@@ The MKO Propaganda Machine @@
Arash
July 13, 2005
"Iran Focus": The MKO Propaganda Machine
By Nema Milaninia
I’ve written several times about my distrust of several news sources by hard-line
monarchists or the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organziation (MKO/MEK/NCR/PMO/People's
Mojahedin, etc http://www.iran-interlink.org) as well as those who rely on these
sources as "news".
Reading news from one of these agencies isn't about reflecting on different
interpretive accounts of events.
This isn’t like choosing between the New York Times and Washington Post where there
are different “spins” on the same source of information. Both the Time and the Post
believe they are being objective, but in different ways.
Relying on news sources by hardline monarchists and the MKO, is about choosing an
agency that absolutely lies or exaggerates incidents in order to enhance their own
political objective. Let us take Iran Focus as an example. In the past I have noted
that Iran Focus is a agency run by the MKO for various reasons:
1) The current executive director of Iran Focus (http://www.iranfocus.com) is
Mohammad Hanif Jazayeri (hanifjazayeri[AT]hotmail.com). Hanif is the son of Hassan
Jazayeri. Until three years ago, Hassan Jazayeri was rumored to have died in 1980 as
a result of being abandoned by MKO and Iraqi trainers. Later the story was changed to
Hassan being executed by the Iranian regime for his membership with the MKO. Given
Iran and the MKO's history of human rights abuses, I won't argue which is the correct
account. Before "Iran Focus" was ever created, Hanif Jazayeri has time after time
advocated his support for the MKO. In fact, earlier this year Hanif Jazayeri was
engaged engaged in a campaign to remove the MKO from the UK’s list of terrorist
organizations (it is worth noting that the MKO is also included in the State
Department's list of terrorist organizations.)
Additionally, in various posts dated in1998
(http://ait-cec.com/jebhe_bbmesg/10377.html) and 1999
(http://ait-cec.com/jebhe7mesg/10359.html), Hanif Jazayeri has advocated his support
for the MKO as Iran’s only "democratic alternative."
Hanif Jazayeri's signature also appears on this petition
(http://www.iran-e-azad.org/020614/English.html) supporting the MKO cause.
2) "Iran Focus" (http://www.iranfocus.com) along with its sister site "Iran Terror"
(http://www.iranterror.com) [look at the website designs and stories as well as the
website for the MKO (http://www.ncr-iran.org) and you can easily see they're created
by the same designer], are registered in London and Paris respectively. In fact both
organizations, including the MKO (http://www.ncr-iran.org/content/view/44/1), tried
to allege that the Human Rights Watch report
(http://hrw.org/backgrounder/mena/iran0505) illustrating all the human rights abuses
committed by the organization was a result of some conspiracy between HRW and agents
in the Iranian government. A response to the allegation can be found here
(http://www.iran-interlink.org/files/info/Jun05/MKO%20-%20Ebrahim.htm). I'd like to
add that the "Gulf 2000 list" which "Iran Focus" and "Iran Terror" refers to is a
listserv with hundreds of academics, politicals, and thinkers on the Persian Gulf
with different political viewpoints. Nevertheless, the "Iran Terror" email refers to
emails sent in the listserv as "secret emails" which they had intercepted.
3) The "Iran Focus" website uses language supporting the MKO cause. There are
particular ideological positions and phrases which MKO members and supporters use. By
continously using the MKO as Iran's "democratic alternative" both the "Iran Focus"
and "Iran Terror" websites intend to create the misleading image that the group, as
well as their political counter-part NCR, are legitimate proponents of human rights
and democracy with a significant backing inside and outside of Iran. Read this
article (http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=2620), this
article (http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=2781), and this
article (http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=2798) for an image
of the type of propaganda used by the websites.
As I stated before, the purpose of both Iran Focus and Iran Terror is twofold:
1) to disseminate information for political purposes and enhance a movement for
external regime change and
2) legitimize the MKO in Western government
(http://www.terradaily.com/upi/2005/WWN-UPI-20050531-15474500-bc-us-mek.html) by
removing them from terrorist lists and enhancing their political influence. The sum
of these objectives is to persuade Western govenments to militarily engage Iran in
order to replace with Mullahs with the Mujahedin.
That being said there's a variety of reasons to view the MKO news agencies and
similar modules as instruments of propaganda as opposed to instruments of news.
