Speech to the Conference and Iftar in the Holy Month of Ramadan

Maryam Rajavi: Anything erected on coercion, compulsion, and imposition does not reflect Islam

Dear friends,

Warm greetings to each of you.

I am deeply appreciative of the attendance of leaders from the Muslim community in France, lawmakers from the Parliament of Jordan, and esteemed guests from friendly and brotherly nations of Yemen, Syria, Tunisia, and Algeria in today’s gathering.

Let us honor the memory of Dr. Saleh Al-Qallab, a friend, a brother and an enduring ally to the Iranian Resistance, who valiantly stood by our movement over the last 44 years. We also remember the late Bishop Gaillot, a loyal friend to the Iranian Resistance, who navigated through many challenging times with us over several decades. He was the embodiment of the noblest human ideals, garnering respect from adherents of all faiths.

This year, as the Holy month of Ramadan unfolds amidst some of the most devastating conflicts in the Middle East, our hearts go out to all who are mourning. We fervently hope that the liberating spirit of this month will herald freedom, peace, and deliverance for the people of the region, particularly the oppressed people of Palestine.

From day one, including on October 12, we have consistently said:
Firstly, instrumentalizing the Palestinian issue has been the enduring practice of the demagogic mullahs in Iran.
Secondly, it is not acceptable that the innocent people of Gaza pay the price of siege and be deprived of water, power, fuel, food, and medicine, in violation of international and humanitarian laws.
Thirdly, everyone who yearns for peace, stability, and tranquility in the Middle East must target the ruling religious fascism in Tehran. What have the innocent people in Gaza and the innocent Jews done wrong? Where are the humanitarian and international redlines? Why are innocent people being starved? Why?

The Cultural Antithesis of Velayat-e Faqih’s Islam

In such circumstances, We cherish the advent of Ramadan, a month dedicated to uplifting humanitarian values. It is a time to reflect on the suffering of oppressed people around the world.

“The month of Ramadan in which the Quran was revealed, offers a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion.” (The Holy Quran, Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:185)

At the outset of my remarks, I underscore the realities experienced during four decades of struggle against Iran’s ruling theocracy:

In the last 45 years, no other government has caused death and carnage among Muslims, both Shiite and Sunni, as the velayat-e faqih regime has.

No other government has inflicted as many conflicts and divisions among Muslims as this regime has.

The version of Islam espoused by this regime, which it uses to justify its crimes and atrocities, is nothing short of outright polytheism and reactionary ideology, far removed from the true teachings of Islam as conveyed by Prophet Muhammed (PBUH).

Against the backdrop of misogyny, religious coercion, and repression masquerading as Islamic principles, there stands a theoretical and cultural counterpoint: the authentic and democratic Islam, as embodied by the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).

And finally, the terrorist religious dictatorship ruling Iran stands as the epicenter of tension, export of terrorism and fundamentalism throughout the region and as the head of the snake of warmongering. It will definitely be overthrown by the Iranian people and Resistance.

Islamic extremism, a Global Threat

 Dear friends,

In light of the presence of our distinguished guests from the parliament of our brotherly nation, Jordan, I express my deep gratitude towards the majority of this country’s parliament deputies for their statement supporting the Iranian Resistance and the aspirations of the Iranian people for a democratic republic.

In 2022, with their significant uprising, and this year, by boycotting Khamenei’s orchestrated elections on March 1, the Iranian people emphatically expressed their demand for change. Despite the mullahs’ efforts to manipulate the elections and inflate the voter turnout, they had no choice to admit that voter participation was the lowest in the regime’s history.

The truth is that the clerical regime represents only a small and limited minority.

From the outset, Khomeini, Khamenei, and their regime have exploited the Palestinian cause to their fullest advantage, now engaging in the most corrupt deals at the cost of the blood and suffering of the Palestinian people. They are also leveraging the massacre of the innocent to distract from their deep-seated internal crisis and to prevent an uprising.

