Archive - 2007 - Article

Cutting rope

Piers Bannister, a researcher on the death penalty for Amnesty International, has had an active role in international lobbying for a global moratorium on the death penalty. A resolution calling all states for a moratorium on executions, passed at the UN General Assembly Third Committee in November 2007, leads up to a vote by the UN General Assembly. Piers, who has kindly answered some of my question about the death penalty in a previous interview, kindly agreed to talk more about international lobbying for the resolution. >>>

Inviting intervention

Last week, Akbar Ganji received the annual award from Rights and Democracy (or International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development), a Canadian government-funded organisation which is known to be the Canadian version of the American National Endowment for Democracy. In his speech, he openly called for Western government's support to spread democracy and human rights in Iran, according to the Persian version of his speech, published by Dutch-funded 'pro-democracy' projects, Rooz Online and Radio Zamaneh. The award was given to him by Saad Eddin Ebrahim one of the most avid supporters of the now-defunct Neo-conservative plans to spread democracy in the Middle East>>>

Shall I light another cigarette?

What should I do? Go out and face them under the pretence of lighting another cigarette? Or shall I hide and try to save what can be saved? What would it serve and to what end would I face them anew? Another round of me pushing them back, showing my own teeth and they barking at me as lose dogs, once beaten by me in the past? Naaaa …. I chose to stay in. No point in indulging them a re-run of our past encounters.>>>

احمدی نژاد در پوست شیر

اکنون احمدی نژاد از پیروزی سدساله اخیرسخن می گوید در حالی که حکومت اسلامی با وجود حقانیت حقوقی ایران در امر باروری هسته ای به سبب فقر دیپلماسی نتوانست مساله را پیش ببرد و جهان را علیه خود برانگیخت و اگر تضاد واقع گرایان و دموکرات های آمریکا همچون مآده ی آسمانی به دادش نرسیده بود ملت ایران با فاجعه ای مهیب و عظیم روبرو شده بودکه هست و نیستش را بباد می داد. چه کسی تاوان ندانم کاری های حکومت اسلامی و آمریکا را می پردازد؟ >>>

«منطقهء خاکستری» در جغرافيای اپوزيسيون

پرسش آن است که صاحب آن «دهان واحد» بالاخره اصلاح طلب است يا برانداز؟ يعنی، اينجاست که مرحلهء «بلاتکليفی سياسی» آغاز می شود، چرا که ما منطقاً می دانيم که نمی توان هم يک سيستم را غيرقانونی و نامشروع و غير خودی و بيگانه (اگر نه دست نشاندهء بيگانه) دانست و هم مرتباً از توقعات خود از آن سخن گفته و نسبت به کارهايش گله مند و شاکی بود. با اين همه بسياری از کسان که خود را برانداز می دانند اغلب هر دوی اين کارها را با هم انجام می دهند و از خود هم نمی پرسند که چگونه کسی که اين حکومت را در کليت خود بيگانه، اصلاح ناپذير، ويران ساز، دروغگو، فريبکار و دشمنخو می داند چيدر عين حال مشغول چون و چرا کردن و نق زدن هم هست؟>>>

Life is cheap(er)

On September 17th 1992 four members of the Democratic Kurdish-Iranian Party were shot to death in a Greek restaurant ‘Mykonos’ in Berlin. Dr. Sadegh Sharafkandi, Fattah Abdoli, Homayoun Ardakan and Nouri Dehkordi who were in Berlin for a conference of the Socialist International were brutally killed on bright daylight. Now Germany and Iran seemingly are trying to improve their diplomatic relations by swopping detainees. This occurrence reminds us that in politics it’s all about interests, meaning making sure you are guaranteed of your current and future existence. It’s a very basic need and usually results into cruel unethical conduct.>>>

My generation

To my children who might say “we are suffering because YOU made a revolution,” I would say: My generation beat you in the “suffering game” hands down! Those are people from our generation sleeping in those nameless graves in Iran. Those are people from our generation who have been missing, maimed, or put to rest in the Martyrs Graveyards across Iran. Those are people from our generation, displaced and exiled to faraway places of the world, seeing Iran again just a huge dream in their hearts.>>>

با خودم به بهانه ی زهرا...

