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and the Resistance Units, show the falsity of the narrative about a lack of a viable option to the mullahs’ regime.”
He and other speakers accused Western policymakers of using that narrative to justify “appeasement,” and they used the event to outline alternative policies aimed at holding the regime accountable for its malign activities while encouraging the Iranian people’s overthrow of the ruling system.
A common element of those recommendations was designating and sanctioning the regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as a terrorist organization. The event’s moderator Petras Auštrevičius emphasized in his opening remarks that this would be a crucial step in supporting future activism by the Iranian people, and countering the regime’s human rights abuses.
“The Iranian Resistance must have the right to fight the regime and the IRGC which exercises unrestrained brutality,” he said. “[The] resistance units’ fight aligns with democratic values we have in Europe. The policy of appeasement has failed. The right policy choice for the European Union is to stand with the Iranian people who yearn for a democratic, secular republic.”
Several MEPs from various political groups called for blacklisting the IRGC.
This recurring call to action was delivered to fellow Western policymakers in both principled and pragmatic terms, with speakers variously calling attention to the IRGC’s role in domestic human rights violations, support for regional terrorist groups, and influence over regional and global conflicts including the war in Ukraine. Italian MEP Marco Ciccioli declared: “Today, more than ever, the international community must stand up to these actions. We must continue to support the Iranian people who are fighting for freedom and democracy.”
Regarding this vision for “real democracy” in Iran, Mr. Ciccioli stated: “This is what the Iranian Resistance is fighting for. We must support this Resistance, because they are working not only for a better future for Iran but also for peace and stability throughout the Middle East.
With respect to human rights violations in particular, Mrs. Rajavi noted that “the war against the Iranian people has seen 800 executions since the start of 2024.” While Iran has long maintained the world’s highest rate of executions per capita, this represents a surge which is widely viewed as part of the regime’s strategy for intimidating the public into silence following the nationwide uprising that began in September 2022 and was described as the greatest challenge to the clerical regime since its inception in 1979.
Wednesday’s event reflected an understanding that this repressive strategy has been ineffective, with several speakers expressing admiration for “resistance units” and other activist voices which remain active throughout the Islamic Republic.
Slovenian MEP Milan Zever lauded the “courageous fight of the NCRI for democracy” and declared that “it is time for the European Union to rethink its policy and stand with the people of Iran.” Mularczik similarly declared: “We must support the Iranian people who want regime change… We are encouraged by the struggle of Iranian youth. We should support the Iranian people and the fight for democracy.”
Rasa Juknevičienė called special attention to the 2022 uprising’s focus on women’s rights and said, “The struggle of women in Iran is inspiring. We must do more. An Iran free from the control of this regime is vital.”
Many speakers also emphasized that this freedom is synonymous with implementation of Rajavi’s ten-point plan. According to Mr. Zarzalejos, that plan “should be the basis for any roadmap for democracy in Iran.” He added that the NCRI is “the only realistic and viable alternative to the regime in Iran” and that “the European Union must review its policy towards Iran, by rejecting the claim that there is no alternative to the ayatollah regime.”
Regarding the prospective adoption of that alternative, Rajavi outlined plans to establish a provisional government, expected to last no longer than six months, focusing primarily on organizing elections for a Constituent Assembly, which in turn will draft, approve, and conduct a referendum on the new republic’s constitution before handing over sovereignty to the constituent assembly as the elected representatives of the Iranian people.
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