Mission
Who We Are
United4Iran is a non-partisan global network of Iranian and non-Iranian individuals and human rights activists working to promote fundamental human and civil rights in Iran. United4Iran works to provide a common platform and to promote fundamental human and civil rights in Iran. U4I was formed to help coordinate and amplify the voices of activists, academics, NGOs, artists, and others who desire to work on issues related to human and civil rights in Iran.
What We Do
U4I works to strengthen the growing Iran human rights movement in the following ways: by forming alliances among various like-minded organizations, by sponsoring human rights-based arts & culture events, by coordinating global activities, and by implementing public-awareness and online campaigns– all of which serve to show the people of Iran that we stand in solidarity with them and remind the government of Iran that the entire world is watching.
Why We Do It
The current government of Iran has a horrific record of denying fundamental human and civil rights to the people of Iran. We believe that building a global mass movement will not only give strength to the people of Iran, but will also place pressure on the government to conform to international human rights and civil rights standards, as guaranteed by the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Iran is a signatory. Such movements in the past have led to success in many countries with similar struggles including Guatemala, the Philippines and South Africa.
What We Believe
U4I does not promote any political agenda or party. We are firmly opposed to both military intervention and blanket economic sanctions. We condemn the widespread and systematic violations of the Iranian people’s fundamental human and civil rights and demand accountability from those responsible for the imprisonment, torture, rape, disappearance, and murder of the peaceful protesters following the June 12th elections, and for similar past violations. We believe that building a mass movement, strengthened by traditional and alternative media, outreach, and education will raise awareness regarding the fundamental human and civil rights violations in Iran and will lead to positive change in the future.
We agree with the following values and visions:
“Human rights in Iran, and in every country, are a matter of legitimate international concern and essential to establishing international peace and security; that human rights in Iran can only be implemented with the assistance of civil society, whose role must be protected and sustained; that human rights compliance in Iran should be approached from a non-partisan perspective, and detached from political objectives; and that solidarity with any and all peoples prevented from enjoying their human rights is a moral imperative of our time.”
–International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran
“If one country sincerely wants to support democracy in another country that is under dictatorial rule, the only thing to do is to support the freedom fighters who stand for the democratic institutions of that country. Done this way, the sapling of democracy will bear the flower of freedom.”
–Shirin Ebadi, Iranian human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner
