This is a campaign video made by supporters of Karrubi-Karbaschi team. Regardless of whether these promises can be achieved or not by any president within the current framework of the Islamic Republic, it demonstrates beautifully the list of priorities of what some of the very minimum demands of Iranian people are.
Each point is demonstrated with the lifting of a poster which spells out the change with a relevant film footage in the background.
The demands in the order shown in the film footage:
- Protection of our Civil Rights
- Help for the Deprived
- Kid pushes away the box of charity handouts and lifts the poster which says 'Nationalisation of Oil Income'
- Reducing tensions in the global arena
- Free access to information
- Protection of women who are supporting their families
- Condemnation of domestic violence against women
- Education for all
- Improving public safety and security
- Rights for religious and ethnic minorities
- Support for NGOs
- Public participation
Then the posters say, 'We have come for change' followed by 'Change for Iran'.
Sorry CASMII supporters, nothing about sanctions again!
This weblog was created to act as a platform for the voice of secular pro-democracy activists in and outside Iran who are struggling against the religious dictatorship of the Islamic clerics in Iran. Follow me on https://gettr.com/user/potkazar or My Telegram Channel https://t.me/SledgeHammerNews My favourite quote: "Evil only prevails when the good stay silent"
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Friday, May 29, 2009
Iranian Graduate Society Meeting at SOAS
Went to an interesting meeting at SOAS yesterday organised by the Society of Iranian Graduates. The first thing that striked me was the wide spectrum of political affiliation and views amongst the audience. It showed that despite our differences we have more in common and for that reason we should meet, talk and exchange views more often.
It was quite rewarding when a couple of people in the crowd recognised me and said they read my posts and sometimes left comments, but even more rewarding was to see Moussavi Khoeini amongst the panel members. You can imagine the feeling when you campaign for someone's release and you write about their plight and then one day come face to face with them.
Moussavi Khoeini talked about the conditions of Iranian political prisoners, mentioning all the suspicious deaths in the last few years starting with Akbar Mohammadi to more recent deaths of Reza Mir Sayyafi and Amir Heshmat Saran and the current worrying situation of Behrooz Javid Tehrani. Moussavi Khoeini emphasised the importance of campaigning for political prisoners and asked the audience to campaign for the release of all Iran's political prisoners without any prejudice against their political views or affiliations. He received a rapturous applause. It was obvious why all the Iranian dissidents and former political prisoners I have met or communicated with, all speak highly of this former MP and political prisoner himself, Moussavi Khoeini.
Another panel member was Dr. Seyf who teaches economics at Staffordshire university. I knew him years ago but had lost touch with him, it was good to catch up with him again. He talked about the current calamity of the Iranian economy, the lack of transparency, the growing year on year deficit, the dangerous reliance on the oil income and the economic programs of the current candidates for presidency of the Islamic Republic.
Perhaps the one panel member that spoiled the evening was BBC Persian's Massoud Behnood, not because I disagree with him but because I know him to be such a liar and as usual he was full of fun stories from the past with a lot of dishonesty and distortion about the present. A member of audience questioned him about his role in turning BBC Persian into a platform for reformists only. Outside I reminded him about an incident outside the Islamic Centre in Maida Vale and told him it wasn't only Ahmadinejad that lied through his teeth.
Putting aside BBC Persian's Massoud Behnood, it was a warm and lively discussion and the Q&A went on well past the initial allocated time until nearly 11:00 pm followed by a lot more friendly discussions outside. Hope the Iranian Graduate Society can build on this success and bring Iranians of different views together under one roof more often.
It was quite rewarding when a couple of people in the crowd recognised me and said they read my posts and sometimes left comments, but even more rewarding was to see Moussavi Khoeini amongst the panel members. You can imagine the feeling when you campaign for someone's release and you write about their plight and then one day come face to face with them.
Moussavi Khoeini talked about the conditions of Iranian political prisoners, mentioning all the suspicious deaths in the last few years starting with Akbar Mohammadi to more recent deaths of Reza Mir Sayyafi and Amir Heshmat Saran and the current worrying situation of Behrooz Javid Tehrani. Moussavi Khoeini emphasised the importance of campaigning for political prisoners and asked the audience to campaign for the release of all Iran's political prisoners without any prejudice against their political views or affiliations. He received a rapturous applause. It was obvious why all the Iranian dissidents and former political prisoners I have met or communicated with, all speak highly of this former MP and political prisoner himself, Moussavi Khoeini.
Another panel member was Dr. Seyf who teaches economics at Staffordshire university. I knew him years ago but had lost touch with him, it was good to catch up with him again. He talked about the current calamity of the Iranian economy, the lack of transparency, the growing year on year deficit, the dangerous reliance on the oil income and the economic programs of the current candidates for presidency of the Islamic Republic.
Perhaps the one panel member that spoiled the evening was BBC Persian's Massoud Behnood, not because I disagree with him but because I know him to be such a liar and as usual he was full of fun stories from the past with a lot of dishonesty and distortion about the present. A member of audience questioned him about his role in turning BBC Persian into a platform for reformists only. Outside I reminded him about an incident outside the Islamic Centre in Maida Vale and told him it wasn't only Ahmadinejad that lied through his teeth.
Putting aside BBC Persian's Massoud Behnood, it was a warm and lively discussion and the Q&A went on well past the initial allocated time until nearly 11:00 pm followed by a lot more friendly discussions outside. Hope the Iranian Graduate Society can build on this success and bring Iranians of different views together under one roof more often.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Who is Ahmadinejad's American Advisor?
Seyyed Hamid Molana, president Ahmadinejad's special advisor in international relations was born in Tabriz in 1936. His family were forced to move to Tehran, after his father was briefly detained by the pro-Soviet forces who occupied Azerbijan and tried to secede the province from Iran.The post war years in Iran coincided with much political turbulence, including the nationalisation of Iran's oil industry. The universities during these years became a hotbed of political activity but Hamid Molana chose not to get involved.
Molana explains his apathy during these years by saying neither Leftist or right wing politics at the time appealed to him and he was yearning for an Islamic movement. Not that this makes sense, Islamists were also active during this time and co-operated with the coup against Mossadegh in 1953.
