Open Letter to the Members of the UN General Assembly
September 14, 2021
RE: Ebrahim Raisi’s plan to attend the UN General Assembly
Dear Excellencies,
Ebrahim Raisi, as the head of government of the Islamic Republic regime in Iran, is planning to attend the UN General Assembly as the representative of the Iranian people. In the last four decades and in different capacities, including at the highest levels of the judiciary system, he has been directly involved in rampant torture, executions, killings, and suppression of protesters.
In just one single example as a leader of the “death squad”, he instigated the massacre of more than 4,000 prisoners because of their political and ideological stances. Ebrahim Raisi is guilty of crimes against humanity and is known as one of the world’s leading human rights violators, for which he has been duly sanctioned by both the European Union and the United States.
Such a criminal is not the true representative of the Iranian people and should never be considered or received as such by the international community.
Ebrahim Raisi’s presence before the United Nations General Assembly, would be a direct contradiction of the organization’s foundational values including human rights, peace, gender equality and addressing mass-killings.
Not only would issuing a visa and facilitating Ebrahim Raisi’s international travel be an insult to human rights and the Iranian nation and his murdered victims, but further, should he step foot in a democratic country dedicated to the international declaration of human rights, he should immediately be arrested and tried.
We strongly urge you to extend every effort to prevent his presence at the UN General Assembly. If he or a representative of his cabinet is indeed allowed to remotely speak, we call on all members who believe in human rights to vacate the hall in protest and solidarity with the Iranian people.
The ultimate hope of the Iranian people and the thousands upon thousands of families who, in the past four decades, have fallen victims to the crimes of Ebrahim Raisi and other leaders of this regime and continue to mourn despite often not knowing the final resting place of their loved ones, is the arrest and trial of such criminals in a court of justice.
Until that day, you can show your solidarity with these families by protesting Mr. Raisi’s insulting and shameful attempt to desecrate the United Nations General Assembly with his presence.
With respect and in the hopes of a free and democratic Iran,
Farashgard (Iran Revival)