This is the first in a series of interviews with young Iranians about their feelings and opinions about the conflict in Iran
BioKeivan Shamami is a PhD student in Canada. He has done research on child labor and been involved in educating Afghan kids in Iran. Comments from Registered Members | (Register or log in to make your comment.) | ArashShar 2009-07-10
As an Iranian hearing this man really hurts me.
In decades the united nations has repeatedly urged Iran to stop subsidising products. This concerns all staple goods and more. In decades we have been witness to people smuggling gas and food out of Iran. I really cant understand how anyone at this point in time in Iran wants to keep prices artificially low. I find it dumb that TRN uses a PHD in Humanistic or law? To comment on economy?
The other point is that Chavez is not a communist. What he has done is get rid of oversea multi mio companies that where dictating the sector they where in. That is why governments first makes the sectors public and then when people/companies are ready to compete with the rest of the world, then they privatise them. This is basic economy!
Believe me we do not need an economy that the government need to artificially keep alive! Get real Keivan Shamami!
- Arash from Denmark | ymj 2009-07-08
(contineued) confrontation with the west. And having more people participate in politics, is an advanatge for the Ilsmic repulibc. However, the bigger question lingers, where has the 400 million +65 million +15 million have gone ?? the money that the congress of the US had approved for 'democracy" and destabilization! to me, that is the biggest question! | ymj 2009-07-08
@thealie, democratization with the help of America??? NO THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They supported Saddam Hussein, Rezah Pahlavi, Pinochet and many other cruel dictators.. They support Reppressive regime's (which dont even VOTE, or have ANY chance of 'democracy') such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Emirate, Jordan, Bahrain, just to name a few.... if you are fooling yourself to beleive, that Iran is on its way to 'democratization' with the help of America, you are fooling yourself.. this is the biggest reason why for 30 years Iran has been dumb deaf and blind, or at least the Iranian Exile's, like your self have been. You can not reach the hearts and minds of they average people (who are poor and islamic) in Iran. And yes, to me its ver amuzing that Iranian Exile's have jumped on the Moussavi bandwaggon. to me it show's that the Islamic Republic is more clever than ever, to engage the Iranian exile's in their political row. Iran is heading down a path of confrontation with | ymj 2009-07-08
You both are fooling yourself to think Basij and Sepah are on you'r side.. anyway, have fun. You Iranaian Exile's are the reason why Iran has been screwed for the last 30 years, because you have not found a way to really penetrate the hearts and minds of the people living here.. you people only focuse on Tehran, Isfahan and Shiraz, thinking that that is only Iran.. | Ria 2009-07-07
@ymj
We don't have to put basiji or sepahi aside. Most of them ARE already at our (people's) side. The coup government and their few militant supporters though need to keep shaking in their boots (as they do today) as their days are numbered. | theali 2009-07-07
@ymj, On a TV debate I heard a very good analogy, they said that Pakistan was part of India, and they were the same country and are the same people. After those countries were separated from each, their governments/people had a choice to make, one went the path of militarization, and another went down the path of democratization. Just recently, in India we had worlds largest election, incidentally in Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto was assassinated. Iran is at that cross road now, its people will give their lives to bring back to path of democratization, while shortsighted Basijies and Sepahes will drive it toward militarization. Now you tell me who is wearing the clown hat? | theali 2009-07-07
@ymj, please be cohesive in presenting your view. If we are “Iranian Exile's who are anti-islamic republic” then why would we support Mousavi who was a key figure of the republic at its time of birth. It’s him on the left and Khomeini on the right http://tinyurl.com/l6p6v3 also please don’t argue that “we” want to destabilize the regime, all a while it was Ahmadinejad who broke the laws and brought the movement’s force to the surface. He broke the law by using government resources during his campaign, he broke the law by using the state TV for his own propaganda, he shocked millions by brutalizing peaceful demonstrations. http://www.payvand.com/news/09/jun/1163.html | ymj 2009-07-07
Both of you clearly have not seen any of the scene's from either of the speeches..
TRNN clearly hasnt shown any of the scene's , they were over a million of supporters in his Mossallah speech (which he couldnt even get inside of because it was packed), and there were MILLIONS for his victory speech.. regardless, tehran is not where his numerous supporters are!
TRNN is propagating, with your help, the same mass media outline... what is funny is that the Iranian Exile's who are anti-islamic republic, have jumped on this oppertunity to propagate what the mass media has outlined , which is "stolen election", "illigetimate government" anyway, have fun you clowns, you cant move Basij out of the way, nor can you move Sepah out of the way... dont forget the 24 million Ahmadinejad supporters.. . have fun clowning around.. | theali 2009-07-06
@ymj, it looks like you are the one spreading the fake news, and shouting accusations at genuine sources of information, such as TRNN. http://js-kit.com/blob/8hyitIkQNn5YQUmEPAwAVr.jpg | Ria 2009-07-05
@ymj.
