The Latest from Iran (29 April): Preparations

2020 GMT: A Cleric's May Day Message. Grand Ayatollah Mousavi-Ardebili, meeting workers in advance of May Day, has said: “Today the problems are many and to solve them either no actions are taken or [the government] is incapable of taking any actions. The main issue is that solving these problems has been assigned to those who are not experts in these topics.”

Mousavi-Ardebili also touched on the charges of impropriety against the Government: “Our expectations from Parliament is to show more resistance against the unlawful actions [of the administration] because if, in the Parliament that is the house of the people and is where the laws are passed, these issues are ignored the situation would be worse in other places.”

NEW Iran Video and Summary: The Mousavi Statement for May Day/Teachers Day (29 April)
NEW Iran: The Establishment Frets Over the Supreme Leader
Iran Document: English Text of Mousavi-Karroubi Meeting (26 April)Iran: President Ahmadinejad’s Joke of the Day
The Latest from Iran (28 April): Making a Date

Mousavi-Ardebili added, “These days to solve the problems there is nothing left for us to do but praying, since when we give our inputs about an issue it is being ignored.”


1940 GMT: Political Prisoner News. Days before National Teachers Day and planned demonstrations, it is being reported that Alireza Hashemi, the Secretary General of the Teachers Organization, has been arrested.

1500 GMT: The Oil Squeeze. It's no longer fresh news that Italy's largest oil and gas company, Eni, is pulling out of Iran projects because of the prospect of tougher US sanctions on any firm dealing with Tehran (see Tuesday's updates). It is significant that the news is now being carried by Press TV.

1455 GMT: We've posted today's Mir Hossein Mousavi video, accompanied by a summary from Radio Zamaneh, as a separate entry.

1330 GMT: Writing About the Crisis. Our German Bureau reports that prominent Iranian poets and writers, including Simin Behbahani, Yadollah Royai, Esmail Khoi and Majid Naficy, have contributed to a new anthology,  "Protest of the Pen", published in Persian.

0945 GMT: Investigation or Cover-Up? Shadi Sadr offers her views on the enquiry into the Kahrizak Prison abuses, leading to the death penalty for two police officers and a prisoner:

Gentlemen! Enough magic! We know and you know that the story cannot vanish with the execution of three individuals; indeed, no injury can be cured by more death and execution. The only thing that can satisfy us is knowing the truth about all victims of Kahrizak; the truth about the death of Ramin Pourandarjani, the assigned physician at the facility; and the description of what transpired from the perpetrators of the crimes, on national television.

0940 GMT: Mir Hossein Mousavi has released a video statement for May Day and Iran's Teachers Day (2 May).

0935 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Green Voice of Freedom has a summary of recent arrests of students and the poor health of some detainees.

0925 GMT: Economy Watch. Voice of America claims that, of an estimated 8200 Iranian companies in Dubai, 400 have closed because of sanctions.

0920 GMT: Clerical Matters. Rah-e-Sabz offers an analysis of the President's relationship with senior clerics in Qom, claiming that there were tensions in Ahmadinejad's first term and that only a few marja are offering greetings for his second term.

0915 GMT: Labour/Political Prisoner Watch. Homayoun Jaberi, a member of the Syndicate of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, has been sentenced by the Revolutionary Court to a year in prison, suspended for three years (effectively a probation).

0835 GMT: Mr Verde is back, offering an analysis of the worries of the Iranian "establishment" over the position of the Supreme Leader.

0820 GMT: Corruption Watch (cont.). Elyas Naderan, the conservative member of Parliament who has been leading the campaign against the Government, has criticised the President for not waging a fight against corruption and for appointing questionable officials (for example, at Iran's Oil Commission), and (at NIOC etc.) because of political motivations.

0745 GMT: Corruption Watch. The drumbeat of criticism from conservative members of Parliament continues. Yesterday we noted Ali Motahari challenging underhanded dealings and nepotism in the judiciary; today we find Ahmad Tavakoli launching an even wider attack:

We have reached a state where political corruption is rampant, with some even trying to influence decision makers through bribes. This kind of corruption is much worse than economic corruption, because in economic corruption individuals pursue base and materialistic interest, but in political corruption it is possible that legal decisions would be made to facilitate certain people’s corrupt pursuits and lead to the interference of some in distributing the enormous oil proceeds.”

