جمشيد چالنگي (قاهره)
Summary of Today's BroadcastRFE/RL Persian ServiceThursday, April 04, 2002 - Majles to investigate gas contracts irregularities - Iran as political and economic risk - Government sees auto industry as cash cow - Surge in AIDS Majles Probes Irregularities in South Pars Gas Field Financing * Irregularities in contracts to develop various phases of the huge Persian Gulf gas field South Pars are costing Iran $15 million per day, according to Hossein Afarideh, head of the Majles energy commission. He may be underestimating the loss, says RFE/RL's economic commentator, Fereydoun Khavand. Discovered in 1970, South Pars is one of the world's largest gas fields. The Islamic Republic in 1995 offered eight, and eventually twelve, of its 25 projected phases for investment to foreign oil companies in buy-back deals. But only phases 2 and 3, contracted to the Total-Fina-Alf partnership with Gazprom and Petronas, are producing any gas. The Majles energy commission wants to discuss with the head of the South Pars gas field administration phases 4, 5, 6 and 7 of the project, all assigned mainly to Petropars, a semi-official Iranian company now under investigation for financial irregularities. (Fereydoun Khavand) Economist Intelligence Unit Downgrades Iran on Political Risk * Widespread discontent over the failure of the reformists to deliver on campaign promises has increased political risk in Iran, says William Simon, a writer of the Economist Intelligence Unit's Country Risk Report on Iran. He tells RFE/RL that people's impatience with the government has weakened its ability to tackle economic problems. (Shahran Tabari, London) Cuts in Auto Tax Will Not Stimulate Production * Cutting auto sales tax and fining automakers for their gas guzzlers will not stimulate car production in Iran, nor will it make the car industry more competitive, says Tehran economist Fariburz Raisdana, who has studied the car industry extensively. He tells RFE/RL that car prices are too high in Iran and the government uses the car industry as a cash cow. Allowing foreign car imports to resume freely would not be an option either, since Iran simply does not have enough cash to flood the market with foreign cars. The car industry has not focused on improving the quality of its products and instead has introduced newer models, which prevent its models from reaching the economy of scale. Raisdana says Iran's auto industry cannot compete in the international market with low quality and expensive cars, but may have a future in exports if it focuses on producing parts. (Fereydoun Zarnegar) New York Times: Iran Grapples With Surge in AIDS * A small group of Iranian doctors begin to educate the young people about safe sex as the number of HIV positive Iranians reaches 19,000, reports the New York Times. (Golnaz Esfandiari) Education Ministry Eases Licensing Process for High Schools * The licensing process for opening high schools has been simplified, because the education ministry wants to tap into budgets beyond its own, says Rahman Shams, vice president of the "House of Iranian Teachers" organization. * Education writer of the daily Hamshahri Morteza Majdfar tells RFE/RL that the move is meant to encourage the opening of vocational high schools by ministries, factories and trade organizations. (Mahmonir Rahimi) Educator Ahmad Birashk Dies * The prominent teacher of physics, author of many textbooks and one of the founders of the Hadaf private school system died in Tehran at 95. Fariburz Majidi, a friend and close colleague of Birashk, tells RFE/RL about his achievements. (Nazi Azima) WORLD * EU sends a delegation to Middle East. (Shahram Mirian, Cologne) * Powell to go to Germany and Spain. (Shahram Mirian, Cologne) * UNICEF, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch express worry about Middle East. (Golnaz Esfandiari) * Syria moves its Lebanon forces east. (Farideh Rahbar, Cairo) * Foreign Minister Kharrazi will meet his Russian FM Ivanov tomorrow but no firm appointment with Putin has been worked out. (Siavash Ardalan) * Iran extradites to Turkey two high-level members of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK), reports French daily La Croix. (Jean Khakzad) * Afghanistan arrests 300 on bomb plot charges. (Shireen Famili) * 200 Palestinians continue to resist Israeli forces in a Bethlehem church. (Jamshid Chalangi) * 40 die in jail fire in Algeria. (Farideh Rahbar, Cairo) * 18 received enough signatures to qualify for running in French presidential elections. (Jean Khakzad, Paris) ARTS AND IDEAS Los Angeles Report * Interview with LA-based composer/conductor Shahrdad Rouhani, who is just back from a trip to Iran where he performed Carl Orf's Carmina Burana. (Fahimeh Barati) Weekly Soccer Show (Mehrdad Massudi, London) Modernism in Iran: A Review * RFE/RL airs portions of a talk given by UNESCO advisor Jamshid Behnam about the history of modernity and modernism in Iran at "Dialogue and Democracy" forum in Paris. (Jean Khakzad, Paris) The World of Music * Music critic Mahmoud Khoshnam reviews and plays examples of the work of important choruses in contemporary Iran and plays songs that mix traditional music in pop.
نيروهاي اسرائيلي امروز وارد شهر نابلس شدند. تلاش بين المللي براي وادار ساختن اسرائيل به عقب نشيني ادامه دارد.