When Molana was 19, he lost both his parents in a tragic car accident, but fortune came his way after this tragedy when he won a scholarship from the American embassy in Tehran to study in the United States. Molana then became an American citizen and lived there for over forty years.
His academic achievements and awards are very impressive if you are into these academic accolades. Just to mention a few from a very long list they include International Communication Association's award for outstanding research in 1977; American University's School of International Service Award for Outstanding Contribution to Academic Development in 1980 and 1988; for Thirty Years of Distinguished Leadership and Scholarship in 1998; and the Scholar/Teacher of the Year Award in 2000. He was the recipient of the International Studies Association's Distinguished Senior Scholar Award in International Communication at its 43rd Annual Conference held in New Orleans, Louisiana in March 2002.
During the 1979 Islamic revolution, Molana again showed no obvious involvement as far as I can gather. Suddenly however, Molana becomes Ahmadinejad's special advisor in international relations, to the extent that he claims to be behind much of Ahmadinejad's recent high profile international trips including Columbia university and Geneva.
Last week Molana spoke to seminary students in Shiraz at the Hafez Hall and made more outrageous remarks. Some extracts of his speech:
'In the field of international relations and foreign policy, Iran has made great successes in the last four years...so much so that even our enemies admit to it'
'In the world of politics today, there is no charm without Ahmadinejad, and between me and you there will be no fun in the media either'
He also credited the Islamic revolution for the downfall of the Soviet Union by saying 'Listen to me as someone who lived in Washington for 41 years, they thought there will be no end to the cold war, yet within two years of the Islamic revolution in Iran, it brought about changes that led to the velvet revolutions'
Molana then referred to Latin America and quoted Hilary Clinton as saying ' the situation in Latin America which was our backyard has changed and we need to become more active there.' And after quoting Clinton, Molana asked 'What does this mean? Who is it that has upset them [Americans] in Latin America?'
Molana even criticised those who question Ahmadienjad bringing messianic issues in international relations by saying 'Those who question why the messianic beliefs are brought into international relationships by president Ahmadinejad do not have a good knowledge of international relations literature, for a large part of international relations has a messianic theme to it'
This acclaimed US academic then went on praising Ahmadienjad for his work on justice and monotheism and so on, that I can not even be bothered to write about. The question that I can not answer however is how is it that a US citizen for 41 years without any revolutionary credentials suddenly becomes president Ahmadinejad's special advisor on international relations?
And my second question is, it seems Molana owes much of his success in life because of that American scholarship he received at the age of 19, which changed his life, after 41 years in US, living there as a successful and respected US citizen, how does one become so disloyal as to walk over the flag of the country, shown in the picture above, which gave him all he has?
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Chair Instead of Shoe
When I first watched this video I thought someone in the congregation threw a chair at the cleric, who was ranting on that everyone in Iran lives in peace and comfort. I think my own feelings took over, its the sort of thing I would have done if I was sitting in that audience listening to such blatant lies. Watching it more carefully again, I realised its not actually a chair but the fan that crashes down on the cleric's head, just as he swears to the Almighty that everyone in Iran lived in peace and comfort. Sort of divine intervention at its best with impeccable timing in the absence of a chair. May be there is a God after all!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
European students are Cows and Sheep
'The brain of each Iranian student is equivalent to that of four students in Europe. The students there are like cows and sheep. So much so that when one tries to explain even an obvious point, their mouth remains open like the Ali-Sadr cave' - Minister of Roads and Transport for Islamic Republic, reported by Iranian Labour News Agency, ILNA.
So who is the minister of road and transport for the Islamic Repubic? His name is Dr. Hamid Behbahani.
And where was he educated? He has a PHD in Civil Engineering from university of Florida, with a long list of academic achievements, see: http://www.etelaf.com/etelaf/behbahani_hamid.htm
European students who support the Islamic Republic as an anti-imperialist state were NOT excluded in Dr. Behbahani's statement.
So who is the minister of road and transport for the Islamic Repubic? His name is Dr. Hamid Behbahani.
And where was he educated? He has a PHD in Civil Engineering from university of Florida, with a long list of academic achievements, see: http://www.etelaf.com/etelaf/behbahani_hamid.htm
European students who support the Islamic Republic as an anti-imperialist state were NOT excluded in Dr. Behbahani's statement.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
We Were Bankrupt Years Ago - Former Iranian Oil Minister
Bijan Namdar Zanganeh was minister for Construction in Moussavi's government, Energy Minister in Rafsanjani's government and Oil Minister under Khatami. In a gathering of Co-ordinating Council for Engineering, Trade and Professional Societies, he revealed that 'our banks went bust years before the current global banking crisis. But the officials here did not tell the people about it. The current global banking crisis was revealed because of accountability in the rest of the world, but here in Iran there is no accountability and no one realises what has become of our banks. Iran's banks have suffered a crisis unprecedented throughout Iran's banking history'
Zanganeh added, 'we are now in a crisis that apart from the sudden drop in oil prices, the current global banking crisis has nothing to do with it. Some people are happy that we have not suffered as a result of the global financial crisis, but first of all if our economy is not linked to the global economy, this is nothing to be proud of and secondly who says we are not in a crisis?'
Regarding the lack of lending facilities by the banks, Zanganeh said ' Iranian banks can no longer lend because they are in the red by millions. It is not clear to whom much of the money was lent to and the money that has been lent, to whoever that borrowed it, is not coming back. '
Zanganeh finished by taking a jibe at Ahmadinejad saying '...Our human assets have been humiliated in these years, our management institutions have been insulted, when they talk about a 14 year old girl who is enriching uranium in her cellar, [Watch Ahmadinejad claim this] this is an insult to any human being's intelligence'
So unlike those championing the Islamic Republic in UK, like Mehri Honarbin-Holiday, Baroness Haleh Afshar and their pals at the SWP, the former Iranian minister does not mention sanctions as the root cause of our problems at all but accountability. In fact throughout this election campaign, none of the candidates have claimed the kind of nonsense CASMII lackeys claim that all of Iran's problems are because of sanctions.
Under president Ahmadinejad, three governors of the Central Bank have resigned.
Zanganeh added, 'we are now in a crisis that apart from the sudden drop in oil prices, the current global banking crisis has nothing to do with it. Some people are happy that we have not suffered as a result of the global financial crisis, but first of all if our economy is not linked to the global economy, this is nothing to be proud of and secondly who says we are not in a crisis?'
