BAIAD Releases Official Statement about Recent Attacks on NIAC
As an organization that has been
working with Iranian-American grassroots for years on issues of great importance
to this constituency, Bay Area Iranian-American Democrats,
www.BAIAD.org, finds these accusations just as baseless as trying to link
the groups behind these accusations to the Iranian government.
As Americans, we pride ourselves
for being a nation of law, a country where people and organizations are presumed
innocent until proven guilty. As such, if the accusers have evidence that
implicates NIAC, they should offer it and must otherwise refrain from making
unfounded accusations.
As American advocacy groups,
BAIAD and NIAC -- despite having different missions -- only represent one
constituency: Iranian-Americans who have a vested interest in participating in
the American democracy.
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Even though BAIAD does not see
eye to eye with NIAC on every issue, on balance we have been -- and continue to
be -- proud of the work NIAC has been doing in standing up for the interests of
Iranian-Americans. Furthermore, NIAC has consistently demonstrated that it does
not shy away from strong criticism of Iranian government on various grounds
including human rights and foreign policy -- for example during the months that
followed the contested presidential elections in Iran earlier this year.
BAIAD strongly condemns the use
of defamation and slander as a way of winning political arguments and believes
that these attacks serve the aim of intimidating pro-diplomacy
Iranian-Americans, suppressing open political participation by
Iranian-Americans, and poisoning the much needed debate about the best foreign
policy toward
Furthermore, we strongly urge
those who believe in the power of democracy and healthy political discourse to
speak out and not allow slander, character assassination and defamation to
propagate unexamined and unanswered.
About Bay Area Iranian-American
Democrats - BAIAD
Founded in 2004, Bay
Area Iranian-American Democrats is the first chartered Iranian-American
Democratic organization in the history of the Bay Area.
BAIAD is a
non-religious, not-for-profit organization that stands for protecting the rights
and interests of Iranian-Americans by encouraging active participation in
American democracy and empowering the Iranian-American political voice and
influence.
BAIAD is a chartered Democratic
Club and is officially recognized by the
It's time to take a stand!
415.315.9959
... Payvand News - 11/18/09 ... --
