Women’s Day 2013 – Carole Fontaine

Carole Fontaine – US scholar and Professor of Biblical Theology

I like to dedicate this message to our dear sisters at Ashraf and camp Liberty, to our brothers there as well, and to all of you gathered here who have come from such distances to bring us messages of hope and clarity.

Jesus, the prophet of Christianity has said it best: “by their fruits you shall know them”, “no good tree produces bad fruit” and “no bad three produces good fruit”.

Madam Rajavi often reminds us of the same saying in Persia: “A snake cannot give birth to a dove”. Every bad tree, says Jesus, would be cut down and thrown upon the fire which brings me to Martin Kobler. Martin Kobler has shown himself to be a liar. A puppet of Tehran and one who uses language to dismiss the legitimate claims of those imprisoned in Camp Liberty. If Camp Liberty is so safe and so well-met humanitarian standards, as he claims repeatedly, we call upon him and his wife to immediately take up residence there. We call upon the UN to conduct a full review of Martin Kobler’s financial records and his performance of his duties.

We call upon the United States to immediately move all residents of Camp Liberty back Ashraf or to the United States where processing of the refugees can continue in safety. I have written for the exiles of Iran who fight so bravely for the rights of their people, their own song.

By the water canals of Baghdad, there we sat down and wept when we remember Ashraf. On our journey there our liars and harps were taken and there our captors taunted us and our tormentors laugh saying you have no songs for Ashraf now, but we shall sing songs about Ashraf in every land.

If we forget you O’Ashraf, let our right hand visor, let our tongues cleave to the root of our mouth, if we do not remember you, if we do not set Ashraf above our highest joy, may God bless us all and keeps us in the sacred task of founding a civil society that honors human rights in every country for every people and may we soon see our sisters and brothers in camp Liberty given the safety and security they were promised.