RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
_________________________________________ ____________________
RFE/RL Iran Report
Vol. 8, No. 38, 27 September 2005
A Review of Developments in Iran Prepared by the Regional Specialists
of RFE/RL’s Newsline Team
************************************************************
HEADLINES:
* IRAN COMMEMORATES 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF WAR WITH IRAQ
* HARD TO PIN BLAME FOR MOST RECENT IRAQ VIOLENCE
* TEHRAN DENIES ROLE IN IRAQI UNREST
* IRAN TO GET ANOTHER PASS FROM IAEA
* TEHRAN HANGS TOUGH ON NUCLEAR ISSUE
* LITTLE SAID ABOUT SAFETY OF IRAN’S NUCLEAR PROGRAM
* IRANIAN DIPLOMAT ARRESTED IN IRAN
* POLITICAL PRISONERS CASES TO BE REVIEWED
* WRANGLE CONTINUES OVER DIPLOMA MILL
* SUPREME LEADER PROMISES SALVATION
************************************************************
IRAN COMMEMORATES 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF WAR WITH IRAQ. A military
parade marking the beginning of Holy Defense Week, which commemorates
the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War, took place in Tehran on 22 September,
state television reported. Hardware on display included: Mobarez,
Zolfaqar, and T-72 tanks; M-113 and BMP-2 armored personnel carriers;
and artillery pieces. The missiles on display included: Hawk,
Shihab-3, Tondar-69, Zelzal-1 and -2, as well as antiship and
antiarmor missiles. Among the personnel participating in the parade
were handicapped veterans, a brass band, cadets, paratroopers,
commandos, military police, air-force personnel, and sailors, as well
as Revolutionary Guards from infantry, naval, and armored units.
Basij members also participated in the parade.
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad gave a speech before the parade
began, state television reported. Twenty-five years ago, he said, “a
front comprised of arrogant powers and some of the regional countries
started the most widespread attack on the Iranian nation.” Iran, he
said “humiliated and embarrassed its enemies.” Ahmadinejad said Iran
wants friendly relations with other countries, and history shows a
powerful Iran is the “best friend” of its neighbors and the region.
Those who test Iran should know that “the flames of the Iranian
nation’s wrath are very destructive.” He attributed continuing
insecurity in Iraq to its occupation, adding, “We want a popular
government, security and peace to be established in oppressed Iraq
and we want the occupation to end so that the way is paved for
progress and development.” Ahmadinejad also called for the departure
of foreign forces from the Caspian Sea. (Bill Samii)
HARD TO PIN BLAME FOR MOST RECENT IRAQ VIOLENCE. Holy Defense Week,
Iran’s annual commemoration of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War, began
on 22 September. The first day featured a military parade marking the
armed forces’ role in protecting the country from former Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein’s aggression. As Iran marks the end of
one conflict involving Iraq, it faces accusations of contributing to
an ongoing one. The situation in Iraq is so convoluted at the moment
that blaming just one party does little to clarify or resolve the
situation.
Tensions In The South
British officials believe Iran is behind increasing violence
in southern Iraq, London’s “The Times” reported on 20 September.
The report connected violence in Al-Basrah the previous day with the
arrest by British military personnel of leading figures in the Imam
Al-Mahdi Army of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The report went on
to link Iran’s purported actions against the British with
London’s toughening stance on the Iranian nuclear program.
Asked if he believes Iran is behind tension in southern Iraq,
U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on 20 September: “Iran
has been busy in southern Iraq for years and years and years,”
voa.com reported. “They’ve sent pilgrims back and forth across
that border into those Shi’ite holy sites on a regular basis. The
borders are porous.” Rumsfeld was not certain about an Iranian role
in the previous day’s incidents, but he added, “They’re
interested, they’re involved, and they’re active.” Rumsfeld
continued: “And it’s not helpful. You know, you can overplay your
hand.”
Speakers at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) on 14
September also discussed the Iranian role in Iraq (see
). Ken Pollack, the
director of research at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at
the Brookings Institution, said the establishment of safe houses and
networks are just some of the suspicious Iranian activities in Iraq.
