Tuesday
Nov032009
The Latest from Iran (3 November): 8 Hours to Go
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 at 19:15
NEW Latest Iran Video: Rooftop “Allahu Akhbar” Chants (3 November)
NEW Latest Iran Video: Protests at Iranian Universities (3 November)
NEW Iran: A Response to “What If the Green Movement Isn’t Ours?” (The Sequel)
Latest Iran Video: Protest & Hunger Strike at Sharif University
Iran: A Response to an American Who Asks, “What if the Green Movement Isn’t ‘Ours’?
Iran: More 13 Aban Videos
Latest from Iran (2 November): The World Takes Notice?
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2200 GMT: And So To Tomorrow. We're going to pull down the curtain for a few hours, but please keep bringing in news and comments. Back at 0600 GMT for what should be quite a big day, indeed.
2115 GMT: An Embassy Apology (see 1730 GMT). Grand Ayatollah Montazeri has said that, “considering the negative effects and heightened sensitivity” it produced amongst Americans, the takeover of the US Embassy in 1979 was a “mistaken” act.
Montazeri said the seizure, which led to the holding of 52 American hostages for 444 days, was akin to “declaring war on that country” and claimed that even “some of the revolutionary and committed youth, who were instrumental in that act at the time, now believe that it was a mistake".
2050 GMT: Did You Write This with a Straight Face? Mehr News' English-language site offers a classic one-eye-shut view of events: "Call for massive turnout on Aban 13 rallies".
Here are the groups calling for that turnout: Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Navy branch (“Iran’s great nation, especially students [should] commemorate the day and foil the plot of the enemies of the Islamic Revolution"), Moderation and Development Party, Islamic Association of Teachers, Ministry of Defense, Society of Seminary Teachers of Qom ("vigilance of nation against the enemies’ attempts to undermine this epical day"), Iran's judiciary (“national unity, solidarity, obedience of the Supreme Leader, and resistance against hegemonic powers’ plots [will mark] the beginning of the downfall of the US").
Gee, anyone missing from that list? You know, any other groups that may have been today, all day, throughout the day in these updates?
2040 GMT: Homy Lafayette has posted routes of the marches in Tehran, Tabriz, Isfahan, Shiraz, Ahvaz, and Bushehr.
2035 GMT: More videos from universities in Iran --- Ferdowsi and Sajad in Mashaad in the east, Mazandaran in the north.
1950 GMT: Getting Louder. We've got video of tonight's "Allahu Akhbar" chants from Tehran rooftops.
1830 GMT: An EA source sends us the news that Ali Pir-Hosseinloo, a translator and book editor, blogger, and member of the reformist Islamic Iran Participation Front, has been freed from jail after spending 50 days in solitary confinement.
1805 GMT: Yet another video of protest at another Iran university. This one is from Yasouj University in southwestern Iran.
1745 GMT: Did We Mention 13 Aban is Tomorrow? The Washington Post puts out a story on today's speech by the Supreme Leader (see 1030 and 1230 GMT), "Iran's Khamenei rejects U.S. outreach, warns against talks". The authors, Thomas Erdbrink and William Branigan, pays much attention to the "harshest comments against the Obama administration to date" but never once considers that they may have some connection to the internal situation as well as the discussions on the nuclear programme.
Number of words in article: 1135
Number of references to 13 Aban protests: 0
1730 GMT: Fact and Rumor. Having had a go at Borzou Daragahi poorly-timed misrepresentation of the Green movement in the Los Angeles Times (see separate entry), it's only fair that we cast a critical eye on a story trying to boost the opposition.
In The Daily Telegraph, Damien McElroy and Ahmad Vahdat proclaim, "Iran Opposition to Apologise to US for Embassy Siege". Now, as our readers' comments suggest, people may fervently wish that is true, but there is a bit difference between wishing and reality.
The story is based on a single source: "Mohsen Makhmalbaf, an exiled film-maker who spearheads the opposition campaign overseas, said Iranians should repudiate the events of 1979, when a group of pro-regime agitators took over the US embassy and held diplomats and other occupants."
Makhmalbaf has been a high-profile, vocal proponent of the Green movement throughout this crisis but in no way is he a spokesman for the policies and plans of Iranian opposition groups. His desire for an overturn of the 1979 actions is not equivalent to a Green manifesto.