Regarding the lack of lending facilities by the banks, Zanganeh said ' Iranian banks can no longer lend because they are in the red by millions. It is not clear to whom much of the money was lent to and the money that has been lent, to whoever that borrowed it, is not coming back. '
Zanganeh finished by taking a jibe at Ahmadinejad saying '...Our human assets have been humiliated in these years, our management institutions have been insulted, when they talk about a 14 year old girl who is enriching uranium in her cellar, [Watch Ahmadinejad claim this] this is an insult to any human being's intelligence'
So unlike those championing the Islamic Republic in UK, like Mehri Honarbin-Holiday, Baroness Haleh Afshar and their pals at the SWP, the former Iranian minister does not mention sanctions as the root cause of our problems at all but accountability. In fact throughout this election campaign, none of the candidates have claimed the kind of nonsense CASMII lackeys claim that all of Iran's problems are because of sanctions.
Under president Ahmadinejad, three governors of the Central Bank have resigned.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Anniversary of Liberation of Khorramshahr
BBC 'analysts' were skeptic of a quick conclusion, saying making the masses of Iraqi forces to retreat from the city would be a tough nut to crack or something like that.
Finally the state radio announcement that we had all been waiting for, came. "Dear listeners! Dear listeners! Please pay attention!" Our hearts stopped beating for a second, was it good news or bad? "...Khorramshahr, the city of blood - Khoonin Shahr - has been liberated."
The joy from hearing the news is impossible to put down in words. Still we wanted other sources to confirm the news. The tuning knob was turned back and forward so many times that it just came off in my hand and we were left with the annoying crackling white noise you hear in between stations.
I am not sure if I read in the papers over the next few days or how, but I remember how I laughed my head off at Saddam's propaganda machine's claims that the Iraqi forces had taken part in an 'organised retreat, having established all their military objectives!' Yeah Right Mr. Gobels!
This was the best moment to make Saddam concede. He was on his knees and willing to pay Iran compensation. Sadly those who profited from the continuation of the war or had some illusions of expanding the Islamic Republic to Iraq, had the upper hand. A golden opportunity to end the war as victors was denied to our nation and 8 years later, after so many Iranians were maimed and martyred, the poison chalice had to be drunk.
Today all of us Iranians should remember those who fell in the epic battle for liberation of Khorramshahr. Today we should honour those who still suffer the injuries of the eight year war and make sure they are not forgotten.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
How They Change after Three Decades
It is year 1980, one year after the Islamic revolution in Iran. The new rulers are expanding their tentacles rapidly and into all aspects of the Iranian society. One barricade was still resisting the theocratic take over and was still standing; the barricade of the universities. There was no way the new reactionary rulers could tolerate this and so the Islamic Cultural Revolution was engineered resulting in death, injury, imprisonment, intellectual cleansing and closure of the Iranian universities for two years.
In this rare clip below from 1980, the architects and the executors of the 'Cultural Revolution' appear on TV to justify their actions in the aftermath of their victory. The first to answer the presenter [who himself seems uncomfortable asking these silly questions] is Abdolkarim Soroush.
This is the revolutionary extremist jargon he comes up with which was fashionable at the time:
'As soon as the 'far sighted' religiously committed students requested for our universities to move in step with the Islamic revolution across Iran, from the very beginning what was in the thoughts and hearts of these committed students and that of all our revolutionary nation, was that universities should radiate the smell and the fragrance of Islamic thought..so that as soon as a seeker enters this garden of flowers [the new Islamicised universities] their senses of scent is enriched by this pleasant fragrance of [Islam]'
Of course Soroush didn't mind not being 'enriched by the pleasant fragrance of Islam' while he was studying himself in London. After all, what is good for others is not good for me, with most of revolutionaries.
Soroush resigned from the Cultural Revolution Council in 1983. In 1998, his magazine Kian was closed down by the direct orders of the Supreme Leader. After year 2000, Soroush became a visiting professor in Harvard university and resident scholar at Yale and several other Western universities. What happened to the passion for the scent of Islamic fragrances that was so necessary to radiate from university campuses and classrooms?
When Soroush's lectures were attacked by the same thugs who attacked the universities in 1980, he said this:
"Has this country (Iran) gone so far so that a teacher takes his life into his own hands when attending class or an academic meeting? Does this country need the likes of Galileo and Giordano Bruno?"
A word of advise for the young impressionable minds, when you see some young educated extremist rant about some outrageous claptrap, do not take them too seriously, they are just going through a phase and they will soon sense the fragrance of errors in their judgements.
In this rare clip below from 1980, the architects and the executors of the 'Cultural Revolution' appear on TV to justify their actions in the aftermath of their victory. The first to answer the presenter [who himself seems uncomfortable asking these silly questions] is Abdolkarim Soroush.
This is the revolutionary extremist jargon he comes up with which was fashionable at the time:
'As soon as the 'far sighted' religiously committed students requested for our universities to move in step with the Islamic revolution across Iran, from the very beginning what was in the thoughts and hearts of these committed students and that of all our revolutionary nation, was that universities should radiate the smell and the fragrance of Islamic thought..so that as soon as a seeker enters this garden of flowers [the new Islamicised universities] their senses of scent is enriched by this pleasant fragrance of [Islam]'
Of course Soroush didn't mind not being 'enriched by the pleasant fragrance of Islam' while he was studying himself in London. After all, what is good for others is not good for me, with most of revolutionaries.
Soroush resigned from the Cultural Revolution Council in 1983. In 1998, his magazine Kian was closed down by the direct orders of the Supreme Leader. After year 2000, Soroush became a visiting professor in Harvard university and resident scholar at Yale and several other Western universities. What happened to the passion for the scent of Islamic fragrances that was so necessary to radiate from university campuses and classrooms?
When Soroush's lectures were attacked by the same thugs who attacked the universities in 1980, he said this:
"Has this country (Iran) gone so far so that a teacher takes his life into his own hands when attending class or an academic meeting? Does this country need the likes of Galileo and Giordano Bruno?"
A word of advise for the young impressionable minds, when you see some young educated extremist rant about some outrageous claptrap, do not take them too seriously, they are just going through a phase and they will soon sense the fragrance of errors in their judgements.
