Former member of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO), Reza Rajabzadeh left it after 23 years of membership behind the bars of the cult-like group.
Reza’s father RamzanAli Rajabzadeh who was an active member of Nejat Society Gilan office died last year while he was awaiting his son’s release from the cult of Rajavi. Thus his old mother, who was so happy and eager to meet her beloved son, told Gilan office that the life of her son, his wife and two children was ruined by the Rajavis.
Nejat Society congratulates the Rajabzadehs particularly Reza’s brother Behrouz who greatly cooperated with the office to help rescue Reza, wishing for the release of all our ex-comrades who are still held as hostages in the MKO.
Defectors of Mujahedin khalq
Hassan Sharqi returned his homeland following the release from the Cult of Rajavi (the MKO). After settlement in a hotel in Baghdad, Mr. Sharqi contacted his family. Consequently the calls with family, particularly his old mother made him determined to get back home by the help of the governments of Iran and Iraqi.
Once he returned home He contacted Nejat Society Gilan Office. Appreciating the efforts of Gilan office; Mr. Sharqi notified that Nejat Society aided him so much in his return process.
It is worth to notify that Mr. Sharqi is a former member of the MKO. He spent 9 years as a war prisoner in Saddam Hussein’s prisons and then he was recruited by the MKO that once again captured him behind its cult-like bars for 23 years.
Hassan could manage to leave Camp Liberty (Temporary Transit Location) on August 20th, 2012.
Hoping the release of other hostages taken by the Cult of Rajavi , Nejat Society congratulates Mr. Sharqi on his release from the cult and eventually his return to his beloved family.
Open letter to the Chairperson and Members of the French Parliament
Greetings,
On Wednesday 5 December, 2012 the PMOI/MEK related websites reported that in her speech in one of the halls at the French Parliament building, Maryam Rajavi demanded that France and the EU support what she called “the Iranian Resistance” similar to what has been done with regards to Syria. “Rajavi emphasized that French Government which has played a decisive role in recognizing the Syrian resistance, must also take up the initiative for a new policy in EU” and “wants Paris and EU to recognize (what she called) “the Iranian resistance” for the regime change in Iran.”
We, the writers of this letter, are from Iran Pen Association in Europe that consists of defectors from the Iranian group PMOI/MEK. Our activities include Human Rights promotion and helping Iranian refugees. The majority of us have each spent more than twenty years inside the Rajavi’s cult in Iraq and each one of us has abundant experience and knowledge of the PMOI/MEK leadership (Masoud and Maryam Rajavi), its cult nature, terrorist activities and its rule of terror, deceit and humiliation inside the Organization. Despite the lobbying policy of the PMOI/MEK in the West and its efforts to spend enormous sums of money to buy western politicians’ support on one hand, and despite its policy of character assassination of whomever Iranian or non-Iranian that opposes this cult, on the other; we are ready to shed in-depth light for you into all the deceitful ways and functions of PMOI/MEK. We warn against any alliance with this anti democratic cult and bring your attention to the following key factors:
– Basically, PMOI/MEK and its cover named National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), have no legitimate stance and presence amongst Iranian opposition organizations and personalities. The leftist groups and parties, Nationalists, Monarchists, the national-religious groups, Unity of Republicans and secular forces acknowledge the PMOI/MEK as a totalitarian cult. It is also much noteworthy that Rajavi’s cult has no support in the Iranian society, a fact shown clearly during the widespread and huge demonstrations of the Iranian people that were staged against the controversial presidential election of Ahmadinejad’s first term. Rajavi’s treacherous role as Sadam Hussain’s fifth column during Iraq’s war against Iran is very much detested by Iranians and his recent efforts to buy support and gain aids from some Western politicians is widely seen as his new attempts to offer mercenary services.
