Back to Brief on Iran
Yesterday, Mr. Massoud Rajavi, President of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, commented on the defeat of the impeachment motion against Khatami's Minister of Guidance, Ata'ollah Mohajerani, which had been carefully planned and prepared by the regime's dominant faction.
He said: Mohajerani and Khatami owe a thank-you to the Mojahedin and the brave heroes who removed Sayyad Shirazi, a key figure in Khamenei's faction and "the arm of velayat in the armed forces from the scene."
All those familiar with Iran's political landscape know well that striking Sayyad Shirazi led particularly to disruption, chaos and weakness in Khamenei's faction, heartening the rival faction in the Majlis. Otherwise, Mohajerani would have been removed from office, just as Abdollah Nouri was, NCR President added.
Mr. Rajavi added: if Khatami were a
true reformer, he would have taken great advantage of the Resistance movement's
political and military actions as well as the public's radical moves to
sweep aside the velayat-e faqih and push forward reforms. The reality,
however, is that Khatami is "a demagogue whose sole aim is to grab a share
of power in order to prolong clerical rule."
Iran's Continued Rights Violations, Voice of America Editorial, May 2
The United Nations Human Rights Commission's recent resolution on Iran should be applauded. It continues the mandate of the UN's Special Representative for Iran. That will help to keep the focus on Iran's serious human rights situation.
"the Iranian government continues to deny citizens their most basic rights. The UN Commission rightly expressed particular concern over the widespread use of torture in Iran and such punishments as stoning and public execution. It also called attention to Iran's religious intolerance."
That intolerance is especially harsh in regard to Iran's three hundred thousand Baha'is. In the past, Baha'is have been executed for their faith. And several imprisoned Baha'is are still threatened with execution. Iranian officials also harass or repress Christians, Zoroastrians, Sunni Muslims and Jews.
Even Shiite Muslims who disagree with the Shiite clerical regime are not safe from persecution."
" As the recent vote by the UN human
rights commission makes clear, Iran's human rights record needs much improvement.
Major Demonstration by Iranians in The Netherlands, Iran Zamin News Agency, May 3
In a demonstration today, Iranians residing in the Netherlands, protested against the criminal murder of Shorab Akbari by the mullahs' Revolutionary Guards Corps and Intelligence Ministry. They called for the dispatch of an international fact-finding mission, including representatives of the Iranian Resistance, to investigate the clerical regime's atrocities, including the heinous murder of Mr. Akbari.
Having come to the Hague from all over
the Netherlands, the demonstrators expressed disdain over the freedom of
action enjoyed by agents of the Iranian regime's Intelligence Ministry
in that country and their scheme to intimidate and terrorize Iranian refugees.
Khatami Appeals for Calm After Protest, Agence France Presse, May 2
TEHRAN - Mohammad Khatami said Sunday that social unrest was disruptive to the nation's economic security one day after thousands of workers protested over Iran's financial woes. Thousands of demonstrators held an unauthorized rally in Tehran on Saturday against the struggling economy as well as a proposed new law that is thought to favor employers at the expense of workers.
Labor Minister Hossein Kamali tried
to ease protesters' fears on Saturday, saying the draft legislation had
not been carefully studied and was financially unjustified.
Iran Bans Women Cyclists in Caspian Seaside Resort, Reuters, May 2
TEHRAN - Iran has outlawed women cyclists at northern seaside resort as an affront to Islamic morality, a newspaper reported on Sunday.
The district governor in charge of Ramsar, formerly a plush holiday resort on Iran's northern Caspian coast, said women cyclists would be prosecuted even if they were covered from head to toe as required by Iran's Islamic laws, Kayhan newspaper said.
"Women cyclists cannot protect their chastity even if they are fully covered, so they should avoid this altogether or they will be dealt with," the governor said.