In a meeting with the late Yasser Arafat in 1996, he told me, “The mullahs, who hijacked the Iranian revolution, became the most serious factor against the people of Palestine.”

The policy of export of the so-called revolution has been foundational to the regime since its very beginning and is enshrined in principles 11 and 154 of the regime’s Constitution.

You are aware that the eight-year war with Iraq commenced less than 20 months after the mullahs seized power in Iran.

However, the events of this year, during which the regime is openly engaged in warfare on multiple fronts, represent a qualitative development in the policy of exporting war, terrorism, and fundamentalism.

Massoud Rajavi, the leader of the Iranian Resistance, reiterated this truth in the early years after the Revolution. In 1984, he declared that peace and life depend on crushing “the head of the snake” of Velayat and religious fascism in Tehran, and the head of the snake must be smashed against the rock of the Resistance.

Islamic Fundamentalism, a Global Threat

Since the 1990s, our Resistance has been warning that Islamic fundamentalism poses a new global threat, with the epicenter of this ominous phenomenon located in Iran under the rule of the mullahs.

In 1995, during a speech at the Municipality of Oslo in Norway, I emphasized the spread of Islamic fundamentalism under the guidance of Tehran’s mullahs and called for an international front against it.

In 2004, one year after the United States’ invasion of Iraq, I warned that the increasing danger posed by the Iranian regime’s meddling in Iraq was a hundred times greater than the danger of its nuclear weapons.

In another speech in 2016, I emphasized, “The Velayat-e Faqih and Daesh are two sides of the same coin,”[1] and that, “The nations of the Middle East, the Arab and Muslim people, have no worse enemy than the clerical regime.”[2]

And all these, regardless of their names or claims, share the same inhuman ideology and adhere to the same ideological principles. That is, imposing religion through coercion, establishing an absolute despotic rule under the guise of a Caliphate or Islamic State, which they seek to expand, implementing criminal laws under the banner of Sharia.

Yes, their method and rituals are the same when it comes to eliminating, oppressing, and humiliating women.

Let’s examine some of the disastrous consequences resulting from the policy of appeasement, which has pushed the region and the world to the brink:

• Opening the gates of Iraq to the terrorist Quds Force, which facilitated the regime’s covert takeover of that country.
• Disarming the National Liberation Army of Iran, placing the PMOI under house arrest, and subjecting them to prolonged siege.
• Remaining silent and inactive in response to the massacre of the Iraqi people, particularly the Sunnis.
• Turning a blind eye to the massacre of the people of Syria and the displacement of half of the country’s population.

Of course, this list is long, but at each of these critical junctures, a disastrous approach prevailed, believing that offering incentives to the fundamentalist regime in Tehran would help moderate its behavior. However, every time concessions were granted to the regime, they only served as a springboard for further aggression by the mullahs.

Similarly, no party has undermined the economic and social development of the countries in the region as severely as this regime; from engulfing Yemen in a devastating war to the IRGC’s major project of exporting narcotics to Jordan and other countries in the region.

Islam, the Religion of Freedom

 Dear friends,

The truth is that against the reactionary Islam of the clerics, there exists an antithesis. The PMOI advocates for a genuine and democratic Islam, which stands as the standard-bearer of an ideological and effective antithesis against the regime.

From the outset, the face-off between PMOI’s Islam and the reactionary religion led by Khomeini revolved around the issue of freedom as well as the status of women and the rights of nationalities. These issues are at the heart of the conflict between our people and the mullahs’ regime.

Since the beginning of Khomeini’s rule, the PMOI has paved the way for a generation of countless enlightened and pioneering women and girls to join the struggle against the mullahs’ religious tyranny.

Hence, women’s equality and role in the Iranian Resistance movement is inspired by the genuine Islam. And this is the obvious difference between the Islam of the PMOI and the beliefs espoused by Khomeini, Khamenei, and their proxy forces, who exploit the name of Islam.