اعتراف می کنم که هيچ وقت نتوانستم هيچ خبری و گزارشی و نوشته يی را در باره ی زهرا تا آخر بخوانم. هميشه وقتی شروع به خواندن می کردم بغض گلويم را می گرفت. و می ترسيدم. می ترسيدم که گريه کنم. نه اين که از گريه کردن می ترسيدم. نه. هيچ وقت از گريه کردن نترسيده ام من. امّا آن که زهرا را کشت، می خواست که من گريه کنم. و من نمی خواستم. درست به خاطر اين که او می خواست. اين اندازه را امّا در سرگذشت زهرا خوانده ام که او همسن انقلاب است. انقلابی که آخوند آن را نربود؛ بلکه خود ما آن را به او تقديم کرديم.

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Hear the other side

Scanning through the comments in Iranian.com is sometimes disturbing. One main reason is the lack of communication between the different thoughts that do not agree with one another. We all want a better future for Iran and most of us would agree that “Democracy” is the way to go. Interestingly, the arguments for this word “Democracy” always lead to “script fighting” and insults. One wonders how we can reach the meaning of the word “Democracy” when no side will try to understand the other. Iranians generally need to understand their history in more realistic terms. The first lesson for any society to politically advance is to learn tolerance or at the minimum, to have the patience to hear the other side >>>

Two faces of the same coin

Story of democracy in Iran had a disastrous turn in the year 1979 after Islamic revolution and, the elections under Islamic Republic which are supposed to be the means to enforce people’s will in democratic societies, are in fact nothing but another ridiculous game of deception and dishonesty by rulers of this tyrannical and extremely corrupt regime. Over ten years ago Iranian people showed their deep dissatisfaction with policies of terror and suppression in Islamic Republic by voting for a clergy who was campaigning with promises of change, justice, fairness and economic prosperity after so called moderate President Rafsanjani had completed his 2nd presidential term.>>>

This is new

i see you in my dreams
I ike a lover returning to his beloved
without warning
but with the assurance that his presence
will evoke nothing but joy
your voice shakes my heart
surpassing my expectations

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The "Inevitability" Of "Fate"

In All "Earnest" ..
Where does "God" End ..
And, "Man" Begin ..

To "Those" Of "Great" Faith ..
The "Sovereignty" Of God Is "Obvious"
Without Whose "Plans" ..
Nothing "Exists" ..

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Game over

This is the age of spin, if it is not the spinning of a centrifuge then the spinning of news. In the name of decency, however, President Bush ought to stop taking credit for Iran’s suspension of its nuclear weapons program. Given the bankrupt state of Bush Administration’s foreign policy, it is understandable that “Mighty Mouse” would want to take credit where it is not due: just like in Iraq – it is not the surge that is working, it is Iranian cooperation with the Iraqi government. If Iranians mothballed the nuke program, it was because they could not risk losing access to rest of the technology from Russia.>>>

سرپیچی از «عقلانیت» اروپایی

گزارش جامعه اطلاعاتی آمریکا از این به‌موقع‌تر امکان نداشت منتشر شود و من پشت آن متخصصان اطلاعاتی ضدبوش و ضد حمله به عراق را می‌بینم که خواستند ننگ توجیه حمله به عراق را با نشان دادن استقلال شجاعانه‌شان از تاجر-سیاستمداران دروغ‌گو و بی‌شرف دولت بوش نشان دهند. آنها با این گزارش آمریکا را از چنگ حرامزاده‌هایی مثل دیک چینی و جورج بوش و ولفوویتز و پرل (فعلا برای چند سال) نجات دادند. این ماجرا به نظر من بزرگترین پیروزی سیاست خارجی کل تاریخ جمهوری اسلامی است و واقعا باید بخاطرش به لاریجانی و احمدی‌نژاد عمیقا تبریک گف>>>

Speaking and demanding change

I am happy that the likelihood of attacks has been greatly diminished on the people of Iran, but I think that it is not enough of a victory to celebrate. It is important to maintain scrutiny and pressure on the regime without the imperialist discourse, because it becomes harder for the regime to shift blame and attention away from its own failures onto any provocative bulletin board comments gift-wrapped from the Bush Administration. At the same time, the international community must be able to improve their non-military coercive apparatuses in order to help the causes of socio-political freedom and human rights in Iran>>>