In a world in continuous upheaval, the situation in Iran demands a clear vision.

already seen thousands killed and wounded under a brutal state repression, are the direct result of a profound crisis: the disastrous economic policies of the ruling system, rampant corruption, and the systemic oppression imposed by the regime. While severe economic sanctions from the US and the EU have worsened the plight of the people, they have not weakened the regime’s grip. The roots of this suffering are borne by the working and middle classes.

The theocratic regime of the Ayatollahs has proven itself incapable of meeting the people’s needs. Its brutal social repression—where internet blackouts of last days signal nothing positive—and its authoritarian measures fuel the just demands for freedom. However, the solution cannot be the replacement of one oppression with another. A return to a monarchical-capitalist system would only serve to once more turn Iran into a military base for US imperialism in the region. We reject this false choice. Neither a docile monarchy for the West, nor a hated theocracy, is preferable to the birth of a genuine democracy.

The US threatened already another intervention. This crisis cannot be solved by imposing regimes from outside or by opening another front of war—a path that would bring only further catastrophe. We simultaneously condemn the glaring double standards of the EU and most of the European governments, which sanction Iran, Russia, or Venezuela while imposing no consequences on Israel for its genocide in Gaza or on the US for acts like kidnapping the president of a sovereign nation. Furthermore, the aforementioned sanctions have fueled the crisis, revealing they were never proclaimed in the name of the Iranian people. Such hypocrisy undermines all claims to defending international law and human rights.

There is only one just path forward: the self-determination of the Iranian people. Their right to determine their own future are non-negotiable. Only the autonomous struggle of the Iranian people, free from foreign interference and the false alternatives of competing authoritarianisms can chart the country’s course and bring true democracy and justice to the nation.

We denounce foreign interference, appeal for the lifting of sanctions by the EU.

We stand in solidarity with the people. The future of Iran belongs solely to its people.

https://www.european-left.org/irans-right-to-choose-no-shah-no-theocrac…