Another speaker, USIP senior fellow Babak Rahimi, noted that by dint
of proximity it would not be difficult for Iran to interfere in
southern Iraq. These two, as well as the Nixon Center’s Geoffrey
Kemp and Georgetown University’s Daniel Brumberg, concurred that
Iran is very sensitive to Iraqi affairs and U.S. actions there.
However, none of them described how extensive Iranian interference in
Iraqi affairs might be at the moment.
There is little question of an active Iranian presence in
southern Iraq specifically or of Iranian involvement in its
neighbor’s affairs since at least March 2003. Tehran’s stand
towards events in Iraq has developed against a backdrop of continuing
hostility to what it perceives as its greatest enemy — the United
States. Iran also is faced with the possibility of Kurdish autonomy
and being surpassed by Iraq as the center of Shi’a Islam (see
also “The Nearest and Dearest Enemy — Iran after the Iraq War,”
)
Tehran Blames Washington
Tehran rejects links with the violence in Iraq and attributes
it to the United States. Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Assefi
said on 21 September, “Publishing such reports is aimed at concealing
the incapability of the occupying forces in restoring security to
Iraq,” the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported. If anything,
Assefi said, Iran has contributed to stability in Iraq by working
with the central government and other parties.
The day before, Supreme National Security Council Secretary
Ali Larijani told a Tehran press conference that Iran has tried to
bring stability to Iraq, state television reported. Larijani, like
Assefi, pinned the blame on the United States. He said, “We believe
that the occupation of Iraq and the bases they are setting up there
and their humiliating behavior towards the Iraqi people have resulted
in an extreme reaction.”
The 14 September bombings in Baghdad, which killed hundreds
of people, also were blamed on the United States. Guardians Council
Secretary Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said in his 16 September
Friday-prayers sermon in Tehran that the violence is harmful to all
Muslims and all Iraqis, state radio reported. He went on to say that
the United States has more plots for the region and is “constantly
causing insecurity.” Jannati claimed, “They want to poison the minds
of the Shi’ia that the Sunnis are behind these incidents. They
want to create discord and distrust among Shi’a and Sunnis. They
have various political objectives with these tensions and killings.”
Ayatollah Ebrahim Amini-Najafabadi said in his 16 September
Friday-prayer sermon in Qom that the people responsible for the
bombings are targeting Shi’a and are “knowingly or unknowingly”
harming Iraq, state television reported on 17 September. He
explained: “Apparently there are certain hands which want to put the
Iraqi people against each other. The aim is in fact to rationalize
the foreign occupation. Obviously when the country is not safe, the
occupiers have the pretext that ‘if we leave, the country will
fall apart, Iraq will fall apart.’ This is the pretext for
remaining.” He added: “The main responsibility for all these crimes
lies with the aggressors, led by America and Israel. They entered
Iraq with the excuse that they want to bring security and justice. Is
this security?”
A Difficult Situation
The situation in Iraq is so complex at the moment that to
attribute the violence to just one or two actors would be woefully
simplistic. Several reports on 21 September in “The Wall Street
Journal,” “The Guardian,” the “Financial Times,” and “The Christian
Science Monitor” carry interviews with experts from across the
political spectrum, as well as diplomats and locals, who note that
Shi’ite militias — most notably the Badr Corps and the Al-Mahdi
Army — are active in the south and have infiltrated the police and
other institutions. Therefore, the primary loyalty of individuals in
the security agencies and local government is to these Shi’ite
organizations. An anonymous Baghdad-based “Western diplomat” told
“The Guardian” after a visit to Al-Basrah that the militias are
involved with smuggling, as well. Moreover, there are rivalries
between the different Shi’ite militias. A clash occurred in
Al-Najaf in August when the Al-Mahdi Army tried to reopen its office
in the city (see “RFE/RL Iraq Report,” 26 August 2005).
The Sunni-Shi’a rift is widening, too. Fugitive Jordanian
terrorist Abu Mus’ab al-Zarqawi’s 14 September declaration of
war on Shi’a came on the heels of his July announcement that the
newly established Umar Brigade’s sole function is to kill Badr
Corps personnel (see “RFE/RL Iraq Report,” 19 August and 19 September
2005). Other Sunni groups, including the Ansar Al-Sunnah Army and the
Victorious Sect Army, claim to have killed Badr Corps personnel.
