Press release
Syrian Coalition
Media Department
January 1, 2018
The Syrian Coalition affirms it stands by the peoples’ right to freedom, dignity, and to live under good governance and a system of rule that is based on justice, freedom and equality and in which officials are held to account in front of credible institutions representing the will of the people.
The Coalition emphasizes that the crimes and brutal crackdown being practiced by the Iranian regime against the peaceful protesters will not solve any of the problems the country is facing. Though repressive policies may succeed in silencing the people for some time, they will fail to address the roots of the problems, nor will they eliminate the causes of the deep popular anger which will continue to flare up as long as corruption, tyranny and racism dominate political and economic institutions. This has been repeatedly the case in Iran, including the Green Revolution of 2009, the protests of 2011, and the Mahabad uprising in 2015.
The Iranian regime has long been known for its violent suppression of all forms of freedom of opinion, expression and belief. It uses “resistance” as a slogan under which it dubs those with opposing opinions as traitors. It imprisons the opposition intellectuals and national figures as well as systematically uses torture in prisons and detention centers. Moreover, the Iranian regime seems unwilling to bring about any positive change in its domestic and foreign policies. It is now dragging the country into a disaster just as it did with the region as a result of its criminal policies and its quest to spread terrorism.
The Iranian regime adopts policies that are aimed at exporting its internal crises by fueling conflicts and igniting wars, including its provision of direct support for Assad’s war against the aspirations of the Syrian people. It has also been complicit in the bloodshed in Syria by sending sectarian militias to Syria, the provision of military support for the Assad regime, and by its persistent pursuit of plans to change the demographic landscape in Syria through ethnic and sectarian cleansing and the spreading of extremist ideology in other countries such as Iraq and Yemen.
The Syrian Coalition stands in solidarity with the Iranian people’s peaceful struggle to get rid of the decades-long oppression, tyranny and corruption. The aggressive policies being pursued by the Iranian mullah regime against its people and peoples of the region have cost the Iranian people enormous losses. It has squandered the country’s resources and wealth to fuel conflicts and wars as well as to recruit militias and death squads. The Iranian regime must stop pursuing these policies if Iran wants to play a positive role that is based on showing respect for the will of peoples and mutual interests.
