The upcoming Iranian Canadian Congress (ICC) annual general meeting (AGM 2024) will be held online on July 6, 2024, at 1:00 pm ET. A video call link to attend the meeting will be shared with the members through email in future communication. The agenda of the meeting is as follows:  

• Call to order  
• President’s report  
• Treasurer’s report and review of the 2023 financial statement
• Q&A   
• Announcement of the board election results    
• Adjournment  

Please note that an election is also held for the ICC Charter and modifications to article 15 of the bylaws and two available seats on the board of directors of the ICC. The election will be held by online voting which has started on Saturday June 29th, 2024 and will end on July 6th, 2024, at 1:30 pm. The election will be conducted through a platform called Electionbuddy and you have received an email from Electionbuddy with instructions for voting.   

You can find information about the proposed modifications and the candidates by visiting the above links as well as watching this introduction video.  

Thank you for being a valued member of the ICC.  

Iranian Canadian Congress
http://www.iccongress.ca/

ICC Warns Against Escalation of Tensions in Canada-Iran Relations 

On Wednesday June 19, 2024, the Government of Canada designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist entity under the Canadian Criminal Code. The Iranian Canadian Congress (ICC) has consistently condemned the IRGC's downing of Ukrainian flight PS752 and has advocated for justice and accountability for the victims and their families. The ICC has also urged Iran to adhere to its international human rights obligations. 

However, the ICC views the designation of an official military branch of a sovereign nation—which has mandatory conscription—as reckless and inconsistent with the decision taken by most countries allied with Canada. This designation occurred the day after the UN Human Rights “Commission found that Israeli authorities are responsible for the war crimes of starvation as a method of warfare, murder or wilful killing, intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects, forcible transfer, sexual violence, torture and inhuman or cruel treatment, arbitrary detention and outrages upon personal dignity. " This action, at a time when regional tensions are at an all-time high and there is a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza expanding into a broader regional conflict, particularly along the Israel-Lebanon border and  when the region most needs Canada to act constructively as an honest broker to help deescalate tensions in the region, endangers Canada’s interests in the region and the safety of Canadian citizens traveling to Iran or living in Iran. 

Despite calls from Iranian Canadians and experts to safeguard individuals who have completed their mandatory military service in the IRGC, the Canadian government has yet to implement specific exclusions from this designation. For over six years, the Prime Minister and his cabinet have said that they have been working on developing a responsible approach to this issue. However, when questioned by reporters, the Minister of Justice offered only a vague response, stating that cases involving former IRGC conscripts would be evaluated individually. The ICC strongly urges the federal government to ensure that the IRGC designation does not indiscriminately apply to individuals compelled to serve in the IRGC who have not engaged in any criminal activities under Canadian law. 

In 2019, the Trump administration designated the IRGC as a foreign terrorist entity in the United States, which led to the escalation of tensions between the two countries, culminating in the downing of flight PS7522. At the time, Prime Minister Trudeau correctly stated that “if there were no tensions, if there was no escalation recently in the region, those Canadians would be right now home with their families." It is extremely disappointing that our country has taken an action that will neither advance Canada's national interests nor benefit the people of Iran, nor will it help de-escalate tensions in the region. 

Arghavan Emami was born in Tehran, Iran and is currently resident of BC, Canada. She got her BSc degree in Electrical Engineering in Iran and MSc in MIMO Wireless Channel Modeling for Conventional Environments and PhD in MIMO Wireless Channel Modeling for Underground Tunnels, in Canada. She is recipient of numerous postgraduate scholarships during her PhD program, and has contributed in academic community by various scientific journal publications in her field of research. She also has about 15 years of experience in Telecom Industry.

Arghavan is passionate about volunteering in charities, helping unprivileged people to have a better life, and promoting peace through activities against war, occupation, sanction, racism and Islamophobia. She has voluntarily helped and supported many Iranian newcomers to have an easier and smoother transition.

