Prince Reza Pahlavi Delivers Speech in Italian Parliament Regarding Iran

Prince Reza Pahlavi delivered a speech regarding Iran’s issues in the Italian Parliament yesterday.

Prince Pahlavi spoke yesterday, April 26, 2023, in the Italian Parliament, expressing his pleasure at his visit to Rome, thanking those who invited him to this meeting, and delivering remarks regarding the most important aspects of Iran’s current situation.

In his speech, he said: “I have been engaged in this activity for 44 years, and from the very beginning, I have stood alongside many secular democrats against a religious dictatorship. We wanted to be the voice of our compatriots within the country.

The important issue is finding a solution for a problem that those very same individuals created. Fortunately, when the Iran issue is raised today, the audience in the world understands that the ruling regime does not represent the Iranian people, and this is very important for providing moral support and boosting the morale of the Iranian people; because when people see the Iran discussion taking place, world decision-makers and politicians look not only at the regime in Tehran but also at the Iranian people.”

From Prince Pahlavi’s perspective, the killing of Mahsa Amini created a historic moment when Iran came into the focus of global attention. According to him, this event was a “San Diego” moment for Iran when the world awakened and witnessed a real revolution in Iran. The point is that for change to occur in Iran, citizens must be placed at the forefront, and this brings us precisely to the point we are now discussing regarding Iran.

Another point is how we can provide greater support to the Iranian people. I think that not only Italy but throughout the European Union in general has a direct connection to the philosophy of the “Woman, Life, Freedom” revolution.

From a human rights perspective, the most important component is that we must address the gender discrimination laws in Iran and legislate against these laws. Laws that discriminate against Iranian women, and in this regard, we don’t want to emphasize only women but must also pay attention to the LGBT community.

According to Prince Pahlavi’s views, the sanctions imposed against the Iranian regime so far are limited only to terrorism and the nuclear program, but sanctions can be made more severe and broader in connection with the Islamic Republic’s behavior regarding the values mentioned. Because sanctions are capable at some point of weakening a regime and its tools of repression by reducing their financial resources, but this is necessary yet insufficient. There must also be direct support components for Iranian citizens.

European authorities should enact laws that limit regime officials and ground their diplomats, which would boost the morale of the Iranian people.

Prince Pahlavi considered it his duty to oversee a peaceful change in Iran and naturally, after the regime change, to ensure that the Iranian people can decide about their own future, and naturally they will also have a transition period in which an interim government will take office.

An assembly whose founders will write the constitution and then decide on how to govern the country, the degree or extent of centralization or decentralization of decision-making. He also declared that Iran will be governed with a democratic spirit, and I will exert all my efforts to fulfill this role in the best way possible, and I think to implement it in the best way, I must remain neutral and non-partisan. Of course, this neutrality allows me so that young people who may or may not be monarchists still have confidence in me. Because they know that I want to move toward the most transparent change of the country and the most transparent transition phase.