THE IRANIAN
TIMES
Tuesday, June 2, 1998
Khordad 12, 1377
No. 493
Rumi
Headlines
* Mojahedin Khalq: Bomb claimed
* MKO: What about MY rights?
* News: Trouble over Murdoch visit
* Business: Turkmenistan sees pipeline deal soon
* Satire: Sing-along song for World Cup 98
* Letters: Gay? No problem. Just don't parade it
* The Web: Hossein Alizadeh
Index
* THE
IRANIAN: MKO * Iran-U.S.: Nuclear rivals * Features: Tehran bomb * News: Murdoch trouble * Human Rights: Refugees * Business: Turkman gas * Dollar: 562/568 * Sports: World Cup camp * Arts: Rostam & Sohrab * Academic: Zarrin's poetry |
THE WEB
* Alizadeh - Persian Classical musician Hossein Alizadeh's web page. (Need Persian fonts)
* PersComp - A technical discussion group focused in Persian software.
* Museum of Contemporary Iranian Artists (MoCIA) - More impressive than ever. Great job by Yari Ostovany. If you are an artist with a web site and you haven't yet seen MoCIA, go there and asked to be linked up.
* United Islamic Students Association in Europe - They're Iranian, too.
* Computerized setar - Created by Vahid Rahbari, this program allows you to play the setar online. Need Shockwave plugin (free).
* Legal aide and immigration sites:
- American Immigration Lawyers
Association (AILA)
- U.S. Immigration
& Naturalization Service
- Counsel Quest
legal research
Thanks to Alla Mollabashy allaaddin@hotmail.com
* Arizina Persian site's latest additions:
* Iranian wrestlers & fans in Oklahoma - An article on the Iranian wrestling team's recent matches in Oklahoma along with great photos by Ben Bagheri along with photos.
IRAN-U.S.
* Specialists in US see Iran, Iraq as next nuclear rivals , (Boston Globe) - The officials in Washington admitted that events of the past three weeks have shown that the United States cannot prevent the rise of other nuclear states. A combination of threats and rewards did not stop nuclear tests by India and Pakistan. And economic sanctions will not sway Iran, which has no formal relations or trade with the United States... full text
* Joint U.S.-Bahrain statement (White House) - The two sides reviewed with interest recent developments regarding Iranian policy and welcomed the emerging moderate tone in Iran's statements... full text
THE IRANIAN Newsroom
FEATURES
* Rebels claim blast at Iran court, two dead, (Reuters) - An explosion killed two people and injured two others at an Islamic revolutionary court in Tehran on Tuesday, Iranian state television said. In Baghdad, the Iraq-based Iranian armed opposition group Mujahideen Khalq said its forces inside Iran were responsible for the blast... full text
* Khatami attacked at Tabriz Friday prayers; some people object, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
* Who wins by attacking Khatami?, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
THE IRANIAN Newsroom
NEWS
* Deputies to quiz minister over Murdoch visit, (Reuters) - A group of Iranian deputies has summoned Iran's foreign minister to be questioned in parliament over a visit by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, whom they blasted as a ``pillar of Zionism,'' newspapers said on Tuesday. The daily Jomhuri Eslami said the five conservative deputies also said Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi should explain recent visits by two American Middle East analysts ... full text
* Iran defense minister oppses nuclear testing, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
THE IRANIAN Newsroom
HUMAN RIGHTS
* Deportations of Iranian refugees to Iran is unacceptable , (Hambastegi) - In the post-Cold War era, Western governments have lost the ideological incentive to promote asylum. The further globalization of capital has decreased their need for cheap labor at home. Furthermore, the role of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which was created as a result of the Cold War, has been increasingly relegated to migration control assistance for governments. As a result, Iranian refugees fleeing the tyrannical Islamic Republic of Iran are facing restrictive measures that blatantly violate refugee rights. ... full text
* Deputy Guidance Minister for press affairs ordered to show up in court, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
* "Harakat": Newletter for disabled women in Iran, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
THE IRANIAN Newsroom
BUSINESS
* Turkmenistan sees Iran oil pipeline deal soon, (Reuters) - Turkmenistan expects to agree plans later this month with southern neighbour Iran to build an oil pipeline from the western port of Turkmenbashi through Iran to the Persian Gulf, the Central Asian state's president said. Speaking on state television late on Monday, Saparmurat Niyazov also said that the former Soviet republic would invite Russia and Iran to take part in oil and gas pipeline projects running across the Caspian Sea... full text
* Western oil firms prepare for return to Iran, (Reuters) - Western oil firms are pressing to re-open representative offices in Iran as the Islamic republic prepares to open up its strategic oil and gas sector to foreign investment, industry sources said on Tuesday. British Petroleum Plc, France's Elf Aquitaine, Australia's Broken Hill Pty Co Ltd (BHP) and Russia's Gazprom are the latest firms aiming to move back to Tehran, 20 years after an exodus of foreign firms who packed their bags as the Iranian revolution turned violent ... full text
* National Iranian Oil Company opens office in oil-rich Kazakhstan, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
THE IRANIAN Newsroom
DOLLAR RATE
Unchanged
* To send money to Iran, today's rate is 550-562 tomans per dollar, depending on how much you wish to send.
