Tuesday
Aug182009
Iran: Text of Latest Karroubi Statement "You Will Not Force Me Into Silence"
Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at 12:38
The Latest from Iran (19 August): Challenges in Parliament and from Prisons
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Mehdi Karroubi has continued his campaign against the Government, particularly with regard to the treatment of detainees, with a new statement published in Saham News and, in a shorter version, in Aftab Yazd. This English translation should be read in conjunction with Karroubi's letter of 29 July to Hashemi Rafsanjani and his interview last week with Saham News:
Some individuals think that these insults and defamations [in response to Karroubi's letter claiming abuse of detainees] will force me to retreat. I advise these gentlemen to study history and observe that after the Revolution and at the end of the 3rd Parliament [1992] many people said whatever they could about me, including accusing me of embezzling funds and sending them out of the country. Who was the person who toughed it out?
In the last week I have been at the receiving end of many harsh attacks from MPs , IRIB [Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting], the media, and some clergymen. If this trend continues, I will say things that [those individuals] would prefer to remain unsaid....
After the 10th Presidential election [of 12 June] horrific events involving violence, lawlessness, irresponsibility by individuals having no official position interfering in the name of protecting the establishment, by paramillitary groups, and by plainclothes security forces have occurred in our country. These events are such that responsible, concerned. and informed individuals must set aside caution and self-preservation in order to do whatever they can in order to prevent a repetition of these events and destroy all the roots of such styles of confrontation....
In any part of the world it is possible that during demonstrations people get arrested, but I doubt that those arrested will be carted off to special locations and left to the mercies of their jailers. Here they are first transported to an unknown location such that even the head of the judiciary and the head prosecutor claim that the prisoners were not subjected to such treatment in official prisons under our jurisdiction....
All these events have occurred because the public are protesting the results of an election. Is this the correct way to treat people who are only want to know what was the fate of their votes?....Usually a protocol and regulations exist for obtaining confessions....The fact that such lawlessness has been observed in the methodolgies used for extraction confessions leads me to say that these confessions were extracted violently by ill-informed and unprudent and foolish individuals....
I am sorry to say that the SAVAK [security forces of the Shah] behaved in a more humane fashion than the individuals in charge of the recent arrests....
The head of this newspaper [Kayhan] that writes such lies about the children of the revolution is a near friend and colleague of Said Emami [a Deputy Minister of Intelligence who allegedly ordered the chain killing of intellectuals and dissidents in Tehran]...The head of Friday prayers who calls me a terrorist and anti-revolutionary is the same person who, during the Shah's time when all of us clergymen were persecuted, ran away to Pakistan to ostensibly do mission work for the Ayatollah....
Some of my friends in Parliament who have made statements against me should not forget that they have only gained their seats because [the Guardian Council] disqualified their rivals from running against them.... The reaction of some individuals in the armed forces towards me is to be expected because these individuals have amassed a huge amount of political and econonomic power, but they must also know that ideas are not limited or dependent to a few individuals and they diffuse into families as well. As indeed members of your own families have disagreements with you....
48 years ago in Mashaad, when the mosque of Goharshad incident occurred, a number of ignorant security forces [of the Shah] wanted to impede Imam Khomeini's movement with a campaign of misinformation, and they were thwarted by the truth leaking out....How can the officals expect anything to happen in Modern Tehran in the age of communications without anyone finding out?
You have now induced conditions so that no one dares to speak out, I reiterate to you that these behaviors and the atmosphere of fear that you have caused will not force me into silence and if there is a requirement I will state the relevent issues.
Receive our latest updates by email or RSS SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FEED
Buy Us A Cup of Coffee? Help Enduring America Expand Its Coverage and Analysis
Mehdi Karroubi has continued his campaign against the Government, particularly with regard to the treatment of detainees, with a new statement published in Saham News and, in a shorter version, in Aftab Yazd. This English translation should be read in conjunction with Karroubi's letter of 29 July to Hashemi Rafsanjani and his interview last week with Saham News:Some individuals think that these insults and defamations [in response to Karroubi's letter claiming abuse of detainees] will force me to retreat. I advise these gentlemen to study history and observe that after the Revolution and at the end of the 3rd Parliament [1992] many people said whatever they could about me, including accusing me of embezzling funds and sending them out of the country. Who was the person who toughed it out?
In the last week I have been at the receiving end of many harsh attacks from MPs , IRIB [Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting], the media, and some clergymen. If this trend continues, I will say things that [those individuals] would prefer to remain unsaid....
After the 10th Presidential election [of 12 June] horrific events involving violence, lawlessness, irresponsibility by individuals having no official position interfering in the name of protecting the establishment, by paramillitary groups, and by plainclothes security forces have occurred in our country. These events are such that responsible, concerned. and informed individuals must set aside caution and self-preservation in order to do whatever they can in order to prevent a repetition of these events and destroy all the roots of such styles of confrontation....
