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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Iranian Students Unite in Preparation for Annual Summer Riots |
| 2004-07-07 |
| From Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty The fifth anniversary of 18 Tir (8 July) -- the day in 1999 when uniformed police and plainclothes vigilantes attacked a Tehran University dormitory with fatal results -- is looming. .... Said Robati, who heads the Tehran University branch of the Office for Strengthening Unity (OSU) student organization, said that in a 1 July letter to the Tehran governorate-general his group formally requested permission to hold a rally outside the university’s main gate.... Robati said two days later that upon returning to the governorate-general he and his colleagues were informed verbally that a permit would not be forthcoming and any kind of off-campus rally would thus be illegal. ... The OSU split into two wings in 2002. The majority Allameh wing wanted to withdraw from mainstream politics, while the smaller Shiraz wing preferred to continue its support for the president. These divisions and the accompanying apathy were remarked on by members of the Sixth Parliament’s "student faction," all of whom were in the OSU, during a 9 May ceremony at Allameh Tabatabai University. Tehran parliamentarian Fatimeh Haqiqatju reminded the gathering that the student movement’s most important duty is "criticizing power," "Sharq" reported on 10 May. She urged the students to be actively involved with the upcoming presidential election, and she commented that there is a "language of despair" in the student movement. She warned that the conservatives find the student movement is an irritant that must be controlled, and they are trying to sow discord. Shiraz parliamentarian Reza Yusefian observed that because issues are viewed from an individualistic perspective there is no longer a student "movement." In mid-May the OSU met at Khajeh Nasredin Tusi University. In a speech to the students, Tehran representative Ali Akbar Musavi-Khoeni urged the OSU that it must behave as a cohesive entity, "Vaqa-yi Itifaqi-yi" reported on 15 May. Apparently, the gathering took Musavi-Khoini’s words to heart. Members of the Shiraz and Allameh factions held lengthy discussions, and subsequently voting for new Central Council members took place. According to "Vaqa-yi Itifaqi-yi" on 16 May, the new council reflects the reduction in differences between the two factions. "These elections showed that the spell has been broken, and that the obstructions and external threats have been neutralized and that there is consensus among Islamic Student Associations," Abdullah Momeni of the OSU commented, according to Hambastegi of 17 May. ... The outcome of the Central Council elections was unexpected, according to a report in the 6 June issue of "Sharq." The individuals elected to leadership positions were veterans of the student movement "who are well past their student years and student characteristics." The newspaper warned that the age gap between OSU leaders and the average university student precludes easily creating a relationship. The OSU will begin to function more like a party, and to outside observers it will be the "flag-bearer of Iran’s reform movement." The two wings, according to Sharq, believe that it is time to bury the old OSU. An article by Central Council member Majid Haji-Babai in the 28 June Sharq suggests that the outcome of that funeral could be dramatic. He says ideas for ending the student movement’s disunity included a "student parliament" and the Office for Fostering Democracy. The latter was an elitist version of the OSU, Haji-Babai writes, and the former would have been all-inclusive and nationwide. The student parliament, furthermore, would require direct voting by the students and would require cooperation from the universities and the regime. Another problem, Haji-Babai writes, is that these two ideas only deal with the domestic situation. The "tens of thousands" of Iranians studying in the United States and Europe have created dynamic Iranian organizations at their individual institutions, and it would be a mistake to ignore them. What is required is a National Union of Iranian Students modeled on the old Confederation of Iranian Students that was active internationally from the 1950s onward. This entity could coordinate all the student organizations and play a powerful political role. Developments in the OSU are noteworthy because it is one of the country’s biggest student organizations and because it played a key role in Khatami’s 1997 election victory. Nevertheless there are other organizations that have advocated more radical action against the regime. One of these is veteran activist Heshmatollah Tabarzadi’s Democratic Front. It is unlikely that Tabarzadi will be part of any student union, and it is similarly unlikely that the OSU’s new tendency will have a lasting impact. |
| Posted by:Mike Sylwester |
| #5 will they call slicing or let it go? |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-07-07 3:53:32 PM |
| #4 Mmmmmmm... hockey |
| Posted by: Chris W. 2004-07-07 11:41:37 AM |
| #3 Guess it's sorta like Iranian hockey season. |
| Posted by: ed 2004-07-07 11:37:57 AM |
| #2 Glad to see they have their own version of Spring Break. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2004-07-07 11:35:58 AM |
| #1 note this OSU seems to be a moderate pro-Khatami group, not the more radical Student movement that has protested in the past. If elements in the OSU are becoming radicalized, that could be significant. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-07-07 9:53:05 AM |