اميرمصدق كاتوزيان، مصاحبه با محمد ملكي
Summary of Today's BroadcastRFE/RL Persian ServiceWednesday, March 06, 2002 * Nationalist-Religious Defendants Reject Charges * Factional Unity but Public Alienation * Majles Approves Ban on Torture * Jury finds Reformist Daily Guilty * Textile Factory on Strike * Tehran Mayor's First Day on the Job * ECO Meets in Tehran Nine Nationalist-Religious Defendants Publicize Their Defense * In a detailed letter addressed to the nation, nine members of the Nationalist-Religious coalition denied charges of "subversion." They denied membership in or involvement with the Iraq-based Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization; and claim they were quoted out of context to prove unfounded charges of insulting the religion. The letter answers only the charges made public in court statements and press interviews, says one defendant, Dr. Mohammad Maleki, Tehran University's first post-revolutionary president. Maleki, free on bail, tells RFE/RL that they issued the letter after the revolutionary court refused their repeated demands for public trials. Maleki says the defendants faced solitary confinement, night-time interrogations and drug induced confessions, all acts the Majlis banned in its new anti-torture bill. (Amir-Mossadeq Katouzian) National Unity without the Public? * While cooperation between the regime's conservatives and reformists could result from the perceived foreign threat and revelations about financial links to a wealthy businessman now on trial for corruption, both factions have become alienated from the general public, according to Majles MP and university professor Dr. Qasem Shoaleh-Sa'adi. He tells RFE/RL that the inability of the reformists to meet expectations of them has cost them public support. Even if the two factions unite, he says true national unity depends on the people, but he does not see in Iran's officials "an attitude of respect for people's votes." (Ardavan Niknam) Majlis Approves Ban on Torture and Forced Confessions * The definition of "prisoner" in the new bill does not include those who are kidnapped and interrogated for months without a court order, Paris-based human rights activist Abdolkarim Lahiji tells RFE/RL. Though the anti-torture bill could improve the lot of detainees, Lahiji says, the councils specified in the bill for reviewing their treatment require the cooperation of the judiciary, which has not been forthcoming in the past. (Mina Baharmast) Press Court Jury Finds Reformist Daily Guilty * The jury in the press court trial of the daily "Now Ruz" has found the license holder, Mohsen Mirdamadi, guilty on 22 counts of "publishing lies and misleading the public." Mirdamadi, an MP who heads the Majles national security committee, took responsibility for his newspaper's articles. Tehran-based lawyer Mohammad-Hossein Aghassi tells RFE/RL that the judge will be more lenient than the jury, and on account of a new "d‚tente" in Tehran internal politics the judge will neither void Mirdamadi's publishing license nor throw him in jail. (Shireen Famili) Textile Factory Workers Demand Pay by Blocking Highway near Tehran * Demanding four months of back pay, workers of the Jahan textile factory near Tehran blocked the highway to Karaj. A widow with one child who has worked in the factory for 18 years tells RFE/RL that most workers have no money for food or rent. During the past year, more than 2000 of the factory's 3700 workers were laid off, she says. Another worker interviewed by RFE/RL says the owner, the Foundation for the Dispossessed and War Veterans (Bonyad Mostazefan va Janbazan), is bankrupting the factory. The workers seek press coverage, he adds, but the police are not allowing reporters near the striking workers. A Karaj-based journalist, Arash Arayafar tells REF/RL, Jahan, like Iran's other textile factories, suffers from outdated machinery, low-quality products and high costs. During the past five years, it has changed managers twelve times, and workers went on strike almost twice a year. (Jamshid Zand) Former Hostage Taker, Now Deputy President, Goes to Germany * IRI Vice President Masumeh Ebtekar goes to Berlin to give a talk in a conference on development and culture. In German press interviews, she says Khatami is trying to establish a religion-based democracy in Iran. (Shahram Mirian, Koln) Politically Neutral, New Tehran Mayor Tackles Problems * On his first day on the job, Tehran's new mayor, Mohammad-Hasan Malek-Madani, announced his political