FDI's Weekly Newswire

The life and [troubled] times of the Islamic Republic of Iran

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FDI WEEKLY NEWSWIRE NO 24

Oct. 28, 1996

In a move which shows just how concerned the authorities have become with the growing unrest in Iran's universities, the Mohammad Reza Hashemi-Golpayegani, Minister of Culture and Higher Education, recently announced that all University professors and academics with 30 years or more seniority would be forced into mandatory retirement, to make way for younger colleagues "completely devoted to Islam and the revolution."

In a public speech on Oct. 15, he announced that the forced retirements were necessary in order to succeed with the regime's goal of completing the "Islamization" of the universities. [Salam 10/15]

Pelletreau clarifies remarks

In informal remarks to business executives in Dubai on Oct. 24, Asst. Sec. of State Robert Pelletreau said the United States was "open to dialogue with the government of Iran" and hinted there could be a change of U.S. policy after the November elections. "I am hopeful that when we enter the longer phase... we will be able to make a match in trying out that dialogue," he said. "Because in Washington these days, there are two phases: the short term, and the second term."

The State Department downplayed Pelletreau's comments at the noon briefing the next day, saying they had been taken out of context and that there was "no change" in U.S. policy. "We always ready to talk to the Iranians about their misdeeds," a State Department official said.

However, Pelletreau's remarks angered many Iranians, since there appeared to be a clear suggestion that a second Clinton administration would back off from its current policy of pressuring the Islamic Republic. In a statement issued by the FDI board on Friday, the Foundation argued that "the United States has spent so much effort to isolate the regime that an offer of dialogue at this point will be seen by Tehran as a sign of weakness." Instead of a dialogue with the Islamic Republic leadership, the Foundation urged the State Department to "publicly support the legitimate aspirations of the Iranian people to choose their own form of government through democratic means." [Washington Times, 10/24; FDI Action Memorandum 22, 10/24]

Pelletreau appeared to have heard the criticism, and in revised remarks, carried by a local UAE paper on Sunday, said that any dialogue with Tehran should focus on "real differences between the two countries such as Tehran's support to terrorism, its opposition to the Middle East peace process and its desire to acquire weapons of mass destruction." Pelletreau added: "We would also like to discuss with the government of Iran its intervention in the affairs of other Gulf states." [Khaleej Times, 10/27]

Tehran reacted predictably to the Pelletreau offer, however conditional it may have been in the end. The official Jomhouri-e Eslami daily noted "this isn't the first the U.S. administration has asked for negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran," and that Pelletreau's offer would be rebuffed, as were all previous U.S. offers. "Clinton is just trying to win the votes of American companies in the coming Presidential elections," the paper added. [10/27]

U.S. officials have also contended that it was Tehran, not Washington, that was opposed to dialogue.

Iraqi envoy leaves mystery in his wake

An unnamed emissary from Iraqi President Saddam Hussein visited Tehran in mid-October, to deliver an undisclosed message to President Hashemi-Rafsanjani. Although the official account, carried by IRNA, claimed that the Iraqi had voiced his country's "interesting in boosting good neighborly talks and cooperation on regional issues," speculation in Tehran was that he delivered a warning to the Islamic Republic not to get too deeply involved in backing the PUK in northern Iraq.

Apart from a fruitless visit by an Iraqi Foreign Ministry delegation in September 1995 and a planned visit by Velayati to Iraq later that year that was eventually canceled, this was the first publicly-announced meeting between top officials of the two countries since the 1991 Persian Gulf war.

According to the IRNA account, Rafsanjani called for renewed efforts to settle the problem of prisoners from the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war. A commentary by the English-language Iran News said that "observers believe the regional issues, particularly the explosive northern Iraq situation, were the focal points of the message of the Iraqi president."

