Worse than Shah-era Capitulation Laws
by SETAREH SABETY in Nice, France
17 Oct 2009 02:0012 Comments
30 years after the revolution, foreigners 'more equal' under Iranian law.
[ comment ] Ayatollah Khomeini, the founding father of the Islamic Republic, became a hero and the leader of the opposition to the Shah when he criticized the capitulation laws that granted U.S citizens protection from prosecution in Iran. He claimed in a legendary speech that a simple American cook could commit murder in Iran and not be tried, while an Iranian minister in America could be punished for the most minor offense.
In a bizarre twist of fate, in Khomeini's Islamic Republic three decades later, if you are a foreigner your chances of not being tortured and raped are much higher than if you are Iranian. Contrary to what this revolution was about, it is still better to be a foreigner. Hundreds of Iranians are languishing and undergoing physical and mental torture in the prisons, many for no other reason than expressing their beliefs, or letting out a little steam over the fraudulent election results.
While many of us follow reports of protests, deaths, beatings, tortures, rapes and funerals, many of us are not familiar with many of even the most prominent of our political prisoners. Amidst all the news of nuclear negotiations and international politics, there is now a risk that the world may never get to know them, or worse, forget them altogether.
I have written the following profile of Bahman Ahmadi Amouee as a first in a series of profiles on political prisoners and detainees in Iran. Amouee was jailed in the aftermath of the June 12 election. A friend who runs an NGO devoted to human rights in Iran told me that Ahmadi Amouee's case is a special one: after more than 100 days -- most of them spent in solitary confinement in Evin's notorious section 209, which is reserved for political prisoners -- there has been no report filed of his arrest. His lawyer and wife have now given interviews to Iranian websites hoping that exposure and recognition will help his case.
This 42-year-old Iranian journalist and economist, and his wife Jila Bani Yacob, were supporters of Mir Housien Mousavi, a presidential candidate thoroughly vetted by the very conservative Guardian Council. She was arrested along with her husband in the aftermath of the June 12 election. Bani Yacoub, also a journalist and women's rights activist, was freed on bail after 60 days in Evin.
Amouee and Bani Yacoub were arrested once before, during the June 2006 women's rights demonstrations in Tehran, where 40 women and 30 male sympathizers wound up in the very same section of Evin.
Like the president he so vehemently criticized in his writings, Amouee is a product of the Islamic Republic. He rose from humble tribal roots and was shaped by the education and training provided by local universities. His secularism and pragmatism is a product of this system, like many in the new generation of Iranians who have come of age after the revolution.
Bahman was born into the Bakhtiari tribe, which engaged in transhumance between the Chahar Mahal in the foothills of the Zagros Mountains and Khuzestan. He lived a tribal life until the age of six, when his family settled in Khuzestan province so that he could attend school. He went on to Babolsar University in the Caspian region up north and studied economics.
Amouee followed his studies with a brilliant career in journalism covering economic issues. He worked for many reformist newspapers and was editor of an economic publication called Sarmyeh (Capital). He authored two books, "The Political Economy of the Islamic Republic" and "How did Islamic Revolutionaries became Technocrats?"
Amouee is not a revolutionary, but a critic. One look at his work and it's apparent why the Ahmadinejad regime would see an enemy in this man. He has been a very vocal critic of the government's economic policies. In one article, "The Iranian Economy is on the brink of Collapse," Amouee criticized Ahmadinejad's complete disregard for the views of experts and economists. He questioned the government's policy of economic expansion at a time when he believed downsizing was needed. Amouee blamed the large budget deficit and the high rate of inflation on the government's continued and misguided ambition to control every aspect of the economy. He tackled the idea that Iran had lost, by many degrees, the position it held before the Islamic Revolution as the region's most developed nation, thus breaking a taboo of going public about the regressive nature of the economy.
In another article, "How Does a Nation become Corrupt?," he asks why Iran is amongst the most corrupt nations in the world, on a par with Somalia. He discussed the Iranian penchant for lying and hypocrisy, tying it to the long history of misrule and abuse of power in Iran. Amouee cites cheating and dishonesty that Ahmadinejad's petrol rationing creates as an example of how a nation becomes corrupt. And again, he blames the government's lack of respect for expert opinion for such corrupting measures. Amouee claims that these heavy-handed government policies create inflation, which in turn halt development and lead to rampant corruption. Amouee concludes that a history of repeated mistakes creates and sustains a culture of lies and corruption. To achieve change, the government's heavy and inexpert hands must be withdrawn from the economic sphere.
