Who is Shervin Zeinalizadeh?

Does anyone know who Shervin Zeinalizadeh is? I saw him on Aljazeera English today, he was in a London studio wearing a suit and tie. Like Haleh Afshar on Channel4, he was saying that the legal process should be given time to consider the election irregularity complaints, otherwise 'it will undermine the democratic legal system of the Islamic Republic' but he went even further than Haleh Afshar saying that the riot police is only dealing with those who are attacking properties and as in anywhere in th eworld, the police is forced to react. He was introduced as an Iran security expert. Who is this wanker, does anyone know?

The Price of Freedom

I post these as tears roll down from my eyes and anger rages inside me. This is the price of freedom. Do not forget those who supported this brutal dictatorship:
Galloway Claims This was Fair Election and the Protester are just Rich North Theran Kids



This video has been removed by Youtube because it is too distressing. Watch it here:
Isfahan Student Pays with his Life for Freedom

Tangible Evidence of Vote Rigging :)

When Ahmadienjad's supporters came on the streets and the regime started threatening the expulsion of foreign journalists, I noticed that the correspondents started getting back to their 'lets not be too critical' mode again. Aljazeera English Tehran correspondent started saying for all we know Ahmadienjad may have won fairly and had more support in provinces and villages. BBC's John Simpson laughed off the protests as nothing substantial that can uproot the Islamic Republic and that there has until now been no tangible evidence of vote rigging. Next day however when 2 million people marched on the streets, 600 were wounded at Tehran university and five killed and at least 7 confirmed deaths in other parts, then they finally heard the sound of the Iranian revolution :)

Here is also a another small tangible evidence of blatant vote rigging. Look at how Rezaii's vote disappears as the results are published live on State TV. Click on the picture to see the figures clearer.

The Iran Internet War on Channel4

I was at Channel4 studios again yesterday. This time it was a pre-recorded piece. I think I was there for a bout 15 minutes but only one sentence I said was shown on TV.

See: Internet War

Never mind at least more images and film footages including the back of my head was shown :)
An old footage of the savagery of the Islamic Republic masked policemen publicly beating a young man during the so called Campaign against "Thugs and Hoodlums" was also aired. How hard we tried to get any coverage of those savage beatings at the time without success! Things are changing. Keep the momentum going everyone.

Tulips are Growing from the Blood of our Youth

I Think its All Over

What a day! I was up since early hours of the morning to be able to fit everything in. Had a pre-recorded radio interview with BBC Radio Scotland in the morning at the Millbank. On the way there I saw these Press TV advertisements on London's red buses, saying Press TV gives Voice to the Voiceless! You can imagine my frustration, we have the bus drivers union leaders in jail in Iran, the BBC Persian satellite signal funded by UK tax payers money is jammed sporadically, they want to kick out all the foreign journalists from Iran, citizen journalists taking film and photo are told they will be arrested. So who is the Voiceless who needs a voice? How much more of this exploitation of democracy?

I was at a meeting in central London when I heard the vicious attack on the Tehran university dormitories by the regime's hired thugs. I was told some students may have been killed. Then I heard the entire body of the university of lecturers have resigned in protest of the vicious attack.

I was stewarding the demonstration outside the Islamic Republic embassy in the afternoon, when I heard the numbers in Tehran have reached 2 million and sadly some demonstrators have been shot and killed. Then I was called by Aljazeera English for an interview at 9 pm. Finally when I came home my internet wasn't working!!! Arrrgh...

There is so much to post, I don't even know where to begin! but as I said on Aljazeera English, once the crowds reach 2 million that is it, there is no going back. This is the critical mass I have always talked about. This is what tips the balance, when people see such large numbers, their fear disappears and at the same time the riot guards become more unwilling to beat up the protesters and scared of their own future. We have now reached that point. So long as people lead with their demands and are not fooled by compromises designed to take the sting out of their momentum, then our day has finally come!

Can you hear it? Can you hear it?
This is the sound of heart beats


We are about to create a storm you have never seen before....


People demonstrating in the Metro. The SWP still thinks these are rich North Tehran kids :)))))))



Pictures of Iran's citizens shot dead today:





Fascist Islamic Republic police going to people's homes



The thugs whose days seem to be over soon:







Old thug beating up a daughter of Iran:




Channel 4 Film of shooting demonstrators in Iran

My BBC Interviews on Saturday

Thanks to a friend who put this on youtube:

The Fear is Gone

Look at this brave Iranian lioness, first she swing kicks and then she side kicks the neanderthal truncheon wielding riot guard! She gets a few baton strikes but this is the price for freedom and she cares not.