I fear that, once more, the problem is that non-Iranian media reduce Iranian actions and ideas to "what have you done for the US lately?". While it may be desirable to find reconciliation over the past, there is a lot more to be considered in the present.
1645 GMT: And an Important Assurance. The reformist Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution, adding to its call for participation in 13 Aban protests (see 0630 GMT) has warned of rumours that there will be violent action against foreign embassies, with the Green movement then accused of the attacks. The MIR stressed that the Green Wave is a civil, peaceful, and anti-violence movement and and warned followers not to fall for these traps and disinformation.
1630 GMT: Another Declaration for 13 Aban (see 0630 GMT). Daftar-Tahkim-Vahdat, the main reformist Student Alumni Organisation, has announced, “We will participate in the celebration against the internal tyranny and dictatorship.” The organisation declares that students, as sons and daughters of Iran, have always been at the forefront of fight for democracy and against oppression, and 4 November will be another chapter in this historic effort (English summary).
1505 GMT: Rooz Online has further details on our earlier report (see 1025 GMT) that members of the One Million Signatures for Gender Equality campaign have been summoned to the Revolutionary Court.
1500 GMT: Tip of the Iceberg. We've posted a clip from today's protest at Kashan University, south of Tehran.
An EA source tells us, however, that our reports and videos are only a small part of what is occurring. In Isfahan, Shiraz, and Mashaad, university students are demonstrating.
1230 GMT: We've posted the first video footage we've received of today's university protests, coming from Azad University in Tehran.
1210 GMT: Khamenei Says, "Wouldn't You Rather Say Death to America?" The more I read about the Supreme Leader's speech to students today, the less it appears as an intervention in the nuclear talks and the more it feels like a rather clumsy attempt to channel protest against Washington, rather than having those students come out against the Government.
On the surface, Khamenei was acknowledging the "beautiful words" of President Obama to ask if they carried any meaning: “The Islamic Republic of Iran decided from the very beginning not to prejudge and to instead consider the slogan of 'change'. But what we have witnessed in practice during this period of time has been in contradiction with the remarks that have been made."
However, the warning that "Americans talk of negotiations" while "they continue to threaten and say the negotiations must have our desired results or we will take (punitive) measures" seems to carry a significance beyond the recent Vienna discussions and framework agreement: it's no coincidence that tomorrow's "official" 13 Aban rally is in front of the former US Embassy.
1200 GMT: So Much for a Quiet Day. I had thought that, with anticipation of tomorrow's events, all might be in a state of political suspense today.
Fat chance. In addition to the Khamenei speech (see 1030 GMT), which we still have to interpret, President Ahmadinejad has made an extraordinary intervention behind his Government's proposals to reduce subsidies, replacing them with cash handouts for poorest Iranians.
Ahmadinejad showed up at the Parliament, unannounced, to give a five-minute speech defending his proposals. The appearance brought loud protests, with members complained to the Speaker, Ali Larijani, about the "unconstitutional behavior". When Larijani declared the complaints valid, Ahmadinejad threatened to withdraw his economic reforms. This caused further chaos in the chamber.
1125 GMT: Laying Down The Line --- The "Proper" March. Tehran's police force has announced that the "proper" 13 Aban rally, markking the 30th anniversary of the US Embassy takeover, would be held in front of the building. It added that holding any other demonstrations in Tehran is “illegal": "The police will strongly confront people or groups intending to create unrest and unlawful behavior, based on its legal responsibilities."
1030 GMT: Khamenei --- Targeting Nuke Talks or Protesters? Agence France Presse, from Iran state media, reports on the Supreme Leader's speech on the eve of 13 Aban. It focuses on the nuclear talks, quoting Khamenei, "We do not want any negotiation, the result of which is pre-determined by the United States. A dialogue like this is like a sheep and wolf relation, which the late imam (Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini) has said that we 'do not want'."
Now is that a direct challenge to engagement or is a not-so-coded attempt to link internal opposition to the foreign enemy, less than 24 hours before mass rallies? You decide: Khamenei warned he would not allow people with "ill-intentions" towards Iran to "throw out a red carpet for the United States".