Ten days later, on Oct. 26, Tehran announced it was releasing 150 Iraqi POWs. [IRNA 10/16; Iran News 10/17; AFP 10/26]

"Anti-Islamic" magazines on the rise

Anti-Islamic magazines are on the rise, a radical monthly recently warned. In stinging criticism of the government, Sobh monthly said that too many licenses have been granted in recent years to magazines "which throw the fundaments of the Islamic Republic - including the principal of velayat-e faghih- into question."

Sobh noted that 700 publishing permits have been granted to periodicals over the past few years. "The people who are drunk from the wine of so-called progress like to boast of such statistics. But this is not the sign of progress. These licenses have been issued to periodicals which are the vehicles of the cultural destruction of our society."

To illustrate its point, Sobh quoted from an unnamed women's magazine which it said called supporters of velayat-e faghih "fascists," and compared Islamic rule to fascist ideology.

Without mentioning the name of the women's magazine (we would certainly like to read it!), Sobh complained: "In another article in this magazine, Islamic rules about women were called "elements of sexual apartheid that ignore women's rights."

Sobh lamented: "A great number of the country's publications are more or less like this one." The magazine concluded by calling on the government to ban "anti-Islamic" publications. [Sobh monthly, Sept.-Oct.., 1996]

80,000 "illegal" arms collected

Interior Minister Ali Mohammad Besharati, who is otherwise in trouble (see below), thanked the "brave and true believer Iranian nation" in a paid political advertisement in many daily papers on Oct. 16, for having surrendered illegal weapons during a three-month campaign.

The government claimed that hundreds of thousands of firearms, machine-guns, and rocket launchers had been stolen from the army, police, and security barracks around the country during the revolution and then during the Iran-Iraq war, and promised to amnesty any individual who turned them in during the three month collection campaign which just ended.

But underneath, it appears that fear was the primary motivation behind the campaign - fear that the firearms might be turned against the regime.

In an article "Why should Illegal arms been turned in," the conservative daily Resalat wrote: "In recent years, our society has been targeted by growing violence and mental and moral decadence. In such an atmosphere, the danger of having access to firearms, especially for young people, is obvious... At the same time, the plots against the Islamic Republic regime by satanic forces. make it necessary to collect illegal weapons, in order to preserve revolutionary values, the security of the regime, and the territorial integrity of the country."

The campaign ended on Oct. 13 after a last ditch effort by the campaign to cajole people to turn in their weapons. Intelligence minister Ali Fallahian warned that anyone who failed to turn in their weapons would "pay heavily for their possession."

When the campaign ended, the government announced it had collected 80,000 firearms - far short of the estimated 500,000 weapons believed to be illegally in circulation. [Resalat 10/9; Etelaat 10/10; Kayhan 10/16]

Troubles in Balouchistan

FDI has received numerous detailed reports of recent clashes along Iran's border with Pakistan. Normally kept quiet by the official Iranian press, news about the growing insurgency in Balouchistan is slowly leaking out.

A terse announcement by Interior Ministry earlier this month revealed that Mohammad Ali Besharati had convened a little-known Eastern Borders Security Council on Oct. 9, "due to the recent troubles caused by some thugs and bandits along the eastern borders of the country."

According to Kayhan, which printed parts of the Interior Ministry announcement, Besharati asked the security and military forces patrolling the eastern provinces to keep the border with Pakistan closed to prevent incursions.

Besharati "promised these forces that the government will provide them with all the resources the need, including sophisticated military equipment, and will support them fully," Kayhan said.

The paper noted that the commanders of the regular army, the Pasdaran, the security forces, the Intelligence Ministry, and the Law Enforcement Forces attended the meeting. [Kayhan 10/10]

On Oct. 27, 22 members of Parliament once again requested a no-confidence vote in Besharati, "because of the security problems in Sistan and Balouchistan province, the problems in Tehran municipality, and the recent anti-Islamic statements of Mr. Besharati in the city of Tabriz." [Tehran Radio 10//27]

The Beijing meetings

In one of the more curious encounters in recent Iranian diplomacy, two Iranian members of Parliament had a brief, "accidental" meeting in Beijing with the speaker of the Israeli Knesset. The meeting took place during an inter-parliamentary conference in Beijing, Israeli radio reported on Sept. 23, quoting an Israeli government spokesman who confirmed that the meeting had taken place.

