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Remembering Mosaddeq
18-Aug-2011
“This building was constructed in 1334 thanks to the generosity of Mohammad Hasan Shamshiri.* All the money received from regular patients who come here for treatment will be used to treat those who are poor and cannot pay for such services. From these revenues, nothing will be taken to compensate the owners and the administrators.” -- Mohammad Mosaddeq, inscribed on a plaque at Najmieh Hospital in Tehran
On the anniversary of the August 19, 1953, coup, which is forever etched in our memory, what better way than to remember Iran’s democratic leader by reading an account filled with anecdotes of his personal and political life as told to his lawyer, Jalil Bozorgmerh in a book called Taqrirat-e Mosaddeq dar Zendan* (Mosaddeq’s Prison Notes) compiled by J. Bozorgmehr and edited by the late great Iranologist, Dr. Iraj Afshar.
I have taken the liberty of selecting and translating passages from the book. In as much as possible I have tried to stay true to the original text. Published two years after the Revolution, it is the personal account of the key moments in the life of a unique man and a distinguished politician, including the events that led to his downfall.
Introduction by Iraj Afshar
“There is no doubt that the late Dr. Mohammad Mosaddeq left a lasting mark on Iran’s history and his government opened an important chapter in the political development of Iran. Thus, to judge him correctly and without bias, the many aspects of his life must be understood, and for this we need ample genuine documents.
Among these documents, which I have the honor and privilege to present to the readers, is a series of assorted notes gathered by Colonel Jalil Bozorgmehr, his honest lawyer during the military court proceedings. He undertook this task with immense courage while visiting the late Mosaddeq in prison. Dr. Mosaddeq reread the notes but in order not to make changes in the text made only a few marginal corrections so as not to cause a problem for Bozorgmehr.
Mr. Bozogmehr kept these notes from the hands of the political police in different places for 26 years and presented them to me for publication. I am indebted to him for his friendship and kindness honoring me with this task, allowing me to do the right thing towards one of the most exceptional political figures of Iran.
Colonel Bozorgmehr’s notes did not follow the sequence of events. Every day, he would write what he heard from the Dr. and would jot it down later from memory. I only tried to put them in correct chronological order. I hope it will be acceptable to those who read the book. May Mosaddeq’s soul be content.” – Los Angeles, 11 Farvardin 1359, Iraj Afshar.
Mosaddeq’s appreciative letter to Bozorgmehr
“I want to convey from far away my greetings to my friend Mr. Jalil Bozorgmehr and to thank him for his courageous effort in representing me during the military trial; I looked forward to seeing him during the time I was in prison. After the trial, I was saddened not to be able to see him. It was indeed an unpleasant period which I endured, and now that 12 years have passed since my imprisonment, I cannot leave Ahmad Abad and am not allowed to see anyone except for my children.
Since I will not live to see him [Bozorgmehr] again, I want to convey my sincere appreciation and bestow all my blessings to him in helping a compatriot. I ask the almighty God to protect him and his family.” -- Mohammad Mosaddeq
Bozorgmehr’s note
“Dr. Mosaddeq did not want to talk much about himself but I wanted to engage him so I would ask him questions. He would always say whatever the people need to know about me, they already know and they will know.” -- Jalil Bozogmehr
Passages from the book:
Studies abroad
In 1909 I started on a journey via Rasht and Enzeli to study in Paris. I took my brother Mr. Abolhassan Diba (Seqqet el-Dowleh) to study in a boarding school.
I had studied so much during 1909-1910 that I got very sick. I remember I went to see Professor Haim, a renowned French physiologist; when he saw the test results of my stomach acidity, he was astonished to see how high they were. He told me that I was the first patient whose stomach was so messed up. He told me that I had to take a 3-month rest. I told him that, unfortunately, I could not as it was my last year of studies. But he insisted that if I did not listen, nature would force me into doing so. I continued going to school but sometimes it was unbearable for me to sit for a long time and listen to the professor’s lectures.
Village life
I remember staying in convalescences in the village of Afjeh. During my time there, an old friend Mirza Abdollah Khan Mirpanj was with me. He was a very honest man. One day, he asked me so what other thing did you learn during your time in Paris besides your studies? I said, like what? He said, like cooking. I told him I learned how to cook a little bit. I know how to make crème renversée, or what they call pudding. I decided to make it for my friend. After two days of boiling milk and eggs and trying to cook it under the fire I had made, I failed. It was during lunch the next day and after nothing changed in the texture of the milk that Mirpanj told me, if your studies are anything like your cooking, God have mercy on this country and the people [!]