* To send money out of Iran, the rate is 568 tomans per dollar.
Source: Sehaty Foreign Exchange. Preferntial rates for readers of The Iranian Times. Call in U.S.: 602-595-0777 or 500-288-8881. Address: PO Box 3230, Carefree, AZ 85377, USA. Mention this code: BAJ 07
SPORTS
* Iran to face Croatia Wednesday - last important match before World Cup, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
* Iran World Cup socer team troubled, (AP) - Iran seems to have four rivals in its opening group at the World Cup: European heavyweights Germany and Yugoslavia and the improving Americans, plus its own soccer association. All three nations in Group F with Iran are listed in the top 11 of FIFA's lastest world rankings. So Iran must overcome some formidable opponents on the field... full text
* US should have a lively time in France, (Boston Globe) - .... the most difficult day for the Americans in the World Cup likely will be the June 25 meeting with Yugoslavia in Nantes. The Yugoslavs have as much talent as the Germans, plus a concentrated nationalism and us-against-them attitude that will make them even more formidable. So says Manook Khodabakhisshian, a commentator for Radio Seday Iran, a 24-hour Persian language radio station based in Los Angeles (or, as the exile community calls it, ''TehrAngeles'')... full text
* Iranians borrowing pastry school to prove they're no cream puffs, (AP) - At France's highest seat of pastry -- the Ecole Nationale Superieure de la Patisserie -- the wine cellar is locked and women on the staff have been sent on leave. The Iranians are coming. This pleasant little town of 7,000 in the heart of France, dominated by stone church towers and a giant fluorescent cross on the overlooking hill, is the base for Iran's World Cup soccer team. Iranian authorities have asked for all immediate temptation to be removed... full text
* A look at all 32 World Cup teams, (AP) ... full text
* Exclusive soccer pix
Put together, with tears, by Bruce Bahmani
I can honestly say this is the most excellent collection of soccer photos of the Iranian national team I have ever seen... see themfull text
THE IRANIAN Newsroom
SATIRE
* A sing-along song for World Cup 98... full text
Got something to make us smile?
Send it to Times@iranian.com
ARTS & LITERATURE
* Theater: "Rostam & Sohrab" the play, slowly coming along, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
* On the lack of growth of the art of painting in Iran, (Hamshahri) ...full text in Persian... Get Persian fonts from Hamshahri or Payvand.
* "Cherry" a bewtching character study, (The Chicago tribune) - Watching "Taste of Cherry" and following its path of fear and redemption, living through this strange day with these foreign but utterly recognizable and deeply sympathetic characters, we believe in them. We feel with them. We care what happens to them. And, knowing them, we know a bit more, as well, about oursselves... full text
* "Taste of Cherry" U.S. screen schedules from the official Zeitgeist Film site... click here...Thanks to Payman Arabshahi <payman@fermi.jpl.nasa.gov>
THE IRANIAN
Forget about the Islamic Republic...
What about MY rights?
By Siamak Namazi
Learn what democracy and pluralism mean, before screaming out slogans. If you complain about the injustices of a regime, do so without committing the same acts you "protest" against. It makes no difference if people's rights are taken away by the Islamic Republic or the MKO! There is NO line distinguishing YOU and those you claim to be battling... go to feature
Cover Story
* Paintings: P a r v e e n
Since moving to the U.S. in 1990, I've discovered, and thoroughly enjoyed, the work of another family artist: Parveen Bakhtiar McNair, my aunt. They are not just sweet, innocent and happy. They are sweet, innocent and happy with a twist, or an edge, if you like... go to feature
THE IRANIAN Cover Stories
PERFORMANCES / FESTIVALS / SHOWS
Iranian festival in New York
The city of New York for the first time, has allocated the 37th street between 5th and 6th Avenues to an Iranian festival on Sunday July 26, 1998. This festival presents the Iranian culture by the way of displaying the work of:
Artists, Musicians, Folk dancers, Gourmet food, Carpet & Rug merchants, Fabric merchants, Gold merchants, Handcrafts, Books, Newspapers, Builders, Films, Antique dealers, etc.