Jamming of Arab News Network
As a child I used to find politics boring and tedious. I had two goals, to do well at sports and have fun. All this changed with the 'Cultural Revolution' in Iran, when I saw illiterate gangs rip up posters, burn and tear up books and smash the book stalls set up outside the university after the revolution. Destroying books to me was a hideous crime, a book was for reading, you either liked it or you didn't. For me, if someone destroyed books it was like destroying knowledge itself.
With all the technological advances today, there are modern day equivalents of burning books. Jamming television signals of a rival news station is no different than burning books. Despotic regimes have understood the importance of television and news dissemination very well. They have a large budget allocated for their TV broadcasts and have set up so many channels in so many languages for their propaganda purposes. Yet these despots are so insecure that they fear even one voice of dissent if it is run well and run professionally.
Jamming of ANN signals has stopped the broadcasts of this television channel since May 9Th. Yet this blatant attack on freedom of speech and freedom of expression is making little headlines so far.
It is up to the international media and human rights organisations to react to this act of piracy of freedom, quickly and swiftly or we will have nothing on the air waves but despotic state sponsored channels monopolising and poisoning the young impressionable minds.
With all the technological advances today, there are modern day equivalents of burning books. Jamming television signals of a rival news station is no different than burning books. Despotic regimes have understood the importance of television and news dissemination very well. They have a large budget allocated for their TV broadcasts and have set up so many channels in so many languages for their propaganda purposes. Yet these despots are so insecure that they fear even one voice of dissent if it is run well and run professionally.
Jamming of ANN signals has stopped the broadcasts of this television channel since May 9Th. Yet this blatant attack on freedom of speech and freedom of expression is making little headlines so far.
It is up to the international media and human rights organisations to react to this act of piracy of freedom, quickly and swiftly or we will have nothing on the air waves but despotic state sponsored channels monopolising and poisoning the young impressionable minds.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
The Courage of Iranian Women
It is supposed to be a show debate between the student dissidents and the Baseej members to be broadcast on Iranian state TV. The first student talks about how one day after the elections it will be obvious it wasn't an election but an appointment.
Then the Baseej member gets behind the podium, he is asked if he is even a student at the university, he has nothing of substance to say other than insult the students by saying 'some of the girls here have come here having powdered themselves just to please their boyfriends'
and the rest you can see for yourself, the students boo the Baseej member and the student girl in the crowd rushes towards him and grabs the microphone from him and the baseej members are thrown out.
If only the ex-pats would show the same courage when regime apologists try to paint a harmless picture of the regime to their European audiences of useful idiots.
Then the Baseej member gets behind the podium, he is asked if he is even a student at the university, he has nothing of substance to say other than insult the students by saying 'some of the girls here have come here having powdered themselves just to please their boyfriends'
and the rest you can see for yourself, the students boo the Baseej member and the student girl in the crowd rushes towards him and grabs the microphone from him and the baseej members are thrown out.
If only the ex-pats would show the same courage when regime apologists try to paint a harmless picture of the regime to their European audiences of useful idiots.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Rare Copy of Avicenna’s “Canon of Medicine” Stolen From Museum in Iran
A rare copy of the book, “The Canon of Medicine” written by Avicenna [poor-Sina], the famous Iranian physician, regarded as the father of modern medicine, has been stolen from a museum adjacent to his mausoleum in Hamedan, Iran.
What makes the situation worse however is the non-chalant way the Hamedan Cultural, Tourism and Handicrafts Department Director Asadollah Bayat regarded the news, which demonstrates the lack of accountability of the Islamic Republic officials and their unwillingness to answer questions to the public.
When Bayat was asked about the theft at a press conference, he rebuked the journalist by saying: “The question is not a gesture of goodwill. The question should not be asked, if it is against an institution.” !!!
He also thought the theft was 'NATURAL'!!!
“A copy of ‘The Canon of Medicine’ on display at the mausoleum of Avicenna was stolen and no trace of any thief has been detected yet. Two guards of the museum’s security command were present at the time of the robbery.” Bayat added.
“The mausoleum of Avicenna was not equipped with an emergency power system until last year. It’s no wonder that the robbery happened,” was Bayat's closing words of wisdom.
What makes the situation worse however is the non-chalant way the Hamedan Cultural, Tourism and Handicrafts Department Director Asadollah Bayat regarded the news, which demonstrates the lack of accountability of the Islamic Republic officials and their unwillingness to answer questions to the public.
When Bayat was asked about the theft at a press conference, he rebuked the journalist by saying: “The question is not a gesture of goodwill. The question should not be asked, if it is against an institution.” !!!
He also thought the theft was 'NATURAL'!!!
“A copy of ‘The Canon of Medicine’ on display at the mausoleum of Avicenna was stolen and no trace of any thief has been detected yet. Two guards of the museum’s security command were present at the time of the robbery.” Bayat added.
“The mausoleum of Avicenna was not equipped with an emergency power system until last year. It’s no wonder that the robbery happened,” was Bayat's closing words of wisdom.
Friday, May 15, 2009
'Mr. President I Loved you Since I was a Kid' - 60 Year Old Presenter
I heard somewhere they asked Karl Marx what he despised most about human personality traits and he answered 'Being servile' and this is one of the few occasions when I see eye to eye with the German philosopher. When I see a servile sychophant person get out of their way to belittle themselves for personal gains, it is like watching humanity having a hemorrhage.
Here the Iranian TV presenter, Hajilou, who is more than likely over 60 years old in age, claims to president Ahmadinejad that he loved him ever since he was a kid!!!
http://www.ayandenews.com/files/fa/news/1388/2/23/9867_935.wmv
Here the Iranian TV presenter, Hajilou, who is more than likely over 60 years old in age, claims to president Ahmadinejad that he loved him ever since he was a kid!!!
http://www.ayandenews.com/files/fa/news/1388/2/23/9867_935.wmv
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Did Vali Nasr Negotiate Roxanna's Release
According to Iranian news website Fararu, Vali Nasr who was recently appointed as a special advisor to president Obama, helped negotiate Roxanna Saberi's release from prison.The site also mentions Hadad Adel and Ali Larijani who were both students of Vali Nasr's father, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, had insisted on his presence in Iran to negotiate Roxanna's release.