By the time I finished writing this article, Amouee's wife and his lawyer Farideh Ghayrat informed us that his arrest has finally been registered. Now the long and painstakingly slow bureaucratic judicial process can begin.
Amouee's arrest and imprisonment symbolize the Islamic Republic's fear of its own children. Amouee is one of many political prisoners to whom the Westernized label just does not stick. It is these ordinary Iranians who have arrived through separate paths and different fields of study to a common juncture where they question the archaic policies of an anachronistic theocracy. Until this government takes a long hard look at itself, its denials of its own shortcomings will be the biggest threat to its own power.
Photo: Judiciary Chief Sadegh Larijani and brother Ali Larijani, Speaker of Parliament, flank Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Copyright © 2009 Tehran Bureau
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12 Comments
marg bar shoma tudei ha ke hanooz dast az sare shah bar nemidarid, porrouha!
Anonymous / October 17, 2009 7:41 AMA very important report, especially in its characterization of Amouee as a natural product of the Islamic Republic rather than of Western thinking.
mahasti / October 17, 2009 8:57 AM"He tackled the idea that Iran had lost, by many degrees, the position it held before the Islamic Revolution as the region's most developed nation, thus breaking a taboo of going public about the regressive nature of the economy."
I haven't read this economist's work, but this author's contention is misleading.
While it may be true that modernization efforts can be called into question, the fact remains that Iran IS a more developed country than it was in 1979. That is to say, it hasn't regressed.
Sure, Iran no longer purchases extravagant Western fighter planes, helicopters, tanks, naval vessels. The Supreme Leader, the President and their immediate families don't jet-set around America and Europe on their own private full-size jetliners.
But you know what? Iran is fiercely independent and doesn't possess a sizable foreign debt. Compare that to say Turkey, and its sizable debt. Refraining from foreign dependence makes sense, if your goal is independence. And given Iran's history, this is certainly understandable.
Now I'm certainly not going to defend Ahmadinejad's handling of the economy- no way! But come on folks, let's keep it real here.
Pirouz / October 17, 2009 3:41 PMAvalan merci setareh jan , ina hamashoon ehtiaj be poshtibani darand.
2 Voman dar javabe in shakhs bayad begam ke nezame J.E ham ta azash enteghad mikonan tohmate saltanat talab mizaneo shekanjeo edam mikone , hala khoobe in shah doosta in ghodrato dige nadaran.
Farhad / October 17, 2009 4:59 PMTo Anonymous,
I don't like commenting on the comments that are so idiotic but you are really the "porrouha". I don't undrestand why some iranians don't get it that after 30 years, the era of Shah and his son are over for good. He was bad, and the current regime is much worse. None of them deserve to be the leaders of a democratic goverment/society. Anyone can say or write anything about Shah. It is part of the history, you know. That does not make them "tudie" as you put it.
Get a life.
MM / October 17, 2009 9:23 PMGood article, revealing the suppression of the freedom of speech which the present government of Iran has imposed on its people.
Roger / October 17, 2009 10:20 PMAs Mahasti said, Amouee wrote about matters which he, as a native Iranian, felt to be important and in need of change.
Pirouz may take issue with what Amouee wrote, but all should have the right to express opinions without fear of arrest, imprisonment and mistreatment.
Pirouz, "if your goal is independence"? Our goal is prosperous Iranians who are free to live their lives the way they want to.
Independence is a necessary tool to reach our goal, not the primary goal.
Sanctions have forced Iran to "make" a lot of things internally but if you've been there, you know that those products all suffer from horrible quality and high costs.
Having a decent economy requires strong management and quality competition; top managers suffer from either incompetent nepotism or are corrupt people looking for bribes to make a living.
And heavy government control has eliminated competition from most industries and turned them into slow, costly virtual monopolies.
Hamid / October 17, 2009 10:51 PMThanks Setareh! I recognize the value of writing a series of profiles on political prisoners and detainees in Iran. These people deserve to be acknowledged for the sacrifices they are making. As always, you add a tasteful twist by pointing out a notable aspect within the central theme of your story, which is much appreciated.
