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Vahshi Bafqi
Justice
Will law rule?
No principle is higher than the presumed innocence of the
accused
By Guive Mirfendereski
The reported apprehension of persons implicated in the slaying of various
political activists and literary figures in Iran in the past few months
will test the truth and strength of the Khatami administration's repeated
sloganeering about the "rule of law."
While many may rejoice as a matter of justice the arrest of the alleged
perpetrators of the slayings, the requirements of the rule of law. however.
will be satisfied only by the strictest observance of due process -- that
is, to allow the most rudimentary human rights principles of fair and speedy
trial to prevail over politically expedient course of action.
The indicting authority must be held to meeting its burden of establishing
probable cause to bind over the accused for trial. The burden of proof
rests on the state to produce the probative and admissible evidence necessary
to produce an indictment ... GO TO FEATURE
Iran
National crisis
From Khatami to Clinton
By Mansoureh Haqshenas & Koorosh Bayat
- So do you think Dorri will be sacked?
- Who's Dorri?
- Dorri-Najafabadi, the intelligence minister. There's talk that Khatami
has demanded his resignation or else he's going to fire him.
- Wow... exciting stuff ... GO TO FEATURE
Outlook
Alexander the Great Wimp gets lost in a Hollywood conspiracy
By John Harlow
Arts Correspondent
The Times of London
11-8-1998
ALEXANDER the Great, conqueror of the ancient world and schoolboy idol,
is about to be recast by Hollywood as a brutal war criminal who was murdered
by his own generals in Babylon when they feared he had lost his taste for
blood.
Two films, one by Oliver Stone, director of such convoluted conspiracy
epics as JFK and Nixon, and the other by Christopher McQuarrie, Oscar-winning
writer of the 1995 hit The Usual Suspects, have rejected all the evidence
that Alexander died from typhoid at the age of 33.
Stone's forthcoming film compares the western world's first emperor
with John F Kennedy, saying he, too, was a victim of a court plot. The
director has been talking to Tom Cruise about playing the young warrior.
Until recently, many historians justified massacres by Alexander as
he marched 20,000 miles through Persia, northern India and Egypt as "militarily
necessary". More recent studies have indicated that he was brutal
even for his times, and in contrast to the 1956 film starring Richard Burton.
Stone is prepared to show that ... FULL TEXT
Forwarded by Laleh Khalili
goodnewsiran.com
There's good news and there's GOOD news
Dear fellow Iranian:
It is my most sincere desire to share Christ's love and His good news
with my dear fellow Iranians. The literal translation of Gospel is good
news; which happens to be the very theme of the Bible. Good news about
what? You may ask? The good news of peace, great joy, God's grace and salvation.
I invite you to spend a few minutes and read the monthly message. I
would love to hear from you and pray for you.
God bless you.
Nozad
www.goodnewsiran.com
More Letters
* Not the Arabian OR Persian Gulf
Ali Nikseresht writes: Everybody should, from now on, use the proper
word for that body of water ["Save the Squirrels Society"] between Iran and
its southern Arab neighbors - not the 'Arabian' Gulf, not the British favorite,
'the Gulf', and not the 'Persian Gulf' either. Rather, we should all remember
whose Gulf it is, and has been, for some years now, and call it by its
rightful owners' name: the American Gulf ... FULL
TEXT
* Tehran to Tel Aviv
Bagher R Harandi writes: I don't understand why some people don't see
the importance of the Persian Gulf; they say we have more important things
to worry about ["Save the Squirrels Society"].
No one says the killings in Iran should not be stopped but the Persian
Gulf is important too. Otherwise they will soon start calling Tehran, Tel
Aviv and Bandar Abbass, Port of Arabia.
* Conference: US-Iran Relations: Has
the Time Come?
The American-Iranian Council in conjunction with the Asia Society and
the Asian American Center at Queens College is proud to present a lecture
and discussion panel with the Honorable Cyrus R. Vance, former Secretary
of State: US-Iran Relations: Has the Time Come?
