Javid Rehman, the former special rapporteur for human rights in Iran, has claimed that he did not receive money for his participation in the meeting of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK). He, who has been severely criticized for participating in the meeting of the Cult of Rajavi and especially addressing Maryam Rajavi with the title “president-elect”, denied receiving any fee for attending the meeting or giving a speech.
After the reaction by the Iranian media to the presence of Javid Rehman in the meeting of the so-called National Council of Resistance, the MEK’s political vitrine, there has been a wave of reaction from Persian-language media, and Iranian analysts and journalists abroad.
In order to produce a report on the issue, BBC reporter Parham Qobadi interviewed Javid Rehman. Rehman denied that he received money from the MEK for participating in this ceremony. To justify the use of the word “president-elect” to address Maryam Rajavi, Javid Rehman said that he used the organizational title of the leader of the group. In response to BBC, he stated that the reason for attending this meeting was to interview the families of victims.
It is worth to know that Iran International TV Channel also tried to contact Javid Rehman to ask him to explain on this matter, but this time the former UN rapporteur did not accept to talk. He just said that his mission on Iran is over and speaking about it is pointless. This type of response is completely contrary to the statements he made in response to BBC.
The Iranian-American journalist Omid Memarian described Javid Rehman’s act as “reckless” in an interview with Iran International. He emphasized that UN rapporteurs, while contacting all people and political groups to gather information and complete their knowledge, should keep their distance from them. He considered the use of the title “President Elect” for Maryam Rajavi as “disrespectful” regarding the people of Iran, because according to the Memarian, Javid Rehman is definitely aware of the Iranian nation’s view on the MEK.
Reposting his colleague’s report on X social network, Bahman Kalbasi, a BBC Persian reporter, wrote: “Almost all those who give speeches for Rajavi and his group are paid thousands, sometimes tens of thousands of dollars. Javid Rehman answered my colleague’s questions. He claimed that he did not receive any money.”
Also, Sina Azodi, an expert on Iran’s foreign policy and a professor at Elliott College at George Washington University, wrote about the huge sums paid by the MEK to the speakers of their events:
“A retired CIA professor from my master’s degree told me that he was under federal investigation for receiving $15,000 from the Mujahedin organization for a speech. Of course, this story is from 2012.”
paying several tens of thousands of dollars as speaking fees by the MEK is not a new issue. Several reports have been published in Western newspapers and news agencies about the heavy sums that former officials like John Bolton and Rudy Giuliani have received for a few minutes of speech at the meetings of the MEK.
Hamid Bahrami, a journalist and independent analyst in international relations, says something new about the speaking fees the MEK pay their speakers:
“For some time now, the MEK have been paying their guests with digital currency for a secret purpose and at the request of the recipient. This is not an analysis; it is a news.”
And perhaps Yasir Mirdamadi, writer, translator, researcher of religion and philosophy, who holds a doctorate in Islamic studies from Edinburgh University, offers the best conclusion from the words of Javid Rahman at the MEK meeting. Mirdamadi writes on his X account:
“At the beginning of his speech, Javid Rehman said that he was grateful for the “generous” invitation of the “President-elect”. Now he says that he has not received any money, if so, then by “generous” he must have meant the bananas and coconuts that were served on his table.”
However, Iranians should be grateful to Javid Rehman for the service he did to himself and to human rights institutions, to make it known to the world that how much the MEK and its leaders Maryam and Massoud Rajavi are hated by the Iranians around the world. If hundreds of books, articles and audio and video contents were produced about the unpopularity of Maryam Rajavi among Iranians inside and outside the country, it would not have the very impact that Javid Rahman’s company in the MEK show had.
He now knows that his contradictory statements about the reason for his presence at MEK’s meeting are sensibly considered by the Iranian audience. Three weeks after the end of his mission about human rights in Iran and after the publication of his report, he participates in the gathering of the Cult of Rajavi. He explains the reason for his presence to BBC as “to interview the families of the victims”, but he tells Iran International about the ending of his mission on Iran. This clearly shows the “generous” influence of the formerly terrorist designated MEK with its dark history of violence, terrorism and extremism in its reports.
By Mazda Parsi