1025 GMT: An EA source informs us of a mass summons, by phone and in writing, of women activists to the Security Branch of the Revolutionary Courts. So far five activists --- Maryam Malek, Jelve Javaheri, Kave Mozzafari, Parisa Kakaee, and Khadijeh Moghaddam -- have reported that they have received written summons on 21 October to appear in court within three days. Six other members have reported that they have been contacted by telephone and are awaiting summons.
1015 GMT: The Public Prosecutor's Office in Tehran is calling for public "consciousness" of the significance of 13 Aban --- read a warning to protestors not to show up and an admonition to others to be on guard against trouble-makers --- as a "national day against global arrogance".
0930 GMT: Reuters has picked up on the call of Zahra Rahnavard, the wife of Mir Hossein Mousavi, for the release of women detained during the post-election crisis.
0925 GMT: For the second time in less than 24 hours, I have written about an article in a US newspaper which, in my opinion, undermines the Green movement in the service of misplaced priorities. This time my concern has been provoked by a piece by Borzou Daragahi in the Los Angeles Times.
0810 GMT: Noticing Politics, Noticing Tomorrow. The international media will be in Afghanistan overload today, but Michael Slackman of The New York Times puts out a useful analysis, "Iran’s Politics Stand in the Way of a Nuclear Deal". Slackman's takeaway, based on interview with his US-based pool of analysts, is, "[Iran's eqivocation] may be as much a product of the nation’s smoldering political crisis as it is a negotiating tactic."
0630 GMT: At this time tomorrow, people will be gathering at various points in Tehran and other Iranian cities for the ceremonies of 13 Aban and for demonstrations. A day which the regime has marked as the anniversary of the takeover of the US Embassy in 1979 by students is likely to take on a very different political symbolism.
Initial news today is of preparations for the gathering. Campaign 88, the youth supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mohammad Khatami, has invited the Green nation of Iran to participate in the rallies. The statement offers a nice transition from past struggles against foreign powers to current internal issues: 13 Azad has been the symbol of fighting against tyranny and oppression in the political history of our countrybut the campaign is now influenced by the movements against tyranny closer to home. The campaign declares that Mousavi will be participating and call on all members to make the tyrants and oppressors hear the cry for freedom of Iranians.
The Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution party, declaring it will be participating in the rallies alongside other Green reformists, said the history of the past 200 years of Iran chows this fact that domestic tyrants who are hopeless and do not have the support of the people inevitably seek backing from foreigners. If the principle in foreign relations is the national interest, a government that has legitimacy and the support of the people will fulfill this responsibility. Reformists will seek “comprehensive execution of the constitution and the institutionalisation of the rights and freedoms mentioned" in that document.
NEW Latest Iran Video: Protests at Iranian Universities (3 November)
NEW Iran: A Response to “What If the Green Movement Isn’t Ours?” (The Sequel)
Latest Iran Video: Protest & Hunger Strike at Sharif University
Iran: A Response to an American Who Asks, “What if the Green Movement Isn’t ‘Ours’?
Iran: More 13 Aban Videos
Latest from Iran (2 November): The World Takes Notice?
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
2200 GMT: And So To Tomorrow. We're going to pull down the curtain for a few hours, but please keep bringing in news and comments. Back at 0600 GMT for what should be quite a big day, indeed.2115 GMT: An Embassy Apology (see 1730 GMT). Grand Ayatollah Montazeri has said that, “considering the negative effects and heightened sensitivity” it produced amongst Americans, the takeover of the US Embassy in 1979 was a “mistaken” act.
Montazeri said the seizure, which led to the holding of 52 American hostages for 444 days, was akin to “declaring war on that country” and claimed that even “some of the revolutionary and committed youth, who were instrumental in that act at the time, now believe that it was a mistake".
2050 GMT: Did You Write This with a Straight Face? Mehr News' English-language site offers a classic one-eye-shut view of events: "Call for massive turnout on Aban 13 rallies".