Iranian sources say several other meetings have taken place between senior Israel and Iranian officials, in Germany and in other countries in recent weeks. Israel "informed the Iranians that Israel did not consider Iran to be an enemy," one source reported. U.S. oil industry sources confirmed that they had received similar reports. [Iran Brief, 10/1]

In Tehran, news of the meeting created an uproar. A Majlis deputy from Khaf, Mohammad Ebrahim Bay-Eslami, called for a commission of inquiry to investigate his colleagues.

Mohammad Javad Larijani, who headed the Majlis delegation to China, denied any wrong-doing and called the account of his meeting with the Israelis "completely baseless information, broadcast by Zionist radio." He insisted that his delegation's "anti-Israeli and pro-Palestinian attitude... was exemplary" throughout the conference.

Another member of the delegation, Abu-Fazel Razavi, a deputy from Sepeadan, gave his own account of the meeting. "At an official party, a man came up to me and introduced himself as an Iraqi-born Jew. We started to explain to him that we are against Zionists, not Jews. But when he explained that he was an Israeli parliament member, I severely denounced him." [Hamshahri 10/2]

The story took on a new dimension when the Radio Israel's Farsi Service broadcast an interview with the Israeli deputy, who said that "by chance" the wife of one of his Knesset colleagues had videotaped the encounter, and could make it available if the Iranians continued to deny the meeting....

Shirazi son temporarily released from jail

The second son of Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Shirazi, Seyed Murtadha Shirazi, was temporarily released after exactly 11 months in jail on Oct. 21, then returned to prison two days later. Several other Shirazi followers have also been temporarily released; some were instructed to warn the Grand Ayatollah that if he did not cease his outspoken opposition to the regime his son Murtadha would be condemned to death.

The head of the Special Court for the Clergy, Hojjat-ol Eslam Mohammad Reyshari (former Intelligence Minister and now a candidate in next year's presidential elections) has been seeking to quell opposition to the regime from the senior clergy through threats and imprisonment. He reportedly recently paid a visit to the home of Grand Ayatollah Wahid, an opposition group claims, and threatened that if he did not cease his opposition he would have "the same ending" as Shirazi's followers. [Supporters of the Iranian Muslim Nation 2023/]

Former Mujahidin member expelled to Iran

A former member of the outlawed Mujahidin-e Khalq organization has expelled from Turkey, FDI learned from Iranian sources on Oct. 23, after his request for political asylum was denied. Hassan Khalaj had been writing in opposition newspapers from Turkey over the past year after his break with the MEK. He was handed over the agents of the Islamic Republic's Ministry of Information and Security at the border by Turkish border police.

British embassy garden party

The British embassy in Tehran opened its rose garden to the public for the first time on Sept. 28, selling tickets for a garden party with the staff of the embassy. For 20,000 rials (around $5), Tehran residents could mingle with embassy staff and enjoy the flowers... It was the first time an Iranian government is known to have allowed the British embassy to hold such an event in Tehran. [FDI sources]

State Department condemns death sentence

State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns strongly condemned the government of Iran for having sentenced to death a Bahai, Musa Talibi, on charges of apostasy.

"The United States Government strongly condemns this conviction and calls on the Government of Iran to repudiate it immediately, to release Mr. Talibi from custody, and to guarantee his safety. We further urge that the Government of Iran release all other Baha'is imprisoned on apostasy charges."

Burns also said the U.S. was calling on the Tehran government "to desist in its persecution of members of the Baha'i and other religious minorities residing in Iran, and to comply fully with the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights." [State Department briefing 10/1]

Twenty-five "drug-dealers" condemned to die

A revolutionary court in Mashad (the capital of the Northeastern province of Khorasan) has condemned twenty-five men to death on charges of drug smuggling.