Fourteen centuries ago, at a time when infant girls were being buried alive, the Prophet purposefully kissed the hand of his daughter, Fatima, as part of his campaign against ignorance and reactionary ideas. Fatima became a symbol of the clear distinction between the liberating principles of Islam and misogynistic reactionary beliefs.

The mullahs openly defy conventions and treaties on fundamental human rights, mocking governments and international bodies in the process. However, they find themselves powerless in one aspect: a progressive Islam, which the PMOI represents.

For the past four decades, in stark contrast to Khomeini’s deceitful manipulation of Islam, Massoud Rajavi demonstrated that the teachings of the Quran and Islam contradict the principles of Velayat-e Faqih in every respect. He emphasized that any form of despotism is contrary to the spirit of the Quran, because Islam advocates freedom. He educated successive generations on this path and founded a glorious resistance.

In the face of the reactionary religion, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) advocates the separation of religion and state, as well as the principle of religious freedom.

Indeed, Islam is a religion of freedom and liberty. It has come to break the chains and shackles. (The Holy Quran, Surah Aaraf, 7:157)

It has come to break the locks on people’s tongues and minds.

“Those who listen to speech and follow the best of it.” (The Holy Quran, Surah Az-Zumar, 39:18)

Yes, Islam has come to lift individuals to the utmost heights of freedom and dignity.

Islam has come to establish tolerance, peace, and coexistence among different nationalities, ethnicities, and religions.

In the anthropology of Islam and the Quran, the most significant characteristic of human beings is their freedom and, consequently, their responsibility. (The Holy Quran, Surah Al-Ahzab, 33:72)

The Quran regards humans as free and in control of their destiny. (The Holy Quran, Surah Raad, 13:11)

Accordingly, two completely opposing Islams confront each other: the Islam of freedom versus the Islam of coercion and intimidation.

Indeed, what relevance does Islam have to extremism, the creed of violence and terror under the name of Islam?

Woe befalls Iran’s ruling mullahs who show no restraints in inflicting atrocities upon Iranian men and women; who sever the hands of impoverished and hungry youth for stealing a loaf of bread yet turn a blind eye to their accomplices looting the vast wealth of Iran.

Truly, the spirit of Islam reviles these power-hungry Sharia laws.

Rejecting Tyranny under the Guise of Religion

 As a Muslim woman and in one voice with those who uphold the true message of Islam, namely mercy and freedom, I declare:

In our view, anything erected on coercion, compulsion, and imposition is not Islam. The unique message of Islam is emancipation and freedom.

Islam’s message is one of freedom, not religious servitude.

Islam’s message is one of freedom, not sexual enslavement.

Islam’s message is one of freedom, not fascism, dictatorship, and warmongering.

Has the Quran not said there is no compulsion in religion?

Therefore, what the mullahs ruling Iran and their supporters espouse goes against Islam. From enforcing the compulsory Hijab to flogging and intimidating people, to hindering the construction of Sunni mosques, and especially enforcing a compulsory government under the guise of God and Islam.

So, we repeat, no to compulsory religion, no to compulsory hijab, no to compulsory government.

Thus, I call upon the entire world to recognize the Iranian people’s struggle to overthrow the regime, as well as the Resistance Units’ fight against the IRGC, to counter the threat of terrorism and warmongering by the mullahs’ regime.

We ask God the Almighty to save the Middle East and our brotherly nations.

O’ God, help the protesters and vanguards of the Iranian people and their courageous children in the Resistance Units, to overthrow the religious dictatorship.

“Our Lord, forgive us our sins and the excess [committed] in our affairs and plant firmly our feet and give us victory over the disbelieving people.” (The Holy Quran, Surah Al Imran, 3:147)

[1]  United against the Velayat-e Faqih regime, the main enemy of the peoples of Syria and Iran

[2]  Meeting with Arab dignitaries, July 10, 2016