Here are the groups calling for that turnout: Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Navy branch (“Iran’s great nation, especially students [should] commemorate the day and foil the plot of the enemies of the Islamic Revolution"), Moderation and Development Party, Islamic Association of Teachers, Ministry of Defense, Society of Seminary Teachers of Qom ("vigilance of nation against the enemies’ attempts to undermine this epical day"), Iran's judiciary (“national unity, solidarity, obedience of the Supreme Leader, and resistance against hegemonic powers’ plots [will mark] the beginning of the downfall of the US").
Gee, anyone missing from that list? You know, any other groups that may have been today, all day, throughout the day in these updates?
2040 GMT: Homy Lafayette has posted routes of the marches in Tehran, Tabriz, Isfahan, Shiraz, Ahvaz, and Bushehr.
2035 GMT: More videos from universities in Iran --- Ferdowsi and Sajad in Mashaad in the east, Mazandaran in the north.
1950 GMT: Getting Louder. We've got video of tonight's "Allahu Akhbar" chants from Tehran rooftops.
1830 GMT: An EA source sends us the news that Ali Pir-Hosseinloo, a translator and book editor, blogger, and member of the reformist Islamic Iran Participation Front, has been freed from jail after spending 50 days in solitary confinement.
1805 GMT: Yet another video of protest at another Iran university. This one is from Yasouj University in southwestern Iran.
1745 GMT: Did We Mention 13 Aban is Tomorrow? The Washington Post puts out a story on today's speech by the Supreme Leader (see 1030 and 1230 GMT), "Iran's Khamenei rejects U.S. outreach, warns against talks". The authors, Thomas Erdbrink and William Branigan, pays much attention to the "harshest comments against the Obama administration to date" but never once considers that they may have some connection to the internal situation as well as the discussions on the nuclear programme.
Number of words in article: 1135
Number of references to 13 Aban protests: 0
1730 GMT: Fact and Rumor. Having had a go at Borzou Daragahi poorly-timed misrepresentation of the Green movement in the Los Angeles Times (see separate entry), it's only fair that we cast a critical eye on a story trying to boost the opposition.
In The Daily Telegraph, Damien McElroy and Ahmad Vahdat proclaim, "Iran Opposition to Apologise to US for Embassy Siege". Now, as our readers' comments suggest, people may fervently wish that is true, but there is a bit difference between wishing and reality.
The story is based on a single source: "Mohsen Makhmalbaf, an exiled film-maker who spearheads the opposition campaign overseas, said Iranians should repudiate the events of 1979, when a group of pro-regime agitators took over the US embassy and held diplomats and other occupants."
Makhmalbaf has been a high-profile, vocal proponent of the Green movement throughout this crisis but in no way is he a spokesman for the policies and plans of Iranian opposition groups. His desire for an overturn of the 1979 actions is not equivalent to a Green manifesto.
I fear that, once more, the problem is that non-Iranian media reduce Iranian actions and ideas to "what have you done for the US lately?". While it may be desirable to find reconciliation over the past, there is a lot more to be considered in the present.
1645 GMT: And an Important Assurance. The reformist Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution, adding to its call for participation in 13 Aban protests (see 0630 GMT) has warned of rumours that there will be violent action against foreign embassies, with the Green movement then accused of the attacks. The MIR stressed that the Green Wave is a civil, peaceful, and anti-violence movement and and warned followers not to fall for these traps and disinformation.
1630 GMT: Another Declaration for 13 Aban (see 0630 GMT). Daftar-Tahkim-Vahdat, the main reformist Student Alumni Organisation, has announced, “We will participate in the celebration against the internal tyranny and dictatorship.” The organisation declares that students, as sons and daughters of Iran, have always been at the forefront of fight for democracy and against oppression, and 4 November will be another chapter in this historic effort (English summary).
1505 GMT: Rooz Online has further details on our earlier report (see 1025 GMT) that members of the One Million Signatures for Gender Equality campaign have been summoned to the Revolutionary Court.
1500 GMT: Tip of the Iceberg. We've posted a clip from today's protest at Kashan University, south of Tehran.
An EA source tells us, however, that our reports and videos are only a small part of what is occurring. In Isfahan, Shiraz, and Mashaad, university students are demonstrating.
1230 GMT: We've posted the first video footage we've received of today's university protests, coming from Azad University in Tehran.