3 million +
Are you for real? Or watching too much Press TV?
There is no point in getting into that AN's supportes were not more than a few thousands, or that in any case they were only a fraction of Mousavi's supporters.
There are overwhelming evidence of fraud. For the details just refer to Ghalam news, which yesterday released all the evidences of fraud, which was never investigated.
If AN and his coup fellows were not afaraid of the truth and actually HAD won the election they did not have to brutally massacre people's quiet and peacefull protests, and they would have impartial parties investigate the fraud allegations. That's what any respectable republic (exept a banana republic) would do. | ymj 2009-07-05
you say the elections were rigged.. with no proof what so ever.... i beleive Ahmadinejad has huge amount of supporters from what i have seen in Mossallah (2 million +).. from his victory speech (3 million) and from the Friday prayers that Khamanei held (which was ENOURMOUS) | Dr. Kazem Zarrabi 2009-07-05
(10) In reality we know that with the least liberal or even Marxian democratic norms such criteria for anti-imperialism are totally false. One cannot resist the powerful message of George Orwell, in his wonderful anti-totalitarian book called “Animal Farm,” which reminds us how totally upside down and off-track our views and notions can be: “Four Legs Good, Two Legs Bad: whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy, [whereas] whatever that goes upon four legs or has wings is a friend.”
(End)
| Dr. Kazem Zarrabi 2009-07-05
(9) This is why similar to 2005 presidential elections, 2009 presidential elections were also rigged in favor of Mr. Ahmadinejad who has been installed to office in both occasions by Ayatollah Khamenei. Another aspect of Iran’s anti-Americanism is the utterly wrong and unchecked US support for Israel, which is also shared by many on the left. I have also repeatedly opposed the unholy alliance between the US and Israel. In minds of many non-Iranian leftists Ahmadinejad’s government or the regime may indeed qualify as anti-imperialistic simply because of its inherent hatred towards the West and Israel. (continued) | ymj 2009-07-05
Before the election there were million and millions of supporters for his speech in Mossallah...
if RNNN is actually the REAL NEWS they should find the image's or the video's of that speech and broadcast it.. but i doubt it would fall in line with the propaganda scheme that is set out for them.. also, the number of supporters AFTER his victory should be shown to the people.. stop lying and making it seem like Ahmadinejad has no supporters.. just because they dont have access to computers or youtube, or twitter, doesnt mean they dont exist! | Dr. Kazem Zarrabi 2009-07-05
(8) In other words, simply hating the West or America has nothing to do with anti-imperialism. Otherwise, one can end up labeling Mr. Osama Bin Laden an anti-imperialist democrat and therefore a progressive individual!? We know that Bin Laden is neither an anti-imperialist nor a democrat. We also know that all that Bin Laden and his followers have been doing are anti-Islamic and anti-democratic in nature. Anti-Americanism of the Islamic Republic doesn’t stem from anti-imperialistic and democratic nature of the regime. Islamic republic is essentially based on a deeply repressive and undemocratic Islamist utopia that can never reconcile with any notion of modernity. This is why they are even unable to stick to their own constitution. The hardwired conservative elements of the clerical state feel insecure to allow the truly elected reformists Mr. Mousavi to take the presidency. (continued) | ymj 2009-07-05
"Is this why Mr. Chávez supports Mr. Ahmadinejad’s election fraud? " - Zarrabi .. you'r name indicates that you are an Iranian, most likely an Iranian Exile.. therefore you dont have credebility to assume that the elections were fraudulent.. especially with the huge turnout for Ahmadinejad's victory speech.. and prior to his victory he had a speech in Tehran at Mossalah, where a milion people attended.. you do not speak of the huge number of supporters that have demonstrated FOR Ahmadinejad, yet you call this election 'fraud'.. with what evidence? The same evidence that the western mass media propogate's?? which is not credible in anyway | ymj 2009-07-05
"Is this why Mr. Chávez supports Mr. Ahmadinejad’s election fraud? " - Zarrabi | Dr. Kazem Zarrabi 2009-07-05
(7) Mr. Chavez’s support for Ahmadinejad is truly a reactionary and undemocratic position. There were even so-called leftists who supported the mafia because they claimed that the US imperialism was trying to repress the Mafia! One should not confuse the issues here. I am not saying that the US and the West have no imperialistic desires. On the contrary, I would insist that with the so-called “globalization” the Western imperialistic wishes are at peak. Furthermore, I argue that a truly anti-imperialistic position is the one that rejects all sort of reactionary and anti-democratic measures. Otherwise, simply opposing ALL the decisions taken by the Western nations including the US has nothing to do with anti-imperialistic struggle. (continued)
| Dr. Kazem Zarrabi 2009-07-05