Resolution of the tense situation in Iraq through the
give-and-take of civilized political discourse is possible and is
clearly the desire of most Iraqis. Bringing about an atmosphere in
which this dialogue can take place requires the elimination or at
least neutralization of extremists like al-Zarqawi and his followers.
(Bill Samii)
TEHRAN DENIES ROLE IN IRAQI UNREST. Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim
al-Ja’fari said on 22 September in London that he is unaware of
Iranian involvement in recent violence in Al-Basrah, Al-Alam
television reported. In Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza
Assefi said British allegations of Iranian involvement in the Iraqi
unrest are “categorically baseless” and “superficial,” IRNA reported.
(Bill Samii)
IRAN TO GET ANOTHER PASS FROM IAEA. The governing board of the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) began a meeting on the
Iranian and Korean nuclear cases on 19 September, just two days after
Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad delivered his nuclear proposal
to the UN General Assembly (see “RFE/RL Iran Report,” 20 September
2005). Disappointed statements from French and British officials and
others from American ones suggested that the Iranian case might be
referred to the UN Security Council, which could lead to a range of
sanctions. By the end of the week, however, it became clear that
action on the issue will be postponed for a few more months.
Ahmadinejad’s proposal did not impress French Foreign
Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy, AFP reported on 17 September. He
said, “What I heard today obliges me to say that the option of the
International Atomic Energy Agency report to the United Nations is
still on the agenda.” Douste-Blazy noted that Ahmadinejad is ignoring
the concerns of the international community. Douste-Blazy said Paris
does not oppose Iran’s having a civilian nuclear program, but
“our position is still firm: Iran must not develop the sensitive
parts of the [nuclear] process. This would enable it to produce
fissile materials.”
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw described the Iranian
measure as “unhelpful and disappointing,” “The Guardian” reported on
19 September. Washington is organizing a meeting of senior U.S.
officials and their counterparts from France, Germany, and Great
Britain to consider their next step, the daily added.
An anonymous “Western diplomat” told AFP on 19 January that
France, Great Britain, and Germany are distributing a draft
resolution at the IAEA meeting in Vienna that calls for Iran to be
reported to the Security Council. The diplomat said the process is
informal so far and the resolution will be formalized only after
consultation with members of the IAEA’s governing board.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a 19 June
interview with “Time” magazine that Washington believes Iran should
have been referred to the Security Council “some time ago.” The
reason to refer Iran to the council is that it engaged in
uranium-enrichment activities, which is permitted under the Nuclear
Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), without disclosing them or allowing
their monitoring, which are NPT requirements. Rice indicated that
most of the IAEA governing board’s members would support a
resolution referring Iran to the Security Council. According to
“Time,” however, China, Russia, and some less-developed countries on
the board would like to give Iran more time to comply with its NPT
obligations.
U.S. Ambassador to the IAEA Gregory Schulte said in an
exclusive interview with Radio Farda on 20 September that the time to
refer the Iranian nuclear dossier to the Security Council is overdue.
He noted that IAEA Director-General Muhammad el-Baradei has said
questions about the Iranian program remain, and negotiations between
Tehran and the EU-3 (France, Germany, and the United Kingdom) have
gotten nowhere. Instead of confidence building, he told Radio Farda,
Iran has destroyed confidence.
Ahmadinejad’s comments at the UN General Assembly were
not only unconstructive and worrisome for the international
community, Schulte told Radio Farda, but they should worry the
Iranian people as well. That is because the European proposal made in
July was good for Iran, would have given it access to peaceful
nuclear technology, and would have helped the Iranian economy. “But
Iran’s leaders did not accept this proposal,” he said (see
“RFE/RL Iran Report,” 9 August 2005).
The EU-3 withdrew on 22 September a slightly amended draft
resolution that would have referred Iran to the UN Security Council
for possible sanctions in the future, instead of immediately, Reuters
reported. The EU-3 and the United States want Iran taken before the
Security Council due to its inadequate cooperation with the IAEA and
its history of clandestine nuclear activities. Moscow and Beijing,
which have veto power in the council, and other less-developed
countries, opposed the harsher resolution. “We are decisively opposed
to an artificial exacerbation of the situation, including the
transfer of the question to the UN Security Council,” Russian
Ambassador to the IAEA Grigorii Berdennikov said according to Reuters
on 22 September.