1210 GMT: Khamenei Says, "Wouldn't You Rather Say Death to America?" The more I read about the Supreme Leader's speech to students today, the less it appears as an intervention in the nuclear talks and the more it feels like a rather clumsy attempt to channel protest against Washington, rather than having those students come out against the Government.
On the surface, Khamenei was acknowledging the "beautiful words" of President Obama to ask if they carried any meaning: “The Islamic Republic of Iran decided from the very beginning not to prejudge and to instead consider the slogan of 'change'. But what we have witnessed in practice during this period of time has been in contradiction with the remarks that have been made."
However, the warning that "Americans talk of negotiations" while "they continue to threaten and say the negotiations must have our desired results or we will take (punitive) measures" seems to carry a significance beyond the recent Vienna discussions and framework agreement: it's no coincidence that tomorrow's "official" 13 Aban rally is in front of the former US Embassy.
1200 GMT: So Much for a Quiet Day. I had thought that, with anticipation of tomorrow's events, all might be in a state of political suspense today.
Fat chance. In addition to the Khamenei speech (see 1030 GMT), which we still have to interpret, President Ahmadinejad has made an extraordinary intervention behind his Government's proposals to reduce subsidies, replacing them with cash handouts for poorest Iranians.
Ahmadinejad showed up at the Parliament, unannounced, to give a five-minute speech defending his proposals. The appearance brought loud protests, with members complained to the Speaker, Ali Larijani, about the "unconstitutional behavior". When Larijani declared the complaints valid, Ahmadinejad threatened to withdraw his economic reforms. This caused further chaos in the chamber.
1125 GMT: Laying Down The Line --- The "Proper" March. Tehran's police force has announced that the "proper" 13 Aban rally, markking the 30th anniversary of the US Embassy takeover, would be held in front of the building. It added that holding any other demonstrations in Tehran is “illegal": "The police will strongly confront people or groups intending to create unrest and unlawful behavior, based on its legal responsibilities."
1030 GMT: Khamenei --- Targeting Nuke Talks or Protesters? Agence France Presse, from Iran state media, reports on the Supreme Leader's speech on the eve of 13 Aban. It focuses on the nuclear talks, quoting Khamenei, "We do not want any negotiation, the result of which is pre-determined by the United States. A dialogue like this is like a sheep and wolf relation, which the late imam (Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini) has said that we 'do not want'."
Now is that a direct challenge to engagement or is a not-so-coded attempt to link internal opposition to the foreign enemy, less than 24 hours before mass rallies? You decide: Khamenei warned he would not allow people with "ill-intentions" towards Iran to "throw out a red carpet for the United States".
1025 GMT: An EA source informs us of a mass summons, by phone and in writing, of women activists to the Security Branch of the Revolutionary Courts. So far five activists --- Maryam Malek, Jelve Javaheri, Kave Mozzafari, Parisa Kakaee, and Khadijeh Moghaddam -- have reported that they have received written summons on 21 October to appear in court within three days. Six other members have reported that they have been contacted by telephone and are awaiting summons.
1015 GMT: The Public Prosecutor's Office in Tehran is calling for public "consciousness" of the significance of 13 Aban --- read a warning to protestors not to show up and an admonition to others to be on guard against trouble-makers --- as a "national day against global arrogance".
0930 GMT: Reuters has picked up on the call of Zahra Rahnavard, the wife of Mir Hossein Mousavi, for the release of women detained during the post-election crisis.
0925 GMT: For the second time in less than 24 hours, I have written about an article in a US newspaper which, in my opinion, undermines the Green movement in the service of misplaced priorities. This time my concern has been provoked by a piece by Borzou Daragahi in the Los Angeles Times.
0810 GMT: Noticing Politics, Noticing Tomorrow. The international media will be in Afghanistan overload today, but Michael Slackman of The New York Times puts out a useful analysis, "Iran’s Politics Stand in the Way of a Nuclear Deal". Slackman's takeaway, based on interview with his US-based pool of analysts, is, "[Iran's eqivocation] may be as much a product of the nation’s smoldering political crisis as it is a negotiating tactic."
0630 GMT: At this time tomorrow, people will be gathering at various points in Tehran and other Iranian cities for the ceremonies of 13 Aban and for demonstrations. A day which the regime has marked as the anniversary of the takeover of the US Embassy in 1979 by students is likely to take on a very different political symbolism.
