Thank you, sir.
I will read part of my statement about the state of Iran's water, as well as environment, human rights and related issues.
In 2001, as a water conservationist and journalist, I warned former president Khatami in person about the effects of the flawed policies of his ministry of energy. I briefed him on the impact of his administration's plans to build more dams and transfer water from one basin to another to serve the special interests, while ignoring the importance of watershed management and maintaining aquifers.
Water scarcity in many rural areas has forced millions of farmers and peasants to leave their ancestral lands and homes for the margins of major cities. The lack of proper infrastructure has disappointed these migrants, and the government has no plans to assist the victims of its water and food policies. Based on Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's demands, the government is encouraging farmers to produce more grains in a time of an extreme water shortage that, in turn, has turned Iran into a water bankrupt nation.
Based on the result of the recent research, Iran lost twice the amount of its annual renewable water resources between 2003 and 2018. While the government is encouraging population growth, water resources are disappearing, aquifer by aquifer, lake by lake and river by river. This is resulting in a negative impact on Iran's wildlife as well.
As you all may know, Iranian-Canadian wildlife conservationist Dr. Kavous Seyed-Emami was a victim of the regime's brutality. Many in the Islamic Republic have no respect for wildlife and biodiversity, and they cannot tolerate activities led by the likes of Dr. Seyed-Emami.
In the last few years, Iran has witnessed unrest related to water scarcity, and lives have been lost. Major cities in Iran are literally sinking as a result of land subsidence caused by groundwater depletion. Iran's leaders have continuously demanded that farmers produce grain so that they could prove to the world that the regime is self-sufficient and does not need to obey international norms. Instead of importing products with high water consumption, Iran is using more than half of its groundwater resources to produce wheat and other grains.
While we understand that the continuation of a water shortage will eventually turn into unrest and revolt, I'm concerned about the unpreparedness of the opposition forces to manage the water and environmental resources after the fall of the Islamic regime. I believe that Canada can have a great role in assisting Iran in the future. There remain knowledgeable Iranian-Canadian water experts who can build a sustainable bridge between the two nations.
However, there are also a number of Iranian-Canadians who have assisted the regime in destroying the environment, and Canada should take a stand. Most of the projects that led to this disaster were constructed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Camp headquarters and the Mahab Ghodss consulting firm. Mahab Ghodss is currently on the United States sanctions list.
It should be noted that many employees of Mahab Ghodss are now citizens of Canada, and the head of Mahab Ghodss has travelled freely to Canada to visit his loved ones.
It has been stated that a number of people associated with the Revolutionary Guards have lived and invested in Canada. Per an Iranian regime news agency, Alireza Razm Hosseini, an associate of General Qasem Soleimani, has previously lived in Canada. Mr. Razm Hosseini, a former IRGC commander during the Iran-Iraq war and a former cabinet minister under Rouhani's administration, was once referred to by General Soleimani as “our man in Canada”.
Interestingly, before entering Rouhani's administration, Mr. Razm Hosseini became the governor of two provinces. He had a very bad environmental record in Kerman and Khorasan Razavi provinces.
In short, I can say that, given the state of the environment and water resources, the Islamic regime cannot be sustainable. After 43 years of the rule of ayatollahs and 42 years of hostage taking, the rulers of civilized and democratic countries must be smart enough to know that not resisting the hostage takers and terrorists will result in nothing but defeat.
Ignoring the views of Iranian intellectuals who have not complied with the wishes of the Ayatollah cannot be in the interest of the democratic world, especially Canada. A regime that does not recognize women and that imprisons scientists and protectors of the environment does not deserve any sort of compromise.
We have a saying in our region: We will not give into force unless it is very forceful. Governments and representatives should also learn from strong individuals who did not give in to the very strong IRGC.
Today, at the next meeting, Hamed Esmaeilion is going to present his case. I strongly believe that Mr. Esmaeilion and other individuals who lost their loved ones have shown us how strength and perseverance against the powerful elements that shot down PS752 could break the camel's back that is the Islamic regime.
Thank you.