Hojjat-ol eslam Abbas Ali Alizadeh, the head of the Khorasan provincial office of the Justice Department, told Iran daily on Oct. 8 that two international drug smuggling rings had been broken up and 81 of their members arrested by agents of the Ministry of Information and Security, the Islamic Republic's intelligence services.

"Fifteen members of the first and ten of the second ring were condemned to death by an Islamic revolutionary court in Mashad," Alizadeh said.

He claimed that the accused, who were not named, were benefiting from the legal services of 42 attorneys, but gave no details on trial dates or the names of the attorneys. [Iran daily 10/8]

Meanwhile, an 18-year old youth was hanged on Oct. 9 in Saravan (southern Iran), after being convicted of having killed a six year old boy and burned his body. According to the official account, the convicted man, Ali Farangi, "confessed four times during his interrogations and trial." [Kayhan 10/10]

Thieves get fingers chopped

Two thieves received "Sharia" punishments recently in the northern town of Babol, and were amputated of four fingers of the right hand in a public ceremony held in the main square of the town that was attended by "hundreds of people," the conservative daily Resalat reported (10/9]

Conservatives blast Taleban

Conservative clerics have blasted the Taleban militia in Afghanistan, which has invoked "Sharia" law punishments similar to those practiced by the Islamic Republic since conquering Kabul last month.

Now the official media is accusing the U.S. of supporting Taleban, in order to counter the type of Islam the Islamic Republic "is spreading throughout the world."

"Despite its claims about human rights and its rejection of so-called extremism, the United States supports Taleban, which is violating the most fundamental rights of human beings," Resalat wrote in an editorial. [10/9]

Jomhouri-e Eslami printed a strongly-worded editorial accusing Pakistan for supporting Taleban and of "participating in U.S. plots against the Islamic Republic," the first time a semi-official media in Iran has directly attacked the Pakistani government. [10/23]

Children forced to pay for parents

According to a new law, children who do not support their elderly parents will now face prison terms, an Islamic Republic judge recently announced. The provision is part of the Islamic Punishment Law enacted earlier this year, and obliges children to make "elderly support" payments to their parents, or face three to five months in jail.

The enforcement of the new measure, as announced in the official media, has been criticized as a clear denial of the government's responsibility toward senior citizens, as well as indicative of a decline of moral values in Iran's traditional society. It is also a clear sign of worsening economic conditions. The Tehran papers frequently run stories about parents who are unable to feed their children, let alone their own elderly parents.... [Hamshahri, 10/2]

U.S. leaders are "mentally deficient," says NN

Majlis speaker and presidential candidate Hojjat-ol eslam Ali Akbar Nateq-Nouri has once again shown his knack for turning a phrase. In a recent speech carried by IRNA, he claimed that "the ruling political clique in the United States have betrayed their addled brains, their reactionary nature, and their mental deficiency in their dealings with Iran."

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the 22nd International Trade Fair in Tehran, NN said that Washington "has long since flattered itself that following the collapse of communism it would emerge as the only superpower in the world capable of running the world's affairs as it wished." However, he pointed out, the U.S. had totally failed in imposing its course on Western Europe, which continued to trade with Iran despite U.S. injunctions to restrict commercial and diplomatic ties. [Etelaat International, 10/10]

Khamene'i represents entire Islamic world

Ayatollah Ali Khamene'i is not just the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic. According to deputy Foreign Minister Alaeddin Boroujerdi, his comments represent "the entire world of Islam and the Islamic ummah."

Boroujerdi was commenting Khamene'i's criticism of the Taleban in Afghanistan. He added that the Foreign Ministry agreed with the Supreme Leader that "no one has the right to present Islam in such an ugly manner." [Etelaat International 10/11]

Boroujerdi's elevation of Khamene'i to world-class status doesn't sit very well with the senior Shiite clergy in Iran, which overwhelmingly rejected Khamene'i's attempt in December 1994 to claim the title of marja taqlid ("source of imitation" - or head of the Shiite faith). They claimed that before his appointment as Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic in 1989 he had not even reached the status of Ayatollah, let alone Grand Ayatollah, and has published no significant works of religious scholarship, a prerequisite to such elevation.

