The treason of the intellectuals
On Harry’s Place, Potkin Azarmehr makes a most timely protest against London’s School of Oriental and African Studies which is hosting a celebration of the 29th Anniversary of the Islamic Republic. For the second year running, therefore, SOAS is providing the Iranians with a propaganda platform for a regime which, among other horrors, persecutes its own students. As Potkin observes:
Well if you could give the SOAS Administration the benefit of the doubt last year, a repeat of the same ‘symposium’ makes it impossible and cretinous to do so this year. For once again, an invitation by the Cultural Centre of the Embassy of the I.R. of Iran, accompanied by a poster with the heading ‘In Praise of the 29th Anniversary of the Victory of the Islamic Revolution’, has been sent out to embassy staff and associates for a 3 ay event, 6-8th February at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, with the usual reception starting at 6:30 pm. At a time when only recently, 43 Iranian students, across Iranian universities, have either been arrested or abducted by the Islamic Republic agents, it is a travesty of common decency and human values for the SOAS university to allow this cultural facade by the Islamic Republic to be held in a British university.Here from the website of Kamangir is a list of some the Iranian students who have been imprisoned by the regime for voicing any dissent:
- Arash Paknejad (m), Mozandaran University
- Saeid Habibi (m), as member of student’s human rights reporters
- Anoshe Azadbar (f), Tehran University
- Elinaz Jamshidi (f), Azad University of central Tehran student of communication
- Mehdi Gerilo (m), Tehran geophysics center
- Nader Ahseni (m), Mazandaran University
- Behroz karimizade (m), Tehran University
- Nasim Soltan-beigi (f), Alame Communication University
- Ali Sa`lem (m), Polytechnic University, student of Master degree in polymer
- Mohsen Qanim (m), Polytechnic University
- Rozbeh Saf-Shekan (m), Tehran University
- Yaser (Sadra) Pirhaiaty (m), Shahed University
- Saeid Aqam-Ali (m), Yazd University
- Ali Kolaee` (m), Azad University of Shahriar City
- Amir Mehrzad (m), (high School Student)
- Hadi Salary (m), Rajaey University
- Farshid Ahangaran(m), Rajaey University
- Amir Aqai (m), Rajaey University
- Milad Omrani (m), Rajaey University
- Keivan Amir Eliasy (m), Master of industrial engineer
- Soroush Hashem-poor (m), Ahvaz University
- Farshad Doosti-poor (m)
- Sohrab Karimi (m)
- Javad Alizade (m)
- Mohammad Salleh Auman (m)
- Mehdi al-lahyari (m), Sharif industrial University, student of master degree
- Rozbehan Amiri (m), Tehran University, Student of computer sciences
- Bahram Shojaee (m), Tehran-south Azad University, Student of Chemistry engineer
- Saied Aqakhani (m)
- Majid Ashraf Nejad (m)
- Peiman Piran (m), by other student report about him*
- Aabed Tavanche (m), Polytechnic University
- Soroosh Dastestany (m)
- Amin Qazaei (m)
- Bijan Sabaq (m), Mazandaran University
- Anahita hosini (f), Tehran University
- Morteza Khedmatlo (m)
- Mohamad Pour Abdol-lah (m), Tehran University
- Bita Samimi-zad (f), Polytechnic University
- Behzad Baqery (m), Mazandaran University
- Soroosh Sabet (m), Sharif University
- Morteza Eslahchi (m), Allame University
Kamangir says:
In the past month and half, many students from different cities and universities have been arrested, on charges related to holding peaceful ceremonies for the celebration of the 7th of November, the National Day for Students. They have been behind the bars since.Shouldn’t SOAS be organising instead a day in solidarity with these students who are the victims of the Iranian revolution? But SOAS is not alone in grovelling to tyranny. Look at what’s happening across the pond at Columbia university. The Iranian news network Press TV reports:
A delegation of professors from the Columbia University is to visit Tehran to apologize to Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The academic delegation is to apologize to the Iranian president over the offensive remarks made by the university's President, Lee Bollinger, prior to Ahmadinejad's address to the university students in September 2007. One of the university's professors who spoke on condition of anonymity told Mehr News Agency that the main purpose of the trip is to apologize to President Ahmadinejad.These ‘offensive’ remarks consisted of Bollinger telling Ahamdiejad home truths about his regime when the Iranian leader was — disgracefully — invited to speak at Columbia last year. Bollinger’s remarks were intended to lance the boil of that invitation. This was a wholly inadequate initiative since the invitation itself, which should never have been proferred, was a propaganda coup for Ahmadinejad, for whom it helped cement his power over the people of Iran — including these unfortunate students. Not content with that, a bunch of Columbia academics now intends to grovel for forgiveness for speaking truth to tyranny.
Truly, the observation that throughout history the intellectual mind has repeatedly shown itself to be in thrall to violence and the illegitimate exercise of power is once again being proved to be horribly spot on.