For the first time the successful Iranian professionals will have the opportunity to present their work and profession to the American public.
The occasion will be televised by CNN, NBC and other networks nationwide. Radio Sedayeh Iran, a 24-hour Iranian radio channel based in U.S., will broadcast the event throughout the day.
The objective is to present the true Iranian culture to the American public in contrast to the unpleasant portrait the media has portrayed in the past 20 years. Your participation and assistanceare much needed for the success of this event.
Those interested in space allocations should contact:
IRANIAN T.V, NEW YORK INC.
279 Main Street
Port Washington, New York
11050 Tel: (516) 944 - 8580
Fax: (516) 747-4941
PHOTO OF THE DAY
* Women's chorus at the Vahdat music Hall, Tehran... full image
Got any interesting photos?
Send them to Times@iranian.com
PETITION
Anti-sanction petition
From: Iranians For International
Cooperation
May 21 1998
This petition will be sent to each member of the U.S. Congress, urging them to support President Clinton's decision not to impose sanctions on froeign companies investing in Iran. If you are a U.S. resident, please sign it and urge Congress to fully lift their sanctions on the Iranian people.
Please distribute widely!
Please copy the petition below, sign it and email to 18020@hhss.se
Your name and title:
Occupation:
Address:
Email:
++++++++++
IIC's petition to Congress
++++++++++
The Honorable ...
United State House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Congressman:
We submit this memorandum to acknowledge and most sincerely applaud the United States' clear leadership at the G-8 Conference, where it so rightfully decided not to seek any punitive legal actions against those non-American, but allied corporations that are currently seeking to establish business relations with Iran.
By not imposing sanctions on US Allies, the Administration restored the United States' credibility and effectively protected US interests by avoiding a potential trade war with the EU and Japan.
Honorable Congressman, we urge you to support the Administration's decision.
Furthermore, we urge you to work for providing the same privilege to those American firms seeking to establish trade with Iran as well, thereby eliminating the unilateral economic sanctions that may have been meritorious at one point. With the emergence of the newly elected leadership in Iran, however, such sanctions may be considered outdated, ineffective and even counterproductive at the moment. Instead, the United States should opt for a diplomatic solution to the differences between Iran and the US.
Iranians for International Cooperation, comprised primarily of Americans of Iranian heritage, strives to act as a conduit for promoting friendship between Iran and other members of the family of nations.
As we approach the dawn of the next millennium, we are more confident than ever that under the wise and just leadership of the US, we will be able to instill hope and aspiration through the promotion of democratic ideals and economic progress throughout the world, especially the Middle East where Iran, with her rich historical heritage and contributions, would no longer be ignored.
Respectfully submitted,
Please copy the petition above, sign it and email to 18020@hhss.se
LETTERS
* Gay? No problem. Just don't parade it
I'd like to respond first to the way in which [The Iranian ] entitled my protest letter to the Alemi article ["In front of the embassy"] . The chosen title, "Gay Iranians aren't 'good Iranians'" clearly relfects [The Iranian's ] own biases and point of view. [It] intentionally entitled the letter this way to make it look as if this was the point of my letter, thus making me look bad, despite the fact that I said nothing even remotely close to that.
I don't expect that the responsibility of the publisher and editor of a magazine is to inject his/her own opinions on people who write to the magazine. His/her job is to be as fair and impartial as possible, without injecting such blatant editorialization when it's not necessary.
If [The Iranian] and Guive Mirfendereski set aside for a moment your own prejudices, get off you moral high ground, and read what I said, maybe it'll become clear.
Of course gays exist in Iran, they exist everywhere. But unlike homosexuals in America, gays in Iran keep it quiet, to themselves, and a private matter. They don't parade around the streets advertising and shouting out their homosexuality; they don't get into people's faces with it, and they don't try to shove their ideology down other people's throats. And of course this is perfectly fine, the way it should be.