neutrality. He did so because he needs the support of both factions of the regime, says Tehran-based journalist Mohammad Aghazadeh. He tells RFE/RL that the new mayor faces Tehran's tough traffic and air quality problems, but first he needs to tackle widespread corruption by restructuring the municipality along more efficient lines. (Fereydoun Zarnegar) Iranian Arbor Day * Planting trees is a symbolic act, says Tehran-based ecologist, Behzad Behruzi, urging tree planters to consider caring for planted trees. He praises the grass roots movements which, without help from the government, organized large tree planting projects around the country. But, Behzadi says, Iran's accomplishments restoring national resources and revitalizing damaged areas is much smaller that than the damage done to the environment by over development and drought. (Mahmonir Rahimi) No Benefits Seen in ECO * Tehran believes the Economic Cooperation Organization, now meeting in Tehran, needs restructuring if it is to become an effective regional. Under its framework, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia and five Central Asian countries have achieved little in the way of economic cooperation. For the ECO to be effective, it should begin working on transportation access to world markets for the goods of its seven landlocked members, according to RFE/RL's economic commentator, Fereydoun Khavand. Repatriation of Iran's 2.5 Million Afghan Refugees within Two Years * Afghans illegally in Iran have six months to leave voluntarily, announces the new head of interior ministry's office of foreign nationals. His new plan calls for repatriation of all 2.5 million Afghans in Iran within two years. (Alireza Taheri) WORLD * Arabs try new peace initiative amidst intense Israeli-Palestinian violence. (Jamshid Chalangi, Cairo) * Brussels court postpones ruling on Sharon in genocide trial. (Mina Baharmast) * Karzai and key warlords praise new efforts to organize a national army for Afghanistan. (Alireza Taheri) * Pakistan helped organize the new al-Qaida and Taliban resistance, says Indiana University Afghan professor, Zarif Shahrani, adding that Pakistan cannot provide a solution when it is part of the problem. Shahrani tells RFE/RL that in Pakistan some army officers and secret police support the Taliban and al-Qaida, despite the the Mosharraf faction, while there is a third "government" made up of political parties. He predicts continuing problems for Karzai from Pakistan. (Homayoun Majd, Washington) * China's foreign minister talks of more cooperation with the US, as its finance minister announces 17 percent rise in the defense budget. (Shahram Tehrani, Beijing) * At The Hague, Milosevic cross-examines a witness who has accused him of genocide. (Ahmad Ra'fat) ARTS AND IDEAS Treating Memory Dysfunction in Adults * Dr. Randy L. Buckner of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute discusses new research on memory in an interview with RFE/RL's science correspondent. (Fatemeh Aman, Washington) Using Laser in Diagnosing Diseases * NIH's Dr. Amir-Hussein Ganjbakhsh, head of the Unit on Biomedical Stochastic Physics Laboratory of Integrative and Medical Biophysics talks about his research on new uses for laser in medicine during an interview with RFE/RL. (Fatemeh Aman, Washington) Robot Reports on War Fronts * A Russian-American scientist's robot reports on the war front through the Internet. (Fatemeh Aman, Washington) Hubble Space Telescope Gets Repaired * Fatemeh Aman reports on the operation to repair the space telescope. Youth, Society and Education * In his weekly program, the Paris-based education scholar Dr. Said Peyvandi talks about the impact of globalization on education in Iran, the rift in the pro-reform student organization, and Iranian students' displeasure with their curriculum. (Nazi Azima)
9 تن از متهمان ملي مذهبي در يك نامه 15 صفحه اي اتهام براندازي عليه خود را رد كردند. دكتر محمد ملكي، نخستين رييس دانشگاه تهران بعد از انقلاب و يكي از متهمان ملي مذهبي كه نامه مذكور را امضاء كرده است، در مصاحبه با راديوآزادي مي گويد اين نامه پاسخ كيفرخواست نيست بلكه درد دل با ملت است و هدف آن پاسخگويي به مواردي از اتهامات است كه از سوي مقامات دادگاه انقلاب قبلا علني شده بود. وي مي افزايد اين نامه در پي آن نوشته شد كه دادگاه انقلاب با درخواست مكرر متهمان ملي مذهبي و نهضت آزادي در باره علني شدن جريان دادرسي و انتشار دفاعيات آنها، مخالفت ورزيد. ملكي مي گويد اكثر مواردي كه در مصوبه اخير مجلس به عنوان مصداق شكنجه تعريف شده است، در بازداشت عليه متهمان ملي مذهبي به كار رفته است.
