We must support the Iranian revolt
Hans van Baalen MEP, President of Liberal International
Europe and the US should show their support for protesters in Iran, says European parliamentarian Hans van Baalen and make their opposition to government violence there known.
Since the elections of last June Iran has descended into chaos. Protestors out on the streets have not wavered in the face of unrelenting violence from government militia and riot police. In demonstrations last Sunday, fifteen were killed and hundreds injured when troops shot at protestors, aiming to kill.
This violence against innocent civilians is unacceptable. The Iranian regime has shown its most heinous of faces. The free West has not responded decisively and has been loath to express unconditional support for the opposition. Instead, the US and the EU have adopted a wait-and-see attitude. This is morally unacceptable and also runs counter to Western interests.
The EU has remained silent. The recently appointed High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton, has yet to make a statement on the issue. She holds the most important office in the union, but has so far refused to take responsibility in this matter.
American President Barack Obama first only communicated on the issue through a White House spokesman. Only last week he personally asked the Iranian leadership to stop the violence against the demonstrators and respect their human rights. This is not enough. Obama needs to address the Iranian regime and populace directly. The Iranians need an unambiguous, clear signal from Western democracies. Citizens from around the world aregiving voice to their massive support through digital channels like Twitter and Facebook. This spontaneous show of support should be encouraged, and followed up upon by Western governments.
Now is the time to act. The Iranian insurgency has arrived in a critical phase. The regime has lost control of the situation and is divided amongst itself. Its troops are hesitant to follow orders. Prominent clerics have openly sided with the protestors. Even Khomeini’s relatives have aligned themselves against the current rulers. The protests have evolved from a limited response to the election results into a full-blown popular revolt against the current administration.
The revolt can draw on support from Iranians of all stripes, both rich and poor, and from moderate and orthodox muslims. The opposition will not yield soon in the fight against its oppressors, at least according to opposition leader Mir Hossein. Last Friday, Mousavi stated that he was willing to pay the ultimate price for reforms in Iran. The regime is under pressure from all sides. And still the US and the EU remain reluctant to take on the Iranian rulers. Catherine Ashton should use her right of initiative to call a meeting of all European ministers of foreign affairs. That would enable the EU to formulate a forceful position regarding the issue. So far however, Ashton has done nothing, undermining the status of the newly minted office she holds. The EU fears this might harm its trade with Iran and feels it should suspend its ideals to serve its business interests. Bad choices now might lead to the loss of even more influence and business in the future. Fear makes for bad judgment.
One of President Obama’s campaign pledges was to engage in dialogue with Iran. This promise has made it difficult for him to send the harsh message to Teheran that the violence directed at peaceful protestors has to stop. His statement of last week was far too diplomatically worded. Besides, very little progress has been made on the nuclear issue in the last few years, in spite of promises made by the Iranian government. The regime has proven indifferent to sanctions and diplomatic pressure, and even recently launched a new missile capable of carrying a nuclear payload.
A democratic Iran might be the best, and perhaps the only, option to prevent the country from developing nuclear weapons and get it to abandon its advanced nuclear programme. But while the Iranian people protest for more freedom and democracy, the West has remained apathetic, with China and Russia openly supporting the current regime. The Western stance boils down to passive support of oppression and the approval of an Iran armed with nuclear weapons.
The West must make a choice now. Russia and China must be forced to make one too.
American President John F. Kennedy made his historic statement 46 years ago in Berlin: “Ich bin ein Berliner.” Those words were meant as a protest against the construction of the Berlin wall, but they also offered priceless moral support to freedom-loving elements behind the Iron Curtain. His words may have been symbolic but they had real effect. It is high time Obama and Ashton follow his lead. They should make their choice for a free Iran unequivocally known. The Iranian opposition can use all the help it can get right now. It is time for Obama to speak these words: “I am an Iranian.”
Hans van Baalen leads the Dutch right wing liberal party VVD’s delegation in European Parliament. He is also President of Liberal International, the World federation of liberal and democratic political parties.
Tags: democracy, foreign affairs, freedom