Windows on Iran - Parts 28 & 29

by Fatemeh Kashevarz

Current Issues:

*  An amazing piece of evidence came to light on April 29:

Barely a week has been passed since our speaker Professor Ghamari-Tabrizi made his excellent presentation “A Manufactured Crisis: Facts, Fiction, and the Politics of a Nuclear Iran” at Washington University. Professor Ghamari spoke to a surprised audience about numerous steps taken by Iran over the past few years to reduce tension with the U.S. and to end the crisis. These steps were ignored by the current U.S. administration. An op-ed piece in yesterday’s NY Times by Nicholas Kristof reveals exactly that: a secret proposal that the Iranian government sent to the current American administration in the hope of making peace. Mr. Kristof, who still uses a demeaning language to speak of Iranians, admits nevertheless that “The officials from the repressive, duplicitous government of Iran pursued peace more energetically and diplomatically than senior Bush administration officials.” The Iranian proposal offered “full transparency” concerning the Iranian nuclear technology, “active support for Iraqi stabilization,” and “pressuring Hamas to stop violent actions against civilians inside Israel” among other things. Obviously, Iran wanted something in return. These demands described by Mr. Kristof as ‘a lot’ included “mutual respect,” abolition of sanctions, access to peaceful nuclear technology and a U.S. statement that Iran did not belong in the “axis of evil.” Sadly, the Iranian diplomats, (obviously moderates) who had worked hard to make this proposal possible, were ignored by the American administration and the opportunity that Mr. Kristof calls “a real hope for peace” was lost. Here is the link: http://www.nytimes.com/ontheground

More to the point is that another window of opportunity for engaging Iran in a positive way seems to be around the corner provided we sing songs different from the one proposed by Senator MacCain.

*  Not all is peaceful and rosy. Some of you have been asking me about the situation of Dr. Haleh Esfandiari the Iranian American Scholar who was arrested in Iran about ten days ago. The Iranian news paper Keyhan which reflects the views of the religious right in Iran has made accusations of connections between Dr. Esfandiari and regime change attempts outside Iran. This is very unfortunate because security related accusations could imply closed trails and restrictions on contact with lawyers (as is the case with the Guantanamo detainees).The Iranian lawyer and Nobel Prize winner Shirin Ebadi has announced that she will defend Dr. Esfandiari and her legal team in attempting to meet with Dr. Esfandiari. This troubling incident is bad news for those of us who work to empower the moderate forces in Iran. It shows that the outside threat of regime change and military campaign in Iran - far from helping the situation - leaves Iranian moderates powerless and gives the upper hand to extremists who prefer confrontation rather than cooperation with the west. Iranian academics and intellectuals have condemned this incident. We all hope for a speedy resolution of this troubling conflict.

Dr. Esfandiari’s arrest may well be a response to the arrest of the five Iranian nationals who have been in American custody for months now. According to Iranian news media, U.S. officials have indicated that these Iranians who have been detained in northern Iraq by U.S. forces could be released by June 21.

*  On a totally different note, my wonderful American friends Judy and Carl Ernst who just visited Iran have returned with lots of heart warming stories of friendship and well wishing. Many Iranians told them how they do NOT hate Americans and wish for the political conflict to be resolved in peaceful ways. Judy and Carl have promised me photographs which I will duly post on these windows.

<> Many of you sent me information this week about a recent and very positive Iran-related cultural event at the United States. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, accompanied by young artists from Iran and Under Secretary of State Karen Hughes, toured an Iranian art exhibit, "Wishes and Dreams", May 10, at the Meridian International Center where she praised Iran's rich culture and the work of Iranian young artists: http://www.payvand.com/news/07/may/1137.html

Suggested Reading:

If it is hard for you to accept that Iran may have a diverse political landscape in which there are moderates who oppose the view points of the extremists and work hard to move Iran in the direction of positive change, take a look at this excellent recently published book on the subject: Democracy in Iran: History and the Quest for Liberty by Professors Ali Gheissari and Vali Nasr (Oxford University Press, 2006).