Initial news today is of preparations for the gathering. Campaign 88, the youth supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mohammad Khatami, has invited the Green nation of Iran to participate in the rallies. The statement offers a nice transition from past struggles against foreign powers to current internal issues: 13 Azad has been the symbol of fighting against tyranny and oppression in the political history of our countrybut the campaign is now influenced by the movements against tyranny closer to home. The campaign declares that Mousavi will be participating and call on all members to make the tyrants and oppressors hear the cry for freedom of Iranians.
The Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution party, declaring it will be participating in the rallies alongside other Green reformists, said the history of the past 200 years of Iran chows this fact that domestic tyrants who are hopeless and do not have the support of the people inevitably seek backing from foreigners. If the principle in foreign relations is the national interest, a government that has legitimacy and the support of the people will fulfill this responsibility. Reformists will seek “comprehensive execution of the constitution and the institutionalisation of the rights and freedoms mentioned" in that document.
tagged 13 Aban, Agence France Presse, Ahmad Vahdat, Ali Larijani, Ali Pir-Hosseinloo, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, Azad University, Borzou Daragahi, Campaign 88, Daftar-Tahkim-Vahdat, Daily Telegraph, Damien McElroy, Homy Lafayette, Iran, Iran Elections 2009, Islamic Iran Participation Front, Jelve Javaheri, Kave Mozzafari, Khadijeh Moghaddam, Los Angeles Times, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Maryam Malek, Mehr News, Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mohammad Khatami, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution, Parisa Kakaee, Revolutionary Court, Thomas Erdbrink, Washington Post, William Branigan, Yasouj University in Middle East & Iran
13 Aban, Agence France Presse, Ahmad Vahdat, Ali Larijani, Ali Pir-Hosseinloo, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, Azad University, Borzou Daragahi, Campaign 88, Daftar-Tahkim-Vahdat, Daily Telegraph, Damien McElroy, Homy Lafayette, Iran, Iran Elections 2009, Islamic Iran Participation Front, Jelve Javaheri, Kave Mozzafari, Khadijeh Moghaddam, Los Angeles Times, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Maryam Malek, Mehr News, Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mohammad Khatami, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution, Parisa Kakaee, Revolutionary Court, Thomas Erdbrink, Washington Post, William Branigan, Yasouj University in Middle East & Iran
Reader Comments (41)
Tomorrow will be interesting - but will anything change??
Let us imagine that x million people come out onto the streets and shout their slogans. Let us then imagine that the regime/security apparatus allow this (in face of the very large numbers) and do nothing (yawn). On the next morning, the sun rises - the regime members in power wake and go about their business - the newspapers and blogs rave about the turnout and the "pressure" on the regime.
BUT - the regime is still firmly in control - they have control of the institutions - the guns - the fanatical supporters who will do their bidding in the quiet hours.
Will it change anything?
Barry
Barry: 'Will it change anything?'
Yes.
Barry: "Let us then imagine that the regime/security apparatus allow this (in face of the very large numbers) and do nothing (yawn)."
IMHO, that would have to be considered a change. A big one.
Additionally, the meaning of the day has already changed. So if you pray, please pray for them -- all of them. If not, well, send some good wishes their way. To all of them. Not too much to do when comfortably safe. Thanks.
Barry:
Change has already come about, in an enormous way, yet delicate and we do see it. It is a birth, a new life, and it is delicate, and we must all care for it. It does in ways not imagined till recently spell "hope." I beg of you to look and see that it is alive. And if this is not change given the draconian, harsh and dark conditions of this regime that kills all life, then what is. People have seen hundreds hoisted up by huge cranes in public squares, mainly youth for who knows what charges, rightly or wrongly, people have observed hundreds beaten to death in prisons where rape has been routine for decades, and people have had their basic human rights taken away, and yet hundreds of thousands, if not millions, have poured to the streets facing the violent and crazy Basij and such, and have voiced their constitution upheld rights and above all sought their basic human rights. This IS change. This is our cry and we hope you will hear it and you will lend us support and you will demand of your elected representatives not to go about business as usual with these cruel despots. It will be in our favor, all of us humans, and for sure when the day comes we will thank you, sincerely. Let us together bring an end to this inhuman regime, end to lies end to rapes end to killings. Let us together eradicate the culture of death. Life is too precious.