In the face of this opposition, RFE/RL reported, the
Europeans have opted for continued negotiations until the next IAEA
meeting in November. Iranian Ambassador to the IAEA Mohammad Mehdi
Akhundzadeh said in Vienna, “There is no consensus whatever to [refer
Iran to the Security Council], and I believe that that’s a
message, that if there is to be a solution, that it is to be through
a consensus.” (Bill Samii)
TEHRAN HANGS TOUGH ON NUCLEAR ISSUE. Members of the Iranian executive
and legislative branches remained defiant when faced with the
possibility of being referred to the UN Security Council. “Our stance
will not change,” President Ahmadinejad said in a 19 September
interview with Iranian state television when asked about the
possibility of referral to the UN Security Council over his
country’s nuclear program. He predicted that there will be no
sanctions. Ahmadinejad implied — in an interview with “Time”
magazine that appeared on its website on 17 September — that Iran
might deny access to international nuclear inspectors or manipulate
international oil supplies.
Parliamentarian Alaedin Borujerdi said in a state television
roundtable on 18 September that Iran’s “aggressive policy” is
very effective. Borujerdi said the United States should abide by the
NPT and stop bullying other countries. If the issue is referred to
the Security Council, Borujerdi said, Iran will close its doors to
IAEA inspectors. He added that activities at the Natanz enrichment
facility could begin. Borujerdi encouraged the Europeans to negotiate
with Iran.
Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani said
in a 20 September press conference broadcast on state television that
the United States and occasionally the IAEA are not standing by the
articles of the NPT. Larijani said the treaty allows for the peaceful
use of nuclear technology for power production. He said Iran has not
violated any laws in developing its nuclear program, has never sought
nuclear weapons, and has been very cooperative with the IAEA. He said
Iran is willing to continue negotiations with European countries. He
advised against bullying Iran and said North Korea withdrew from the
NPT because of the pressure it faced. Larijani stressed that Iran has
a right to develop nuclear technology and it refuses to be treated
like a second-class country. If Iran is referred to the Security
Council, Larijani said, it will reconsider its accession to the
Additional Protocol of the NPT and will not “harbor any doubt on
resuming enrichment.”
Vice President for Atomic Energy Gholamreza Aqazadeh-Khoi
said in Vienna on 21 September that Iran does not plan to leave the
NPT and the country remains committed to its obligations, IRNA
reported. Aqazadeh-Khoi said he briefed members of the Nonaligned
Movement on Tehran’s discussions with the EU-3 (Germany, Great
Britain, and France) earlier in the week. “These explanations were
necessary and my sense was that they will have an important impact on
the decision making at the current meeting of the board of
governors.”
Foreign Minister Manuchehr Mottaki, who was in New York to
participate in a meeting of Nonaligned Movement foreign ministers,
said on 21 September that Iran has gone far in trying to build
international confidence in the peaceful nature of its nuclear
program, IRNA reported. “We have adopted a whole range of measures,
including signing and implementing the additional protocol,
voluntarily suspending enrichment activities for nearly two years,
and facilitating for the IAEA to carry out around 1,200 [man/days of]
inspection on our facilities,” he said. He went on to say that Iran
is willing to continue its cooperation, but it refuses to give up its
perceived right to operate a nuclear fuel cycle.
Islamabad-i Gharb parliamentary representative Heshmatollah
Falahat-Pisheh, who serves on the National Security and Foreign
Policy Committee, said on 21 September that Iran should continue with
its nuclear program and argued against conceding anything in
negotiations, the Mehr news agency reported. He complained that “the
IAEA has been turned into an office for monopolistic activities,”
adding, “We are witnessing a political power game in the IAEA board
of governors and therefore it is unlikely that [Iran’s plan] will
be accepted.”
Another legislator, Hussein Nejabat, said on 21 September
that Iran has complied with its NPT obligations and could pull out of
the treaty if it is referred to the UN Security Council, the Iranian
Students News Agency (ISNA) reported. He criticized Iran’s
voluntary suspension of nuclear activities. If Iran leaves the NPT
uranium conversion and enrichment would take place at facilities in
Isfahan and Natanz, respectively.
