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Although there has been recent debate about externally provoking “regime change” in Iran, a growing consensus has emerged that such actions usually cause more harm than good, regardless of whether external powers believe their actions are justified. An alternative to externally enforced regime change is a successful domestic effort to establish a better government.

This article references recent reports in Arabic and English about an organization that envisions a new Iranian government genuinely aligned with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The online Arabic journal Elaph published an article about Maryam Rajavi, a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, and the ongoing wars in the Middle East.

The following are translated excerpts from the article:

“Throughout the last four decades, the Middle East has gone through several wars that have left destructive results on the population of the region. It started with the rise of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s radical ideology of Vilayet al-Faqih.ⁱ

“The Islamic Republic is forcing its ideology on the region’s nations. Diplomatic negotiations to bring about a change in Iran’s polices have failed. Regional wars continue to flare up and are threatening the peace of the Middle East and the world…

“The fall of the Syrian regime and the weakening of Hezbollah’s activities in Lebanon have not stopped the hostilities between Israel and the Islamic Republic of Iran…

“The response to the Iranian regime’s policy must come from the Iranian people’s struggle for freedom and the rise of a regime that supports human rights, peaceful coexistence, and a separation of religion from politics. To bring about these changes, the National Council of Resistance of Iran is working hard to achieve the demise of the Iranian regime.”

Here are some excerpts from her biographical webpage:

“Maryam Rajavi was born into a middle-class family in Tehran. One of her brothers, Mahmoud, is a veteran member of the PMOI/MEK and was a political prisoner during the Shah’s regime. Her older sister, Narges, was killed by the Shah’s secret police, SAVAK, in 1975. Her other sister, Massoumeh, an industrial engineering student, was arrested by the clerical regime in 1982. Pregnant at the time, she was ultimately hanged after undergoing brutal torture. Massoumeh’s husband, Massoud Izadkhah, was also executed.

“Maryam Rajavi graduated with honors from the prestigious Sharif University of Technology in metallurgical engineering. She joined the PMOI/MEK to participate in the popular resistance against the two corrupt dictatorships of the Shah and the mullahs. In the 1970s, during her college years, she organized anti-Shah student protests.”

According to a Wikipedia article about her:

“A 10-point manifesto published by Rajavi sets out a programme to transform Iran. She states her commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights … calls for the abolition of the death penalty, the creation of a modern legal system and the independence of judges. Rajavi would end Tehran's funding of Hamas, Hezbollah and other militant groups and is committed to peaceful coexistence, relations with all countries and respect for the Charter of the United Nations.[29] The manifesto also contains the statement that "We recognize private property, private investment and the market economy."[30] In June 2020, a majority of members of the USA's House of Representatives backed a ‘bipartisan resolution’ supporting Rajavi and the NCRI's ‘call for a secular, democratic Iran’ while ‘condemning Iranian state-sponsored terrorism.’ The resolution, backed by 221 lawmakers …, gave support to Rajavi's 10-point plan for Iran's future (which include ‘a universal right to vote, market economy, and a non-nuclear Iran’) while calling on the prevention of ‘malign activities of the Iranian regime’s diplomatic missions.’[31][32]”

An additional perspective on the National Council of Resistance of Iran can be found in an Opinion by Bob Blackman:

“The uneasy truce between Israel and Iran casts a spotlight on the instability of Iran’s ruling theocracy. But beyond the headlines of missiles and counterstrikes lies a quieter revolution – one being waged not from foreign capitals or war rooms, but from city squares and prison cells inside Iran itself…”

“However, this resistance is not chaos – it is organized. At its helm is the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), a coalition that has long worked toward building a secular, democratic republic.

“Led by Maryam Rajavi, who recently addressed the European Parliament, the NCRI proposes a viable post-theocratic roadmap: free elections within six months, a new democratic constitution, and a firm commitment to gender equality and minority rights…”

“This isn’t a fantasy. It’s a movement with strategy, structure, and grassroots resilience. Its slogan – ‘Down with the Dictator, be it the Shah or the Supreme Leader’ – rejects both the clerical regime and a return to monarchy. That clarity should reassure Western observers concerned about a power vacuum. The groundwork for a democratic Iran is already being laid…”

The success of her plan and activities would dispel the midnight darkness that had hovered over Iran since 1979.

ⁱ The concept of Wilayat al-Faqih in Shi'a political thought advocates a guardianship-based political system led by an Islamic jurist (faqih) in the absence of an infallible Imam. The theory emerged from the Shi'a concept of Imamate, as divinely appointed successors to the Prophet Muhammad.