As an Iranian woman living in exile, I am interested in sharing the history and experiences of the women's movement against the Mullah regime in Iran. Educated in Germany, I now live in Camp Ashraf in Iraq, home to 3,400 Iranian dissidents including 1,000 women. I hope to share more information about the lives and activities of Iranian women inside Iran and also those who are living currently in Camp Ashraf. I hope to give a voice to the brave men and women in Iran who are struggling against the religious dictatorship and who cry for freedom.

Women have occupied a significant leading role in our movement against the religious fundamentalism in Iran and the misogyny that it perpetuates. The difficult circumstances, the traditional environment in Iranian society and the mullahs' vehement and misogynistic savagery has served as an obstacle for women to stay active, but by virtue of their successful struggle in the past decades, Iranian women of all ages and backgrounds have found their place at the forefront of the resistance.

Tens of thousands of these women were killed and many more tortured in the clerical regime's prisons. Some who survived are now among the women residing in Camp Ashraf, full of energy and experience for bringing freedom and equality to the people of Iran.

Besides their crucial role in the organized resistance, women also became indispensable to most expressions of anti-government protest across the nation. The recent Iranian people's uprising clearly showed the tremendous potential of Iranian women as leaders in the fight against the country’s fundamentalism. Not only do they enjoy absolute equal rights in the resistance, but they have also overturned the male dominated value system by taking on key positions of leadership and management. Women account for more than half the members of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, the parliament in exile, and all of the Iranian Democratic Opposition's (PMOI) leadership council.

Taking into account the background, history and culture of Iranian society, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran has emphasized her views on women’s rights in a free Iran as follows:

In the future Iran, all personal freedoms concerning women have to be recognized, including the freedom to choose one's clothing, freedom of opinion, religion, employment and travel

Complete gender equality in social, political, cultural and economic arenas

An equal share in the society's political leadership

Complete freedom to choose husbands

Equal rights to divorce

An end to polygamy

The criminalization of all forms of physical, sexual and psychological violence against women in the work place, educational centers, households and elsewhere

Legal recourse for victims of violence

The banning of sexual exploitation under whatever pretext

The drafting of civil laws based on international conventions about the rights and freedoms of women, specifically the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women

These are the freedoms that we fight for and this is what all women of Iran deserve.