A letter from Mr. Ghashghavi to Mr. Richard Armey

Dear Mr. Richard Armey,

I was informed today by a friend of mine that you have taken on the task of supporting Mojahedin Khalq Organisation and act as their lawyer. It has come to light that you are shortly to publish a report to 'prove' that the Mojahedin Khalq organisation is innocent of the various charges against it.

I am happy to be able to talk to someone who is engaged in legal and associated issues. I am sure such a person will understand me more than any other man whom I have or will talk to.

As one of the active members of this group during the rule of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, I deem it necessary to put your good self in the current as to my own experience concerning this group, its behaviour and the relationship inside it.

I chose this group during and because of their struggle against the Islamic Republic of Iran. But in practice I came across actions which were completely opposite to their slogans against the Islamic Republic. As I started opposing and criticising the dictatorship and the relations connected to that inside the organisation, I, after receiving the most savage treatment you can imagine, was condemned to death by the leader of Mojahedin Organisation (MKO). This was a bid by the leadership to bring me to obedience and submission to whatever he orders. For example, I was imprisoned on different occasions inside the organisation simply for talking about my criticism. I was mercilessly tortured in these prisons and my friend and colleague Mr. Parviz Ahmadi was killed in front of my horrified eyes by them. After 12 years I still carry the physical scars of torture I received form the security agents of the organisation. Not to mention the mental aftermath of this treatment. My personal evidence is undeniable.

This of course is not the end of the story. After my release from prison I was forced to undertake compulsory work inside the camp, while of course being subjected to continuous insults and inhuman treatment. I was again imprisoned in 1998 for 2 months. It was the same prison with all the memories I had from all those years of torture. It was worse than death for me. After that the organisation submitted me into the ruthless hands of agents of the Ba'ath Party of Iraq and this time I spent 2 months in the horrifying custody of the secret services of Iraq known as MOKHABERAT. I was clearly given to them by Mojahedin to break me. After that I was transferred to Feizaliah prison in Baghdad and from there to the infamous Abu Ghraib prison where I spent 4 years. I have never seen anyone take responsibility for all the injustices and crimes which were committed during these years. I have seen no justice to at least calm my wounds and miseries of these years.  After all, my 'crime' was no more than voicing criticism inside Mojahedin Khalq Organisation.

This is not only my unfortunate story, but a never ending story of many others. During those years I witnessed more than 100 people entering Abu Ghraib prison who had been sent by the Mojahedin with similar accusations against them. The fate of all of them was the same.

Dear Mr. Richard Armey,

I would like to meet you in person if you don't mind, to produce all the documents and evidence proving my words. I have met many personalities up to now including meeting with the investigators of Human Rights Watch concerning the gross violation of Human Rights inside the Mojahedin. Later a report was published by Human Rights Watch (HRW) which mentioned my name as one of the witnesses.

The Mojahedin Khalq Organisation during all the years of its existence has committed many crimes and I do not wish to mention all these crime one by one in this short letter. I have only mentioned briefly what I personally have experienced.

My aim in writing this letter has been to bring some awareness and perhaps encourage you to investigate a little bit more about this group. My question, as one of the many victims of this group which has been thoroughly investigated and placed on the lists of terrorist entities across the globe, from you is whether you have given any thought or have showed any interest in the situation of all the people who have suffered severely at the hands of this cult and the many who have lost their lives and the many who have been left disabled for the rest of their lives?

Yours sincerely,

Ali Ghashghavi

Germany,

December 8, 2006

Ali_ghashghavi@yahoo.com