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USADI
Commentary
Nothing
But Shame
Today the Washington Post reported that
“the Bush administration has agreed to issue a
visa to former Iranian President Mohammad
Khatami to give a public address at the
Washington National Cathedral” early next month.
Citing Khatami's “commitment to a dialogue
between civilizations and cultures,” the Rev.
Samuel T. Lloyd III, dean of the Washington
National Cathedral, told the Washington Post
that, "It will be an honor for the cathedral to
provide a platform for President Khatami."
Far from being a voice for true reform or
dialogue, Khatami is just a de-facto
envoy-at-large of Iran’s regime of terror and
tyranny. Given his past record, he is the
“smiling” face of the clerical regime’s
suppression of Iranians’ movement for democratic
change. The invitation extended to him,
therefore, adds another insult to injury of
Iranians who for more than a quarter of century
have been subjected to the mullahs’ reign of
terror. Khatami must not be welcomed in the
United States.
It is just despicable and a big shame that on
the eighteenth anniversary of Iran’s 1988
massacre of thousands of political prisoners, in
which Khatami played a big role, a reputable
national institution such as the Washington
National cathedral would taint himself by
playing host to Khatami.
Behind his smiling face and talk of “dialogue
among civilization” Khatami has been of a part
and parcel of the clerical regime in Iran since
1979. He has admitted on many occasion that his
primary task as the president was to “safeguard
the system” against a brewing popular uprising
and fall of the regime.
During the 1999 six-day student uprising in
Tehran, Khatami fully sided with the Supreme
Leader Khamenei and brought the full might of
the regime’s security and intelligence might
against the students. Many of the thousand of
students who were arrested that year and in the
following years are still languishing in prison.
Akbar Mohammadi, one of the student activist
arrested in 1999, was murdered under torture
last month in Tehran’s Evin prison.
Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi
was murdered in Evin prison during Khatami
following filming a gathering of families of the
arrested students outside the prison.
The decision to permit Khatami’s entry to the
United State also contradicts the stated policy
of the United States to reach out to those
Iranians striving for real democratic change in
Iran. It would be perceived by Iran’s democracy
movement that Washington is still coveting
solutions for its Iran problem from within the
theocratic regime despite the two-decade
complete failure of such a fallacy. it would
also render hollow all the official rhetoric
about supporting Iranians “as they stand for
their liberty.”
Moreover, the report about Khatami’s visit to
Washington comes on the same day that Tehran
responded to the nuclear concession package
offered by Washington and the EU-3, after days
of official announcements that it was determined
to continue its Uranium enrichment, with another
now-thread-bare offer for more talks.
It is amply clear that once again Khatami is
dispatched by the clerical regime overseas -
this time to Washington - to distract and
disrupt the much overdue growing diplomatic
efforts to halt Iran’s nuclear weapon’s drive.
That’s exactly the same role Khatami played from
1997 to 2005 as a “safety valve” to shield the
ruling theocratic tyranny from mounting domestic
opposition and well-deserved international
outrage over Tehran’s appalling human rights
record, support of terrorism, and development of
weapons of mass destruction.
Khatami’s talk of “dialogue among civilization”
is a big lie, as he himself is. During his
presidency thousands of Iranian students, women,
and political dissidents were arrested, public
hangings and amputations continued unabated,
Iran remained the most active state sponsor of
terrorism, and nuclear weapon development
advanced rapidly while western capitals were
rolling red carpet for him.
We call on the Washington National Cathedral to
retract its invitation to Khatami and call on
the State Department to deny his visa
application. (USADI)
USADI
Commentary reflects the viewpoints of the US Alliance
for Democratic Iran in respect to issues and events
which directly or indirectly impact the US policy toward
Iran |