On 4 January, we posted the manifesto of five expatriate intellectuals- which followed the “5 Proposals” post-Ashura declaration of Mir Hossein Mousavi- with 10 demands, including freedom of media, adherence to the Constitution, recognition of civic groups, an independent judiciary, and the resignation of President Ahmadinejad.
A: The Green Movement is into its seventh month now, and I and my friends have been following events very closely and have been in touch with some of our friends in Iran. After [the protests on] Ashura on Dec 27, we came to realize that it was a real turning point. It was at that time that the regime decided to crack down on the Green Movement. In one instance, the regime rolled over a protester and killed him. It was a very severe message to all the protesters and defenders and supporters of the Green Movement that it intends to crush the movement harshly.
On the other hand, we have also individually been frequently asked by our friends: What are the real demands of the Green Movement, because the Green Movement was something that jumped on the scene? There was no planning for it. The election was the beginning, and it just evolved and evolved. As it evolved, some demands had emerged, but there was nothing that showed what was in the minds of the leaders of the movement.
The five of us thought that because we are close enough to the leaders of the movement – Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi and Mohammad Khatami – and know their demands, we should start drafting a manifesto or statement about the Green Movement. So we started drafting, and then Mousavi’s statement [that he would die for the movement if necessary] was issued [on Jan. 1]. Since we are living outside the country, don’t have to fear [the government] and know what is in the mind of the people, we decided to publish our own statement to make clear what Mousavi’s intentions and goals of the Green Movement are.
2140 GMT: Sharing a Laugh. At the end of an emotional day, it’s good to relax with a bit of a laugh. So, over to you, pro-regime Kayhan newspaper: there were “a maximum of about 5000” in the crowd at the Montazeri ceremonies, as reformists “completely failed to create “a popular gathering”.
Oh, you pranksters….
1925 GMT: Arrest of the Activists. Shiva Nazar Ahari and Kouhyar Goodarzi, arrested yesterday as they travelled to Qom, are still detained. Mahboubeh Abbas Gholizadeh was released earlier today.
A video of Gholizadeh’s interview of Nazar Ahari, carried out just before her arrest, has been posted in two parts.
1910 GMT: We continue to add the best of today’s videos as we come across them (Set 1 and Set 2). The latest discovery? A lengthy clip of Mehdi Karroubi at the ceremonies.
1850 GMT: Clashes and Occupation (2). Rah-e-Sabz publishes the story we have been hearing for a few hours: The car of Mir Hossein Mousavi was attacked, allegedly by plainclothes forces, as it returned to Tehran from Qom, breaking the rear windscreen. A passenger was injured; Mousavi was unhurt. One of the attackers also suffered minor injuries.
1830 GMT: Clashes and Occupation (1). Back from a short break to find that Ahmad Montazeri, the son of the late Grand Ayatollah, has said “several people” were injured in clashes with security forces. Some of those forces are still “occupying” the Imam Hassan Mosque where services took place this morning. Read the rest of this entry »
1900 GMT: Some Good News for Mahmoud. President Ahmadinejad and his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, signed 13 cooperation agreements on trade, energy, stocks and banking, agriculture, news agenices, technology, culture, and visa requirements.
1735 GMT: Mortazavi Mystery Over? After days of rumours that he was in Evin Prison, former Tehran Prosecutor General Saeed Mortazavi has appeared at the memorial service for Ali Kordan, the former Minister of Interior who died this weekend.
1725 GMT: Isolating Rafsanjani? Division of opinion here amongst EA staff: one colleague is saying Hashemi Rafsanjani is a spent force while another is arguing strongly that “the Shark” is far from finished and about to make another move.
If the latter, those in the regime opposed to Rafsanjani (and possibly worried about the possibility of his working in combination with Ali Larijani) will try to block it. Having dismissed him from the rota for Friday Prayers in Tehran and the Qods Day Prayer, authorities are now taking away the Eid al-Adha Prayer from Rafsanjani and giving it to Ahmad Khatami.
On 4 January, we posted the manifesto of five expatriate intellectuals- which followed the “5 Proposals” post-Ashura declaration of Mir Hossein Mousavi- with 10 demands, including freedom of media, adherence to the Constitution, recognition of civic groups, an independent judiciary, and the resignation of President Ahmadinejad.
2140 GMT: Sharing a Laugh. At the end of an emotional day, it’s good to relax with a bit of a laugh. So, over to you, pro-regime Kayhan newspaper: there were “
1910 GMT: Prosecuting Journalists. Reporters without Borders has published a summary of latest news on 
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