Former Iranian Political Prisoner: Increased Engagement with Tehran Leads to Worse Repression

Iranian dissidents fear that the nuclear agreement between the P5+1 powers and Tehran will free the regime to treat them more harshly, Saeed Ghasseminejad, a former Iranian political prisoner who is currently an associate fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, wrote in an op-ed published yesterday in the New York Daily News.

…

Ghasseminejad argued that these concerns are grounded in the history of Iran since the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, which included the ascension of several reputed moderates to the presidency, a consequent easing of Western pressure on Tehran, and an ensuing spike in Iranian aggression both domestically and abroad.

Ghasseminejad warned that appeasing Iran by abandoning its dissidents is “bad policy,”and urged the West to continue pressuring Tehran, arguing that it is the only policy that has historically forced Iranian authorities to ease their human rights abuses.

Pressure has lessened on Iran since the election of Hassan Rouhani two years ago, although human rights violations have worsened. Ben Weinthal, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, wrote earlier this month that many of the goods that will be sold to Iran as part of growing commercial ties with the West may be used by the regime to further its repression.

… 

Read the full article here.