I do not and have never had any problem with homosexuals being homosexuals; I don't give a rat's ass about someone else's sexual orientation. I don't personally and from a moral standpoint approve of it, but frankly that's none of your business nor is it anyone else's business. And I don't wish that it be MADE my business, as is the case when a bunch of trouble-making militants get out and march in the streets, denouncing anyone and everyone who doesn't conform to their views with cliche catch phrases like "homophobe," "bigot," and "intolerant."
Alemi's article was more of the same stuff, being "out" and "loud" and "broadcasting to the world." But most importantly it was irrelevant to the article.
"Pro-gay" people have never once made an effective and intelligible argument regarding their point of view. All they're capable of doing is name-calling, using the same aforementioned labels over and over again until they're blue (or pink) in the face. Please, give it a rest. A vast majority of Iranians are rational and intelligent people, who don't have the time for your unintelligible rants.
Sina D.
zerangi@hotmail.com
BOOKSTORE
Feminism,
Democracy and Islamism in Iran
By Nayereh Tohidi
Professor of sociology and women's studies at the University of California,
Los Angeles
Softcover, 139 pages, in Persian
Table of contents include: Beyond victimization; Modernism, secularism and democracy; Islam and "Islamic feminism"; Women and intellectuals; Women and nationalist forces; Women and leftist forces. Available from Ketabsara in Los Angeles: Tel: (310) 475-7574. For more information contact Dr. Tohidi at: nayereh.tohidi@csun.edu
THE IRANIAN Bookstore
ACADEMIC
* Contemporary poet Dr. Ali Zarrin has been invited to Foothill Writers' Conference held at Foothill College June 25-30, Los Altos Hills, California. He will perform his poetry on Thursday June 25th at 7:30 p.m. in Forum 12 at Foothill College. On June 25th and 26th Dr. Zarrin will be offering workshops on "Poetry", "Ghazal Writing", and "International Poetry". For more information call (650) 917-0509 or (408) 777-9394. The following week June 29 through July 5, Dr. Zarrin will be a guest poet at Naropa Institute's Summer Writing Program in Boulder, Colorado, reading his poetry and offering a five-day workshop in Ghazal Writing. For more information call (303) 546-5296 or (303) 444-0202.
* One day seminar at the Middle East Centre-St.Antony's college, Oxford, on : "THE COMING OF MODERNITY IN QAJAR IRAN". Date Saturday, 20 June 1998, (10.30am - 5.30pm) 6pm - 7.30pm Reception. Venue: New Lecture Theatre, St Antony's College, Oxford. For further details please contact: Prof. R. Sheikholeslami: orin0005@ermine.ox.ac.uk OR Prof.M.Tavakoli-Targhi: mohammad.tavakoli-targhi@sant.ox.ac.uk
* The Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard University invites applications for the Ehsan Yarshater Visiting Fellowship in Iranian Studies with stipend for the 1998-99 academic year. The Fellowship was established to promote research in Iranian languages, literatures, religions, history, sociology, anthropology, art history and archaeology. The deadline for the receipt of applications is August 31, 1998. Please fax applications and all further inquires to (617) 496-8584 to the attention of the Committee on Yarshater Fellowship at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Coolidge Hall, 1737 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138.
NOSTALGIA
MUSIC
* Ziba Shirazi, "Khaak"
(Get RealAudio)
Greatest pop CDs ON SALE!
QUOTE UNQUOTE
Post-fascist realism
As Mr. [Henry] Precht [former Country Director For Iran in the U.S. State Department] points out, what is happening in Iranian cinema duplicates the Italian experience in World War II. After the fall of fascism, there was a period of lighter control that permitted creative genius to experiment. Similarly, in Tehran, Italian-style realism has flourished and tends to prove that the current rulers have no chance of imposing a rigid theocracy.
Cord Meyer
The Washington Times columnist
"Seeing
Iranians as they are "
The Washington Times
May 29, 1998
STAFF
A lot of people have provided links and other content for the Times. And we encourage everyone's input. But here are some of the people who help us a great deal, especially in forwarding the news items and web sites. Thank them once in a while on my behalf :-) -- Jahanshah Javid
* Reza
Farahani -- davood@ix.netcom.com
* Payman
Arabshahi -- payman@neda.com
* Pedram Missaghi, webmaster "Iran
Media" -- pmissagh@ucsd.edu
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