Hard-line Karaj parliamentary representative Rashid Jalali
said on 20 September that nobody will benefit if Iran is referred to
the UN Security Council, “Iran” reported. He thought it unlikely that
Iran will be referred to the council but acceded that a resolution
might be forthcoming. He added, “Nothing unusual will occur when
Iran’s case is referred to the UN Security Council, because we
are a signatory of the NPT and they cannot go beyond the treaty and
take action against Iran.” Jalali went on to say that Europe and the
United States do not want Iran to have access to the fuel cycle and
they are trying to “initiate a new political movement against Iran.”
(Bill Samii)
LITTLE SAID ABOUT SAFETY OF IRAN’S NUCLEAR PROGRAM. As the
International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) 35-member board of
governors contemplates the Iranian nuclear program this week, the
United States — and reportedly, France, Germany, and the United
Kingdom — are calling for Iran’s referral to the UN Security
Council.
President Ahmadinejad threatened in a 19 September interview
with Iranian state television that Tehran would take unspecific
actions should the case go to the Security Council. In a 17 September
interview with “Time,” Ahmadinejad hinted at denial of access to
international nuclear inspectors or the reduction of oil supplies.
While the international community considers issues such as
the extent of Iran’s cooperation with the IAEA and the
possibility that the country is trying to develop nuclear weapons,
the safety of the Iranian nuclear program has gotten less notice. Any
accidents at the nuclear reactor being built in Bushehr in
southwestern Iran could have an international impact, and the issue
therefore deserves international attention.
Regional Concerns
IAEA Director-General Muhammad el-Baradei said in his opening
remarks at a 6-7 September conference in Vienna marking the nuclear
disaster in Chornobyl: “The first lesson that emerged from Chernobyl
was the direct relevance of international cooperation to nuclear
safety. The accident revealed a sharp disparity in nuclear design and
operational safety standards. It also made clear that nuclear and
radiological risks transcend national borders — that ‘an
accident anywhere is an accident everywhere'” (for the full text,
see
).
At least two of Iran’s neighbors — Kuwait and Saudi
Arabia — have already expressed their concerns about safety issues.
When Hojatoleslam Hassan Rohani, who was secretary of the Supreme
National Security Council at the time, visited Kuwait and other
Persian Gulf states in June it was to assuage these countries’
fears, “Sharq” reported on 7 June.
Rohani said at the time, “I also made clear to our Kuwaiti
brethren that Iran’s peaceful nuclear programs would be fully run
under the close supervision of the [IAEA], and therefore, they should
not be the source of any fear for the regional, or international
circles,” the IRNA reported on 7 June.
Iran awarded the Bushehr safety contract — worth some $20
million — to the Bezopasnost (Safety) enterprise of Rostekhnadzor,
Russia’s Federal Service for Environmental, Technological, and
Nuclear Oversight, “Sharq” reported on 19 April.
“Kuwait’s or Saudi’s concern over the safety of the
Bushehr nuclear plant is understandable, because the Russians
don’t have such a stellar track record and reputation in nuclear
safety around the world,” Najmedin Meshkati, a professor of
civil/environmental engineering and industrial and systems
engineering at the University of Southern California and an
international nuclear safety expert, told Radio Farda. “We —
Iranians — are also aware of these facts, and that’s why we
should try to get other qualified safety-related service and
technology provider companies from Europe and the United States to
participate in Bushehr.” Meshkati told Radio Farda that this is the
only logical way Iran can convince its neighbors that the Bushehr
facility is as safe as a Western one.
Meshkati stressed that experts working at Iran’s Atomic
Energy Organization are competent, but nuclear power plant safety is
complex and multifaceted. Therefore, he said, several companies with
expertise and knowledge in different areas should complement each
other. “How can they put all their eggs in one basket?” Meshkati
asked. “There is no single company that possesses all that needed
expertise in-house.”