Dehkhoda
I had been invited to attend a meeting of a society in Tehran. By chance, Mr. Ali Akbar Dehkhoda was there as well. We worked together for a while and we liked each other and trusted one another. The meetings were held in the Seraj Mosque. One day, during am outing, he said I have told the people that you would be coming to the meeting, which will be held in a house across form the mosque. I said, ok we can go together. I found out that the owner of the house was the late Mirza Alimohammad Dowlat Abadi who was one of the leaders of the E`tedal Party. After a few discussions, I found out that they had invited me to become a member. Since I did not want to upset Mr. Dehkhoda, I did not say anything and did not decline. While I was in Europe I did not know much about what was happening in Iran when it came to politics. I was just tending to my studies. I did not know the different parties, and it was only because I trusted Mr. Dehkhoda that I had accepted the invitation. They brought the Koran so that I would swear on it. But I declined. My friendship with Mr. Dehkhoda resulted in my becoming a member of the E`tedal Party; I worked with Mr. Dehkhoda for a while; since he would occasionally be late for meetings, (extended laughter) we would go to his house so that he could be on time.
India
I spent a few days in Bombay [Mumbai]. Some Iranian residents of India came to visit me. Among them, Prince Soleyman Mirza and `Isa Mirza, who had both been imprisoned by the British government, came to see me. Vossuq el-Dowleh was also in the hotel Taj Mahal where I was staying. We did not meet or cross paths, for obvious reasons.
Qavam
In Qavam el-Saltaneh’s cabinet, I was the minister of finance. I wanted to make reforms in the Ministry of Finance and fired a few people. When Journalists wanted to write negatively about me, they would first write in favor of Sardar-e Sepah who would then say they didn’t say anything negative.
Another time, Qavam called me in and told me that because the country was in financial distress, they wanted to sell bonds. Since people trusted me, I, along with [Sydney]Armitage Smith who was a British financial advisor, should sign my name for this reason. I got up and said I would never do such thing. As long as Armitage Smith was in charge of our finances, I would not agree. Then, they tried to bring an advisor from the United States. I said this will not work either. First you must prove that Iranians cannot take care of the financial affairs of their own country. This is like they used to say that an Iranian cannot run the oil production and he can only make water pitchers.
The Soviets
The abolition of the law of capitulation in Azerbaijan that I had ordered while I was minister of foreign affairs resulted in a continued discussion with the Soviet Ambassador in Tehran in 1302. He wrote a letter to me in which he reminded me that there was no such law between Iran and the Soviet Union. You must tell us under which jurisdiction should Soviet citizens be tried in Iran, he asked. It was obvious that all this pressure was because of what I had done in Azerbaijan.
Treaty of 1919 and Vossuq
God only knows that I was the first person who was against the treaty [of 1919, which gave partial rights to the English to govern Iran, making Great Britain the sole foreign power that mattered in Iran]. When Vossuq el-Dowleh became head of the ministers he was given a lot of money to spend. He then would buy off people and give them salaries. We worked with Samsam el-Dowleh against Vossuq. One day, Vossuq came to me and said tell me what you are up to? I said that I had no plans; that I was going to Europe. I started writing against the treaty when I was in Switzerland. I was in Neuchâtel, which was a remote place. I had a room on the 3rd story of a building. I could not make a stamp there thus I had to go to Bern and make a rubber stamp in the name of the committee I had formed : Comité Resistance des Nations. At that time, the League of Nations was meeting in Versailles. I wrote my objections and protest letters and would send them to Nayereh Soltan, and he would then send it the League of Nations and to the press. The English were watching.
Ahmad Shah
They took Ahmad Shah to England where they had a big party for him. Nosrat el-Dowleh wrote a declaration, praising the treaty Vossuq el-Dowleh had signed and they wanted Ahmad Shah to read it. One of the worst things Ahmad Shah ever did was to appoint Vossuq el- Dowleh as the head of ministers without a vote in the Majlis. And he [Vossuq] in turn, signed the treaty. Ahmad Shah became quite upset after this event. While in London, the British wanted him to admit that he was okay with this action but he did not agree. This guy, Naser el-Molk, insisted that Ahmad Shah accept the terms, but he did not accept to read the statement during dinner. It was because of this that the late Ahmad Shah was dismissed.
