On Saturday, February 21, 2026, on the eve of March 8, International Women’s Day, the NCRI Women’s Committee hosted an international conference in Paris entitled “Women’s Leadership: An Imperative for a Free Iran and a Democratic Republic.” The conference, attended by women legislators, academics, thinkers, and prominent political figures, focused on women’s political participation and leadership as a decisive element in a democratic society.
At this conference, Eve Borg Bonello, Member of the Parliament of Malta, was also in attendance and delivered a speech. The full text of her speech is provided below:
Eve Borg Bonello: Human rights, democracy, and freedom are not exclusively Western privileges; they are human ideals
Good evening. Madam Rajavi, friends.
Tonight, in Tehran, a little girl sits on the floor of her family home. She does not know what tomorrow will bring, but the statistics seem to already do. She’s more likely to face violence that will strip her of her aspirations and liberties. She is more likely to have her life chosen for her before she even has a chance to think for herself. Yet, like millions of other children across the world, she is born with an inherent dignity. She has the same worth, the same right to dream that is owed to every Iranian.
Human rights, democracy, and freedom are not exclusively Western privileges; they are human ideals. All men and women are born equal with inalienable rights. Every day, young Iranians take to the streets, knowing that bullets may greet them, that prisons may await them, and that they may never return home. Mothers scramble to identify their children—their sons, their daughters—from rows and rows of body bags. Understandably, these people are not looking for concessions or reforms. They are prepared to sacrifice their lives for liberty, and it is our duty to see it through.
Eve Borg Bonello: When people stand up, willing to sacrifice their lives, regimes and dictators tremble
This is an existential struggle between theocratic tyranny and basic human dignity. Despite a cowardly regime attempting to silence its people through internet blackouts and communication shutdowns, the truth continues to reach us. It reminds me of a quote by the late, great John F. Kennedy: “Freedom has many difficulties and democracy is not perfect, but we have never had to put up a wall to keep our people in.” Governments worthy of their people do not fear their people.
A regime that murders protesters, jails journalists, and executes dissenters is not strong. It is terrified. It is terrified of its people, it is terrified of the truth, and it is terrified of the light because the regime knows it can only survive in darkness. As history shows us, when people stand up, when people are willing to sacrifice their lives, regimes and dictators tremble. Freedom becomes inevitable, throughout history: Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; Liberté, égalité, fraternité; Woman, life, freedom, resistance.
This is your call and it can only be honored in one way. The lives lost can only be honored in one way: achieving real freedom. Like the life of Mahsa Amini, murdered for wearing her headscarf too loosely, and thousands of others murdered senselessly. Mahsa was 22 years old, the same age I am today standing before you. She had an entire life before her—dreams, plans, and a future to build. Young people in Iran are educated, capable, and extraordinary. They are engineers, scientists, doctors, lawyers, workers, activists, and innovators. They do not need to be saved from one dictator by another. They need a chance to rebuild their country, to rebuild their future fairer, stronger, and freer.
Eve Borg Bonello: The Iranian people are not asking for history’s permission. They are writing it
The right to self-determination. This movement is organized. You know exactly what you are fighting for. The people in the streets know exactly what they are fighting for. Your plan: democracy, the rule of law, respect for human rights, equality before the law, and the separation of religion and state. The people of Iran ask us to stand with them, to speak, to act, to recognize their legitimate representatives, and to isolate a regime that only survives through blood. Freedom is not a gift to be handed down by tyrants. It is inherent. It is a right reclaimed by the people. And the Iranian people are not asking for history’s permission. You are writing it. Thank you.