(6) Therefore, many decisions and actions taken by the so-called anti-imperialist camp such as military intervention in Hungary, the former Czechoslovakia, and Poland were excessively reactionary and (pro-Soviet) imperialistic in nature. Although the Soviet Union has gone, Russians are still using the same tactics in Chechnya and Georgia. They try to deceive the world by claiming that their invasions of Chechnya and Georgia were anti-imperialistic acts because Chechnya was invaded by pro-Western Islamists and Georgia was an ally of US imperialism. This is how Russians carried out their brutal attacks both in Chechnya and Georgia. Unfortunately, because of this Stalinist legacy, many contemporary leftists fall into the mousetrap and end up with totally upside down and reactionary positions and policies. (continued) | Dr. Kazem Zarrabi 2009-07-05
(5) Mr. Chávez and his supporters have restored to undemocratic means such as changing the constitution, adding to his terms in office, running unpopular referendum, and as the result alienating him from the population at large. Additionally, Mr. Chavez’s supporters have attacked opposition demonstrations as well. In Machiavellian and Stalinist models ends can always justify the means. Is this why Mr. Chávez supports Mr. Ahmadinejad’s election fraud? There is another aspect to this delusion shared by Mr. Cháves and many other confused leftists. Evidently, grossly distorted and misunderstood notion of “anti-imperialist” struggle is another pretext to support Ahmadinejad. This is also a twisted legacy left behind from the former Stalinist Soviet era. The truth is that both the former Soviet camp and the US-West camp supported all sort of undemocratic, repressive, and criminal regimes and leaders purely for self-interest and rivalry. Neither camp held any ethical grounds on this issue. |
PAUL JAY, SENIOR EDITOR, TRNN: Welcome to The Real News Network. I'm coming to you today from Washington. In our ongoing coverage of Iran, we're going to be talking to young Iranians living in different parts of the world. Today joining us is Keivan Shamami. He's in Canada. And if he were in Tehran, I expect he'd be in the streets today. And he's in touch with his family and friends every day by phone, and I guess to some extent on the Internet. Thank you for joining us, Keivan. KEIVAN SHAMAMI: Hi Paul. Thanks for having me.JAY: So, first of all, what do you hear from home today? SHAMAMI: I talk to friends almost every day. They are still shocked, I would say. They haven't seen this much violence. I mean, in my generation we haven't seen this much violence, ever. So people are still shocked, because it's still happening every day. They see people getting beaten just because they are walking in the streets. But whenever I talk to friends, they are—as I said, they are just shocked. They can't explain anything. You know.JAY: So give me your sense of what's going on there. There's been a lot of discussion and debate going on in blogs and in other parts of the media, some people suggesting Mousavi is a reformist, other people saying the camp that Mousavi belongs to is really led by Rafsanjani, who's anything but a reformist in some people's eyes, who's been very associated with with much of that power and corruption of this regime. And you have other people saying Ahmadinejad represents—he's a man of the people who represents the poor. I know you're talking to friends every day and yourself. What is your opinion of what the different forces are here?SHAMAMI: I'm going to talk about the economic policies and, actually, the corrupt government, Ahmadinejad's government. I'm going to give you some examples. Let me start with a quote from President Chávez. Press TV, which is an Iranian TV, President Chávez said that people in the world have to respect the results of the presidential election in Iran. He said Ahmadinejad's triumph was a triumph all the way, they are trying to stain Ahmadinejad's triumph, and through that weaken the government and the Islamic revolution. I know they will not succeed. I myself, I really love what Hugo Chávez did in Venezuela, and I really didn't expect this from him. He really disappointed some young Iranians like me. To me it seems President Chávez doesn't know the truth. Unfortunately, he's not alone. He's not the only one. Most of the leftists, they simply say that the current situation in Iran is a classic struggle between the poor people and the elite, the poor people who support Ahmadinejad and the elites who support Mousavi to get more civil rights. But I believe this is not the case at all. And, as I said, I'm going to talk about the economy first. Well, let me talk about the Constitution Act 44 in Iran, which says the public sector takes care of big industries, the power generations, the power generation, big mining industries, etcetera, and the private sector is a completion to the public sector.JAY: Let me just get clear on this. So the Constitution says that some of the major pieces of infrastructure in Iran are supposed to remain public.SHAMAMI: Yep, and the private sector works as a completion—for example, [inaudible] what's called the public sector in, like, some smaller industries, like farming industries, in farming and smaller industries. So, as I said, in 2005 the supreme leader wrote his interpretation of the Constitution Act 44. He basically changed it and said the private sector is allowed to do business in the bigger industries. We have to remember now, the next president has to work in this framework.JAY: The point you're making here is Chávez has been strengthening the public sector in Venezuela and opposing privatization in Latin America, and