Blessed is our motherland Iran, for having such daughters.

The fear is gone and the momentum continues.



and this one is already beaten and on the floor:

Outside the IRI Embassy in London

I was told there were some scuffles yesterday, outside the IR embassy in London between different factions with different view points, which is really embarrassing. Luckily I got there too late after everyone had gone and didn't see any. Today I hope I played a small part, along with some others, in reconciling everyone to a reasonable degree. There were all sorts there today, most political factions, girls with Hejab and girls without and everyone respected each other's choices.

It doesn't matter now who voted or who boycotted or who they voted for etc. What we need right now is a united front against Ahmadinejad's coup. We need to carry images and shout slogans that are acceptable to everyone in these gatherings.

Its Time to Fight Back

I will not Run Away Any More!

I Will Not Sit Back Any More!

I Will Not Take it Any More!

Its Time to Fight Back!

This is Street Justice!

Our brave countrymen are fighting back and giving the tyrants what they deserve, lets not let the Islamic Republic apologists get away with it outside Iran!

This is the street justice of all that pent up rage over the years and it will not go away that easily!

Riot guard is overcome by crowd numbers and is held back from further beating up the protesters.

Look at the fear in the eyes of this riot guard; until a few days ago no one dared look at him the wrong way. When the protests reach the critical mass, everything changes. Lets keep the momentum going.

The Resistance Starts

Just came back from a Channel4 interview, didn't go as well as the BBC ones this morning, Haleh Afshar, the Islamic Republic apologist, was their other guest and I didn't get enough time! Will write more about it tomorrow. Going to go outside the Embassy now.
Watch the interview at the end of the Channel4 report on Iran from this link:
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1529573111

Crackdown Begins

After all the euphoria of last weeks, crackdown begins. Pictures that need no explanation:

Worrying News

Pro-Ahmadinejad news websites are already announcing Ahmadinejad as the outright winner. Rajanews says 69% have voted for Ahamdienjad and 28% for Moussavi. Islamic Republic News Agency IRNA, has also announced Ahmadienjad as the certain winner.

The picture shows, club wielding pro-Ahmadinejad supporters are already in the streets intimidating the people.

Hugo Chavez Wishes Success for Ahmadinejad

Hugo Chavez wished Ahmadinejad all the success in his bid to remain the president of the Islamic Republic.Chavez described Ahmadienjad as 'A courageous combatant, defender of the third world and a champion against US imperialism'

Below is a picture of Chavez embracing with Saddam Hussein:

CASMII Mob Sense the Collapse is Near

For the last three decades the majority of the 'academics' who have signed this statement below:
Statement of 'Academics'

have ignored the plight of their countrymen. They stood silent when Iran's universities were intellectually cleansed during the 'cultural revolution'. They stood silent when the clerics seized every instrument of power after the 1979 revolution. They stood silent against the crimes of mad Khalkhalis, Gilanis, Lajevardis and a whole array of Islamic Republic psychopaths. They stood silent during the massacre of Iran's political prisoners, even when minors and pregnant women were summarily executed. They stood silent when corruption spread to unimaginable proportions and Iran's wealth was plundered by the clerical mafia and their off springs. They ignored the rise in poverty, prostitution and drug addiction. They stood silent when our women were forced to become second class citizens. They ignored medieval punishments like public executions, stoning, cutting off hands and limbs which had thrown Iran back to the dark ages.
They ignored the brutal crackdown on Iran's students after the uprising in 1999 and the list of their treacheries goes on.

But some on the list did not just ignore what was happening to their countrymen, they even went out of their way to promote the regime. The likes of Elaheh Rostami, Ziba Mir Hosseini and Haleh Afshar even made outrageous cliams that Iranian women were better off now than before the revolution. The likes of Abbas Edalat, Mohammad Kamali and bourgeoise Communists like Ali Fathollah-Nejad, went out of their way to suppress any news of human rights abuses which would portray a negative image of the Islamic Republic in the world.

Suddenly these 'academics' have sensed the desire for change amongst the Iranians. Suddenly the 'eruptions of pent-up rage' of our people against the Islamic Republic's 'empire of lies' has rang their alarm bells and so they have decided to produce a statement asking for the very things they have always refused to highlight in the past when they were asked to do so.

