The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), was founded 53 years ago in 1965 during the dictatorship of Shah’s monarchy with the aim of establishing freedom and democracy in Iran. The PMOI founders and many of its leaders were executed during the Shah’s dictatorship. Other leaders were released from prisons by people during the last weeks of the anti-monarchy revolution in 1979.
After the fall of the Shah in February 1979, a cleric named Khomeini stole the people’s revolution for freedom, and established his extremist government based on medieval laws using the name of Islam.
People throughout the country, in particular the university students and intelligentsia upset with the new repressive and backward regime joined the PMOI. Hundreds of thousands participated in the PMOI peaceful meetings and demonstrations. The Iranian regime worried about such rising popular support for the PMOI, started to repress, arrest, torture and finally execute the PMOI members in large numbers. Up to now, more than 100 thousand PMOI members and supporters have been executed for the sole crime of being freedom lovers.
As the result of the brutal crackdown, large number of PMOI members went into exile in different countries of the world. A significant number also went to Camp Ashraf in Iraq, Iran Western neighbor, to continue their struggle for democracy and freedom in Iran.
After murdering thousands of innocent people in Iran,in particular the massacre of more than 30 thousand PMOI political prisoners in the summer of 1988, Khomeini died in June 1989. Another cleric called Ali Khamenei replaced him as leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran. He soon proved to be as ruthless as his predecessor.
In 2009, Khamenei through prime minster al-Maliki of Iraq who was affiliated to the Iranian regime carried out several attacks against the residents of Ashraf and killed more than 140 Ashraf residents in Iraq. The brutal killings greatly concerned the international community namely the European and American governments. Eventually, in a joint international humanitarian action, members of the PMOI in Iraq were transferred to other countries, especially in Europe. Albanian successive Democratic and then Socialist governments from 2013 to September 2016 also accepted the largest group of Ashraf residents.
PMOI is the principle member of the coalition of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), a coalition of Iranian democratic groups and personalities. Mrs. Maryam Rajavi is the president elect of the NCRI based in Paris. Her 10-point plan for a free Iran has been welcomed internationally. The 10-point plan includes: free elections, separation of religion and state, gender equality, equal rights for religious and ethnic minorities, abolishing death penalty, peaceful coexistence with other countries, international and regional peace and cooperation, as well as respect for the United Nations Charter.
Every year a hundred thousand Iranians living in different countries around the world come to Paris to participate in the annual gathering of the PMOI to show their solidarity where Many international personalities including dignitaries from Albania have also taken part.
Despite all the efforts of the Iranian regime during the past four decades to destroy the PMOI and therefore to kill the movement for freedom in Iran, on the 28th December 2017 a nationwide uprising started in Iran that shocked the world. The uprising is continuing in the form of public demonstrations,protest actions and strikes despite a widespread suppression and crackdown.
On 9 January 2018 Ali Khamenei, the regime’s Supreme Leader also said regarding the uprising: The PMOI had been ready since months ago to organize people inside the country for the uprising. The level of intensity of the uprising proved that due to four decades of continuous PMOI struggle inside Iran, the dictator regime in Iran has entered its final phase of existence, and is nearing its overthrow.