Summary of Today's BroadcastRFE/RL Persian ServiceWednesday, March 06, 2002 * Nationalist-Religious Defendants Reject Charges * Factional Unity but Public Alienation * Majles Approves Ban on Torture * Jury finds Reformist Daily Guilty * Textile Factory on Strike * Tehran Mayor's First Day on the Job * ECO Meets in Tehran Nine Nationalist-Religious Defendants Publicize Their Defense * In a detailed letter addressed to the nation, nine members of the Nationalist-Religious coalition denied charges of "subversion." They denied membership in or involvement with the Iraq-based Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization; and claim they were quoted out of context to prove unfounded charges of insulting the religion. The letter answers only the charges made public in court statements and press interviews, says one defendant, Dr. Mohammad Maleki, Tehran University's first post-revolutionary president. Maleki, free on bail, tells RFE/RL that they issued the letter after the revolutionary court refused their repeated demands for public trials. Maleki says the defendants faced solitary confinement, night-time interrogations and drug induced confessions, all acts the Majlis banned in its new anti-torture bill. (Amir-Mossadeq Katouzian) National Unity without the Public? * While cooperation between the regime's conservatives and reformists could result from the perceived foreign threat and revelations about financial links to a wealthy businessman now on trial for corruption, both factions have become alienated from the general public, according to Majles MP and university professor Dr. Qasem Shoaleh-Sa'adi. He tells RFE/RL that the inability of the reformists to meet expectations of them has cost them public support. Even if the two factions unite, he says true national unity depends on the people, but he does not see in Iran's officials "an attitude of respect for people's votes." (Ardavan Niknam) Majlis Approves Ban on Torture and Forced Confessions * The definition of "prisoner" in the new bill does not include those who are kidnapped and interrogated for months without a court order, Paris-based human rights activist Abdolkarim Lahiji tells RFE/RL. Though the anti-torture bill could improve the lot of detainees, Lahiji says, the councils specified in the bill for reviewing their treatment require the cooperation of the judiciary, which has not been forthcoming in the past. (Mina Baharmast) Press Court Jury Finds Reformist Daily Guilty * The jury in the press court trial of the daily "Now Ruz" has found the license holder, Mohsen Mirdamadi, guilty on 22 counts of "publishing lies and misleading the public." Mirdamadi, an MP who heads the Majles national security committee, took responsibility for his newspaper's articles. Tehran-based lawyer Mohammad-Hossein Aghassi tells RFE/RL that the judge will be more lenient than the jury, and on account of a new "d‚tente" in Tehran internal politics the judge will neither void Mirdamadi's publishing license nor throw him in jail. (Shireen Famili) Textile Factory Workers Demand Pay by Blocking Highway near Tehran * Demanding four months of back pay, workers of the Jahan textile factory near Tehran blocked the highway to Karaj. A widow with one child who has worked in the factory for 18 years tells RFE/RL that most workers have no money for food or rent. During the past year, more than 2000 of the factory's 3700 workers were laid off, she says. Another worker interviewed by RFE/RL says the owner, the Foundation for the Dispossessed and War Veterans (Bonyad Mostazefan va Janbazan), is bankrupting the factory. The workers seek press coverage, he adds, but the police are not allowing reporters near the striking workers. A Karaj-based journalist, Arash Arayafar tells REF/RL, Jahan, like Iran's other textile factories, suffers from outdated machinery, low-quality products and high costs. During the past five years, it has changed managers twelve times, and workers went on strike almost twice a year. (Jamshid Zand) Former Hostage Taker, Now Deputy President, Goes to Germany * IRI Vice President Masumeh Ebtekar goes to Berlin to give a talk in a conference on development and culture. In German press interviews, she says Khatami is trying to establish a religion-based democracy in Iran. (Shahram Mirian, Koln) Politically Neutral, New Tehran Mayor Tackles Problems * On his first day on the job, Tehran's new mayor, Mohammad-Hasan Malek-Madani, announced his political neutrality. He did so