The people of Iran should be able to freely determine their country's future.
WASHINGTON—Leading democracy organizations and experts issued a joint statement, released today by Freedom House, to emphasize that the future of Iran should belong to its people. At a moment of heightened uncertainty, the statement underscores that the rights and aspirations of the Iranian people must not be sidelined. The joint statement said, “The next chapter in Iran must be shaped by Iranians themselves—especially the courageous human rights defenders, civil society leaders, labor organizers, women’s rights advocates, and prodemocracy voices who have spent years insisting on dignity, justice, and freedom.” The statement called on the international community to “protect lives, amplify Iranian voices, and support a future grounded in freedom, security, and the rule of law.”
“The people of Iran have suffered for decades under the brutal rule of a corrupt authoritarian regime,” said Jamie Fly, CEO of Freedom House. “Despite their remarkable courage earlier this year as tens of thousands were massacred for advocating for their freedom, too little attention is being paid to their plight. They remain acutely vulnerable to renewed repression and reprisals. Those of us who are blessed to live in free societies need to respond to their demands and not legitimize this odious regime.”
The statement calls on the international community to take concrete actions to assist the Iranian people, including:
Be guided by Iranian voices on decisions about Iran’s future. Governments and international institutions should meaningfully consult and engage Iranian civil society leaders, human rights defenders, labor organizers, women’s rights advocates, and members of the diaspora to ensure that the aspirations of the Iranian people—not geopolitical expediency—guide international policy.
Secure the immediate and unconditional release of political prisoners. Iranian authorities must release all individuals detained for peacefully exercising their fundamental rights, including human rights defenders, journalists, students, labor activists, women’s rights advocates, children, medical professionals, and members of ethnic and religious minorities.
Restore and protect internet access in Iran. International actors must ensure that the Iranian people can communicate with one another and with the outside world by pressing authorities to lift internet shutdowns and censorship, and by supporting technologies that enable secure access to information, communication, and independent reporting.
The individual signers of the joint statement include: Dr. Jianli Yang, founder and president of Citizen Power Initiatives for China (China); Jakub Klepal, executive director of the Forum 2000 Foundation (Czechia); Jonas Parello-Plesner, executive director of the Alliance of Democracies Foundation (Denmark); Professor E. Gyimah-Boadi, cofounder and emeritus board chair of Afrobarometer (Ghana); Miklós Haraszti, former OSCE representative on freedom of the media (Hungary); Nazanin Boniadi, board director, Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights and Democracy in Iran, Dr. Roya Boroumand, executive director of the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights and Democracy in Iran, Dr. Ladan Boroumand, cofounder of the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights and Democracy in Iran, and Dr. Azar Nafisi, writer (Iran); Dr. Mantas Adomėnas, secretary general of the Community of Democracies, and Žygimantas Pavilionis, deputy chair of the Seimas Committee on Foreign Affairs and international secretary of the Homeland Union–Lithuanian Christian Democrats (Lithuania); Felix Maradiaga, Freedom House trustee and president of the World Liberty Congress (Nicaragua); Evgenia Kara-Murza, president of the 30 October Foundation, and Vladimir Kara-Murza, vice president of the Free Russia Foundation (Russia); Garry Kasparov, former World Chess Champion and Chairman of the Renew Democracy Initiative; Carine Kanimba, general secretary of the World Liberty Congress (Rwanda); D.C. Liao, founder of the Taiwan Open Democracy Observatory Association (Taiwan); Stuart Appelbaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, Uriel Epshtein, chief executive officer of the Renew Democracy Initiative, Tod Lindberg, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, Joshua Muravchik, professor at the Institute of World Politics, Andrew S. Natsios, former administrator of the US Agency for International Development, Hon. David Skaggs, former member of the US House of Representatives, Daniel Twining, president of the International Republican Institute, Leon Wieseltier, editor of Liberties Journal, and Kenneth Wollack, vice chair of the National Endowment for Democracy (United States).
Organizational signers of the statement include: the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights and Democracy in Iran, the Alliance of Democracies Foundation, Article 19, Forum 2000, Freedom House, George W. Bush Institute, Human Rights Centre ZMINA, the Human Rights Foundation, the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights, Renew Democracy Initiative, Shirin Ebadi Foundation, the 30 October Foundation, and World Liberty Congress.
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