Political corruption is the involvement of politicians in economic corruption, whereby they buy and sell laws and regulations. This is a much more important disease that some are afflicted with now by trying to infiltrate the Majlis using bribes, threats or promises. Unfortunately we don’t have comprehensive laws dealing with political corruption.

If this problem is not dealt with today, tomorrow would be very late.

Tavakoli then gets specific, targeting the First Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi, accused of involvement in a major insurance fraud:"The judiciary is now facing a difficult test, because it has moved forward to investigate two important cases. One deals with an administration official and the other with a relative of a senior regime official. If the judiciary falls short of dealing with either case, in my opinion it would flunk the public opinion test and won’t have any standing left for combating corruption.”

0715 GMT: May Day. Rah-e-Sabz has now published the 15-demand declaration of the coalition of Iranian labour groups.

0645 GMT: So, after a flurry of statements from opposition figures (Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi) and groups (reformist parties, teachers, workers), we see if declaration will lead to action.

My interest is not in President Ahmadinejad's next move. Once more he is trying the foreign distraction, applying for and receiving a visa to attend the United Nations conference on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty next Monday. That is matched by a roll-call of statements from Government officials and supportive members of Parliament that it is the US who is the nuclear culprit --- see, for example, the assertion of Alaeddin Boroujerdi, the chairman of Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, Alathat Washington should apologize for its failure to abide by its obligations under international law and the NPT.

No, time will be better spent looking for ripples, as in public gatherings of workers, teachers, and other activist groups for the week around May Day. And then the question is whether there will indeed be another wave for 12 June, the anniversary of the election.

An opening teaser question: will Mousavi, who has repeatedly been kept away by Iranian authorities from mass demonstrations since last June, finally move from statement to open defiance by joining the marchers six weeks from now?

Comments

[Catherine]

Q&A: Mohammad Reza Heidari on why diplomats like himself and other Iranian government officials are now opposed to the state

Mohammad Reza Heidari, a high-ranking Iranian diplomat in Norway, announced in December that he was quitting the foreign ministry and not returning to Tehran. He now lives in Norway,
http://www.insideiran.org/featured/qa-mohammad-reza-heidari-on-why-diplomats-like-himself-and-other-iranian-government-officials-are-now-opposed-to-the-state/

[Catherine]

Women's rights activists slam Iran's bid to join UN commission

A group of Iranian women’s right activists have written a letter to the United Nations to speak out against Iran’s efforts in joining the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and call on the United Nation’s Economic and Social Council to deny Iran’s bid for membership.
http://www.zamaaneh.com/enzam/2010/04/womens-rights-activists-s.html

[Catherine]

Female Appearance Watch
This is really starting to get petty and tiresome ,,,

Suntanned women to be arrested under Islamic dress code

Tehran's police chief, Brig Hossien Sajedinia, according to London's Telegraph newspaper, has announced a national crackdown on "social misbehavior" that violates Islamic laws, including a sun-kissed glow.

"The public expects us to act firmly and swiftly if we see any social misbehavior by women, and men, who defy our Islamic values," he said, the Telegraph reported. "In some areas of north Tehran we can see many suntanned women and young girls who look like walking mannequins."

"We are not going to tolerate this situation and will first warn those found in this manner and then arrest and imprison them."

More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/7639728/Suntanned-women-to-be-arrested-under-Islamic-dress-code.html

[Barry]

@Catherine

Your link led me to this link

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/5718982/Muslim-NHS-dentist-tried-to-force-patients-to-wear-traditional-Islamic-dress.html

I am wondering where some Muslims are getting their ideas from. Are they merely creating them out of their own minds? That article says that it is frowned upon within Islam to use silver fillings in teeth. How does this fit in with Islamic Holy writings? When the Koran was written, I don't think they had dentists filling teeth - so I am really curious how this is all coming about. It seems that there are as many interpretations of Islam as there are stars in the sky . Is any one of them the "truth"

Barry

[Catherine]

Barry - I can only repeat what a professor of Islam once told our class: there are as many forms of Islam as there are muslims. But maybe Bill can tell us if there is a hadith somehwere that says putting silver in one's mouth is haram :-).