Meshkati asked how an individual Russian company with an
unknown history can execute such a big job, adding that independent
Western firms should participate in the project so the different
companies can cross-check each other. “However, because of sanctions,
Iran does not have access to the Western companies that could take
care of Bushehr’s safety,” he said.
The safety issue is so serious, Meshkati said, that it should
be kept distinct from political considerations. He said Iran should
initiate a parallel line of negotiation for obtaining
nuclear-safety-related services and technologies from the West.
Meshkati also expressed concern about the safety culture in
general. He noted that culture and an emphasis on secrecy were
factors that contributed to the disasters at Three Mile Island in the
United States in 1979 and at Chornobyl in the Soviet Union in 1986.
The IAEA And Bushehr
Ken Brockman, IAEA director of nuclear safety and nuclear
installation, seems more confident about safety at Bushehr. He told
Radio Farda that the Iranians are very involved with their Russian
counterparts. He said they have a “long-term vision” of achieving
independence in safety. Brockman said he has visited Bushehr “many
times” and has seen the Iranian dedication to quality control. He
stressed that Iran has the primary responsibility for safety and the
Russians are there to provide support in that area.
Brockman went on to explain that the IAEA is involved with
the Bushehr project. “We have an active program under technical
cooperation and initiative with Iran working both with the operators
and with the regulatory body there. There have been numerous
peer-review missions.” Brockman said experts from other countries
come to Bushehr and to the Iranian regulatory agency to ensure that
activities there benefit from global expertise. Brockman said the
situation at Bushehr is satisfactory. “From my tour there, visiting
the plant, I would say I am very comfortable with the commitment that
Iran has in that regard recognizing their responsibilities.” (Fatemeh
Aman, Bill Samii)
IRANIAN DIPLOMAT ARRESTED IN IRAN. Judiciary spokesman and Justice
Minister Jamal Karimirad said on 19 September that an Iranian
ambassador was arrested four or five days earlier on financial
corruption charges, Fars News Agency reported. Karimirad said the
amount of money in the case is 16 million euros ($19.2 million) and
it is connected with an official who served under former Foreign
Minister Kamal Kharrazi. Karimirad did not identify the individual,
and earlier news reports asserted that Cyrus Nasseri, a senior
representative to the IAEA, refused to go home to face corruption
charges (see “RFE/RL Iran Report,” 29 August and 12 September 2005).
However, Nasseri appeared in photographs of the Iranian delegation at
the IAEA meeting in Vienna on 19 September. (Bill Samii)
POLITICAL PRISONERS CASES TO BE REVIEWED. An early September letter
from the Association in Defense of Prisoners’ Rights to the head
of the judiciary, Ayatollah Mahmud Hashemi-Shahrudi, calls for a
review of the cases of 34 prisoners, “Aftab-i Yazd” and “Etemad”
reported on 18 September. Most of the named individuals are being
held for political offenses — this includes student activists Ahmad
Batebi and Manuchehr Mohammadi, as well as Abbas Amir-Entezam.
Iran’s longest-serving political prisoner, Amir-Entezam was
sentenced to life imprisonment in December 1980. “Sharq” reported on
18 September that Hashemi-Shahrudi has ordered an investigation into
these cases.
Sohrab Suleimani, the Tehran Province prison chief, said on
17 September that dissident journalist Akbar Ganji’s health is
improving, the ILNA reported. Ganji recently ended a 70-day hunger
strike. Suleimani denied that Ganji is in solitary confinement and
said he is in Evin Prison’s medical quarantine section, as are
several other prisoners. Meanwhile, “Iran News” on 15 September cited
the wife of imprisoned lawyer Abdolfattah Soltani as saying that her
husband is in a shared cell but is not allowed to make telephone
calls or have access to newspapers. Soltani is the attorney for the
accused in a case involving nuclear espionage, and he also faces
espionage charges. (Bill Samii)
WRANGLE CONTINUES OVER DIPLOMA MILL. In his 16 September
Friday-prayer sermon in Tehran, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati demanded to
know why nothing has been done about the case of the American
University in Hawaii. Approximately one year ago, Iranian legal
officials reported that the American University of Hawaii, a diploma
mill with headquarters in the United States, was issuing degrees that
the government did not recognize (see “RFE/RL Iran Report,” 27
September 2004).