As for presenting Islam in an ugly manner... readers are invited to turn to the annual reports of the United Nations Human Rights subcommission of Iran, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, or to FDI's Human Rights page.

Rouhani proposes "solution" to Rushdie affair

Ayatollah Mehdi Rouhani, the spiritual leader of the Shiite community in Europe, and an FDI board member, has proposed a "solution" to the Rushdie affair to the European Union.

When Ayatollah Khomeini condemned Rushdie to death, he issued a "hokm," not a "fatwa," Rouhani says. The difference between the two is crucial, and generally gets lost on the public. "Fatwas are moral or religious guidelines pronounced by a religious leader, which can be modified or annulled after his death by another religious leader or Ayatollah... whereas a hokm is a legal sentence."

Thus, Rouhani writes, "for Khomeini's religious school, which despite its minority status within Shiism holds the keys of power in Tehran, the sentence pronounced against Rushdie has a legal character and remains valid after Khomeini's death." Dr. Rouhani estimated that Khomeini's school currently has "around two million followers worldwide."

Because to Khomeini's logic the death edict against Rushdie was a legal sentence, it can only be repealed by a legal authority. Under the current constitution of the Islamic Republic, the competent authority would be the Counsel of Experts, "which as the legal power to annul the sentence against Rushdie."

While Rouhani urged the European Union to suggest his solution to Tehran, the fact that the Islamic Republic continues to insist that the death edict against Rushdie cannot be repealed suggests that there is no political will to resolve the issue - even using the tools of the Islamic Republic's constitution. [Rouhani letter to the EU, 10/2]

Mujahidin sides with Islamic Republic

An opposition conference originally to be held on the campus of UCLA was moved to a downtown Los Angeles hotel, after vigorous intervention by supporters of the People's Mujahidin Organization of Iran.

The Mujahidin, also known as the MEK, bombarded the office of the President of UCLA with more than 200 faxes and several hundred phone calls, demanding that the conference be banned because scheduled speakers were planning to criticize their organization and expose its ties to the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The overseas representative of the Iran Nation's Party, Homayoun Moghaddam, issued a statement on Friday, Oct. 25, charging that the MEK and "agents of the intelligence services of the Islamic Republic" had made "an unprecedented and coordinated effort" to block the conference through oral and written "threats" to the University secretariat.

Speakers at the conference, which was subsequently moved to the Doubletree Hotel in Westwood, included Hossein Malek, a former National Front leader, Ali Reza Nourizadeh and Mehrdad Khonsari, of the Iran and Arab Research Center in London, Nasser Khajeh-Nouri, formerly a senior official in the office of deposed President Banisadr, Dr. Bahman Yar, a former member of the MEK central committee who has turned against the organization, and Mahmoud Malek-Afzali, the son of the famed Iranian popular singer Marzieh.

The presence of Mr. Malek-Afzali, who publicly embarrassed his mother at a London pop concert sponsored by the Mujahidin earlier this year, raised speculation that the seminar had been financed in reality by the Islamic Republic. Western intelligence agencies have received credible reports that Mr. Malek-Afzali was urged to upbraid his mother for collaborating with the MEK by Tehran's Ministry of Information and Security. After Mr. Moghaddam's statement, Malek-Afzali said he would withdraw from the conference.

The Baghdad-based radio of the MEK broadcast vehement statements denouncing the conference and its organizers as "a coalition of Zionists, monarchists, reactionaries, and nationalists," sources in Tehran who heard the broadcasts reported. Opposition radio stations whose messages are displeasing to the Tehran regime are normally jammed. The fact that the MEK radio station can easily be picked in Tehran suggests a certain amount of complicity on the part of the regime. [Iranfax 10/25]

FDI's Weekly Newswire

FDI WEEKLY NEWSWIRE NO 24

Oct. 28, 1996

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