Mr. President: Learn From This “Young Man”!
In one of his recent public speeches, Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who incidentally did not get into the presidential palace through the “complex and multi-layered presidential operations” like his Iranian counterpart, a “young man without experience.” He lectured him on politics and of course sweetened his pep talk with some threats too.
A review of the recent measures of this “young man” and their comparison with what the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran has been doing may be instructive to the supporters of the chief executive in Iran: Especially as he himself has no ears for anyone.
France has been through some tough and turbulent events during the last few weeks. Student unrest, rebellions and riots by the youth, transportation strikes, teachers’ demonstrations, etc. Students launched national protests demanding changes in laws and regulations governing universities. They created barricades on campuses. They prevented teachers and other students from even entering the schools. They raised placards with some pretty serious and radical messages. But none of them were arrested. Furthermore, they openly spoke about their views and feelings on national television, radio stations and the media. They met the minister of higher education and expressed their views to him, and even raised accusatory remarks in his own presence.
That was in France. In Iran too, there tough times. Students there too were not happy with their state of affairs and the rules and regulations governing their campuses. They said many things, and among them was they did not want to have a dictator in the country, or security operatives running the schools, and called for the release of other students who were in prison. And what happened to them? One by one they were rounded up by the state and put into that lovely prison, which the Iranian officials claim to be “the best prison in the world”. Yes, we are talking about none other than Evin prison in the northern part of Iran’s capital, lying at the foot of the always cool Alborz mountains. Ward 209 of the prison is now a famous world spot for anyone who demonstrates, or is suspected to demonstrate, the slightest disagreement with the rulers of Tehran. These students were beaten up, some have been deprived of continuing their higher education, and many have been banned from even entering the universities. Iranian students outside the country were not spared such kind and exemplary behavior. Some were questioned and identified by the Islamic Associations. And in response to all of these abuses and violations, Iran’s president simply presented the onlookers with a calm and satisfied smile and laughed off these events.
In France, the young members of the disgruntled refugees stormed the streets with cocktail Molotov explosives, injured more than 80 police officers, set fire to libraries, buses and other public buildings, even assaulted ordinary citizens while hiding their identities through masks, etc. The French President was out of town when some of these events were unfolding, but when he returned he went straight to the hospital from the airport where some of the injured policemen were hospitalized and consoled them. He also told them that he would confront those who had broken the law. Then he invited the families of the two young men whose deaths had precipitated the riots to the Elysee Palace and expressed his heartfelt sympathies with them and promised that he would follow up with the deaths to punish those responsible.
The transportation strike in France crippled the whole country and imposed damages worth millions of Euros on the country’s economy. And even though a sizeable section of French society disagreed with the strike, no person was arrested. What’s more the French media remained at the disposal of the strikers allowing them to speak their mind and spreading their word, while their representatives continued their talks at the presidential palace with the president and the prime minister.
In the Islamic Republic the striking workers from Haft Tappeh agro business, and other workers, who had gathered in front of provincial government buildings and the Majlis demanding their pays for the months of work that they had put in were treated differently, even though they were not demanding a raise in their wages or an improvement in their workplace. They were bloodied through violent attacks, spilling blood, and their leaders were rounded up and sentenced to years of jail (note the treatment that Vahed Company drivers received) and their leaders were sent back to prison. In one case, Mansoor Osanloo who was recovering from eye surgery, was taken to a prison which lacks medical services.
On the other side of the Eurasian continent, Mr. Sarkozy embarked on a round the world trip that took him to the United States, Hungary, Morocco, China etc. In the US he strengthened his bonds with American leaders. In China, he signed multi-billion Dollar contracts while reminding their leaders to be more responsible in their relations with Iran. In Hungary and Morocco, he did not stir any controversy or throw accusations.
The Iranian President too went on a trip. In Saudi Arabia he preached his world view, and in turn displeased everyone. He wrote a letter to Sarkozy, which everyone ignored. His international conference on the Caspian Sea appeared to echo the sell out that Iran had experienced in the Turkemenchai agreement in the 19 century. The meetings he had with his Arab “brethren” did not produce any results, and the Annapolis conference was held in the US without Iran’s participation. And while Mr. Ahmadinejad claims to be the initiator of all events, yet another resolution was in the making against Iran.
Still, both Presidents continue their work in their respective country. Iran’s President is obsessed that a senior former administrative official (on the nuclear negotiations team) was acquitted of any charges, failing to see that with every passing moment spent on the trivia, Iran’s international standing drops further closer to the abyss. And at the end of the day, it is the “young man” on the banks of the Seine River that laughs at the man who preaches him politics.
How I wish that our President too was “young” and “inexperienced.”