On International Migration Day, members of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) are deprived from their human rights as Iranian migrants in Europe. Their rights are actually violated by the group leaders rather than the host countries.
Each year, International Migrants’ Day is observed on 18 December. Designated by the United Nations General Assembly on 4 December 2000, in response to increasing migration around the world, the day aims to draw attention to migrants’ human rights and highlight their contribution to host societies.
However, the UN and other international human rights bodies neglect the disastrous situation of over 2 thousand MEK members who are taken as hostages in the MEK headquarters in Manez, a village near Tirana, the capital of Albania. They have no legal status in Albania. They are not considered as refugees or asylum seekers or migrants. Their identity is only defined by their membership in the Cult of Massoud Rajavi (MEK).
It is important to understand that, MEK members residing under the isolating system of the Cult of Rajavi, should be entitled to have all their human rights protected and respected, regardless of the status they have in Albania. The International community as well as the Albanian government must protect all MEK members as migrants from violence, exploitation and forced labor.
According to the UN documents, On 4 December 2000, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) designated 18 December as International Migrants Day, taking into account the large and increasing number of migrants in the world. Through its resolution A/RES/55/93, the UNGA invited Member States and others to observe the Day through the dissemination of information on human rights and fundamental freedoms of migrants, the sharing of experiences, and the design of actions to ensure protection of migrants.
The UN claims that by supporting regular pathways for migration, they can enable opportunities for migrants, better protect their rights, and contribute to greater prosperity while hostages of the MEK can never think of future and prosperity. They see no regular pathway for leaving the mental and physical bars of the Cult of Rajavi. They will succeed to escape the group’s camp if they are lucky enough to accomplish their escape plan.
The rights of the MEK members are violated by the group leaders every day. They are subjected to forced celibacy, forced labor, forced clothing, forced hijab, gender segregation, mind manipulation, isolation from the outside world including their family and friends. They need urgent help from the outside world because it is quite difficult to break through all the chains that MEK leaders have tied around them.
The UN says, “Together, one step at a time, we can continue building a world where migration is safe, orderly, and beneficial – for everyone.” In order to achieve such a valuable objective, the UN officials must pay attention to the calls from the families of hostages of the MEK. They have been longing for a phone call or face to face visit with their loved ones who have been barred by the group leaders for decades.
Mazda Parsi