– In a recent analytical book by the French Senator Ms. Nathalie Goulet, titled “ the PMOI: a cult in the heart of France” (L’OMPI: au Coeur de la Republique); she begins by warning the French senators and members of the French Parliament about this cult. While objecting at suspicious relations of some French figures with the PMOI, Senator Goulet questions these figures and French Government: “How is that an organization having all the characteristics of a cut in France, is recognized as a political organization or party?” and that “In the light of democratic values, is any group which claims that is against a dictatorship can be recognized as a democratic organization or party?” The Senator concludes: “With regards to the PMOI background it is hard to believe that an organization which still suffers from all the pains and illnesses of a totalitarian group has changed into a democratic organization. Illnesses such as personality cult, terrorist activities, hidden financial resources, utilizing lies, deceit, threats to discredit the characters of the citizens.”
– Iranian and non-Iranian writers and researchers have so far published numerous revealing books and articles about the dark and hideous aspects of Rajavi’s cult. The Human Rights Watch report and RAND’s analysis have described some shocking facts about the suppression of the members and cadres of PMOI in its various garrisons in Iraq.
– Rajavi’s “divine” personality cult and his totalitarian and absolute rule are extremely dangerous for any society in the 21st century. He uses any immoral and inhuman means in order to get to power. When the widespread demonstration of the “Green Movement” swept Iranian cities, in a message to his followers at Camp Ashraf, Rajavi said that if the Green Movement succeeded and the reformists were to come to power in Iran; then the PMOI armed forces would topple such a reformist government, using the “model” of Lenin’s armed uprising against the Kerensky Government in Russia and grasping the power. Furthermore, Rajavi’s continuous enmity against all the Iranian figures and parties (inside and outside Iran) that oppose the Islamic Republic regime is yet another undeniable sign of Rajavis’ totalitarian doctrine and attitude. Therefore; when Maryam Rajavi compares her totalitarian cult with the pluralist and widespread Syrian Coalition against Bashar Assad, she yet again utilizes gross deceit and lies to cover up her organization’s hideous nature.
– In order to realize just how corrupt the PMOI leadership is, you should know that for more than 40 years Masoud Rajavi has been the absolute and unquestionable leader of this cult and he states that he is only accountable to God. At the same time for nearly 20 years Maryam Rajavi has been named as the “president” of Iran by Rajavi’s cover up entity, the NCRI. Her almost 20 year “presidency” reminds one of long life dictatorial presidents in the Middle East such as Saddam Hussain of Iraq, Gadhafi of Libya, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, Ben Ali of Tunisia, Hafez and Bashar Assad of Syria.
The truth and reality is that due to the religious-cult nature of the PMOI/MEK, any support given to it by French politicians will have far more disastrous implications than USA’s backing of Osama Bin Laden in Afghanistan during the Russian invasion of that country. Therefore, we believe that if the West in general and France in particular want to be on the side of the Iranian people and their desire for freedom and democracy, then the western politicians should really distance themselves from PMOI/MEK which is based upon a religious and totalitarian cult. We, as the direct victims of this cult; object to any warn against any support for PMOI.
Yours sincerely ,
Iran Pen Association, Germany
Another member of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization fled the group last week.
Mr. Taqi Saleh, 47, was a high ranking member of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization who left the MKO after 22 years and joined UN forces installed at camp Liberty, on Monday, Dec.3, 2012.
Following the evacuation of camp Ashraf, the Cult leaders have to impose more severe mind control system and work time schedule over members in order to keep the members’ minds and bodies busy and eventually to prevent their defection. But, the more they enhance the pressure, the less the members are willing to stay in the cult.
It is worth to notify that Mr. Nasrollah Tokhm Afshan was also a long time member of the Cult of Rajavi who left the group, last week.
Four former members of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization left the group last Wednesday and Thursday, Nov. 28 and 29, Fars News Agency reported.
Three of the recently defected members are from one family: Arzin Dialeh, the father; Mohsen and Peiman Dialeh the sons.
Nasrollah Tokhm Afshan was the fourth person who fled the Cult of Rajavi last week. He was a high-ranking official of the group, according to FNA report. Tokhm Afshan succeeded to pass numerous security obstacles of the cult after several years of dissent. As a dissident to the group’s policies, he suffered a lot of psychological and mental pressure in the cult where he was deprived from his most basic human rights.