It is obvious that the centres of real power in Iran are not going to read their statement or show any concern over it, nor will these 'academics' engage in any campaigns for the rights of their countrymen. The reason they have written this statement is one thing only. In case the Islamic Republic collapses, they want something to exist somewhere, which in their mind would exonerate them.

But we should never forget these turncoats and the harms they have caused to the freedom and the well being of the people of Iran. Their objective has always been to boot lick whoever is in power for their own personal gains. We should make sure the future generations of Iranians learn that betrayal and boot licking has grave consequences.

Moussavi's Supporters Twenty Years Ago

In Iranian politics, it is not so much the candidate himself but his team and his supporters who should be studied. Here is a brief glimpse of where a lot of Mir Hussein Moussavi Khamenii's current campaign team and supporters were twenty years ago:

The Dilemma of Voting or Otherwise

Let me get this over with quickly, I am under no illusion and it will make no difference to people inside Iran whether Potkin Azarmehr thinks we should vote on Friday or otherwise. I have no influence on how people will decide inside Iran.

Personally I myself will not vote, for I have no idea who and how the polling stations in London will be supervised and the votes counted. I also doubt if the expat vote will make any impact on the outcome. What is important is to explain the predicament that people face inside Iran to the outside world.

Every four years our people are faced with a choice of voting for the bad or the worse. This time round, the choice of worse is really bad, it will be a disaster if Ahmadinejad becomes the president again. Those who decide to go to the polling stations are by no means in favour of the regime. They understand that an election in which candidates are vetoed by an unelected body is not fair. They understand that the real power is not in the hands of the president and he can change very little. Notice I didn't have to write he/she in the last sentence, for the vetoed presidential candidate has to be a man. He also has to be a Shiite Muslim, and he has to be a Shiite Muslim who accepts the rule by the Supreme Leader, and even then it is not enough, for in case this male Shiite Muslim loyal to the Supreme Leader has in the past been more critical of policies than is tolerated, he will also be disqualified. So no one with a reasonable amount of brain cells accepts that this is an inclusive or a fair election.

Those who are not in favour of the regime and still vote, do so because they simply want to breathe a little bit easier during their lifetime, they want to experience a slight improvement in the economy, they want to feel less worried that their daughter is not picked up by the morality patrols and taken to the police station with unpredictable dire consequences.

Those who advocate a boycott say by turning up at the polling stations we are giving legitimacy to the regime, we are helping the regime lobbyists to promote the regime as a democracy.

Of course the Islamic Republic lobbyists, the CASMIIs, the Haleh Afshars, the SWP and all the other puppets of the regime will do their best to exploit the public turnout and claim it as people's support for a legitimate regime and evidence of democracy in Iran. To combat such nonsense is the responsibility of expats like me.

High voter turnout or low voter turnout is not a reason for legitimacy or democracy or otherwise. Look at the low turnout for the European elections and the 99% turnout in Saddam's elections. Legitimacy of a regime stems not from turnout at the polling stations but from whether the regime suppresses its peoples, whether it provides a fair and free elections, whether it cares about the public opinion, whether it is accountable to its subjects and whether the public participate in running the country without prejudice regarding their ethnicity, religion or gender. Clearly on these basis the theocracy in Iran has no legitimacy, it is forced on the people of Iran and the minute that force is removed, the people will reject it.

For the reasons above, I think as expats who do not have to face the harsh realities of living in Iran, it is not our job to advocate a voter turnout or otherwise but explain the undemocratic nature of the election process in Iran and the predicament that the Iranian people face in choosing between the bad and the worse, to the outside world and make sure the regime puppets do not twist the 'elections' for their own pro-regime agendas.

This time round there are also other marked differences which have to be taken into consideration. Unlike four years ago, it is not a choice between the bad and the worse but between the bad and the very terrible worse and the second option is in power already.

The polls and other evidences suggest that the Moussavi camp have convinced the majority that only a vote for Moussavi will ensure putting a stop to Ahmadinejad. Most of those who are voting for Moussavi are not so much pro-Moussavi but they are casting an anti-Ahmadinejad vote.

The weeks leading up to the election day on Friday have also provided the public with rare opportunities of public gatherings and demonstrations. Topics which until now were considered taboo in the Islamic Republic, like the massacre of political prisoners in 1988 and the 'cultural revolution' have surfaced beyond the control of the authorities, because of the courage of the activists inside Iran.

The live televised debates between the candidates has been a total condemnation of the Islamic Republic in its entirety, where millions of people have watched the approved candidates expose the level of corruption, nepotism and incompetence throughout the three decades of theocratic rule in Iran.

