«Il n‘y a pas un monde développé et un monde sous-développé, mais un seul monde mal développé»
STATEMENT BY CETIM
In Solidarity with the Struggles for Justice and Popular Sovereignty in Iran. STOP Imperialist Agression!
Geneva, 21th of January 2026
CETIM expresses its solidarity with the Iranian people in their struggle for economic, social, cultural, and political rights. It supports their legitimate demands for dignity, human rights, social justice, and a democratic transformation based on self-determination and popular sovereignty.
For decades, the Iranian people have resisted multiple forms of oppression, ranging from internal authoritarianism to imperialist coercion. Their most recent uprisings—from the student protests of 2017–2018 to the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement—are the expression of a profound aspiration for emancipation. This aspiration is not only aimed at the liberation from patriarchal and repressive state structures, but also from the suffocating effects of unilateral sanctions, economic warfare, and foreign interference.
In this regard, CETIM reaffirms its categorical rejection of all forms of imperialist intervention, whether military, economic or political, including military aggression or covert operations aimed at installing a puppet government. We share the conviction clearly expressed by Iranian women activists imprisoned in Evin Prison, that liberation “is possible through mass struggle and by relying on social forces, not by clinging on to foreign powers”¹.
The recent escalation of Israeli and U.S. military actions against Iran, openly supported by certain external Iranian figures aligned with Western interests, illustrates a dangerous trend. History has repeatedly shown—from the Iranian coup d’état of 1953 to that of Chile in 1973, as well as in Iraq, Libya, Syria, and many other countries of the Global South—that externally imposed “liberation” does not lead to democracy, but rather to chaos and new forms of oppression and domination. The idea that bombs or sanctions can bring freedom is a myth that serves the geopolitical and economic interests of imperialist forces.
CETIM therefore denounces the normalization of foreign interference under the guise of “support for democracy.” Opposing internal repression to imperialism is a false dilemma. Genuine emancipation cannot be parachuted. It must emerge from within, through popular struggle by independent Iranian political forces, the resistance of social movements and of Iranian workers. Indeed, despite job precarization and the denial of trade union rights, the struggle for social justice continues, targeting both the theocratic regime and an increasingly unequal economic system, driven, among other reasons, by economic sanctions. This is a system of double oppression whose primary victims remain women, workers, and youth.
CETIM recalls that any government must protect its population and guarantee the exercise of its right to demonstrate. CETIM condemns therefore the brutal repression of demonstrators by the Iranian security forces and paramilitaries, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and arrests.
In light of the above, CETIM calls for:
the prosecution of violations and crimes committed by Iranian security forces and paramilitary groups against the Iranian people;
respect for Iran’s sovereignty and for the right of its people to determine their future without external interference;
the immediate and unconditional lifting of all unilateral coercive measures against Iran, which violate international law and particularly harm the popular classes;
opposition to any externally driven political project subordinated to foreign powers, such as the project to restore the monarchy;
the condemnation of imperialist acts that fuel militarization and regional instability;
internationalist solidarity with independent Iranian social movements and support for those fighting for sovereignty, social justice, gender equality, and self-determination.