Summary of Today's BroadcastRFE/RL Persian ServiceThursday, April 04, 2002 - Majles to investigate gas contracts irregularities - Iran as political and economic risk - Government sees auto industry as cash cow - Surge in AIDS Majles Probes Irregularities in South Pars Gas Field Financing * Irregularities in contracts to develop various phases of the huge Persian Gulf gas field South Pars are costing Iran $15 million per day, according to Hossein Afarideh, head of the Majles energy commission. He may be underestimating the loss, says RFE/RL's economic commentator, Fereydoun Khavand. Discovered in 1970, South Pars is one of the world's largest gas fields. The Islamic Republic in 1995 offered eight, and eventually twelve, of its 25 projected phases for investment to foreign oil companies in buy-back deals. But only phases 2 and 3, contracted to the Total-Fina-Alf partnership with Gazprom and Petronas, are producing any gas. The Majles energy commission wants to discuss with the head of the South Pars gas field administration phases 4, 5, 6 and 7 of the project, all assigned mainly to Petropars, a semi-official Iranian company now under investigation for financial irregularities. (Fereydoun Khavand) Economist Intelligence Unit Downgrades Iran on Political Risk * Widespread discontent over the failure of the reformists to deliver on campaign promises has increased political risk in Iran, says William Simon, a writer of the Economist Intelligence Unit's Country Risk Report on Iran. He tells RFE/RL that people's impatience with the government has weakened its ability to tackle economic problems. (Shahran Tabari, London) Cuts in Auto Tax Will Not Stimulate Production * Cutting auto sales tax and fining automakers for their gas guzzlers will not stimulate car production in Iran, nor will it make the car industry more competitive, says Tehran economist Fariburz Raisdana, who has studied the car industry extensively. He tells RFE/RL that car prices are too high in Iran and the government uses the car industry as a cash cow. Allowing foreign car imports to resume freely would not be an option either, since Iran simply does not have enough cash to flood the market with foreign cars. The car industry has not focused on improving the quality of its products and instead has introduced newer models, which prevent its models from reaching the economy of scale. Raisdana says Iran's auto industry cannot compete in the international market with low quality and expensive cars, but may have a future in exports if it focuses on producing parts. (Fereydoun Zarnegar) New York Times: Iran Grapples With Surge in AIDS * A small group of Iranian doctors begin to educate the young people about safe sex as the number of HIV positive Iranians reaches 19,000, reports the New York Times. (Golnaz Esfandiari) Education Ministry Eases Licensing Process for High Schools * The licensing process for opening high schools has been simplified, because the education ministry wants to tap into budgets beyond its own, says Rahman Shams, vice president of the "House of Iranian Teachers" organization. * Education writer of the daily Hamshahri Morteza Majdfar tells RFE/RL that the move is meant to encourage the opening of vocational high schools by ministries, factories and trade organizations. (Mahmonir Rahimi) Educator Ahmad Birashk Dies * The prominent teacher of physics, author of many textbooks and one of the founders of the Hadaf private school system died in Tehran at 95. Fariburz Majidi, a friend and close colleague of Birashk, tells RFE/RL about his achievements. (Nazi Azima) WORLD * EU sends a delegation to Middle East. (Shahram Mirian, Cologne) * Powell to go to Germany and Spain. (Shahram Mirian, Cologne) * UNICEF, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch express worry about Middle East. (Golnaz Esfandiari) * Syria moves its Lebanon forces east. (Farideh Rahbar, Cairo) * Foreign Minister Kharrazi will meet his Russian FM Ivanov tomorrow but no firm appointment with Putin has been worked out. (Siavash Ardalan) * Iran extradites to Turkey two high-level members of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK), reports French daily La Croix. (Jean Khakzad) * Afghanistan arrests 300 on bomb plot charges. (Shireen Famili) * 200 Palestinians continue to resist Israeli forces in a Bethlehem church. (Jamshid Chalangi) * 40 die in jail fire in Algeria. (Farideh Rahbar, Cairo) * 18 received enough signatures to qualify for running in French presidential elections. (Jean Khakzad, Paris) ARTS AND IDEAS Los Angeles Report * Interview with LA-based composer/conductor Shahrdad Rouhani, who is just back from a trip to Iran where he performed Carl Orf's Carmina Burana. (Fahimeh Barati) Weekly Soccer Show (Mehrdad Massudi, London) Modernism in Iran: A Review * RFE/RL airs portions of a talk given by UNESCO advisor Jamshid Behnam about the history of modernity and modernism in Iran at "Dialogue and Democracy" forum in Paris. (Jean Khakzad, Paris) The World of Music * Music critic Mahmoud Khoshnam reviews and plays examples of the work of important choruses in contemporary Iran and plays songs that mix traditional music in pop.
نيروهاي اسرائيلي امروز وارد شهر نابلس شدند. تلاش بين المللي براي وادار ساختن اسرائيل به عقب نشيني ادامه دارد.