You have heard me complain about the misinformation on Iran. Starting last summer, the popular media allowed incredibly slanted reporting. There were times that I felt I was reading about another country not the one I had just visited. At first, I searched for critical responses and discussions that would subject such slanted reporting to scrutiny. Little by little, I lost hope. Finally, I felt so concerned about the intensity of the misinformation that I decided to start these windows. Last week, a journalist gave me new respect for our media. In a special edition of his journal “Buying the War: How did the Mainstream Press get it so Wrong?” Mr. Bill Moyers asked why the press did not scrutinize the ‘information’ that led to the war in Iraq. I pray from the bottom of my heart that we scrutinize the information given to us which suggests that Iran is a threat to the world, before it is too late. Please watch this program and compare the rhetoric to the one used against Iran:  http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/btw/watch.html
Time to Laugh!

Let’s get a bit light-hearted with all this political talk. Some members of CodePink have had a little fun with Senator MacCain’s idea of using a Beach Boy song to “joke” about bombing a country: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTEBjPCNBbc

While we are on fun themes, Americans who lived in Iran in the 60s and 70s think about Iran nostalgically. Joy Martin, a subscriber to these windows, has sent me this beatiful photo-essay of the city of Abadan by Paul Scheroeder. Thank you Joy! http://www.iranian.com/Abadan/2007/April/1958/index.html

Iranian Americans in California

Iranian Americans succeed in bringing positive change to American perceptions of Iran. This includes a wide range of activities, sometimes very different from the art exhibit mentioned above.  Recently, a Blackwell medical textbook titled How the Immune System Works, by Dr. Lauren Sompayrac was removed from many reading lists thanks to the activism of the Iranian Americans. A required reading by the Department of Molecular Genetics, Microbiology, and Immunology at UMDNJ- Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, for example, the book contains a passage (on p.49, 2nd edition) which draws an analogy between the response of the immune system to pathogens and that of the Defense Department “to a threat to our national security”, comparing the would-be pathogens to “Iranian terrorists” who would potentially “fire on one of our embassies” here in the United States. It is shocking that a respectable publisher would allow this to appear in print in the first place. (Thanks to my friend Sara Ruebelt for sharing this news).
If you remember, I reported in Window 28, the sudden and unexplained decision of the American Chemical Society not to renew the membership of its Iranian scientist members. Due to pressure from Iranian American Scientists, the society reversed its decision.

To get and idea of the kind of activities that the Iranian American community in California engage in, please click on the first attachment to this window. The calendar which is put together by the Network of Iranian American Professionals of Orange Country, NIPOC provides social, cultural, and political news. The calendar was forwarded to me by my friend, Minoo Riahi-sharifan. Thanks Minoo jan!

Science

<>Apparently, last year the American Chemical Society suddenly decided to expel its Iranian scientist members (no explanation given). The ACS simply decided not to renew the membership of its Iranian scientist members starting January 2007 without disclosing it to the public. Members heard of this decision when it was reported in the March issue of the Science Magazine. A number of prominent Iranian American scientist have written an open letter to the ACS trying to reverse this decision which they consider to be politically motivated, unfair, and damaging to Iranian scientists: http://www.payvand.com/news/07/apr/1351.html

Social

There is a recent story in the Christian Science Monitor about Iranian Jewry. No one should pretend that Iranian society would not benefit from social reform. Neither do minorities in any society enjoy identical privileges as the main stream. But Iranian Jews are proud people. They feel offended by being portrayed as victims, or a minority whose way of life is disrespected in present day Iran. What affects them most is the political tension between the Iranian and Israeli governments. But as you read in the interview, they focus mostly on positive aspects of their peaceful coexistence with Muslims and the fact that they are Iranian. Currently there are about 100 functioning synagogues in Iran. I’d like to thank Behrooz Ghamari for sending me the link to share with you:  http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0427/p01s03-wome.html