Seyyed Hossein Nasr who was appointed by the former Iranian empress, Farah Pahlavi as the head of the Imperial Philosophy Society, during the former Shah's reign was supposed to formulate a philosophy of modern Iranian identity, instead most of his students turned out to be Islamic revolutionaries and later the high ranking officials of the Islamic Republic.
We Don't Care if he Dies or Otherwise
Secular Ayatollah Boroujerdi's new team of lawyers, Giti Poorfazel, Abdolfatah Soltani and Behiyeh Jeylani who were appointed by Boroujerdi's family after they sacked Shirin Ebadi for incompetence have reported that Ayatollah Boroujerdi is in grave danger, eight days into his hunger strike at Yazd prison.
His new team of lawyers said Ayatollah Boroujerdi's family have contacted the Yazd prison officials and were told the Ayatollah still remains on hunger strike and 'frankly we don't care if he dies or otherwise'
His new team of lawyers said Ayatollah Boroujerdi's family have contacted the Yazd prison officials and were told the Ayatollah still remains on hunger strike and 'frankly we don't care if he dies or otherwise'
Monday, May 11, 2009
Eighty Days without News of my Children
The world attention that was extended to Roxanna Saberi, finally resulted in her release from Evin prison yesterday. Suddenly her 8 year prison sentence was overturned after a re-trial that lasted a few hours and still no one knows about the details of her case. Yet there are many more in the Islamic Republic jails who are getting ZERO attention extended to them, including the Iranian student, Shabnam Madadzadeh and her brother, Farzad.
Shabnam's brother, Farzad, went to the LEF the day after she was arrested to enquire about her whereabouts, instead, he too was arrested and never returned home.
Shabnam and Farzad's father, Abdolali Madadzadeh, has had no news of the whereabouts or the well being of his son and daughter for 80 days now. In a public letter to the head of Iran's judiciary, Abdolali Madadzadeh asks the judiciary chief 'by which tradition, religion or culture is a father separated from his children, when his children are not even tried and sentenced yet? and when I ask where my children are, I am answered with such contempt and insolence'
Shabnam's brother, Farzad, went to the LEF the day after she was arrested to enquire about her whereabouts, instead, he too was arrested and never returned home.
Shabnam and Farzad's father, Abdolali Madadzadeh, has had no news of the whereabouts or the well being of his son and daughter for 80 days now. In a public letter to the head of Iran's judiciary, Abdolali Madadzadeh asks the judiciary chief 'by which tradition, religion or culture is a father separated from his children, when his children are not even tried and sentenced yet? and when I ask where my children are, I am answered with such contempt and insolence'
Bloggers Conference and Award
I woke up this morning, thinking I have just dreamt about sharing a panel with the giants of UK blogging, Guido Fawkes and Slugger O’ Toole and later in the evening had been to an awards ceremony dinner at the Athenaeum Club in Pall Mall, where I was presented with an award for 'outstanding work as a blogger'.
So far so good, except that it was true, it wasn't a dream!
Sharing the panel with Paul Staines and Mick Fealty was surreal enough and I was sure that I would just be a silent audience at the dinner ceremony. When it was announced that the next winner is someone 'sweet but hot tempered', I joked with people on my table 'that rules me out because they said 'sweet' ', then it was said 'he wears his heart out on his sleeve and makes some people angry' followed by 'he is a rough diamond' and I thought Holy Mackerel! this is too close to home, they were talking about me!
The biggest prize for me however was to get to know the people that were there last night, 'Good people who had not stayed silent when they had seen evil' that was the real privilege.
So far so good, except that it was true, it wasn't a dream!
Sharing the panel with Paul Staines and Mick Fealty was surreal enough and I was sure that I would just be a silent audience at the dinner ceremony. When it was announced that the next winner is someone 'sweet but hot tempered', I joked with people on my table 'that rules me out because they said 'sweet' ', then it was said 'he wears his heart out on his sleeve and makes some people angry' followed by 'he is a rough diamond' and I thought Holy Mackerel! this is too close to home, they were talking about me!
The biggest prize for me however was to get to know the people that were there last night, 'Good people who had not stayed silent when they had seen evil' that was the real privilege.
Friday, May 08, 2009
Its all one Big Family (1)
I remember years after John Major's premiership, reading about his brother who lived in a council flat. I was so impressed by the fact that there was no talk of him in all the years John Major was the Prime Minister and I thought to myself imagine if it was in Iran, there is no way his brother wouldn't have some kind of government post.
Well here is the very opposite, look at the extent of nepotism in Ahmadinejad's government and this is just the tip of the iceberg. Akbar Alami former war veteran and former MP from my birth place, who will almost surely be disqualified from running for the presidency by the Guardian Council, says the whole country is run by 200 closely related individuals.
Below is a glimpse of nepotism and jobs for friends and relatives in Ahmadinejad's government:
Davood Ahamdinejad: Ahmadinejad’s elder brother. Presidential Inspection Organisation.
Massoud Zaribafan: Cabinet Secretary. Ahmadinejad’s brother-in-law. Chief executive of State run Isteghlal [former Taj] sports club complex.
Alireza Madadi: Zaribafan’s brother-in-law - General Manager of Social Welfare Organisation, General Manager of Physical Education Organisation.
Hossein Shabiri: Married to Ahmadinejad’s sister - Head of Mehr Reza Donation Deposits
Parvin Ahmadinejad: Ahmadinejad’s sister - Deputy of the Centre for Women’s Affairs, Member of the City Council
Davood Madadi: Chief Executive of Social Welfare Organisation, Zaribafan’s brother-in-law
Nazemi Ardekani – Minister of Mutual Assistance – Related to Zaribafan’s aunt
Danesh Ja’afari : Minister of Economics – Related to Zaribafan’s aunt
Ismail Ahmadi-Moghadam : AN’s brother-in-law, Chief of Law Enforcement Forces
Mohsen Nabavi : Zaribafan’s son-in-law, Member of the Board of Foreign Investments Company
Ali-Akbar Mehrabian : Ahmadinejad’s Nephew – Ministry of Industry and Mining
Alireza Ahmadi: AN’s Brother-in-law Minister of Education
Mojtaba Hashemi Samareh : Ahmadinejad’s long time friend and Bahonar’s nephew. Advisor to the president. Head of the country’s election HQ.