you're saying—.SHAMAMI: And how come he's fond of Ahmadinejad? So I'm going to give some examples of that. In Iran, actually, the neoliberal economists like Mr. Ahmadinejad, they accuse Mr. Mousavi to be a left populist. And, well, Mr. Mousavi's famous because of his welfare state during the Iran-Iraq War period. I was a kid and '80s, and I remember people standing in lines to get subsidized stuff like oil, cheese, and sugar. Every family could get coupons to buy these subsidized stuff for a very, very, very cheap price. I remember all this. But let's see what happens in Ahmadinejad's time. During Ahmadinejad's time, the prices doubled in almost every 20 month, doubled in every 20 month. And the figures can be found in the Web site of the Central Bank of Iran. So we can find out the figures there. Another example, Ahmadinejad's government gave mortgage to people to buy houses, but the house prices were doubled in few months, with very—like, very, very short time, and nobody could afford to buy a house anymore. So the people ended up paying the mortgage and interest back. Another example, in 2009—actually, this is a number given by organization which is a part of the Ministry of Economics and Finance. In 2009, the Iranian Privatization Organization announced that the privatization in Ahmadinejad's government has been 18 times—18 times that of the period between 1991 to 2003. So here my question from people like President Chávez is how come? How come you support people like Ahmadinejad? His own government is saying that the privatization in four years has been 18 times that of the period between 1991 to 2003. Another factor is the GINI factor and, actually, Lorenz curve in economics, which are measures of inequality of income or wealth. The figures in the Web site of the Central Bank of Iran show that the GINI factor during Ahmadinejad's time has increased, which shows more inequality of income. Now, after these examples, I'm going to talk about the economic team of each of the candidates. The people in Mr. Mousavi's team mostly come from an institute called the Institute of Religion and Economics Studies, which was founded in the year 2000. They have written about and supported the public sector and a state-intervention economy. In an interview with the Institute of Religion and Economic Studies, Mr. Mousavi talk about taxation and said that we need new institutes to modify our taxing system to redistribute tax between the lower class. Let me give you some examples from '80s, some figures from '80s, when Mr. Mousavi was prime minister. The infant mortality decreased from 140 per 1,000 to 68 per 1,000. Illiteracy decreased from 60 percent to 40 percent. The number of people under poverty line decreased from 45 percent to 25 percent. These are the figures given by Mr. Mousavi in the TV debate, and nobody disputed them.JAY: So just to be clear, these are what you're saying the achievements of Mousavi when he was the prime minister.SHAMAMI: Exactly, in '80s.JAY: Now, let's say we should—one needs to note again, there were a lot of slaughters of prisoners during that time, Mr. Mousavi's primeministership, as well.SHAMAMI: Exactly. Yeah. I was going to talk about that, actually. I'm just talking about the economy now and his achievements in economy. For sure, nobody will forget the mass execution in 1988. So we expect Mr. Mousavi to answer us if he was aware of that or not. Yes, he was, because he was prime minister. But he has to talk about this. He once, actually, answered the students in his election campaign. Somebody asked him, in the university, what is his stand on that. And he said, well, that was the Judgment Department. I didn't know that they are separate from the state. He basically didn't want to answer at that time. I was talking about the economic team of each of the candidates. I talked about Mr. Mousavi's team. Now I'm going to talk about Mr. [Mehdi] Karroubi's economic team.JAY: Now, this was one of the other candidate more reformer candidates that was running as well?SHAMAMI: That's right. Yeah. We can see people like [inaudible] who have neoliberal ideas. In their economic policy, they want to give cash to everybody every month. And there will be less subsidization on fuel, food, etcetera. They also accused Mr. Mousavi to be a left populist. In Ahmadinejad's team, we have people like [inaudible] and [inaudible] who believe in a weird kind of economy. It's called Islamic economy. We don't know what it is, but it's proof that Mr. Ahmadinejad's government is the most corrupt state after the revolution. This state is—I would say this state is made based on lies. Let me give you some examples.JAY: Okay. Before you give us examples, let's do this in the next segment of the interview. So just to sum up, your point so far is there's a kind of left critique of Mousavi coming from Chávez and many other forces in the blogosphere who have accused Mousavi of being kind of a neoliberal and Ahmadinejad as being the man of the people. And many people have suggested this kind of movement is kind of an American-orchestrated or -fueled movement. And your point here is Mousavi actually is more in defense of the public sector than Ahmadinejad. In the next segment of our interview, we'll talk with the whole question of corruption, the role of the Revolutionary Guard, Ahmadinejad, and the supreme leader himself. Please join us for the next segment of this interview on The Real News Network. |
|