Shiraz
Qavam came to me and said you have done good work while you were in Shiraz, but we also noticed that you have spent your own money; you should be compensated. So he gave me a check for 10,000 tumans as a token. I told him that it was not necessary, no thank you. If I have done anything, it was for my country. I am not needy. I have a livelihood in Tehran. If I have had financial loss it is my own doing. It is not necessary to pay me. If I had taken that money I am sure I would have been put in jail.
Farmanfarma
They [the British] had spent quite a bit of money on the police in the South. The British consul in Shiraz told me that they gave one hundred Lacks to Farmanfarma. Each Lack was one hundred thousand Rupees, so a total sum of five to six hundred thousand rupees. When I returned to Tehran I asked Farmanfarma. He said it wasn’t just him, but Qavam Shirazi also received money. When Forughi was in office, the British sent a letter to him and he accepted their terms but they immediately charged Iran by deducting it from the oil revenues. Forughi was not the type to take money but he wanted to stay in power and get his monthly salary. Whatever they wanted, he would do. Vossuq el-Dowleh would not give any concessions until he received money; sometimes if he didn’t get his share, he would not give concessions [to the British].
The Persian Gulf islands
We wanted to send troops to the islands of Sheykh Sho`eyb and Abu Musa in the Persian Gulf but the English were against it. They said these two islands belong to the Emirate of Sharjah. They had control over Sharjah and wanted to add the two islands to the Sheikhdom. Because of this [at that time Dr. Mosaddeq was minister of foreign affairs] I had some heated exchanges with Sir Percy Loraine (who was by the way a polite man). He told me, do you know who you are dealing with? I said, yes, what can you do to me? The only thing you can do is kill me. That’s all. By the way, what happened to the fate of the islands? [Asking Bozorgmehr]
An interesting story
One of the most interesting stories I remember is about Eyrum who was the head of police. One day, the Shah told him, I have heard that lots of people go to Naser el-Din Shah’s tomb to say their prayers. Do something about it. That evening, Eyrum was a guest at Haj Hasan Aqa Malek’s (in Emamzadeh Qasem). This property has its own story; it belonged to his [Haj Hasan’s] father who was a real crook. He had gotten the property in a bet with my uncle Farmanfarma. When Haj Hasan saw that Irum was in deep thought, he asked, what is the matter? Colonel Eyrum told him what the Shah had said. Haj Hasan then said, give me some money and I will find the solution. Haj Hasan’s solution was if they buried Reza Shah next to Naser el-Din Shah, nobody will pay anymore visits to the tomb.
Foreign diplomats
In my first encounters with foreign diplomats first I would meet them with ultimate cordiality and in proper attire and would accompany them all the way to the doorstep. But then after the initial meetings, I greeted them in bed in my private room. For a couple of years, I only had one suit to wear. At The Hague and at the Security Council, I would wear the same clothing, also at private functions. Ahmad [Dr. Mosaddeq’s son] had a formal suit, which he had brought from Europe, and I wore that when I went to see his Majesty (before I became Prime Minister) and during the opening of the Majlis. I had paid 600 tumans for the suit. I was very conscientious to wear formal attire when visiting his Majesty. You know it is easier to stay in bed and take care of business that way. One aspect of it is you are not burdened to go to formal functions.
Majlis and the people
Sir, for a politician there are three things that are important: to have enough courage to finish the job; to have enough selflessness to make sure everything will be done; and to make the right decision at the right moment. If I had not decided to go to the army headquarters on 9th of Esfand and to the Majlis as well, my time would have been up. It is all God’s will. I heard later that after leaving Kakh Street [where Dr. Mosaddeq’s house was located], they had called abroad that the bird left the cage. I came in front of the Majlis and said I will speak where the people are. I was not afraid. Some five to six thousand people gathered and I spoke there. They attempted to shoot at me but the bullet hit poor Khajeh Nuri; I passed out and ended up in a coffee shop.