When: January 13, 1999, Eftar Reception: 5:30-7:00pm, (Hosted
by Mondoil Corporation), Lecture and Panel: 7:15-9:00
Where: Asia Society, 725 Park Ave, New York, NY
Phone: 212-327-9292
The January 13th lecture marks the first occasion Secretary Vance has
spoken on US-Iran relations since 1980 when he left his post as President
Carter's Secretary of State. This event will open the American-Iranian
Council's Distinguished Speaker Series ... DETAILS
HERE
Book of the Week
To See and See Again
A Life in Iran and America
By Tara Bahrampour
From A beautifully written memoir that delivers much more than the story
of a young woman's life. Bahrampour, a Princeton Ph.D. candidate in sociology,
grew up in two culturesAmerica and Iran very much in conflict. The daughter
of an Iranian father and an American mother, she claimed American habits
as her early norms. However, the young Tara grew attached to Iranian ways,
so when the family returned to the U.S. due to the Islamic Revolution (she
was 11), the author's sense of dislocation only heightened. - Kirkus
Reviews
Also read the New York Newsday review of Bahrampour's book
Recent
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FULL COVERAGE OF NEWS ON INVESTIGATIONS INTO RECENT MURDERS IN
IRAN
Iranian government under pressure to deepen
reform after murders
TEHRAN, Jan 7 (AFP) - The admission that Iranian intelligence agents
were involved in the murders of dissidents has shocked the nation and provoked
calls for structural reform of the government, notably the secret services.
The revelations Tuesday that renegade agents at the intelligence ministry
were behind the recent murders of several writers and opposition leaders
have led to a public outcry and highlighted the need for institutional changes
and establishing the rule of law ... FULL TEXT
Iranian writer seeks asylum in Norway
Jan 7, (BBC) - An Iranian writer who went
to Norway to attend a conference on freedom of expression has sought political
asylum there. The writer, Mohammad Ali Kushan, had been invited by the Norwegian
Forum for the Freedom of Speech ... FULL TEXT
Foruhar's children demand international
probe into murder of parents
TEHRAN, Jan 7 (AFP) - The son and daughter of Daryush Foruhar,
an Iranian dissident recently murdered along with his wife, insisted on
Thursday that an international investigation be conducted into the murder
of their parents. "It took the intelligence ministry weeks to admit
the truth that was clear to all from the first day," said Arash and
Parastu Foruhar in a statement faxed to AFP ... FULL TEXT
Oil consolidates gains as stock glut eases
LONDON, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Oil prices, battered
through most of last year, on Thursday consolidated gains sparked by a recent
fall in crude stocks in the United States. But industry analysts warned
that it was too early to speak confidently of a recovery and that fundamentals
might well preclude any significant short-term recovery. International benchmark
Brent crude closed five cents higher at $11.51 a barrel after a choppy day's
trade reflecting market jitters over whether the price strength is here
to stay ... FULL TEXT
Pourheydari interview
Tehran, (Iran) - Interview with Mansour Pourheydari
on his future plans for the national soccer team ... FULL TEXT IN PERSIAN
Human Rights
New mailing list
I have started a new mailing list called "Ascent." The aim
is to address humanitarian issues on the verge of the 21st century. I am
trying to promote it and attract members.
To subscribe, send an email to majordomo@im-ins.com
and type "subscribe ascent" in the body of the message.
Camelia Akbari
$ Rate
The
dollar now offered at up to 712-714 tomans
Source: Sehaty Exchange (U.S.) Tel: 602-595-0777
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Quote Unquote
Rule of law
The process which is about to unfold in Iran will tell a lot about the
rule of law and the Iranian character. More so, it will tell every person
affected by the recent slayings whether they fancy blind vengeance over
an informed course of due process no matter what its result.
Guive Mirfendereski
"Will law rule?"
The Iranian
January 7, 1999
Photo of the Day
The press & the law
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Parivash
The Queen of "Koocheh Bazaari" music in the 1950s
and 1960s.
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