پيام شادباش رئيس جمهوري آمريکا به مناسبت نوروز

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Summary of Iran Stories in Today's BroadcastsBehnam NateghiTuesday, March 16, 2004 President Bush Sends New Year Message • In a New Year message to Iranians inside and outside the country, US President George Bush invited followers of all religions to pray for peace and mutual understanding. (Amir Armin) UN Nuclear Inspections Can Resume, Iran Says • Iran reversed its suspension of UN nuclear inspections, and announced that inspectors may return after the Iranian New Year holidays on March 27. “There are no conditions,” for the resumption of inspections, secretary of the supreme national security council Hassan Rowhani said in a press conference in Tokyo. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Mohamed ElBaradei said on Monday that Iran had informed him it would allow nuclear inspectors to return on March 27. ElBaradei, speaking in Washington, said he regretted the interruption in the inspections but believed the date set for resumption was “still within our time schedule.” Last week, IAEA's board of governors gave Iran a June deadline to come clean about its nuclear activities. The Islamic government suspended the UN inspections to show its displeasure with the IAEA resolution. (Bahman Bastani) • The deadline mentioned in the resolution is a veiled threat, hanging over Iran's head like a Damocles' Sword, that its nuclear program may be referred to the UN Security Council, Tehran University international relations professor Davood Hermidas Bavand tells Radio Farda. (Fereydoun Zarnegar) Tehran Municipal Government Bans Fire Festival Celebrations Outside “Designated Areas” • The Tehran, the municipal government authorities said the city's youth were allowed to hold the annual fire festival (Charshanbeh Suri) only in 40 designated city squares and parks, deputy mayor Mohammad-Javad Mohammadizadeh announced on Tuesday. The rite marking the end of winter and including the setting off of fireworks dates back to pre-Islamic Zoroastrian times and Muslim clerics have tried in vain to prevent it each year. Conservative daily Entekhab interviewed a psychologist about the benefits of the festival for the youth. (Keyvan Hosseini) • Radio Farda airs a “Special Report” on the tradition of Charshanbeh Suri, including a historical interview with late Iranian studies scholar professor Mohammad-Jafar Mahjoub. The report includes an interview with Tehran-based independent journalist Arash Qavidel, who talks about the preparations for tonight's fire festival, which includes collecting fireworks. Tehran-based sociologist Davar Sheikhavandi says when a tradition that had been in existence for centuries becomes taboo, the people find motivation to resist. Clashes between young revelers and the police and plainclothes security forces, had become a hallmark of fire celebrations since the 1979 revolution. (Ardavan Niknam) • In a poll published by the government-run national youth organization, more than 90 percent of young Iranians said they love the New Year traditions, including the fire festival. An expert in the national youth organization tells Radio Farda that the poll also shows that the rate of optimism about the future has dropped significantly, compared to previous polls: 53 percent said they wished they had not been born, 66 percent said the mandatory religious education has not helped improve their morale. (Nima Tamadon) Two Branches of Islamic Student Council Fight Over Use of Name and Padlocked Building • Rifts over the name “Daftar-e Tahkim-e Vahdat (Office of Reinforcing Unity) continued between the two factions of the association of Islamic student councils, two years after the formerly pro-Khatami organization splat. The so-called Shiraz faction continues to side with the conservatives, and supported participation in the Majles elections, while the Alameh faction boycotted the elections. Member of the Daftar's central council Reza Hojjati said the organization's philosophy was based on “democracy and liberalism.” The authorities padlocked a building used by the Dafter, after the two factions fought over its control. Former Dafter central committee member Akbar Atri said the organization was not a building, but a set of ideas, while Rouhollah Ohadi, another central committee