The Dialehs who joined the MKO in the 2000’s decided to leave the cult, after two years of residence in Camp Ashraf then they found out that they had been deceived by the MKO. But the leaders of the group replied their demand for departure by imposing more restrictions and suppressions. Ultimately after moving to Temporary Transit Location (TTL/Camp Liberty) the authorities of the group couldn’t stand their insistence and agreed with their defection. The three, then surrendered themselves to the UNHCR officials.
As pressure, suppression, violation of human rights and 24-hour mind control schedule are severely committed by the Cult of Rajavi – in order to prevent dissent and defection- members get more eager to escape the terrorist Cult of MKO.
Mrs.Maryam Sanjabi has written a new valuable article on the situation in Camp liberty [Temporary Transit Location] where the last remaining members of MEK reside. Sanjabi`s review is important in regards to evaluating the situation of MEK members. She was an important and trusted figure in MEK and since decided to leave the cult like terrorist group, has remained active to help others inside. She has established a great contact with those who have managed to escape the camp and applied asylum from UN. In her article Sanjabi describes how MEK chain of command has made life in camp liberty as a concentration camp for people inside. She says that each individual has to get up at 5 am and follow a daily ordered program that is already set for them. The program consists of aimless labor till noon and from noon to night people are forced to attend ideological meeting.
She adds that MEK leaders have ordered a kind of separation and segregation. Every 3-4 residential building in the camp are set for a group of members and they have to spend their time inside the isolated section. "They are using some sort of curtains to cover each section. People have to stay inside this area even for eating. So the only things they can see are a few others and the sky.", She Says. Sanjabi believes that such efforts is to limit contacts between MEK members.
It was long mentioned that MEK keeps its members isolated and there is no means of communication with the outside world. But it seems that new efforts include preventing cult members from contacting each other.
Earlier this month there was a report indicating that an MEK member set himself on fire due to pressures he received from MEK commanders. Fortunately he was saved by Iraqi officials and survived.
Two sisters, 34 and 30, who have never met demand permission to visit one another
Mr. Ban Ki Moon
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R: Zainab Hussein-Nezhad, 34, single, living in MEK Camp Liberty in Iraq – Baghdad L: Mona Hussein-Nezhad, 30, married, living in Iran, These two sisters know about one another but have not yet seen each other |
UN General Secretary
With regards
I, Gorban-Ali Hussein-Nezhad, spent 30 years in the MEK (Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization) and managed to escape from Camp Liberty while moving from Ashraf Camp with the aid of UN human rights monitoring delegation, and gain my freedom.
I bear witness and wish to inform you and the international community that the MEK is by no means a freedom fighter and democracy seeking organization but a destructive mind control cult working against all internationally known humanitarian and democratic norms and values.
To give an example, the cult leader Massoud Rajavi, as a cultic practice to secure the existence of the cult and prevent it from elimination has banned all outside communications particularly family relations whether by phone or writing letters. In this organization contacting the outside world and especially family members is strictly forbidden. All means of gaining information such as papers, publications, television, radio, mobile, telephone, internet, post and etc. are banned and followers are only fed information through the cult’s own sources.
Through such limitations the cult has managed to keep more than 3000 individuals captive within their mental boundaries in a remote location in Iraq. Their families and the humanitarian organizations have accepted a great responsibility to rescue these individuals. Surely the UN has the biggest burden in this respect.
Dear Secretary General
The leader of the MEK had even prevented my elder daughter Zeynab Hussein-Nezhad (34) from talking to me while we were both inside the organization in Ashraf Camp. We were only allowed to visit once a year in the Iranian New Year (March 21) for about one or two hours where our conversation was totally controlled. This year this bas banned too and it is now more than one and a half years that I have not seen my daughter and have no news about her.