In her spare time, she enjoys reading Iranian poems, swimming, playing badminton, hiking, and baking.

ارغوان امامی متولد شهر تهران در ایران بوده و هم اکنون مقیم استان بی سی در کانادا می‌باشد. او مدرک کارشناسی خود را در رشته مهندسی برق در ایران و کارشناسی ارشد خود را در زمینه مدل سازی کانال های بی سیم MIMO برای محیط های عادی، و دکترای خود را در زمینه مدل سازی کانال های بی سیم MIMO برای تونل های زیرزمینی، در کانادا گرفته است. او در طول دوره دکترای خود بورسیه های تحصیلات تکمیلی متعددی دریافت کرده است و با انتشار مقالات علمی متعدد در زمینه تحقیقاتی خود در جامعه دانشگاهی مشارکت داشته است. او همچنین دارای حدود ۱۵ سال تجربه در صنعت مخابرات می‌باشد.

ارغوان علاقمند کارهای داوطلبانه در موسسات خیریه، کمک به نیازمندان برای داشتن زندگی بهتر، و ترویج صلح از طریق فعالیت‌های علیه جنگ، اشغال، تحریم، نژادپرستی و اسلام‌هراسی است. او داوطلبانه به بسیاری از تازه واردان ایرانی کمک و از آنها حمایت کرده است تا مهاجرت آسان‌تر و روان‌تری را تجربه کنند.

او اوقات فراغت خود را صرف خواندن اشعار ایرانی، شنا، بدمینتون، پیاده روی و شیرینی پزی می کند.

Shila Doaee is a nurse. She worked hard during the pandemic Covid 19. 

She is a mother as well. She migrated to Canada to create a peaceful mind for her children. 

The nomination window for the upcoming ICC election was closed on June 17, 2024 at 11:59 pm ET. The ICC has received emails from the following individuals (ordered alphabetically): 

Ms. Shila Doaee: Ms. Doaee is currently an ICC member. Upon reviewing her membership history, it was realized that she does not meet the nomination criterion of being a regular member with “good standing for at least one year prior to the election” as outlined in the by-laws. 

Ms. Arghavan Emami: Ms. Emami is currently an ICC member. Upon reviewing her membership history, it was realized that she does not meet the nomination criterion of being a regular member with “good standing for at least one year prior to the election” as outlined in the by-laws. 

According to the ICC by-laws, candidates, who do not meet the criterion of being a regular member with good standing for at least one year prior to the election, can request for an exemption from the members. To facilitate such a request, members will be asked if they are in favor of granting such an exemption in this election on the election ballot. 

The ICC election committee 

The ICC board of directors is pleased to announce that the next ICC annual general meeting (AGM) will be held on July 6 from 1 PM ET (10 AM PT). The meeting will be held on a videoconferencing platform.   

An online election will also be held for the 2 available seats in the ICC board of directors. We encourage all interested members to consult with Section 2 of Article 5 of the ICC by-laws for nomination eligibility, and if eligible, declare their nomination by sending an email to [email protected]. The deadline for sending nomination emails is June 17, 2024, at 11:59 pm ET. The email must include and attach the following:  

• A confirmation by the nominee that he or she has nominated himself or herself, or that he or she has been nominated by others and has accepted such nomination, for election to the ICC board of directors;  
• A confirmation by the nominee that he/she meets the eligibility criteria, as set out in Section 2 of Article 5 of the ICC by-laws;  
• A government-issued ID; and  
• A synopsis of the nominee’s background/biographical sketch and the reasons they wish to serve as a director on the ICC board of directors (maximum 300 words in English. Farsi is optional. This information is to be provided in MS Word or pdf file format). A passport size photo of the nominee in digital format is also optional. Information and the photograph provided by the nominees will be posted on the ICC website.  

