NEOAVATARA

Tuesday's Unsanctioned Protest

The political powers that be in Iran are becoming more and more divided.

Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, the country’s most senior Islamic cleric threw his weight behind opposition charges that Ahmadinejad’s re-election was rigged.

“No one in their right mind can believe” the official results from Friday’s contest, he stated. Montazeri accused the regime of handling Mousavi’s charges of fraud and the massive protests of his backers “in the worst way possible.”

“A government not respecting people’s vote has no religious or political legitimacy,” he declared in comments on his official Web site. “I ask the police and army personals (personnel) not to ‘sell their religion,’ and beware that receiving orders will not excuse them before God.”

Montazeri, who at one time was considered the most respected cleric in the country, has caused great division among the Mullah’s hierarchy.  There has been arrests of some second-line protest leaders, although Mousavi and his top associates remain free.  Also, some prosecutors are calling for the death penalty for certain ring leaders in the protests.  All of these events further erode the legitimacy of the current Iranian regime.

The day was littered with scattered violence.  The secret police (baseej militia and Etellaat) attempted to instigate violent protests by the Mousavi protesters, but appear to have been largely successful.  Large scale attacks occurred at multiple University campuses in Tehran.  At least 5 students were confirmed killed in University dormitories.

The government is pretty much conceding that it is losing the technology battle however.  Social media like Twitter have compeletely evaded all attempts at coercion.    The government is using traditional methods, such as arresting or deporting journalists, but that has done nothing to stop the news from coming out.  The Revolutionary Guard has tried to ban those sites...how successful they have been will remain to be seen.

Late in the day, there have been unconfirmed reports of army units moving toward the city, but the  army refusing to fire on protesters.  More rumors persist that several generals have been arrested.  And there are unconfimred repots that the regime is actually bringing in Hamas soldiers (aka Jimmy Carter’s buddies), because they trust them over their own soldiers.

Protests persist.  Mousavi called for wider (peaceful) protests today, despite increasing crackdown’s by government allies.  Yesterday, the Iranian Soccer team, beloved in the country, showed their support by wearing green on their jerseys.

Clearly, this is not going to end quickly or quietly.  And yet, the U.S. still sees fit to stay completely on the sidelines, instead of being the beacon of hope and freedom for the world.

Obama now argues that Mousavi is not a big reformer, so these protests are irrelevant. I agree that Mousavi is not much of a reformer…but totally disagree that the protests aren’t important.  First, Obama is worried that Iran will think that we are interfering; the Iranian government thinks that right now, and Obama has not said anything.  The Iranian Foreign Minister filed an offiicial protest with the Swiss ambassador (who represents US interests since we don’t have an embassy there).  So what is there to fear from a more profound statement?

Additionally, Mousavi’s election is just one step.  We want the Iranian people to understand that they, and not the mullahs and autocrats, ultimately should decide their country’s fate.  And we also want them to know that America will be supportive of their hopes and dreams, regardless of political expediency.  In the past, we did many things in Iran that were devastating to the people there to achieve our own goals. Obama, by remaining silent, is actually doing the exact same thing.  We should stand up for free expression of beliefs anywhere and everywhere in the world, even if sometimes it may be to our own detriment.