The participation of several Western dignitaries, former politicians and a soon to be envoy to the Trump administration in a conference held by the MEK (Mujahedin-e Khalgh) and NCRI has stirred quite an uproar within the Iranian diaspora. And rightfully so. But should we be worried?
As a former child soldier and 18-year member of the MEK, I spent 7 years working as a translator in their political department in Iraq. As far as I can remember, the MEK has been holding such conferences and rallies for over 15 years now. During the late 2000s and early 2010s such conferences were being held on a monthly basis. MEK was spending hundreds of thousands and in some cases millions of dollars on paid speeches. As part of the translation team, our job was to translate each and every speech and prepare Farsi subtitles for the MEK’s television network, Simaye Azadi. Therefore I know almost each and every speaker and the points they mentioned in their speeches. At least until 2017 when I escaped the MEK.
I have seen names such as John Bolton, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Pence, Joseph Lieberman, Howard Dean, Louis Freeh, James Jones, Tom Ridge, Michael Mukasey, Patrick Kennedy and many more give speeches at MEK conferences and rallies. And yet nothing happened. The MEK is still loathed by the Iranian people for it’s betrayal of the homeland and siding with Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq War and killing thousands of their own fellow countrymen. The US State Department’s last statement on the MEK was that it “does not view the MEK as a viable democratic opposition for Iran” and “does not fund or train the group”.
Therefore there is no reason to be concerned.
But we must stay vigilant as the MEK has, for years, been carrying out a rebranding campaign, especially towards Western politicians. The face of this rebranding campaign is Maryam Rajavi, who portrays herself as a moderate Muslim woman who wears the hijab yet opposes mandatory hijab. She smiles and waves to the cameras and gives charismatic speeches, all in an attempt to cover the true face of the MEK and her husband, Masoud Rajavi. Anyone who spent a day in the MEK ranks knows that Maryam is a puppet of Masoud and he is still leading from the shadows. Maryam Rajavi is equally responsible for the implementation of mandatory divorces and strict rules, such as mandatory hijab, and the brainwash of MEK members as her husband Masoud is. The irony of pretending to be against mandatory hijab yet strictly implementing it within your own cult. This couple have reigned over the MEK cult through an atmosphere of fear and intimidation. Any attempts to criticize the MEK by those who have been lucky to escape or leave are met with a slander campaign. They call me a paid agent of the Islamic Republic without presenting a shred of evidence, all because I openly talk about my childhood and life experiences within the MEK and expose the true nature of this evil cult.
Therefore the MEK and Maryam Rajavi can try to rebrand their cult all they want, but individuals like me who suffered and endured enormous hardships and pain within the ranks and lost everything, including family, will be there at every corner to expose them.
Ray Torabi