Iman / October 18, 2009 2:41 AMSetareh Khanoom:
Can you please also write about political prisoners and people that have been detained before June 12th and are still being kept in different prisons? They need to be remembered too. For example, in Ghohar Dasht prison in Karaj (I think this prison has been renamed), as I have read in different articles, number of students and activits are being held and it is supposed to be one the worst prisons as far as treatment of prisoners. I read that as you enter this prison, all trace of humanity ends. There must be other prisoners that were arrested in the years leading up to the June 12 crisis.
Thank you
MM / October 19, 2009 7:00 AMRelated to my earlier comment:
24 year old commits suicide in iran prison
MM / October 23, 2009 11:29 PMAccording to a recent report, a prisoner committed suicide in Ward 1 of Gohardasht Prison in Karaj (west of Tehran), after inhumane pressure and treatment.
The prisoner was 24 year old Reza Rezaee. He had spent over four years in prison. He was only one month away from being released when he committed suicide. The savage treatment he received (other prisoners continue to receive this treatment) made life in prison unbearable for this young man.
On Thursday October 15, 2009, Reza Rezaee committed suicide. He was found by one of his inmates. They transferred Reza to the prison’s health section. Rezaee`s brother was executed in one of the mass-executions two months ago.
The suicide rate at Gohardasht Prison’s Ward 1 is very high, mainly due to the high amount of physical and psychological torture, savage treatment, and inhumane living conditions. This ward is nicknamed, “The Ending Ward.”
The average age of those who commit suicide at the prison is between 18-38 years old.
Activists for Human Rights and Democracy in Iran (AHRDI) condemn the savage and inhumane pressure placed on prisoners that result in suicides. AHRDI asks the UN Commissioner for Human Rights to send a committee to Iranian prisons to monitor what is happening. http://persian2english.wordpress.com/
Capitulation, or giving total and blanket legal privilege to foreign nationals, started with the Qajar dynasty. The most significant and humilating one was given to Russian citizens, under Torkamanchai contract.
This was, partly, due to our lack of a proper judiciary and a uniform civil or criminal code. At the end of Qajar, other than Russia and Britain, more than 13 other countries, including Turkey, Spain, Belgium, France and Holland had legal immunities for their citizens in Iran.
After Ali Akbar Daavar, on the orders of Shahs father, put together first administative and civil codes of Iran - a masterpiece at the time that is still valid, three decades after the Islamic Revolution-the new King, Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1928, announced the abolition of capitulation for all foreign nationals in Iran, once and for all*.
Ayatollah Khomeini - as a way to inflame and excite the masses- was probably talking about diplomatic immunity, that is usually extended to all diplomatic personel of every embassy. So, theoritically, yes, a cook of any embassy could enjoy diplomatic immunity, even after committing a serious crime, in the host country.
A low ranking officer of the embassy of Georgia, killed an American citizen in Washington, D.C. area, while driving drunk, a few years ago. He used this privilege and went back freely to Georgia ( however, Georgian Prez Edward Shevrenaze later waived his immunity, I believe and returned him back to the States).
Ordinary foreign citizens were not protected by diplomatic immunity in Iran. A famous case, is the case of the two employees of a company belonging to Ross Perot. This was before the Revolution and the two were charged with a crime and were in an Iranian prison. The story later was made into a movie( "On the wings of the Eagle").
*Source: Iran and the Rise of Reza Shah by Cyrus Ghani
www.Iranian.com
Mohsen / October 24, 2009 2:52 AMwhat can we expect from this culture? if truth be told turkey's income from tourism(which we have destroyed) for many years was on par with the money we got from oil. even the quality and the market for the rugs have collapsed. we do not produce shoes or leather goods at the same level as the 70's. a good example is the iranian auto industry where by the governments admission the entire amount invested had not produced a product that could compete internationally. we have a production line of samand (iran khodrou) in ukraine that has produced less than a thousand cars so far. w a few months ago mr. tourkan(former minister tied to rafsanjani) was asked in an issue of edalate meli what was his view on mr. Ahmadinejads economic program and his answer: " mr. Ahamadinejad has no program. "the paper was shut down that week. what do we have, hoarding and manipulation of the market. the idea that production is good, that it should be promoted is it even in us? I for one am amazed at what our economy considering the oil wealth,natural resources the level and quality of the trained and untrained labor can be or rather what if failed to be given all that. as mast ke az mast
leila / November 8, 2009 3:48 AM