Mehdi Hashemi Samareh: Mojtaba’s brother – General Manager of the Energy Ministry
Abdolhamid Hashemi Samareh: Mojtaba’s brother Deputy of Industry Ministry
Ghand foroosh: Hashemi Samareh’s sister-in-law Interior Ministry’s Family Affairs advisor
Moussapour : Related to Bahonar’s sister, deputy of parliamentary affairs for Interior Ministry
Ali Kheyrandish: Samreh Hashemi’s brother-in-law , Building contractor for the Oil Ministry
Tahere Nazari Mehr: Foreign Minister, Manouchehr Mottaki’s wife, General Manager for Human Rights and women for Foreign Ministry. Her brother is also an attaché to Bahrain.
Well here is the very opposite, look at the extent of nepotism in Ahmadinejad's government and this is just the tip of the iceberg. Akbar Alami former war veteran and former MP from my birth place, who will almost surely be disqualified from running for the presidency by the Guardian Council, says the whole country is run by 200 closely related individuals.
Below is a glimpse of nepotism and jobs for friends and relatives in Ahmadinejad's government:
Davood Ahamdinejad: Ahmadinejad’s elder brother. Presidential Inspection Organisation.
Massoud Zaribafan: Cabinet Secretary. Ahmadinejad’s brother-in-law. Chief executive of State run Isteghlal [former Taj] sports club complex.
Alireza Madadi: Zaribafan’s brother-in-law - General Manager of Social Welfare Organisation, General Manager of Physical Education Organisation.
Hossein Shabiri: Married to Ahmadinejad’s sister - Head of Mehr Reza Donation Deposits
Parvin Ahmadinejad: Ahmadinejad’s sister - Deputy of the Centre for Women’s Affairs, Member of the City Council
Davood Madadi: Chief Executive of Social Welfare Organisation, Zaribafan’s brother-in-law
Nazemi Ardekani – Minister of Mutual Assistance – Related to Zaribafan’s aunt
Danesh Ja’afari : Minister of Economics – Related to Zaribafan’s aunt
Ismail Ahmadi-Moghadam : AN’s brother-in-law, Chief of Law Enforcement Forces
Mohsen Nabavi : Zaribafan’s son-in-law, Member of the Board of Foreign Investments Company
Ali-Akbar Mehrabian : Ahmadinejad’s Nephew – Ministry of Industry and Mining
Alireza Ahmadi: AN’s Brother-in-law Minister of Education
Mojtaba Hashemi Samareh : Ahmadinejad’s long time friend and Bahonar’s nephew. Advisor to the president. Head of the country’s election HQ.
Mehdi Hashemi Samareh: Mojtaba’s brother – General Manager of the Energy Ministry
Abdolhamid Hashemi Samareh: Mojtaba’s brother Deputy of Industry Ministry
Ghand foroosh: Hashemi Samareh’s sister-in-law Interior Ministry’s Family Affairs advisor
Moussapour : Related to Bahonar’s sister, deputy of parliamentary affairs for Interior Ministry
Ali Kheyrandish: Samreh Hashemi’s brother-in-law , Building contractor for the Oil Ministry
Tahere Nazari Mehr: Foreign Minister, Manouchehr Mottaki’s wife, General Manager for Human Rights and women for Foreign Ministry. Her brother is also an attaché to Bahrain.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
SWP John Rees on Accepting Donations
Like I said in the previous posts, it seems like a very twisted world. UK based Left wing Marxist-Leninst organisation, SWP, are happy to forget their tortured and executed comrades in Iran and instead promote the Islamic Republic in meetings attended by CASMII and chaired by the Baroness Haleh Afshar OBE, yet jailed students like Arash, shopped by the US embassy and still under threat of deportation to the Islamic Republic by the mad UK Home Office are accused of being pro-imperialists!
But there seems to be a lot more to all this. Why would a Trotskyst organisation promote the Islamic Republic? How would Trotsky turn in his grave if he found out his followers were promoting a government ruled by Shiite clerics?
Been doing some googling on John Rees from SWP, who also spoke at the meeting in SOAS along with Channel 4 news reader, Jon Snow. Apparently John Rees has been involved in accepting a donation from a company owned by one of Britain's biggest private finance initiative(PFI) contractors, headed by a Tory life peer, Lord Blackwell, who was a senior policy adviser to the John Major government!!
Below is the emailed response by John Rees on 13 September regarding the donation which reveals his mindset:
“…this was an individual donation not a corporate donatation (sic). Many people work for firms that do bad things~but accepting money from them as individuals does not imply either that they endorse the actions of their employers or that we endorse the actions of the firms. Consequently, the whole ‘anything in the world can be connected by six degrees of separation’ argument falls at the first hurdle.
More broadly, why should any labour movement body not accept a bit of the profit coming back to the workers so long as there are no strings attached"
I remember years ago there was another UK based Left wing organisation by the name of Workers Revolutionary Party, not sure if they are still going round but never hear about them any more or see their newspaper sellers on street corners. If I remember rightly, they also had celebrity supporters in their meetings such as actress Vanessa Redgrave. It turned out that not only their printers actually benefited from the then British government's regional development aid :) but much worse than that, they were receiving money from Libya, Iraq and even solicited the Persian Gulf Sheikhdoms. They were asking the ruling emirs and wealthy businessmen for donations to their anti-imperialist struggles :))))
So do not be surprised if we soon find out the Islamic Republic is also funding the SWP. The behaviour of their senior members certainly suggests this.
But there seems to be a lot more to all this. Why would a Trotskyst organisation promote the Islamic Republic? How would Trotsky turn in his grave if he found out his followers were promoting a government ruled by Shiite clerics?
Been doing some googling on John Rees from SWP, who also spoke at the meeting in SOAS along with Channel 4 news reader, Jon Snow. Apparently John Rees has been involved in accepting a donation from a company owned by one of Britain's biggest private finance initiative(PFI) contractors, headed by a Tory life peer, Lord Blackwell, who was a senior policy adviser to the John Major government!!
Below is the emailed response by John Rees on 13 September regarding the donation which reveals his mindset:
“…this was an individual donation not a corporate donatation (sic). Many people work for firms that do bad things~but accepting money from them as individuals does not imply either that they endorse the actions of their employers or that we endorse the actions of the firms. Consequently, the whole ‘anything in the world can be connected by six degrees of separation’ argument falls at the first hurdle.