The spontaneous demonstrations in the aftermath of the televised debates are gathering momentum day by day and as the numbers grow, the more confident the people get in asking for their real demands which are beyond the jurisdictions of an Islamic Republic president.

This special atmosphere of opportunities and this momentum of public demos which is politicising the population and specially the young will not last forever however. The ideal situation on Friday, in my view, will be if Moussavi and Karrubi go to the second round. It will keep going this momentum of crowds pouring into the streets for another week and so much can happen in a week if large crowds are on the streets. It will also let people concentrate on real issues and on their real demands without the shadow of Ahmadienjad's re-election hanging over their heads.

But we must think beyond 12th June. We must be ready for all the possible outcomes on Friday. What if Ahmadinejad is re-appointed again through cheating and vote manipulation? What if Ahmadienjad and the Guards resort to a military coup? What if Moussavi wins and like Khatami disappoints the people and their expectations once again leading to another era of political apathy and hopelessness. Are we planning for these outcomes?

Karroubi Supporters March in Tehran

This is the film footage of the march by Karroubi supporters which I wrote about in my previous post. I couldn't download it from facebook but with the help of a friend, finally I managed it.

This footage is a vivid example of how the Iranian people are taking advantage of the freedoms briefly granted before the elections.
Some of the slogans they are shouting:
'Free choice of Hejab is the Right of Iranian Woman'
'Down with this government of lies'
'The oil money is missing, we have all been cheated'
'Reform of the Constitution'
'Death to Dictator'

Moussavi v Karroubi Debate

Moussavi v Karrubi debate turned out to be an opportunity for both Moussavi and Karrubi to have a bash at Ahmadinejad. Karroubi started off by reading out straight form a text in which he answered some of Ahmadienejad's questions from the previous debate. Ahmadinejad had claimed that Karroubi's newspaper, Etemad Meli, had insulted his wife and when Karroubi had said he was not aware of such thing, Ahmadienjad had snapped back at him saying 'if you are not even aware of what has been said in your paper, then how can you become a president?'. In the debate with Moussavi, Karrubi showed the article Ahmadienjad had referred to, was in fact printed in Etemad daily and not Etemad Meli daily and so had nothing to do with Karroubi's paper. Karroubi still struggled to explain why he had accepted the money from the financial convict, Shahram Jazayeri, saying at the time when he accepted the money, Jazayeri was not convicted.

Moussavi also used his time to counter the charts shown by Ahmadienjad in the previous debate. Moussavi put two charts together, one shown by Ahmadinejad during the program and the one he claimed was the correct chart produced by the Central Bank and told the viewers, 'we have a president who sits here, looks into your eyes and lies with such confidence that some people may be taken in by his lies'. Moussavi claimed, the danger he sensed from a government that so blatantly lies to the people, was the main reason why he felt he had to join the race and save the country [the regime] from collapse.

The highlight of the debate was right at the end. The moderator who looked uncomfortable throughout the debate, must have finally been instructed to stop Moussavi from having a go at Ahmdienjad. He sheepishly reminded Moussavi that he should not go on about candidates who were not present at the debate. Moussavi stood up to the moderator with much decisiveness and said he had the right to criticize the policies of Ahmadinejad's government and explain the underlying reasons for his bid to become the president. When the moderator tried to justify his instruction, Moussavi cut him short and slammed his fist on the table and said 'when the other person [Ahmadinejad] sat here and talked down others who were not here, including my wife, you didn't utter a word now you want to stop me?'

Pro-Moussavi and Pro-Karroubi papers today have also continued to expose Ahmadinejad's lies in the debates. Entekhab Daily produced figures from Central Bank which showed the latest inflation figures to be 23.5% and not 15% as claimed by Ahmadienjad's charts and another article showed 12 official statistics not matching what Ahmadienjad had shown the viewers in the debate. Karrobi's deputy and former mayor of Tehran, Karbaschi, accused Ahmadienjad's son of embezzlement in Kish island and others have questioned Ahmadienjad's sister's academic qualifications.

In short, the televised debates which are attracting audiences of 35 million upwards are displaying the extent of corruption, nepotism and incompetence throughout the whole establishment. With the rising levels of anti-Ahmadinejad feelings amongst the public, if Ahmadienjad somehow becomes the next president again, there will surely be eruptions amongst the population that will threaten the very survival of the Islamic regime.