Following the release of the second verdict of the European Court of First Instance regarding annulment of EU terrorist label against the PMOI, Mrs. Rajavi, President-elect of the Iranian Resistance, participated in a parliamentary session in Italy’s parliament in Rome.

In this session which was held in the Stampa Hall, a big number of Italian MPs, chairs, secretaries and members of different parliamentary commissions, and also Italian political personalities as well as Lord Slynn, the former Judge of the European Court of Justice and the distinguished jurist from the U.K. , Alain Vivien, former French Advisor Minister in Foreign affairs, and representatives and reporters from Italian and international media were present.

In the beginning of the session, Mr. Carlo Ciccioli, deputy chairman of Social Affairs Commission of Italian Parliament, who chaired the session, referred to the European Court verdict released few hours before and asked Lord Slynn to deliver his speech in that regard.

Lord Slynn said that although the EU Council of Ministers did not abide by the December 2006 verdict of the EU Court of Justice, but today the European Court in Luxemburg specified in its verdict that the Council of Ministers did not make the necessary conclusions from the UK Courts’ rulings and rejected the EU Council of Ministers decision as an unjustifiable one.
Lord Slynn hoped that the Council of Ministers abide by the rule of law and remove the PMOI from its list.

In her speech, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, addressing the Italian Senators and parliamentarians said: “Let me here congratulate members of Italian Senate and Parliament who have joined the Committee of ” In Search of Justice” for removing of the PMOI from the terrorist list. They have joined two thousand parliamentarians, politicians and jurists all over Europe in their campaign for delisting the PMOI, and this is a struggle for democracy in Iran and also for Europe.”

She added, “This morning, the European Court of Justice, by releasing a verdict, annulled the PMOI designation in the EU list. This is a great victory; victory of justice and conscience over unjust defamation for the sake of keeping a fundamentalist regime”.

Mrs. Rajavi continued, “This ruling indicates that the EU Council of Ministers is confronting Europe’s judicature, because this is the fifth time that the courts in Europe ruled that the terror label on the PMOI has been unjust. I am happy to inform you that the European parliaments, in 15 resolutions and statements, have asked for ending this unjust slander.”

Mrs. Rajavi emphasized: “Now that both Italian Parliament and Senate have asked for removing the PMOI from the terrorist list , and that the European Court of Justice has ruled against this designation, the Italian government can force the Council of Ministers to stop lawbreaking.”

Referring to the resolution presented to the Italian Foreign Commission, Mr. Paolo Guzzanti, member of Foreign Commission and Societies in Italian Parliament, said: “We shall ask the Italian government to oppose explicitly the continuance of illegal designation of the PMOI”.

Mrs. Elizabetta Zamparutti, member of Italian parliament from Radical party, Said: “Terrorist labeling of the PMOI has emboldened the Iranian regime in suppressing the people and exporting terrorism. The mullahs’ regime misuses it for imposing pressure on Ashraf residents and for carrying out more conspiracies against them; and presently it is pressuring the Iraqi government for transferring Ashraf protection from the US Forces to the Iraqis. These pressures should be confronted.”

Other speakers were:
Mr. Forio Colombo, Italian chairman of Italian Parliament’s Committee of human rights
Mr. Mario Peskante, chairman of EU Committee of Italian parliament
Alain Vivien, former French Advisor Minister in Foreign affairs and head of the French Committee for Free Iran
Paolo Korsini, member of Foreign Relation’s Commission in Italian Parliament
Mrs. Barbara Saltamartiny, member of Italian Parliaments Commission of Social Affairs
Mr. Massimo Romaynoli, chairman of Committee of Friendship with Iranian People.
At the end, Mr. Carlo Ciccioli announced solidarity of the Committee of Italian Parliamentarians and Citizens fro Free Iran with the European Committee of “In Search of Justice” headed by Dr. Alejo Vidal-Quadras, Vice President of the European Parliament.