In any part of the world it is possible that during demonstrations people get arrested, but I doubt that those arrested will be carted off to special locations and left to the mercies of their jailers. Here they are first transported to an unknown location such that even the head of the judiciary and the head prosecutor claim that the prisoners were not subjected to such treatment in official prisons under our jurisdiction....
All these events have occurred because the public are protesting the results of an election. Is this the correct way to treat people who are only want to know what was the fate of their votes?....Usually a protocol and regulations exist for obtaining confessions....The fact that such lawlessness has been observed in the methodolgies used for extraction confessions leads me to say that these confessions were extracted violently by ill-informed and unprudent and foolish individuals....
I am sorry to say that the SAVAK [security forces of the Shah] behaved in a more humane fashion than the individuals in charge of the recent arrests....
The head of this newspaper [Kayhan] that writes such lies about the children of the revolution is a near friend and colleague of Said Emami [a Deputy Minister of Intelligence who allegedly ordered the chain killing of intellectuals and dissidents in Tehran]...The head of Friday prayers who calls me a terrorist and anti-revolutionary is the same person who, during the Shah's time when all of us clergymen were persecuted, ran away to Pakistan to ostensibly do mission work for the Ayatollah....
Some of my friends in Parliament who have made statements against me should not forget that they have only gained their seats because [the Guardian Council] disqualified their rivals from running against them.... The reaction of some individuals in the armed forces towards me is to be expected because these individuals have amassed a huge amount of political and econonomic power, but they must also know that ideas are not limited or dependent to a few individuals and they diffuse into families as well. As indeed members of your own families have disagreements with you....
48 years ago in Mashaad, when the mosque of Goharshad incident occurred, a number of ignorant security forces [of the Shah] wanted to impede Imam Khomeini's movement with a campaign of misinformation, and they were thwarted by the truth leaking out....How can the officals expect anything to happen in Modern Tehran in the age of communications without anyone finding out?
You have now induced conditions so that no one dares to speak out, I reiterate to you that these behaviors and the atmosphere of fear that you have caused will not force me into silence and if there is a requirement I will state the relevent issues.
Reader Comments (10)
WHAT A REMARKABLE, COURAGEOUS AND HUMANE MAN KOURRABI IS!
Can one imagine a greater contrast to Khamenei-- the Supreme Rapist, Torturer, Murderer, Electrion Rigger and Immoral Cesspool who dares claim to speak for Allah or Islam? Waiting in the wings to inflict more horrors is Khamenei's Caligula-like offspring, Mojtaba, the monster who personally directed all the many crimes against Iran's people.
Who will history judge harshly and who will have the respect of Iran's people forever? Who would anyone prefer as a role model capable of decency and competency?
Imagine where Iran might be today if this saint had led the nation instead of a power-hungry Supreme Sadist, Supreme Rapist, Supreme Torturer, Supreme Murderer, Supreme Censor, Supreme Fuehrer and Moral Cesspool
I haven't check the translation word for word against the original, but it corresponds to my recollection of it. Well done! Let's work together to keep these important documents coming!
I give a hearty second to Frank Glodek's salute to someone whom the Muslims should be proud to call "Hojjat ol-Eslam".
[...] post: Iran: Text of Latest Karroubi Statement “You Will Not Force Me … Tags: moral-cesspool, nation, supreme-censor, supreme-fuehrer, supreme-rapist, Today [...]
[...] than the individuals in charge of the recent arrests,” Mr. Karroubi said, according to a translation posted on a foreign policy blog run by Scott Lucas, a professor at the University of [...]
[...] behaved in a more humane fashion than the individuals in charge of the recent arrests….” (from Karroubi’s statement on torture and rape in Iran’s prisons) Strangely disturbing cartoons from Mahnaz [...]
So many threats to do what honorable people would do openly if they had anything.
First, the still unfounded assertions of a stolen election, although where demonstrably there were video cameras, still cameras, recording devices all over the place, not a shred of material, concrete, physical evidence has come forth; just words, mental manipulations and masturbations.
Allegedly, for instance, some poll watchers were turned away, not permitted to enter and observe. Were there no cameras there? Were there no recording devices in the hands of those who were supposed to watch?
No solid definitive evidence.
Now allegations of torture of those arrested for rioting which are offered to the government but not plainly and simply published openly for all to see?
Why not? Is there something wrong with the evidence? Could it be that like the alleged theft of the election there is no evidence.
Could it be that Karroubi is trying to cut some sort of deal and that to publicly display his evidence, if there is any at all, would undercut a deal?
Who knows?
That can be the only meaning to threats of exposure. If there is something to expose do so. Not to do so is to take on exactly the role and demeanor you accuse others of.
What I do know is that hundreds of millions of dollars were pumped into the hands of the opposition in an attempt by the CIA and imperialism to produce another color revolution.
