On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
November 25th is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. This day should remind us of the violence that has been inflicted on female members of the MEK for more than four decades. Violence that has been hidden under the cover of lavish titles of libertarian, freedom and democracy. By founding his destructive cult of personality through a process that he called the “ideological revolution,” Massoud Rajavi innovatively wrapped femicide in the MEK in an aura of holiness and spirituality.
According to the UN report, femicide – the most extreme form of violence against women and girls – remains prevalent worldwide, according to global estimates. The cycle of gender-based violence has progressed to the point where one woman is killed every ten minutes. The UN report continues by stating that in 2023, 85,000 women and girls were intentionally killed worldwide. 60 percent of these murders (51,100) were committed by a sexual partner or a family member. Data shows that 140 women and girls lose their lives every day at the hands of their partners or close relatives.
It is necessary to admit that the women of the MEK should also be considered in this category. Indeed, the person who subjected these women to violence is the “Supreme leader” of the organization, Massoud Rajavi, whom all women in the group should consider the closest person to them. These women are within the personal space of the leadership. They are the wives of the leader!
One might think that the word femicide is an exaggeration to describe Massoud Rajavi’s approach towards women, but if having a deep understanding of the conditions of women in his cult of personality, one will realize that in addition to the number of women who were killed and disappeared in Rajavi’s cult or committed suicide and self-immolation, many female members of the cult were killed psychologically and mentally.
The crucial situation of women in the MEK must be meticulously supervised because all violence that has occurred and continues to occur against women in various dimensions within inside the group has a flamboyant cover: the so-called pro-democracy, pro-freedom, and feministic attitude of Maryam Rajavi. Therefore, both the victims of the Cult of Rajavi’s violence and external observers have difficulty realizing the depth of the disaster.
Below is a list of the crimes committed by the Rajavi sect against women and the cover that the leaders of this sect have provided for them:
– Forced divorce and forced celibacy under the cover of “ideological revolution” or “Maryam’s revolution”. After Maryam Qajar Azdanloo’s divorced from her first husband, Mehdi Abrishamchi, she married Massoud Rajavi and became the leader’s confidant, and from then on, other women in the cult were also pressured to divorce their husbands. All women were ultimately supposed to only think of Massoud Rajavi as their husband.
–Separating children from their mothers under the guise of protecting their life. Separating children from their mothers was the next step after forced divorces, which was taken by Massoud Rajavi’s opportunism after the coalition forces invaded Iraq in the first Gulf War. Thousands of children were separated from their mothers forever and smuggled to third countries because of a war that lasted only two months. Many mothers lost track of their children forever.
– Sterilizing female members under the guise of “the ideal Summit.” The removal of women’s wombs was initially carried out under medical pretexts in Camp Ashraf Hospital, but over time, female members of the group’s Elite Council were encouraged to break all ties to anything other than “struggle” in order to reach the “ideal summit.”
-Sex work under the title of “Liberation Dance.” The Liberation Dance is the name of the sessions in which women from the upper echelons of the leadership, encouraged by Maryam Rajavi, strip naked in front of Massoud Rajavi, dance, and present themselves to him, thus “liberating” themselves from all other attachments!
-Sexual assault under the guise of “unification with the leader.” Women who were collectively married to Massoud Rajavi in liberation dance sessions under conditions created by various mind control tecatics (brainwashing) must now have sex with him. Maryam Rajavi calls this sexual rape “unification with the leader” and sends the woman chosen for each night to Massoud’s bedroom.
–Cult-like isolation under the title of “denial of individuality and gender.” Denial of individuality and gender is an approach that the women of the MEK are proud of and with which they define and admire their abnormal life behind the fences of the MEK base.
– Self-immolation as a “paying the price.” Self-immolation of members of the MEK following the arrest of Maryam Rajavi by the French police in 2003 is still considered a highly valued behavior within the MEK that other MEK members should emulate. Being willing to sacrifice your life for the struggle (to protest the arrest of your leader) is a “price” that all MEK members must be prepared to pay. Two women, Neda Hassani and Sedigheh Mojaveri, were killed due to of those ordered self-immolations.
Women of the MEK have systematically been victims of violence at the hands of Sister Maryam and Brother Massoud, and this attitude still continues in the MEK. On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, officials and activists in this field should be aware that violence is taking place behind the wall of the MEK’s camp in Albania. The violence that is not at all visible in Maryam Rajavi’s polished, colorful, and smiling face. A deeper look and investigation is needed to uncover the crimes of the Rajavis.
إBy Mazda Parsi