By Sara Akrami

In February 2011, the news media reported that the screening of the controversial documentary, “Iranium,” had been banned in Ottawa due to pressure and threats from the Islamic Republic of Iran’s embassy. Despite all the threats, the documentary was shown in two different places such as Archives Canada in Ottawa and York University in Toronto and many citizens including students lined up to form their own opinions. The fact that this documentary made the Islamic Republic of Iran’s embassy concerned is a disclosure of the true face of this brutal government’s desire to procure nuclear weapons, its support of terrorism, and its violations of the basic human rights of the Iranian people during 31 years of its existence. But the most shocking aspect is: How is it possible that an embassy of a foreign government (that being Iran) that is isolated in the international arena and has the highest number of opponents among its citizens (within Iran and abroad) can exert its control over the Canadian government?

The documentary shows the inhuman treatment of regime’s opponents by police forces and interviews with politicians and analysts. It also shows a montage of Islamic Republic officials’ speeches, including one by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Holocaust denier president, in which he states, “we will not give up a single iota of our nuclear rights.” It is obvious that this regime refers to nuclear weapons as so-called “nuclear rights.” When the Islamic Republic of Iran was established in 1979, its leader Khomeini mentioned that the United States of America must be destroyed and referred to Israel as a cancerous tumor which must also be destroyed. These threatening statements by the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran have been continued until today under the government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Ahmadinejad has openly declared that “Israel must be wiped off the world map.” These statements make completely clear that the Islamic Republic of Iran is seeking nuclear weapons rather than a peaceful nuclear program and without permission, they force their sinister desire upon the Iranian people and they say that this is the wish of Iranians. The fact is that Iranians have been suffering under poverty with violations of their basic rights and the last thing that they care about is nuclear weapons; the money that belongs to Iranian families has been spent in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and other countries to support terrorist groups and Islamic extremists such as Hamas and Hezbollah.

The Canadian government has to understand that the Islamic Republic of Iran and its supporters in Canada are a threat to the safety of Canadian society and the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran plays an important role in this matter. This regime and its supporters are trying to break Canadian laws and regulations for their own sinister desires. Since the Canadian federal government has condemned human rights abuses of the Islamic Republic of Iran at various times, there will be a desire by this regime to take revenge against Canada due to the isolation that Canada has provided. The trained terrorists of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s embassies have murdered many Iranian opponents of this regime including political activists and artists throughout the world. Dr. Shapour Bakhtiar, the prime minister of the previous regime, was one of those victims. Thus, this threat now exists in Canada for Iranian dissidents of this regime.

As Iranian-Canadian citizens and opponents of the Islamic Republic of Iran, it is very disconcerting to see the growing increase in number of pro-Islamic Republic of Iran’s agents and supporters in Canadian society.

Sara Akrami is founder and president of the Human Rights Activists Association at York University-Canada.

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Related: Canada, Dictator Watch, Extremists, Foreign Policy, Governing, Human Rights, Iran, Law, National Security / Intelligence

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