This institution granted degrees in exchange for the payment
of fees, and it did not require class attendance. On 15 September,
“Iran” newspaper criticized the judiciary for its failure to take
action.
In August, the university case was referred to the judiciary
for action. But since then, according to a 7 September “Jomhuri-yi
Islami” report, there has been a bureaucratic tie-up. When the case
first came to light, Iranian newspapers noted that a number of
government and judiciary officials had gotten their credentials from
the American University of Hawaii.
Justice Minister and judiciary spokesman Jamal Karimirad
tried to allay in early September any concerns about the possibility
of a conflict of interest. According to the “Jomhuri-yi Islami”
report, he said, “Some media organs have suggested that since a
number of individuals who are currently working in different parts of
the judiciary are graduates of that university, the judiciary as a
whole does not intend to investigate and process this legal dossier
seriously.” He continued, “Full investigative and judicial work on
this dossier will commence during the coming month.”
According to its website, the American University of Hawaii
has campuses in 19 countries, and Iran is not the only place where it
is having problems. The U.S. state of Hawaii’s Department of
Commerce and Consumer Affairs has filed several injunctions against
the institution. The founder of the institution, Hassan Safavi, will
go on trial in the state on 7 November. The complaint against the
institution notes that it is not accredited by any recognized agency
or association, is “engaged in the operation of the unaccredited
degree-granting institution,” and “offered to sell and sold
postsecondary degrees.”
This is not the only Iranian case involving a diploma mill.
When Ali Saidlu was being considered as the prospective oil minister
in President Ahmadinejad’s government in August, it was revealed
that he had received a doctorate in strategic management from
Hartford University (see “RFE/RL Iran Report,” 29 August 2005 ).
Hartford University is registered on the Pacific island of Vanuatu
and offers degrees in exchange for money, according to “Time”
magazine on 5 September.
There are other diploma mills operating in Iran. The Russian
Voronezh State University’s branch in Iran was fined and closed,
and the Eastern Studies Institute, which is affiliated with
France’s Sorbonne University, was investigated.
‘Credentialism’
The appeal of such institutions reflects a phenomenon called
“madrak gerayi,” roughly translated as “degree-ism.” This phenomenon
also is referred to as “credentialism,” which is an excessive
emphasis on formal educational qualifications in employment. Some see
a higher degree as an entree to a higher position and the
commensurate increase in salary, benefits, and prestige. Others just
want a higher degree to satisfy their egos.
Credentialism and the related problem of diploma mills are
not peculiar to Iran. A May 2004 report
() by the U.S. General
Accounting Office (GAO) found that some U.S. government officials
have enhanced their resumes by getting degrees from diploma mills.
Such institutions “require no academic work at all and merely sell
degrees for a fee.” The GAO investigation found that in some cases
these institutions structured their charges so the federal government
would pay the students’ fees.
A second GAO report
() showed that a diploma
mill can be created with relative ease. The main requirements for
creating a diploma mill are a website, a telephone number, and a post
office box.
The outcome of the Iranian case involving the American
University of Hawaii is far from obvious. Legal cases in Iran
sometimes just fade away without being resolved. But as long as
Iranians retain the hope that academic credentials could lead to
jobs, when the country is experiencing double-digit unemployment, the
problem of credentialism is unlikely to disappear. (Bill Samii)
SUPREME LEADER PROMISES SALVATION. In a speech commemorating the
anniversary of the birth of the 12th Imam (Muhammad al-Mahdi),
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said salvation will occur if
people wait and do not succumb to despair, “Hamshahri” reported on 21
September. He said the United States tries to fool Islamic
countries’ officials into believing that they are incapable and
must surrender to the United States. Khamenei praised President
Ahmadinejad’s speech at the UN and said the speech pleased
Iranians. “This means that the Iranian nation will not surrender to
threats, force, and pressure,” he said. (Bill Samii)
*********************************************************
Copyright (c) 2005. RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.
The “RFE/RL Iran Report” is a weekly prepared by A. William Samii on
the basis of materials from RFE/RL broadcast services, RFE/RL
Newsline, and other news services.
Direct comments to A. William Samii at [email protected].
For information on reprints, see:
Back issues are online at