[Catherine]

More petty and tiresome absurdity - not from the NHS, which apparently has plenty to offer :-), but from Iran again:

New regulations for internet cafes in Mashhad
New regulations have been introduced in the city of Mashhad which place new restrictions for internet cafes in the city. The new regulations, some of which are quite bizarre and impractical, have caused much discontent among owners of internet cafes in the city.
More: http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/apr/28/1766

[Catherine]

Samuel - are you getting a piece of this action? ;-)

Iran, Venezuela Establish Joint Oil Company

Iranian state-owned oil company Petropars and Venezuelan national oil company PDVSA founded a joint oil company "VENIROC" as each county holds 50 percent of the total share.

The company is founded in Spain and we are in talks to implement joint projects, Petropars Managing Director Gholam Reza Manouchehri told ISNA.

He also said VENIROC officials are in talks to build a refinery in Syria and added that, "Iran and Venezuela will put the project into practice if our demand is accepted."

The Syrian refinery is to produce 140,000 oil barrels a day co-financed by Iran, Venezuela and Syria.

The refinery is to receive 20 percent of Iran's heavy oil, 30 percent of Venezuela's super-heavy oil, 25 percent of Syria's heavy oil and 25 percent of its light oil.

The project needs 2.6 billion dollars investment, 33 percent of which is to be financed by Venezuela, 26 percent by Iran, and 15 percent by Syria.

Source: ISNA,
http://www.payvand.com/news/10/apr/1276.html

[Arshama]

0645 GMT: Will Mousavi join the marchers six weeks from now?

Scott,

It depends... on the outcome of May Day and Teachers' Day demonstrations in particular, and on the developments at the prisoners' front in general.
If the government continues to crack down, joining the marchers would make no sense. I suppose it does, because AN and his IRGC cronies are deadly afraid of 12 June, otherwise they had not started imprisoning teachers.
And then, the question should also be: can Mousavi join the marchers?
Presumably he will be under house arrest again as on other occasions.

In any case his message proves that he is determined to continue as a leader to the movement, meanwhile expanding into other layers and groups of society. Imho his statement is excellent, very cautious of course, but getting to the point. Trying to put myself in the place of an average Iranian worker or teacher, I found his arguments sufficiently clear and convincing. Well done!

Arshama

[Bill]

Catherine,

"suntanned women " Gee why don't they just do away with all the pretense and go the Saudi way and bar all women indoors never to be seen again!!! This would be funny if it wasn't actually happening but sadly it is.

Thx
Bill

[Adam]

I cheer inside when I see Tavakoli and other "conservatives" lambaste Ahmadinejad. However I have to question their sincerity, since they have implicitly cooperated in the farce of the presidential elections by refraining from any dramatic statements or gestures to show their non-compliance with the faked results. The same goes more so for the reformist members of parliament

[Catherine]

Kafka lives:

Shiva Nazar Ahari, a human rights activist and member of the Committee of Human Rights Reporters (CHRR), has spent more than 120 days in prison. She was arrested for the second time in one year on 20 December 2009. Previously, she spent 102 days in prison, 33 in solitary confinement, and was released on $200,000 bail on 23 September 2009.

Shahrzad Kariman, Nazar Ahari’s mother, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that she and her daughter’s lawyers’ endless search for locating case files in different branches of the Revolutionary Courts have been fruitless.

Your skin will crawl with frustration as you read this story of total obstruction of justice: http://persian2english.com/?p=9938

[Nancy]

Catherine,
Have been appreciating all the links you've been posting lately. Great/interesting interview with Heidari. Hope he's right!

[Catherine]

Hi Nancy,
Yeah, I hope Heidari isn't exaggerating - I mean, it's kind of hard to know everyone in the Foreign Ministry and the Iranian corps diplomatique. But even if he just speaks for 50-60 people, that's a sample that could mean many more like-minded civil servants.

[Catherine]

This is how the war of attrition works (Kafka revisited):

'My Entire Trial Took Only Three Minutes'
A political prisoner, released and tried in the past few months, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that even though he served four months in prison, was interrogated for over 300 hours, and has a case file containing some 400 pages of documents, his entire trial lasted only three minutes.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/apr/29/1770

[Bill]

Catherine,

Just sick!!! I cannot imagine the terror some of these people live under knowing they could get a trial like this in which they are guilty until proven innocent(which of course can't happen in an Iranian regime court!) God where can I find a Mullah like Prof Crocodile to punch when I need one!!!!! Argggh!

Thx
Bill