Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Professor Cotler, yes, that is exactly true. We know that the regime in Tehran is not indifferent to international condemnation. We also note that they try very hard to avoid international diplomatic isolation, and those political prisoners whose cause has been championed outsi

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Thank you very much for your question, sir. I think it's quite interesting that Dr. Shirin Ebadi is the winner of the Nobel Prize. She is one of those who are engaged in human rights activities outside of Iran, because she could not conduct those activities inside the country. S

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Thank you very much, sir. Thank you for your kind invitation and providing me with the opportunity to share with the committee my analysis of human rights developments in Iran. Almost two years into the presidency of Dr. Rouhani, and almost two years after the beginning of th

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  My answer, sir, would be that the government has an easier time persecuting the Baha'i community because many devout Shia Iranians have bought into the clerical argument that the Baha'i faith constitutes an ideological threat to the survival of Shia Islam. The Baha'i faith, in th

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  First and foremost, I would very much like to use this opportunity to thank the Prime Minister of Canada and in general the political elites of this country for extending moral support to the Iranian population, moral support that the Iranian public did not receive from President

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Right now the Revolutionary Guards are engaged in a fierce battle with the Iranian government. Mr. Rouhani wants to subject the Revolutionary Guards to political control. One of the things he has been doing systematically is to cancel contracts that the previous administration, M

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  The conscription issue is that all Iranian males over 18 years of age have to show up for conscription. The military service is slightly more than one year long. The Revolutionary Guards have the first pick when it comes to selection of individuals who show up for the draft. Thos

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Recently one of the commanders of the Revolutionary Guards stated, “In Syria we have managed to create a new Hezbollah”, which I think is a very interesting statement because it tells you that they believe they are on the winning side of history. They believe that they have manag

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Yes, sir, particularly when it comes to the Baha’i community. The Baha’i community is the most persecuted religious minority in Iran ever since the revolution of 1979. The religious leadership of the Islamic republic believes that the Baha’i faith is a direct challenge, a theol

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Absolutely.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I believe western countries can provide access to information to the Iranian public. I believe western countries can also punish those members of the political elite of the Islamic Republic of Iran who are suppressing the rights of man in Iran. I believe western countries can pro

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I think that because of the short time we have for our discussion, we present the decision-making process in Iran as if it is monolithic. That's not the case. There certainly are many conflicts among the group Mr. Rouhani represents and the mafia that is the Revolutionary Guard a

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  It's based on open source analysis, sir. What we do is we systematically analyze any data that is available in the open source. We read not only current affairs, not only the newspapers, but also historical records. For your information, the interesting thing about the Iranian

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much for providing me with this opportunity to share my analysis with you. Allow me in particular to express my gratitude to you because you do something that most politicians and statesmen in the west do not: you ma