Please note that only ICC members who have joined/renewed their membership by June 25, 2024, at 11:59 pm ET will be entitled to attend the upcoming AGM and vote in the election. For any membership questions, you may contact [email protected].  

• In the upcoming election, members will choose two new board members. The election will be held online, starting and ending prior to the AGM. Members will receive a link through email to participate in the election after June 25th. Election results will be announced in the AGM.  
• The proposed charter of ICC and modifications to article 15 of the by-laws will also be presented to the members to vote on the same ballot.  
• The ICC board of directors has selected an election committee, consisting of three ICC members, to oversee the election process. These individuals are Mr. Moslem Noori, Mr. Habib Ghaffari, and Mr. Ahmad Ehsandar. 

Further details such as instructions for attending the AGM, the link for online voting, and the AGM videoconferencing will be shared with the members in future communications. 

The ICC Charter and modification to Article 15 of the bylaws, approved by Board of Directors, proposed to AGM 2024 to be voted by members:

ICC Charter

Article 15

Statement in Support of Student Encampments for Palestine

As of late April, student encampments have sparked up in universities across Canada as part of the global movement in support of Palestine, heeding the call for divestment and echoing a longstanding tradition of student peace activism.  

This brave statement by Canadian students and academics, which has overwhelming support from the broader community, is a positive step towards reaching a just and sustainable peace in Palestine and West Asia. ICC is in full support of this global and grassroots movement and urges academic institutions to support these students in their calls for divestment, which is beneficial to the preservation of the dignity and interests of Iranian Canadians.  

The American Civil Liberties Union, says: 

Freedom of speech, of the press, of association, of assembly and petition — this set of guarantees, protected by the First Amendment, comprises what we refer to as freedom of expression. The U.S. Supreme Court has written that this freedom is “the matrix, the indispensable condition of nearly every other form of freedom”. Without it, other fundamental rights, like the right to vote, would wither and die. 

Freedom of speech should be guaranteed for all citizens—limiting it in universities, which exist for the purpose of creating and discovering knowledge, is especially unreasonable. The broad movement of student encampments is a protest against the continued investment of Canadian academic institutions in the Israeli state—despite the latter’s violation of international laws and Geneva Conventions. Challenging narratives, asking difficult questions, making people uncomfortable—that's the price of living in a democracy. These are not threatening behaviors, as confirmed by the judge who ruled against the injunction against the McGill encampment.  

As Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist Chris Hedges put: 

It exposes the abject failure by the ruling elites and their institutions to halt genocide, the crime of crimes. These students watch, like most of us, Israel’s live-streamed slaughter of the Palestinian people. But unlike most of us, they act. Their voices and protests are a potent counterpoint to the moral bankruptcy that surrounds them. 

Violation of international law while ignoring ICJ recommendations and UN Security Council resolutions enables and perpetuates the cycle of violence in the region. We once again urge universities to follow the lead of their academics and students, protect their right to free speech and free assembly, and pay attention to their voice, which calls for peace and freedom for all. 

It is deeply troubling in the time of the genocidal killing of tens of thousands of Palestinians, to witness the suppression of freedom of speech of students and academics, and the threats against political dissidents around the world. 

ICC is heartbroken to see various forms of state violence and takes a stance to condemn any form of intimidation, violence, imprisonment, or criminal prosecution that violates an individual's right to freedom of speech; such as the sentencing of Iranian rapper, Toomaj Salehi, to death; a sentence which we hope will never be executed.  

The ICC strongly believes in the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. However, ICC advocates for a grassroots-led approach in the fight against violations of human rights instead of foreign interventions in domestic politics in any country.  

ICC emphasizes that any form of sanctions against the Iranian people violates their human rights to pursue a healthy and prosperous life, and therefore we oppose the adoption of any such policies by the Canadian government.  

Closing submission by Iranian Canadian Congress

Stage 1 Hearings of Public Inquiry Into Foreign Interference in Federal Electoral Processes and Democratic Institutions