A gathering of 1000 former political prisoners was held at Ashraf 3 in Albania on Sunday, November 14, 2021. They have witnessed the crimes of the clerical regime in the early 1980s and 1988.
Some 20 reporters and photographers visited Ashraf 3 on Sunday, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., preparing reports from the museum of the victims of the 1988 massacre and the symbolic presentation of Khavaran cemetery. Some of the reporters attended the gathering of 1000 former political prisoners and interviewed the participants.
The gathering opened with the remarks by Ms. Massoumeh Malek Mohammadi, a former political prisoner and a Co-Secretary-General of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). She elaborated on the significance of the gathering.
“We have 1000 former PMOI political prisoners with us today in this gathering. Together, they have served thousands of years in the dungeons of the Shah and the mullahs. More than 200 of us are women. A group of us were witnesses of the 1988 massacre in various prisons. Some of the participants served from 10 to 17 years in prison. We have endured long years of torment to end the suffering of our people.”
In another part of her remarks, Ms. Malek Mohammadi added, “The (temporary) transfer of the Court of Sweden to Albania was an essential part of the fact-finding process. As the presiding judge reiterated, it is crucial in proving the guilt of the perpetrator who is on trial.”
Ms. Malek Mohammadi pointed out that the 1988 massacre does not belong to the past. It is an ongoing crime. The regime continues to torture and execute the PMOI members and supporters who stand their ground for the Iranian people’s freedom.
Only one woman survived from prisoners of five rooms
The first speaker was Ms. Parvin Firouzan with 9 years of imprisonment on her record. She attested, “One month after the beginning of the massacre, we saw that only one person had survived from among the prisoners of five closed-door rooms. They had executed all PMOI women.”
A six-year political prisoner, Ms. Mahin Latif also recounted her experiences in the clerical regime’s jails and memories of the resistance of PMOI women in the early 1980s. Her sister, Farzaneh, and brother Ali-Akbar Latif, were executed by the clerical regime.
Ms. Homa Jaberi, a survivor of the clerical regime’s vicious tortures of women, has experienced Evin, Gohardasht and Qezel-Hessar prisons for six years. She explained how PMOI women courageously resisted in the Residential Unit in Qezel-Hessar.
The women’s ward held 270 prisoners, only 70 survived
Mr. Hassan Zarif, a political prisoner for 12 years, said: “Only 60 survived from the 14 general wards in Evin Prison each holding 200 prisoners. The women’s ward held 270 prisoners, but only 70 of them survived.”
Dr. Khadijeh Ashtiani was in the clerical regime’s jails for five years. She explained how her brother, Mehdi, was arrested and executed in the 1988 massacre. Her sister, Maryam, was also arrested while on her way to join the PMOI and executed.
Dr. Ashtiani remembered some of the physicians and medical staff executed in the early 1980s or in 1988 for their sympathy with the PMOI/MEK.
Mr. Mohammad Raputam was also a political prisoner for 11 years. He said of the 154 prisoners transferred from Gohardasht to Evin, only 7 remained alive. The rest were executed during the 1988 massacre.
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, also addressed the gathering. In her brief remarks, she said, “Your gathering today, which pays tribute to the November 2019 uprising carries a special message. Your message, the 1000 former political prisoners under the Shah and the mullahs, is that seeking justice for the victims of the 1988 massacre is the same as rising up for the mullahs’ overthrow. From the prisons’ death corridors to the streets of Tehran, Tabriz, Ahvaz, and Isfahan, the Mojahedin (PMOI/MEK) will never give up on this objective until Iran is liberated.”
The full testimonies of former political prisoners will be published in the following days.
