{"id":347946,"date":"2026-09-10T20:14:45","date_gmt":"2026-09-10T19:14:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=347946"},"modified":"2026-09-10T20:14:45","modified_gmt":"2026-09-10T19:14:45","slug":"uk-parliament-conference-calls-for-break-with-appeasement-and-support-for-irans-democratic-resistance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-resistance\/uk-parliament-conference-calls-for-break-with-appeasement-and-support-for-irans-democratic-resistance\/","title":{"rendered":"UK Parliament Conference Calls for Break with Appeasement and Support for Iran\u2019s Democratic Resistance"},"content":{"rendered":"
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British parliamentarians, legal experts, academics and Iranian community representatives gather at Portcullis House in Westminster on September 9, 2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

British parliamentarians, legal experts, academics and Iranian community representatives gathered at Portcullis House in Westminster on September 9, 2026, for a conference titled The Road to a Free Iran: Human Rights, Accountability and Democratic Change<\/em>, focusing on executions, political repression and prospects for an Iranian-led democratic transition. The meeting examined the growing role of the organized Resistance and Resistance Units inside Iran, the NCRI\u2019s proposed transition framework and Maryam Rajavi\u2019s Ten-Point Plan<\/a>, while speakers repeatedly argued that neither military intervention nor continued appeasement offers a solution to the Iran crisis. Several participants also rejected a return to monarchical rule and called for stronger accountability for the IRGC and other officials implicated in repression. Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, <\/strong>President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, sent a video message to the conference, calling on Britain to adopt a policy centered on human rights, support for a democratic republic and recognition of the Iranian Resistance.<\/p>\n

In her message to the conference<\/a>, Mrs. Rajavi said the central issue linking human rights to political change was the determination of Iran\u2019s younger generation to end religious dictatorship and establish \u201ca free and democratic republic.\u201d She cited imprisoned and executed young PMOI supporters to argue that repression had failed to extinguish organized opposition, including two women prisoners who wrote: \u201cWe are Generation Z. We are anti-dictatorship and anti-dependency. We are against Shah and the mullahs.\u201d Mrs. Rajavi sharply rejected both the clerical system and restoration of the previous monarchy, saying the Shah had ruled through torture and that his son remained proud of the dynasty\u2019s record.<\/p>\n

“In Iran, only the regime and the remnants of the old dictatorship want war,” the NCRI President-elect said. “They see war as their only chance. They want to bring back the old dictatorship and its brutal secret police, the SAVAK.”<\/p>\n

She called on London to abandon both war and appeasement: \u201cNow, it is time for the world to stand with the people of Iran.\u201d Britain, she said, should support the demand for a republic based on separation of religion and state, gender equality and abolition of torture and executions.<\/p>\n

Mrs. Rajavi also set out three concrete demands for international policy. She urged governments to make diplomatic and commercial relations with Tehran conditional on an end to executions, use international jurisdiction against those responsible for the 1988 massacre<\/a> and more recent killings, and require a \u201creal, verified stop to executions\u201d in any agreement with the authorities. \u201cLong years of experience prove that ignoring executions and ignoring the Iranian people\u2019s Resistance lie in the heart of a policy that has helped the regime over several decades,\u201d she said. Mrs. Rajavi also referred to the successful British campaign to blacklist the IRGC and expressed hope that the same political effort would now be directed toward stopping executions and securing a policy supportive of the Iranian Resistance. Her message presented human-rights accountability not as separate from political change but as integral to the struggle over Iran\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

Jim Shannon<\/strong>, Democratic Unionist Party MP for Strangford, said political change ultimately had to be achieved by Iranians themselves, but argued that Britain should openly support the organized democratic alternative. \u201cDespite the regime\u2019s propaganda, repression, and threats, we know there is an organized democratic alternative led by Madam Maryam Rajavi and the National Council of Resistance of Iran,\u201d he said, reaffirming his support for Mrs. Rajavi\u2019s Ten-Point Plan<\/a>. Shannon highlighted the expansion of Resistance Units alongside executions of PMOI members, political prisoners and detained protesters, saying this demonstrated both the strength of the opposition and Tehran\u2019s fear of it. He urged Britain to go beyond expressions of sympathy: \u201cStand with the Iranian people and their popular resistance. Reject the murderous regime. Recognize the NCRI\u2019s provisional government as a democratic alternative to this regime.\u201d Shannon also praised the prominent role of women in the Resistance and congratulated Mahnaz Meimanat on her election as the PMOI\u2019s new Secretary-General.<\/p>\n

Conservative MP Bob Blackman<\/strong>, who was unable to attend, sent remarks that were read to the conference by Matthew Goodwin-Freeman. Blackman\u2019s message argued that neither \u201cwar nor appeasement offers a sustainable solution to the Iran crisis\u201d and identified the Iranian people and their organized resistance as the principal force for democratic change. He cited recent activities by Resistance Units<\/a>, including public actions connected with the PMOI\u2019s 61st anniversary, as evidence that the movement remained \u201calive, organized, and resilient across Iran.\u201d Blackman called on the British government to recognize the NCRI as a provisional authority for democratic transition and endorse Rajavi\u2019s Ten-Point Plan. He also rejected \u201ca restorationist project\u201d as a democratic alternative, arguing that Reza Pahlavi\u2019s support for foreign military strikes, questions surrounding some supporters and the absence of a clear reckoning with abuses under the monarchy raised doubts about his democratic credentials. Iran\u2019s future, he said, must rest on popular sovereignty rather than dynastic restoration.<\/p>\n

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Message to the conference at UK Parliament: #HumanRights<\/a> and democratic change in Iran
Ignoring executions lies in the heart of a policy that helps the clerical regimehttps:\/\/t.co\/SBtZ5K0K94<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/gjIXmhQ5rO<\/a><\/p>\n

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) September 9, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n