Prominent activist Masih Alinejad says the West’s continued support for Iranians is vital both for achieving regime change in Iran and reaching the goals Western nations have in their relationship with Tehran.
Speaking in an interview with RFE/RL’s Radio Farda, Alinejad said she has tried to persuade leaders such as Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte that the months of unrest that have roiled Iran are an actual revolution that will ultimately lead to the toppling of the Islamic republic’s government.
Alinejad said Iranians aren’t looking for the West to replace the Islamic regime with democracy, but their support is key to the democratic aspirations of the Iranian people.
“This strategy also holds significant benefits for Western populations in the future. For example, Western governments have dedicated decades to securing a nuclear agreement with the Islamic republic, yet the Islamic republic has covertly advanced its nuclear activities,” she added.
“To achieve an Iran without nuclear weapons, the West should assist the Iranian people in achieving an Iran without the Islamic republic.”
Amid the unrest, Iranian opposition leaders and activists have begun to discuss the shape of Iran in the future.
In one recent discussion, a group of exiled opposition activists and celebrities met at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. to discuss the future of Iran’s pro-democracy movement. The group pleaded for unity and an end to infighting to help replace Iran’s theocratic system with a secular democracy.
Alinejad, who is a member of the newly formed Alliance for Democracy and Freedom in Iran, announced that the alliance’s representatives will soon meet with members of the Canadian Parliament as well.
The group also includes the exiled former crown prince of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, the spokesman for the Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims, Hamed Esmaeilion, and rights activist Nazanin Boniadi.
Alinejad spoke to Radio Farda amid nationwide protests in Iran sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini on September 16. The 22-year-old died while in custody after being arrested by the notorious “morality police” for allegedly improperly wearing a mandatory Islamic head scarf, or hijab.
Her death, which officials blamed on a heart attack, touched off a wave of anti-government protests in cities across the country. The authorities have responded to the unrest with a harsh crackdown that rights groups say has killed more than 500 people, including 71 children.
Officials, who have blamed the West for the demonstrations, have vowed to crack down even harder on protesters, with the judiciary leading the way after the unrest entered a fourth month.
The protests pose the biggest threat to the Islamic government since the 1979 revolution.
Several thousand people have been arrested, including many protesters, as well as journalists, lawyers, activists, digital rights defenders, and others.
Anti-government protests over poor living conditions, low wages, and a lack of freedoms have also been taking place.
Source » rferl