France releases exiled leader

After two weeks of picketing at the Federal Building, protesters
opposed to the current government in Iran were relieved July 2,
when the French government released the exiled leader of the
Iranian Resistance Movement.

The Westwood protest was part of worldwide demonstrations
condemning France’s arrest of members of the National Council
of Resistance of Iran, including its leader, Maryam Rajavi.

The Council is the political wing of the People’s
Mujahideen, an organization dedicated to ending the rule of the
mullah in Iran and replacing it with a more secular
government.  

The People’s Mujahideen has been classified as a terrorist
organization by the United States and the European Union though it
still maintains offices in many West European
cities.  

On June 17, the French government staged a massive
anti-terrorism raid on the headquarters of the NCRI, which resulted
in the arrest of over 160 members of the resistance movement.
  

French government officials were concerned that the NCRI would
use its headquarters for subversive purposes, including spreading
terrorism.

Most of those arrested were subsequently released. However, the
French government continued to hold nine prisoners, including
Maryam Rajavi, the head of the NCRI and the president-elect of Iran
in exile.  

The arrest of Rajavi sparked worldwide opposition, with many
protesters going on hunger strikes or setting themselves on
fire.             

Mitra Saeedi, one of the Westwood protesters, had been a
political prisoner in Iran for almost four years.

“This is the least I can do,” said Saeedi, who went
on a hunger strike for three-and-a-half days.

She also emphasized the importance of expressing her
views. 

“I want to show my support the only way I can. The French
government clearly violated human rights,” she said.

Mansour Lavaie, another protester and a graduate of UCLA
extension, said he didn’t think over his decision to come out
and protest.        

“Conscience, knowledge and responsibility ““ that is
what made me come here and express my views,” he
said.         

Lavaie sometimes spent entire days holding up signs with
Rajavi’s
picture.          

“What the French government did was against all
international laws and norms,” Lavaie
said.       

Nasser Mehran, a UCLA student at the Anderson School and one of
the protesters, agreed with
Lavaie.         

“Many of those arrested were refugees from Iran. The
French government clearly violated refugee rights,” Mehran
said.

He also added that European governments unfairly labeled the
nonviolent resistance movement as a terrorist
operation.           

“The Iranian Resistance Movement is made up of mostly
intellectuals who do not believe in acts of terrorism. The only
violent struggle the NCRI engages in occur against Iranian
government within Iranian borders,” Mehran
stated.            

The French courts seemed to agree, ordering on July 2 the
release of Rajavi and the remaining eight prisoners, with Rajavi
ordered to post bail in the sum of 80,000 euros, or $92,200.

The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that
the French government guarantees the freedom of expression and
association to all its
citizens.            

However, those who contravene the laws of the Republic must
suffer the consequences, the statement added.