because he needs the support of both factions of the regime, says Tehran-based journalist Mohammad Aghazadeh. He tells RFE/RL that the new mayor faces Tehran's tough traffic and air quality problems, but first he needs to tackle widespread corruption by restructuring the municipality along more efficient lines. (Fereydoun Zarnegar) Iranian Arbor Day * Planting trees is a symbolic act, says Tehran-based ecologist, Behzad Behruzi, urging tree planters to consider caring for planted trees. He praises the grass roots movements which, without help from the government, organized large tree planting projects around the country. But, Behzadi says, Iran's accomplishments restoring national resources and revitalizing damaged areas is much smaller that than the damage done to the environment by over development and drought. (Mahmonir Rahimi) No Benefits Seen in ECO * Tehran believes the Economic Cooperation Organization, now meeting in Tehran, needs restructuring if it is to become an effective regional. Under its framework, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia and five Central Asian countries have achieved little in the way of economic cooperation. For the ECO to be effective, it should begin working on transportation access to world markets for the goods of its seven landlocked members, according to RFE/RL's economic commentator, Fereydoun Khavand. Repatriation of Iran's 2.5 Million Afghan Refugees within Two Years * Afghans illegally in Iran have six months to leave voluntarily, announces the new head of interior ministry's office of foreign nationals. His new plan calls for repatriation of all 2.5 million Afghans in Iran within two years. (Alireza Taheri) WORLD * Arabs try new peace initiative amidst intense Israeli-Palestinian violence. (Jamshid Chalangi, Cairo) * Brussels court postpones ruling on Sharon in genocide trial. (Mina Baharmast) * Karzai and key warlords praise new efforts to organize a national army for Afghanistan. (Alireza Taheri) * Pakistan helped organize the new al-Qaida and Taliban resistance, says Indiana University Afghan professor, Zarif Shahrani, adding that Pakistan cannot provide a solution when it is part of the problem. Shahrani tells RFE/RL that in Pakistan some army officers and secret police support the Taliban and al-Qaida, despite the the Mosharraf faction, while there is a third "government" made up of political parties. He predicts continuing problems for Karzai from Pakistan. (Homayoun Majd, Washington) * China's foreign minister talks of more cooperation with the US, as its finance minister announces 17 percent rise in the defense budget. (Shahram Tehrani, Beijing) * At The Hague, Milosevic cross-examines a witness who has accused him of genocide. (Ahmad Ra'fat) ARTS AND IDEAS Treating Memory Dysfunction in Adults * Dr. Randy L. Buckner of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute discusses new research on memory in an interview with RFE/RL's science correspondent. (Fatemeh Aman, Washington) Using Laser in Diagnosing Diseases * NIH's Dr. Amir-Hussein Ganjbakhsh, head of the Unit on Biomedical Stochastic Physics Laboratory of Integrative and Medical Biophysics talks about his research on new uses for laser in medicine during an interview with RFE/RL. (Fatemeh Aman, Washington) Robot Reports on War Fronts * A Russian-American scientist's robot reports on the war front through the Internet. (Fatemeh Aman, Washington) Hubble Space Telescope Gets Repaired * Fatemeh Aman reports on the operation to repair the space telescope. Youth, Society and Education * In his weekly program, the Paris-based education scholar Dr. Said Peyvandi talks about the impact of globalization on education in Iran, the rift in the pro-reform student organization, and Iranian students' displeasure with their curriculum. (Nazi Azima)
9 تن از متهمان ملي مذهبي در يك نامه 15 صفحه اي اتهام براندازي عليه خود را رد كردند. دكتر محمد ملكي، نخستين رييس دانشگاه تهران بعد از انقلاب و يكي از متهمان ملي مذهبي كه نامه مذكور را امضاء كرده است، در مصاحبه با راديوآزادي مي گويد اين نامه پاسخ كيفرخواست نيست بلكه درد دل با ملت است و هدف آن پاسخگويي به مواردي از اتهامات است كه از سوي مقامات دادگاه انقلاب قبلا علني شده بود. وي مي افزايد اين نامه در پي آن نوشته شد كه دادگاه انقلاب با درخواست مكرر متهمان ملي مذهبي و نهضت آزادي در باره علني شدن جريان دادرسي و انتشار دفاعيات آنها، مخالفت ورزيد. ملكي مي گويد اكثر مواردي كه در مصوبه اخير مجلس به عنوان مصداق شكنجه تعريف شده است، در بازداشت عليه متهمان ملي مذهبي به كار رفته است.