What I do know is that any discerning, critical analyst, in the absence of material evidence, must reject all these claims, as long as unproven, as fraud.
Jack Jersawitz
404-892-1238
bigjackjj@yahoo.com
So many threats to do what honorable people would do openly if they had anything.
First, the still unfounded assertions of a stolen election, although where demonstrably there were video cameras, still cameras, recording devices all over the place, not a shred of material, concrete, physical evidence has come forth; just words, mental manipulations and masturbations.
Allegedly, for instance, some poll watchers were turned away, not permitted to enter and observe. Were there no cameras there? Were there no recirding devices in the hands of those who were supposed to watch?
No solid definitive evidence.
Now allegations of torture of those arrested for rioting which are offered to the government but not plainly and simply published openly for all to see?
Why not? Is there something wrong with the evidence? Could it be that like the alleged theft of the election there is no evidence.
Could it be that Karroubi is trying to cut some sort of deal and that to publicly display his evidence, if there is any at all, would undercut a deal?
Who knows?
That can be the only meaning to threats of exposure. If there is something to expose do so. Not to do so is to take on exactly the role and demeanor you accuse others of.
What I do know is that hundreds of millions of dollars were pumped into the hands of the opposition in an attempt by the CIA and imperialism to produce another color revolution.
What I do know is that any discerning, critical analyst, in the absence of material evidence, must reject all these claims, as long as unproven, as fraud.
Jack Jersawitz
404-892-1238
bigjackjj@yahoo.com
Well All parties[factions] in Iran represent themselves and their own interst in Iran. People will pay the price.
None of these clerics and non-clerics are fighting for people and their rights. They are all murderers who have their hands in the blood of Iranian people.
Neither is the torture or rape a new incident, nor it is the 1st time that they rigged the election. This all fight over power sharing among different factions of the same gangs.
However, it does seem that life may be less excruciating and painful for people under one faction rather than the ther, and Iranina people demonestrated their wishes with their widespread peace full demonestration inside and outside Iran.
JJ: First, the still unfounded assertions of a stolen election, although where demonstrably there were video cameras, still cameras, recording devices all over the place, not a shred of material, concrete, physical evidence has come forth; just words, mental manipulations and masturbations.
Me: First, it's hard to imagine what a video camera would be used for under the circumstances. Does JJ know that the ballot boxes were under 24-hour surveillance? Will he submit incontrovertible proof for that as he insists we produce for our claims.
The opposition claims that they were not allowed to have poll watchers present. I don't recall the government saying otherwise. That's good enough for me.
Under the circumstances, there will not be "concrete, physical evidence" precisely because the opposition was excluded from obtaining same.
JJ: Allegedly, for instance, some poll watchers were turned away, not permitted to enter and observe. Were there no cameras there? Were there no recording devices in the hands of those who were supposed to watch?
Me: Not "some" of the poll watchers. *ALL* of the poll-watchers.
JJ: No solid definitive evidence.
Me: See above.
JJ: Now allegations of torture of those arrested for rioting which are offered to the government but not plainly and simply published openly for all to see?
Me: There have been pictures of people with lacerations on their backs. But I guess JJ would argue that they were from a session at an S & M club.
Check out Human Rights Watch, which has lambasted friend and foe of American foreign policy with equal vigor:
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/08/14/iran-investigate-security-chiefs-post-election-abuse, for example.
JJ: Why not? Is there something wrong with the evidence? Could it be that like the alleged theft of the election there is no evidence.
Me: See above.
JJ: Could it be that Karroubi is trying to cut some sort of deal and that to publicly display his evidence, if there is any at all, would undercut a deal?
Me: This is truly pretzel logic. Karubi charges the regime with the most horrific crimes--worse than the Shah's SAVAK!--but does not provide evidence so he can cut a deal with the regime...
... Which, oh yes, is completely innocent of all these crimes anyway.
JJ: Who knows?
Me: You sure don't.
JJ: That can be the only meaning to threats of exposure. If there is something to expose do so. Not to do so is to take on exactly the role and demeanor you accuse others of.
Me: You ain't seen nothing yet. I don't what what "others" you're referring to...
JJ: What I do know is that hundreds of millions of dollars were pumped into the hands of the opposition in an attempt by the CIA and imperialism to produce another color revolution.
Me: And your proof of that is exactly what?
JJ: What I do know is that any discerning, critical analyst, in the absence of material evidence, must reject all these claims, as long as unproven, as fraud.
Me: Let's assume that the charges are unsubstantiated. Must we reject them as fraud, or that the evidence we have does not rise to the level we desire?
I suddenly feel like I need to take a shower...
[...] fashion than the individuals in charge of the recent arrests,” Mr. Karroubi said, according to a translation posted on a foreign policy blog run by Scott Lucas, a professor at the University of [...]