More broadly, why should any labour movement body not accept a bit of the profit coming back to the workers so long as there are no strings attached"
I remember years ago there was another UK based Left wing organisation by the name of Workers Revolutionary Party, not sure if they are still going round but never hear about them any more or see their newspaper sellers on street corners. If I remember rightly, they also had celebrity supporters in their meetings such as actress Vanessa Redgrave. It turned out that not only their printers actually benefited from the then British government's regional development aid :) but much worse than that, they were receiving money from Libya, Iraq and even solicited the Persian Gulf Sheikhdoms. They were asking the ruling emirs and wealthy businessmen for donations to their anti-imperialist struggles :))))
So do not be surprised if we soon find out the Islamic Republic is also funding the SWP. The behaviour of their senior members certainly suggests this.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Khark Islanders at Ahmadinejad - You are a Liar
This Youtube footage of Ahmadinejad in Khark island, in some ways reminds me of the famous Ceausescu balcony speech where the crowd, against all expectations, turned against him.
It starts off with a woman crying out that so much wealth comes from the island yet there is nothing there for the people. The people are kept behind the fence like animals with Ahamdinejad surrounded by his bodyguards on the other side and when he rants on about his usual empty slogans, the people shout back 'Liar, Liar'.
Ahmadinejad then tries to calm down the crowds and says 'I guarantee that the governor as my representative will personally come to the island, sit down with each one of you individually and you can tell him about all your problems' - imagine how long that would take! - But again the people start shouting, 'Its a lie, its a lie'.
Some in the crowd remind him of all the promises in the past, Ahmadinejad replies the 'Past is in the past' and people still jeer him. Ahmadinejad then asks the crowd, 'So shall I go then?' This then brings a smile on the face of the crowd who reply 'yes go! go!'
And notice no one blames the sanctions :))
It starts off with a woman crying out that so much wealth comes from the island yet there is nothing there for the people. The people are kept behind the fence like animals with Ahamdinejad surrounded by his bodyguards on the other side and when he rants on about his usual empty slogans, the people shout back 'Liar, Liar'.
Ahmadinejad then tries to calm down the crowds and says 'I guarantee that the governor as my representative will personally come to the island, sit down with each one of you individually and you can tell him about all your problems' - imagine how long that would take! - But again the people start shouting, 'Its a lie, its a lie'.
Some in the crowd remind him of all the promises in the past, Ahmadinejad replies the 'Past is in the past' and people still jeer him. Ahmadinejad then asks the crowd, 'So shall I go then?' This then brings a smile on the face of the crowd who reply 'yes go! go!'
And notice no one blames the sanctions :))
Monday, May 04, 2009
Honarbin's Speech at SOAS on Youtube by Adrian Cousins
Came across this footage of Mehri Honarbin's speech at SOAS on Youtube. The video is posted by someone called Adrian Cousins.
What interested me was, Adrian Cousins claims in this youtube video info, that the protetsters to Mehri Honarbin's speech were Iranian monarchists. How typical of the loony laa dee daa Lefties in UK who just accuse and do not want to find out the truth, talk or listen.
The young Iranian thrown out of the meeting to Baroness Haleh Afshar OBE's much enthusiasm, hysterical laughter and clapping is an Iranian dissident student who has spent time in Islamic Republic jails. He has been a refugee for many years, and has suffered intolerable and inhumane conditions in refugee camps and hideouts in Turkey and he is still under the threat of deportation by the UK authorities. He is also an ardent Mossadegh supporter.
Yet the Iranian pampered aristocrat, Haleh Afshar, who comes from a family background connected to the imperial court of the late Shah, is this laa dee daa Lefty's anti-imperialist icon!!
Well it wasn't hard to find out who this Adrian Cousins was. Click on his link at Youtube takes you to this site: http://www.youtube.com/user/adycousins where it shows he is a techie/designer who has read loads of books by Marx, Lenin, Engels and Trotsky and the rest of them who have influenced him greatly in the comfort of his armchair and of course he is a Socialist Workers Party member. A further click takes you to his own website which reveals his email: ady@mfaw.org.uk and his phone number: 0044 777 9628863
So I decided to call Adrian Cousins and see if he wants to listen to some facts. A kind of Mr. Bean voice answered as Adrian Cousins. As soon as I told him what I wished to talk to him about however, he put the phone down. In case the phone got cut off unwittingly, I called him again, and the Mr. Bean voice answered again 'I don't wish to speak to you'
Fine, I write about your ignorance on my blog then, Mr Cousins. How things are confused and twisted in this world, some techie/designer who is scared to debate thinks he is the hero of the working class and the oppressed people of the world, with his anti-imperialist icon as Baroness Haleh Afshar OBE
and poor Arash Mohajernejad, the real victim of imperialism is thrown out of the lecture hall while the bourgeois Left clap their hands and shout 'Out, out' in front of the Islamic Republic TV cameras!
What interested me was, Adrian Cousins claims in this youtube video info, that the protetsters to Mehri Honarbin's speech were Iranian monarchists. How typical of the loony laa dee daa Lefties in UK who just accuse and do not want to find out the truth, talk or listen.
The young Iranian thrown out of the meeting to Baroness Haleh Afshar OBE's much enthusiasm, hysterical laughter and clapping is an Iranian dissident student who has spent time in Islamic Republic jails. He has been a refugee for many years, and has suffered intolerable and inhumane conditions in refugee camps and hideouts in Turkey and he is still under the threat of deportation by the UK authorities. He is also an ardent Mossadegh supporter.
Yet the Iranian pampered aristocrat, Haleh Afshar, who comes from a family background connected to the imperial court of the late Shah, is this laa dee daa Lefty's anti-imperialist icon!!