Recently I tried through the office of the UNHCR in Baghdad to visit her but I did not succeed. The UN officials brought her to their interview hall but the MKO leaders did not give the permission for the visit or even a telephone conversation and she was taken back to the camp. Following this, the cult forced my daughter to write a letter against me indicating that she has no desire to visit her father or talk to him.
Now my younger daughter Mona (30) who lives in Iran has come to Iraq to visit her older sister for the first time in their lives. I wish to ask you as the highest international authority, who strives to restore and maintain justice and human rights, to do all you can to ensure this visit to takes place. I also wish to ask the ICRC, the Iraqi Government, UNAMI, and the UNHCR to do their share to guarantee that these two sisters who are both in the same place now can visit each other and that the MEK leaders in Camp Liberty cannot place any obstacles in their way.
I thank you in advance.
Gorban-Ali Hussein-Nezhad – Baghdad
Nejat Society Mazandaran Office interviews Mr. Majid Mohammadi, former member of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization.Mr. Mohammadi left Camp Liberty (Temporary Transit Location) in May 2012.
Nejat Society, Mazandaran Office: Mr. Mohammadi, what did you and your colleagues think of camp Liberty (TTL) before you moved there?
Majid Mohammadi: as you know, Camp Ashraf was an isolated, restricted place where members were under a 24-hour controlling system. When the idea of moving to Liberty was proposed, the majority of guys thought that they would finally go to another place in which they would not be limited and controlled and they would be able to have access to the outside world.
In our private talks, we said that we would ultimately find a way to leave Iraq. Some of the members, who did not want to return to Iran, were happy because they thought that Liberty would open the way to go abroad.
But, we didn’t know that Rajavis intended to build another Ashraf in Liberty.
– What do you mean by building another Ashraf?
– I mean that the organizational control and cult-like practices exercised by the Rajavis, at Camp Liberty was worse than those applied at Camp Ashraf. MKO leaders knew that Liberty is not like Ashraf. It’s not an isolated, closed location with no access to the outside world so they enhanced the organizational control in Liberty to prevent defection and eventually the collapse of the cult.
From the beginning of our arrival at TTL, one of the criminal commanders of the MKO, named Abbas Davari, who had been previously sent there, started holding meetings for members. He said:”The difference between Liberty and Ashraf is that the former was completely under our control, no one was able to interfere in the organization relations but here at Liberty we are dependent on the outside world and Iraqi forces. We should work hard to maintain this Camp and chang it to another Ashraf.”
In order to assure those who realized what “loosing Ashraf” meant, he said, ”It is right, Liberty is a temporary Camp but you should know that Ashraf has been reproduced .We never
leave Iraq.”
At Camp Liberty, they could not fill members’ schedules with forced labor so they held numerous mind control meetings. We attended various manipulation meetings for over 12 hours a day.
– Mr. Mohammadi, speaking of your full-time schedule in Liberty, what was your daily routine?
– From early in the morning (at prayer time) until late at night, we were planned to labor. The cult authorities made us do futile works. For example, they had us move the sand in the camp under the pretext of building streets. Our daily routine was to move the sand to places the authorities said, but as the space was limited, when the task was done, they would find faults with us. they said,” Your female superior doesn’t approve your work” or” you should follow the plan that sisters used”, etc. Once again members had to move the sand to another place, thus our working time was full.
Regarding meetings, I said, twelve hours a day. Our daily routine was to eat breakfast and then to carry the sand until 10:30 am. Then we had a break and we had a meeting until noon.
After lunch, the meetings continued until sunset when we had a break to drink tea. Then we used to go playing sports, however, there wasn’t any possibility for playing games. After dinner time, again we had to attend meetings until midnight.
– How long did you stay at Liberty? How was the condition and facilities there?
– Liberty was a marshy land near our port. It had been known as Saddam Hussein’s hunting ground. After American invasion, the land was dried and filled with sand by US forces and their base was built there. Considering MKO expulsion from Iraq, the camp was allocated to the group as a temporary transit location following the agreement signed between UN representatives and Iraqi government.