Anthony
I know a lot of iranians, who stood for “shah” and after looking at what has happened in the streets in Iran they are for “people” and we don’t care if it dosen’t match up with the american neoconservative; it’s not because our country is less developped than yours that you are rights, even to claim, that iranian people aren’t able to ‘think” and to choose their president, ; if there are millions in the streets and risck their ” life “, it means they want to “CHANGE” the system but it will be step by step; as you have seen, in this kind of regime it’s very difficult to overthrow the regime in once even though everybdoy wish it ; it’s our right to have all the technology of civil nuclear , but when a madman, like AN wants absolutly to bomb Israel, another wise man , Moussavi says : ” we wont say : death to ….” because we are the “life, love and frienship”; he wants to use country’s money for the well being of the iranians instead of sending it to palestinians and hezbollahs; it’s why iranian people cry ” NO LIBANON, NO GAZA “.
I hope ameicans will change their opinion towards iranians !
Best wishes
Barry go and read history, these are not small steps these are great achievements you know why? because for every day that goes they're more and more people joining the movement. Tomorrow the regime will learn that this a damn serious business not some kids having fun. These dictators have a tendency to forget that People are the real power, and can claim it whenever they want. This will Islamic Republic of Iran learn tomorrow.
Trust me tomorrow Iran will shake, so will the government!
"Trust me tomorrow Iran will shake, so will the government!"
I hope you are right!
But I have studied history - and I suspect that, in spite of numbers, and after 30 years, more than slogans will be needed in Iran for this regime to give up their power.
Barry
[...] } 24 HOURS TO GO! Support Sea Of Green [...]
Scott -
If true, the Telegraph's report (http://bit.ly/336vn3) that the Green leadership plans to apologize the to US for the embassy siege in 1979 is the anti-fugue to Khamenei's tune.
If true, it's also inspiring. A whole new world could open up if the Greens could shed some of their revolutionary baggage.
Mahasti,
I read that article too, I almost cried - I am leaving the tears for if it actually happens - That event has been painful and embarrassing to many Iranians (&Americans) including myself, on the other side there are many who are proud of it also. I hope there is some truth to this but I am not sure I can imagine Karroubi or Mousavi doing that just yet. It would mean they are no longer trying to save the IRI in my opinion. If the green leaders do apologize it will be a major turning point.
Mahasti
Very good news; I think the coup leaders are not told about that, because they emphasize that the gathering will and should be in front of us embassy; what a surprise !! anyhow, the green mouvement is forestalling those killers !! very sensible policy ;
thank you
To Barry
I think the regime is far more fragile than you think. Deeply divided, without any political or moral legitimacy, owing its survival solely to the security apparatus, it is undoubtely vulnerable. Like USSR 20 years ago, IRI will primely fall because of its governing incompetence, its inability to evolve and the total contradiction between its ideals and its deeds. Each demonstration (huge or small) undermines it a little more, higlitghting its autistic nature, exacerbating its divisions. You say "The regime (is) still firmly in control", I doubt that. If it was the case, there would not be a call for demonstration tomorrow and Green leaders would be in jail since last june. When you choose repression you have to go all the way, otherwise you expose your weakness to your opponents and you give them the time to react and organise themselves, then the fear fades away and sooner or later, you are done.
If the Telegraph is right and they really did this, I think I could start trusting the Green leaders. Let's wait and see...
Dear Barry;
If tommorw we march in our x millions and if tommorow the unity of our slogans and the numbers of our brothers and sisters gives us protection from the goons of the government then there is one enourmous victory for the x millions. We have won one thing. We have won one day of freedom and we have rolled back fear for one day. The taste of freedom shall encourage us to continue.
But this is just one of the many victories that we shall get. The second and most important will be the failiure of the goons to supress us, and the feeling of helpnessness and fear that will set in the heart of the enemy knowing that it all can come to a close at a moments notice when the massess come to the street.