Well it wasn't hard to find out who this Adrian Cousins was. Click on his link at Youtube takes you to this site: http://www.youtube.com/user/adycousins where it shows he is a techie/designer who has read loads of books by Marx, Lenin, Engels and Trotsky and the rest of them who have influenced him greatly in the comfort of his armchair and of course he is a Socialist Workers Party member. A further click takes you to his own website which reveals his email: ady@mfaw.org.uk and his phone number: 0044 777 9628863
So I decided to call Adrian Cousins and see if he wants to listen to some facts. A kind of Mr. Bean voice answered as Adrian Cousins. As soon as I told him what I wished to talk to him about however, he put the phone down. In case the phone got cut off unwittingly, I called him again, and the Mr. Bean voice answered again 'I don't wish to speak to you'
Fine, I write about your ignorance on my blog then, Mr Cousins. How things are confused and twisted in this world, some techie/designer who is scared to debate thinks he is the hero of the working class and the oppressed people of the world, with his anti-imperialist icon as Baroness Haleh Afshar OBE
and poor Arash Mohajernejad, the real victim of imperialism is thrown out of the lecture hall while the bourgeois Left clap their hands and shout 'Out, out' in front of the Islamic Republic TV cameras!
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Latest on May Day Arrests in Iran
More than 100 Iranian workers and trade unionists are now reported to have been arrested and sent to section 204 of the Evin prison by the repressive forces of the Islamic Republic, after attempting to hold rallies on 1St of May, marking Worker's Day in Iran.
Most of the workers arrested were denied food for the first 24 hours after their arrest.
Below are the names of more than 50 of those arrested, many of them women, at Laleh Park gathering which was smashed up before it even began.
Jafar Azimzadeh, Yunes Arzhang, Maryam Hosseini, Laleh Mohammadi, Sharifeh Mohammadi, Afsaneh Azimzadeh, Fatemeh Eghdami, Fatemeh Shah Nazari, Mohammad Lotfi, Massoud Loghman, A Saghafi, M Saghafi, Saeed Yoozi, Gholamreza Khani, Mansour Gheibi, Behnaz Farmanbar, Parvaneh Ghassemian, Behrooz Khabbaz, Jafar Nezhad, Amir Yaghoubali, Kaveh Mozafari, Jelveh Javaheri, Farhad Pour, Alireza Firoozi, Pouria Peeshtaz, Taha VAlizadeh, Homa Azhdarnia, Hamid Khademi, Einollah NAssiri, Omid Shafii, Owzhan PoorShariati, Mehran Yazdi, Meitham Jaafar Nezhad, Navid Yazdi, Gholamhussein Rajabi, Sajjad Sabzali-pour, Nassrin Alizadeh, Isan Zarfam, Khoshbakht,m Shapour Ehsanifar, Ahmad Davoodi, Mehdi Salimi, Behnam Ibrahimi, Mohammad Ehsani, Behram Abedini, Nikzad Zanganeh, Assadollah Pour Farhad, Sharifi, Zanyar Ahmadi, Hamid Malekzadeh, Maryam Yaminifar, Hossein MirBahari, Mehdi Amizesh, MAhmood Hosseini
For the sake of each of the above workers who remain imprisoned, wherever you see an Islamic Republic promoting apologist from Socialist Workers [read Wankers as I never see any workers in their ranks] Party, smash them up, roll up their rags and stuff it down their throats.
Most of the workers arrested were denied food for the first 24 hours after their arrest.
Below are the names of more than 50 of those arrested, many of them women, at Laleh Park gathering which was smashed up before it even began.
Jafar Azimzadeh, Yunes Arzhang, Maryam Hosseini, Laleh Mohammadi, Sharifeh Mohammadi, Afsaneh Azimzadeh, Fatemeh Eghdami, Fatemeh Shah Nazari, Mohammad Lotfi, Massoud Loghman, A Saghafi, M Saghafi, Saeed Yoozi, Gholamreza Khani, Mansour Gheibi, Behnaz Farmanbar, Parvaneh Ghassemian, Behrooz Khabbaz, Jafar Nezhad, Amir Yaghoubali, Kaveh Mozafari, Jelveh Javaheri, Farhad Pour, Alireza Firoozi, Pouria Peeshtaz, Taha VAlizadeh, Homa Azhdarnia, Hamid Khademi, Einollah NAssiri, Omid Shafii, Owzhan PoorShariati, Mehran Yazdi, Meitham Jaafar Nezhad, Navid Yazdi, Gholamhussein Rajabi, Sajjad Sabzali-pour, Nassrin Alizadeh, Isan Zarfam, Khoshbakht,m Shapour Ehsanifar, Ahmad Davoodi, Mehdi Salimi, Behnam Ibrahimi, Mohammad Ehsani, Behram Abedini, Nikzad Zanganeh, Assadollah Pour Farhad, Sharifi, Zanyar Ahmadi, Hamid Malekzadeh, Maryam Yaminifar, Hossein MirBahari, Mehdi Amizesh, MAhmood Hosseini
For the sake of each of the above workers who remain imprisoned, wherever you see an Islamic Republic promoting apologist from Socialist Workers [read Wankers as I never see any workers in their ranks] Party, smash them up, roll up their rags and stuff it down their throats.
Friday, May 01, 2009
Zero Oil Income within 8 Years
Dr. Massoud Derakhshan is a prominent Iranian economist, previously the chief of the Centre for Oil Ministry’s International Studies in London, founder of the Economics faculty at Imam Sadegh university and former Oxford university lecturer.Speaking at the Institute of Religion and Economics, he criticised the secretive nature of oil contracts in the Islamic Republic.
'the information about discovery of new oil resources; production and development of the oil fields etc. must be made available to the Iranian public who are the real owners of this resource.
Even if we assume that the government, as the representative of the people, should be trusted in supervising this information by itself, nevertheless the legislative and the judiciary should be in a position to closely scrutinise these contracts'
Derakhshan reminded his audience that before the revolution, all oil contracts had to be passed by the Majlis and experts in the field, including the media and the public had access to the information. After the revolution however, the community of experts and the media have been deprived of contributing useful comments and suggestions in this field.
Derakhshan said according to the information that was available to him and the studies he has carried out for some "friends", it shows that within 20 years Iran's crude oil exports income will be reduced to zero. He said this conclusion was reached on an optimistic basis that all the predicted plans for expanding oil fields and further excavation will be carried out successfully, otherwise the timescale for Iran’s total loss of oil income can be as early as 8 years.
He criticised the buyback deals with foreign companies carried out in the recent years, saying serious mistakes in drawing up these contracts were made and these mistakes were made partly due to the secretive nature of the deals which prevented experts from reviewing or making any input into them.
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