A part of this region, about 500 square-meters, in the heart of Iraqi units was allocated to settle MKO forces.
Iraqi police has six stations inside the base.The camp contains 7 parts and each port is divided to 4 blocks. Residents live in Conexes, each conex is resided by 7 people. it is worth to mention that, according to arrangements made by UNHCR supervisor, each conex was due to be allocated to two people but the cult leaders placed 7 people in every conex in order to prevent private meetings and to control members more strictly. The other conexes were used for mind control meetings such as Current Operation and Weekly Cleansing and also for commandants.
Based on the agreement signed by Iraqi government and UN authorities, each Conex should be equipped with TV, air conditioner, telephone etc. until the two residents are granted asylum and leave the camp. But the cult leaders confiscated all Telephones.
The Televisions had no antenna. We were just allowed to watch the MKO channel in the eating place at specific times.
In order to impose more pressure and more limitation, they did not allow us to use the facilities left by American troops. For example, we were not permitted to use the gym which was highly equipped. This was their excuse: ”If we open the gym, members want to build their body, and this is definitely for their desire to have wife and a normal life. So, suggesting the idea of using the fitting center is kind of opportunistic act.” The authorities even did not let us use the exercise mats of US soldiers.”They have the smell of life, they shouldn’t be used”, they said.
– Did the mind control System work the way it worked at Ashraf?
– Yes, exactly. The transfer of members from Ashraf to the new place which is called Temporary Transit Location has changed members’ spirit. The cult leaders have to increase their control over members so that they can maintain the cult-like relations and structure. They hold long-time meetings, gather all members together. They seriously fear members talking to each other in order to prevent members from communicating with their peers; they have divided that 500 – Square-meter place in to smaller areas using bags of sand. The 7-people conexes are divided to two units and each unit is supervised by a high-ranking member to extend their 24-hour control over members.
The camp authorities are severely afraid of members’ gathering in a place. Members are not allowed to gather in the eating place at the same time. Each unit has to attend special ceremonies under the supervision of its own commander who tells them where to sit and when to leave the hall.
On the other hand, they claim that the pressure imposed at Liberty is actually originated in the war we have against Iran. They say,” we are in the battle.”
They try to manipulate members so as they cannot think anything else and ultimately come to different conclusions and decisions.
– What did the MKO leaders think of leaving Iraq?
– As a whole, they suggested that they would not leave Iraq whether at Ashraf or Liberty.
As an obvious contradiction, they told high-ranking members that they would turn TTL into another Ashraf arguing that the Arab Spring would bring change to Iraq too and this way the situation would turn in favor of their cult. But, for low-ranking members, they had another argument.
They told them to be patient until the problem for leaving Iraq would be solved.”If you don’t want to stay with us, be our guest for some time until a solution is found to your problem but don’t give up and don’t go to Iran,” they told us.
Another thing that I should mention about pressure at Liberty is that Rajavi’s nonstop printed and audio messages were the actual troubles for members.
He tries to convince forces not to give up, to stay there. This way, the commandants could more easily suppress the members.
In his last message, he offered four options to the members:
First: if you announce your defection, we deliver you to Iraqis and they will consequently hand you to Iran where you will be tried and executed.
(it is worth to know that before offering such an option, we had attended numerous meetings in which we were told that we would be tortured and executed in Iran so everyone was terrified of going to Iran. After our minds was manipulated ,this option was suggested.)
Second: if you have a good family in Europe, they can follow your case to take you there. (Practically such a solution was impossible for the majority of members who had no one in Europe.)
Third: stay a Mujahed and leave your fate to the Organization.
And after some time he suggested the forth option:
“Stay with the MKO as a guest”. The result of all these options was to stay in the cult and to get depressed in their dirty practices.
In all his messages, Rajavi considered return to Iran as treason. He had made a taboo out of this option.
– Mr. Mohammadi, what’s your idea about the fate of members who are currently imprisoned at Liberty?
