Kaveh Shahroz, supporter of sanctions against Iran

Kaveh Shahroz is a board member of the American organization "Human Rights Documentation Center" and a figure supporting sanctions on Iran, active in Canada.

Here are his words about signing a new petition in support of Iran:

You've probably seen a petition to the foreign ministers of the G7 countries circulating online by now, asking them to do two things:

First, they strongly urge Iran to immediately release all political prisoners; and second, the G7 countries expel Iran's ambassadors and high-ranking representatives in international institutions.

We have been incredibly lucky in getting international support so far. In two or three days, four hundred and thirty thousand people from all over the world have signed this petition. In fact, we are on track to become one of the most successful petitions in the history of Change. Org, the website that hosts most of the world's petitions. Because of the overwhelming success of this petition, many people have questions.

Our friends and civic activists want to know more about this petition and its effects, and I am happy to answer these questions.

Unfortunately, the Iranian regime and its supporters have spread a lot of misinformation about this petition, its effects, and its participants. But I am here to refute these rumors and tell you the truth.

So who is behind this petition? This petition was published under my name, but it is not my personal petition. It is published under my name simply because I uploaded it to Change.org. The group behind this petition is called “Iranians for Justice and Human Rights.”

We are a very new group that formed during the coordination of the October 1st march in Toronto, a march that drew 50,000 people to demand the end of the Islamic regime and the achievement of rights and democracy for all Iranians.

You may have heard that this organization is affiliated with a foreign power or political party. I am here to tell you that all of this is false.

We are a civil society organization and are not affiliated with any other party. We are not affiliated with any foreign organization or country. This organization is made up of civil society activists, human rights activists, and people active in the Iranian Canadian community. Our most prominent member is someone you probably know, Dr. Hamed Esmailiyon. A fearless man whose advocacy in the PS752 case has truly inspired millions around the world.

You may also have heard from regime supporters that expelling Iranian ambassadors will make your life outside Iran difficult. In fact, this is false. We are calling for the expulsion of Iranian ambassadors and high-ranking representatives in international institutions. Consular matters, such as renewing passports or obtaining birth certificates, can continue with the presence of lower diplomatic levels, which do not require an ambassador.

Another thing you might hear is that doing this and signing petitions is futile and will not work. I am here to say that the people who say this are often the same people who have been saying for years that trying to boycott the IRGC and Javad Zarif and the like is futile. These people are not saying this because they believe it; they are saying this to dissuade you from signing this petition. The reality is that in the world of human rights and civil society, things often seem difficult. They seem impossible, even, until they suddenly become possible. The way they become possible is through public pressure, and that is the purpose of this petition. It is very important to remember what is at stake. The Iranian regime is a gender-segregated regime, and it enforces this gender-segregated regime.

It is very important that we deal with an apartheid government the way we dealt with South Africa during apartheid. We must isolate it diplomatically and shame it internationally. We must put pressure on it. Foreign governments must also work directly with the Iranian people, so that the people themselves can bring their revolution to victory.

So with all of these points in mind, I hope you will sign this petition if you haven't already. I hope you will continue to support our movement.

Woman - Life - Freedom, in the hope of Iran's freedom