First, the organization is a terrorist group under both U.S. and European law. The
State Department continues to list the MKO as a terrorist group
(http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/fs/2001/6531.htm). Although MKO agents have claimed
that the inclusion was part of Clinton's appeal to the reformist government in Iran,
the argument is no longer cogent in light of the fact that during Bush's 5 years in
office he has yet to remove the MKO as a terrorist group despite significant
political pressure by various neo-conservatives (this includes Daniel Pipes who
currently has a chair with the U.S. Institute of Peace) and various Republican
Congressmen. [see this article (http://home.att.net/~b.hernlem/MKOLobby.html) for a
summary of US political figures who have been lobbyed by MKO representatives and
supporters].
Not only were the MKO were designated as a terrorist group under executive order on
November 2, 2001 (http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/fs/2001/6531.htm), but the President
used the MKO as an example of Saddam’s support for terrorism during the drive up to
the Iraqi war:
Iraq shelters terrorist groups including the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization
(MKO), which has used terrorist violence against Iran and in the 1970s was
responsible for killing several U.S. military personnel and U.S. civilians.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/iraq/decade/sect5.html
By their very nature as a terrorist organization, information by them should not be
trusted. Lets put it that way, would you trust al-Qaeda or Hizbollah about news in
the U.S. or Lebanon?
Second, the MKO have demonstrated time and time again the extents for which they'll
engage a disinformation campaign for purposes of propaganda. For example, the MKO
continously contend that no Mujahedin member has targeted Americans or Europeans
figures during acts of terrorism. These arguments are clearly false in light of the
following:
- In 1973, the MKO assassinated Lt. Col. Lewis Hawkins, a U.S. military advisor in
Iran.
- In 1975, MKO members shot and killed two U.S. Air force officers in Tehran and
attacked a U.S. Embassy van in Tehran resulted in the death of a local employee.
- In 1976, the MKO assassinated three American employees of Rockwell International
working in Iran.
- In 1979, the MKO openly supported the holding of U.S. hostages until 1981 when they
began directing their attention to Khomeini.
Whether or not the MKO targeted Americans or not is a irrelevant argument anyways.
Terrorism anywhere is terrorism everywhere regardless of our relationship with its
targets. Evidence of MKO propaganda in "Iran Focus" is also apparant when we compare
their report to a report by the Washington Times
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A55062-2005Apr14.html) concerning a
recent MKO event.
The "Iran Focus" report indicates that there were thousands of participants, while
the Times only reports 300. See a similar report where "Iran Focus"
(http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=1453) reported that over
40,000 participants intended to protest in Berlin. Interesting for an organization
that is only reported to have 10,000 members
(http://cfrterrorism.org/groups/mujahedeen_print.html).
Lastly, the MKO are highly disliked and disregarded by Iranians worldwide.
During the Iran-Iraq war, the Saddam financed
(http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/mek.htm) and utilized the MKO to
institute several attacks against Iranians. (Note: the MKO were also responsible for
assisting Saddam suppress Shia and Kurdish uprisings in 1991
http://www.csmonitor.com/durable/1998/04/06/p1s2.htm).
It is no suprise, therefore, that most Iranians regard the MKO as a cultish
organization (http://cscs.umich.edu/~crshalizi/sloth/2003-07-15.html). There is no
statute of limitations against murderers or conspirators to murder, nor is there one
for terrorists and those who conspire with terrorists. Similarly, the MKO do not gain
immunity for their previous actions simply by refraining from targeting European and
American targets for 30 years. Nor have they in the eyes of Iranians.
For all these reasons I note that "Iran Focus", "Iran Terror", people who rely on the
two for information, and all affiliated groups should not be used as a source of
"alternative information". There's nothing alternative about propaganda, regardless
of if it addresses the same human rights issues which we are concerned with. "The
most dangerous untruths are truths slightly distorted".
I would like to note that often those who do not share the same political sentiments
of the MKO or hard-line monarchists are branded as “apologists” as if to place them
in the same group as hezbollahis. We are not apologists when we wish freedom Iran
based on principles of reconciliation and accountability. To do so would be similar
to saying that opponents to the "Khmer Rouge" were apologists when the Cambodian
government was committing human rights abuses in the early 70's.
As Congressman Bob Ney rightfully stated, “Opposition to the Mujahedin is not the
same as support for the regime in Iran”
(http://www.payvand.com/news/03/jan/1034.html).
http://iraniantruth.blogspot.com/2005/07/iran-focus-mko-propaganda-machine-ive_13.html