– In my opinion, the MKO case in Liberty is just the same as its case in Ashraf. Members should again be staying in suspense for a long time. Although, they have been delisted by European Union since three years ago, not even a member could manage to leave Iraq.
In addition, the cult authorities do not want the members to leave the cult establishment and Iraq. Indeed, the Rajavis are the obstacle against MKO expulsion. I believe that Rajavi doesn’t hesitate to make a thousand people die in order to prolong his stay in Iraq.
– What’s your suggestion to help them leave Iraq as soon as possible?
– As the presence of families at Camp Ashraf had awakened the members for escaping the cult, their presence at Camp Liberty will also be helpful regarding the fact that Liberty is much smaller than Ashraf in size and suppression is much stronger there. Families can play a key role n liberating their loved ones.
Families can assure their children that they are able to make the right decision for their fate demanding UN representative visit their beloveds.
– Thank you for the time you gave Nejat Society. And last question, what do you do now?
– I’m a construction worker and I will soon get married being impressed by Maryam [Rajavi]’s ideological revolution!
Mehdi Fakharzadeh escaped Temporary Transit Location (Camp Liberty) and surrendered himself to Iraqi forces.
After twenty years of membership in the Cult of Rajavi, Mr. Fakharzadeh stated at UN mission office in Iraq that he has defected the group and did not intend to stay in the MKO anymore.
He was handed to Iraqi authorities after he passed legal process in UNAMI and UNHCR. It is worth to mention that MKO leaders usually hold 3 to 4 hours meetings to manipulate members before they go to UN office to fill out asylum seeking forms and then they will let them go there, because they fear their defection.
Mr. Fakhar Zadeh is the second person who has escaped the Cult since last week. The other defector was Mr. Houshang Mirzaqorbani who last week escaped the Cult after two decades.
Translated by Nejat Society
Mr. Abdol Hamid Raufian who could manage to escape the terrorist Cult of Rajavi describes how he was first trapped in the hands of Rajavi’s gang:
I was taken as a war prisoner by Iraqi Baath forces in 1988 (during Iran-Iraq war), I was then sent to Camp Ashraf following the deals made between MKO leaders and Iraqi forces. Since then we were severely kept under the group’s deceitful mind control system. Regarding their long-term programming they could cut us off the outside world, so they succeeded to change our minds about our country. These criminals could even cut us from our family who was once so precious to us. We were so extremely under pressure that we would use offensive words against our parents who were our dearest ones in life. We considered the criminal leaders of the cult, Massoud Rajavi and the evil Maryam “our everything” and we were made-up to serve them.
If you wanted to think about your family for a few seconds, they would humiliate you so severely that you would never think about them again. They would hold numerous meetings such as Current Operation where a large number of zealous members would attack you, verbally abusing you. Therefore nobody dared to talk about or even think about his family.
Four years ago, they gave me the letter my brother had sent to me via Red Cross, following my insistence on contacting my family. There was a phone number on the foot of the letter. I could call my mother under a heavy mental pressure because my contact was highly controlled by the cult leaders. I should talk with my mother after 23 years, and this was the start of thinking about an opportunity to run away from the cult. Thank God, I could find the opportunity.
Leaders of the cult tried to call families as Intelligence Ministry’s mercenaries and traitors because they had nothing else to say regarding families’ presence in front of Camp Ashraf. When the loud speakers were off, they said that they (families) ran away and then they would say that Iraqi soldiers were speaking in the loudspeakers. When they were encountered with voices of defectors via loudspeakers they had to claim, "You wont be executed or imprisoned if you return to Iran but you will have such a hard life ,you will earn so little that you will wish you would have stayed here with us to be safe.”
We were transferred to temporary Transit Location (Camp Liberty) based on who the leaders chose to move. If one had declared to be volunteer to move to TTL, he should have been called to attend meeting immediately. They feared that he wanted to go there in order to be interviewed and get back to Iran, to denounce them. Thus, leaders of the cult decided who was supposed to move. Members had no choice.
Translated by Nejat Society