I like to also point one small difference between Qods day and tommorw. On Qods day we were full of fear and doubth. I personally didn't know how big the crowd will be, we went out and throw our hearts at the sea.... Tommorw I have no doubths that there will be massess on the street. Tommorw I have no fear when I march, for I have faced fear in the face, and won on Qods day. That is my personal victory.
When a government loses its legitimacy in the eyes of its people the apparatus of societal control slowly ebbs away. A year back it was perhaps unheard of to openly criticize the supreme leader. Now we have students criticizing him in his very presence. Moreover, large-scale sustained protests does build pressure on governments. Slowly important sectors of society like the clergy and bussiness/bazaari class will begin to question the ability of the establishment to govern. For the Government its own survival is most important until it begins to fret the possibility that heads will roll. Then it begins to consider that it is perhaps more ideal to capitulate to the opposition rather than lose their own lives. And if that's not in the calculus then......we're in for a bloody fight.
Hukook al-Insan
http://tqa81.wordpress.com/
re: Ahmadinejad's intervention in parliament - you haven't included one detail mentioned in reports which is that AN threatened to withdraw the bill not because of members' complaints about his behaviour, but because they want to incorporate the bill into the annual budget, not pass it as a separate law. AN said this would make it unworkable because it's a long-term plan which shouldn't be subject to changes every year. One motive for MPs to push for including it in the budget seems to be that this would give parliament greater powers of oversight.
Mukharbish,
Thank you for an important addition that points to the ongoing battle between President and Parliament for political control and influence.
S.
With hope and anticipation we have started the countdown to 13th of Aban.
If you are reading this in Iran, please if you can call this radio station http://www.epersianradio.com tomorrow and let us bear witness to bravery and courage of our friends in Iran. The phone number for this radio station is on its website.
This radio station broadcast events in Farsi live and uncensored. I understand its program is broadcasted across the world. In the previous major protests people called and left their mobile on allowing the rest of the world marvel their bravery and courage. Other news organization like AP and CNN have tuned in during major events like Quds day or Rafsanjani last Friday prayer. They heard you, first hand, changing the Quds day to Free Iran day and no one could spin it any other way. So please if it is safe and if you can call and let the world hear you crushing the coup government.
May God protect you.
"Tommorow I have no fear when I march, for I have faced fear in the face, and won on Qods day. That is my personal victory."
To Whereismyvote:
The Christians say : “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil"
May you find what you seek tomorrow
Barry
Please listen to our important opinion about 13 aban.
http://iran115.org/aban
Totally unintentional here (I saw Verbrugge's twit before Lucas posted the Telegraph "piece"), but Verbrugge http://twitter.com/MikVerbrugge/status/5393656114" rel="nofollow">LINKS to an article in Farsi in which, he claims, Montazeri admits the embassy takeover was a "mistake." Can someone here confirm what it says?
Kevin,
I have seen this interview with Montazeri, which does indicate an apology for the takeover --- as the website where it is posted is new to me, I held off posting in updates. Montazeri's own site does not refer to this exchange.
S.
Thanks for the info, Scott.
Right now in Iran, people are on their roof tops and some are in the streets shouting God is Great and Down with the Dictator. We could hear them through calls that were coming into the epersianradio. This is inspiring.
Videos are popping up from every corner of Iran now. Boiling temperature.
Please put them up on the video section for 3rd Nov.
Take a look:
Nightly protest, 3 Nov, Tehran الله اکبر 12 آبان
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1rDltXBVtA
Ferdowsi Uni, Mashhad Nov 3. Nightly protest دانشگاه فردوسی مشهد 12 آبان
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMWJGtVL5M4
الله اکبر-دانشگاه علم و صنعت-سخنرانی سردار قاسمی Sanat and Elm University...disrupting an pro-government speaker
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztNOUzEri4s
My heart goes out to those in the streets tomorrow (and not only then).May they all return save and sound.
As for the possible achievements discussed earlier on:
Light cannot be shaded and will always overcome the darkness. Open the door of a dark room, it will be illuminated by surrounding light. Open the door of an illuminated room, it will by no way be shaded by surrounding darkness. Never ever.
So - all the brave bringing forward the light of truth, humanity and dignity in Iran will succeed in the end. No matter what time it will take, no matter the cost.
May they be blessed!