member proclaimed the Daftar effectively dead. “We should be looking for a graveyard for the Daftar,” he said. Meanwhile, most former and current members of the Dafter leadership consider the padlocking of the building a blow to its activities. Central committee member Abdollah Momeni said the Dafter has no place to hold its regular meetings. (Farin Asemi) Fragile Growth Based on Oil Revenues • The central bank said the average GNP growth in the first four years of the third five-year economic development plan was around 6 percent, a healthy growth, compared to other developing countries. If the growth was due dynamic developments within the economy, President Khatami could be proud of it as a major accomplishment of his term in office, but the growth is a fragile one based on the increase in crude oil prices, and as usual, prevented essential economic reform. (Fereydoun Khavand, Paris) Judiciary Begins A New Wave of Press Prosecution • The judiciary began a new of prosecution of the reformist press, according to the reformist website Emrooz, which is linked to pro-reform party the Participation Front. These include the conviction of reformist columnist Isa Saharkhiz, the closing of Tabarestan weekly, and the convictions of managing editors of Aftab, Aban. Youth weekly the Chelchergh is also awaiting its court date. (Keyvan Hosseini) Trilateral Committee Set New Minimum Wage • A commission of workers and employers representatives and labor ministry officials raised the minimum wage to 1.85 million rials per month. (Jamshid Chalangi) Prison Tabrizi Journalist Hedayat to Hospital • Prison officials transferred jailed Tabrizi journalist Ensafali Hedayat to prison hospital. Hedayat's lawyer Abbas Jamali tells Radio Farda that Hedayat fell ill after receiving a shot of tetanus vaccine with an infected needle. Hedayat's one-month “temporary” detention order ends tomorrow, and he is due to court for interrogation, he adds. The Tabriz judiciary arrested Hedayat a day after he returned to Iran from a trip to Berlin to attend the secular republican coalition's first convention. (Jamshid Zand) Iran-Germany Cultural Council Steps Up Campaign for Release lf Jailed Student • Heinz based Iran-Germany Cultural Council stepped up its campaign to obtain the release of student activist Peyman Piran. In its latest statement, the council said Piran has been transferred to a cell block for holding common criminals in the Qasr prison. The council tries to inform the public opinion about the condition of Piran in jail, the council's spokesman Mehdi Garzini tells Radio Farda. (Shahram Mirian, Cologne) Fereydounkenar-Babolsar Conservative Winner Withdraws His Name • Conservative Fereydounkenar-Babolsar MP Meqdad Najafnezhad, who was named winner of the district's Majles seat, withdrew his name. He won the seat after the Guardians Council nullified votes of his reformist rival. An official in Mazandaran provincial government confirmed Najafnezhad's resignation. The reversal of the February 20 election result in the district, led to widespread riots and looting in the Caspian town, during which the house Friday prayer leader was ransacked and 200 were wounded in skirmishes with the police. At least one person died of bullet wounds Saturday night in a Fereydounkenar hospital. (Nazi Azima) Majles Asks Guardians Council About Women's Right to Stand in Presidential Election • Head of the Majles women's commission Fatemeh Rakei said she officially asked the Guardians Council's opinion about the right of women to stand in presidential election. According to a Reuters' dispatch from Tehran, some of the supporters of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi have suggested that she may apply for nomination. Ms. Ebadi has officially denied having any political ambitions, but has said she does not see any legal obstacle for women to run for president's office. (Nazi Azima) . جرج بوش، رئيس جمهوري آمريکا، به مناسبت سال نو ايراني، پيامي به شرح زير فرستاد: به آمريکاييان ايراني تباري که نوروز، سال نو سنتي ايراني را جشن مي گيرند، شادباش مي گويم. نوروز زمان ويژه جشن گرفتن در کنار خانواده و دوستان، افتخار به ميراث فرهنگي و برخورداري از تعطيلات سنتي است. در اين فصل شادي، من پيروان همه اديان را به نيايش براي صلح و درک متقابل جهاني دعوت مي کنم. لارا و من، بهترين آرزوها را براي نوروزي شاد، سرشار از تندرستي و شادي داريم.