Bozorgmehr writes: “I was a student in law school. I remember the incident very well. It was when Mosaddeq had insisted on taking Seyyed Mohammad Tadayon [a one time minister of education] to trial and members of the Majlis were supporting Tadayon. He called the proceedings a dozdgah [den of thieves] rather a dadgah [place of justice]. He then came out of the Majlis where he had not been allowed to speak, and spoke among the people without fearing for his life.”
An economy without oil
Sir, if they had allowed us to continue our work for a year and finish the reforms we intended to undertake with an economy not dependent solely on oil, and an acceptable budget, peoples’ lives would have improved. Any reasonable person has a personal and a social aim in life. His personal aim is to have bread, to have prosperity and health for himself and his family. His social aim in life is freedom and prosperity for his country.
Sir, it is difficult to stay clean and pure. What one must do is to forgo a lot of things and to live frugally, which I have tried to do.
On the rights of the people
When you let the people speak out and criticize, the government cannot do what it wants. The government must listen to the desires and wishes of the people. The very existence of my government was based upon the needs of the nation. Therefore you could not stop people from expressing their views and strangle them.
Kakh Street and the army headquarters
They went to bring the car to take me. I got into the car and went towards my house. There were a few people running after the car. The police around Heshmat el-Dowleh stopped them. I went directly home. I later heard that they wanted to get rid of me there. But I had already left the scene. Sometimes God does miracles. At home, I heard some commotion. Someone had gone up on the tree next to Ahmad’s house and shown them a knife saying that with this we will decapitate Mosaddeq. Ahmad’s household was in turmoil. Ahmad came and told me, you should go to Shemiran, it is dangerous for you to stay here.
Dr. Fatemi was there too. I told Ahmad, why Shemiran? For what, so that they will then say, the Prime Minister and his minister of national defense minister have fled the scene out of fear. It is then that I said let us go to the army headquarters.
The trial
Bozorgmehr says: “Whoever saw me during the proceedings would tell me why don’t you use this article or that article of the law or mention this and that. When I told Dr. Mosaddeq, he said,” “they think everything at this trial is done according to law. They don’t know that even the few things we say, we do it like magicians.”
In military prison
Bozorgmehr writes: “I went to see him at around 4:30. He looked tired and upset. His eyes were hollow. After I said hello, I asked: How are you Sir? He said I am still here. I then told him that he looked very tired. He said, I have been very upset for three nights and did not sleep last night at all. I had a “crise” (breakdown). I had to take some sedatives, I feel better now. Those few days had coincided with the time twenty foreign experts among them seven Englishmen who had been at Abadan oil refinery had arrived in Iran. The Senate elections had been concluded and the 45 million dollar loan to Iran had already been used up [this was close to the first of the Iranian calendar year]. All these were worries had kept Dr. Mosaddeq awake and made him think of everything he had tried to do [for Iran].”
Amnesty
Colonel Farroknia came to see me. I was not feeling well. He said do you want to write something? I said, what shall I write? I already said it during the trial. I will not ask the Shah for amnesty. Amnesty is only given to criminals…….
And what followed is part of our anguished history: After the Shah returned to power, Mosaddeq was tried for “treason” and sentenced to two years in prison. He spent the rest of his life in exile, never allowed to leave his humble residence in Ahmad Abad. He died in Tehran, in Najmieh hospital, endowed and named after his mother, the daughter of Mozaffaredin Shah, an exceptional woman and a philanthropist. Dr. Mosaddeq had cancer of the mouth. He had refused to leave Iran for treatment, saying that Iranian doctors were as good as foreign doctors and it would be an insult to them.
The Shah left his homeland in the midst of a Revolution he had only recently come to recognize as one. Even those who had brought him to power did not let him remain in their respective countries- but a few weeks- while he was ill with cancer and dying. He died in exile in a foreign land just like his father before him. The fate of Iran changed forever…. A new regime that ostracized both Mosaddeq and the Shah eventually came to power.
Az Mast Ke bar Mast….
*Haj Hasan Shamshiri was an illiterate but successful bazaari and a sympathizer of the National Front. He owned and operated the famous Chelo-kababi Shamshiri in Tehran’s bazaar. Pious and generous, he gave a large sum of money to help build and finish a wing of the hospital. My father was the intermediary between Dr. Mosaddeq and Shamshiri in all the transactions involving Najmieh hospital while representing Dr. Mosaddeq as his personal lawyer.
* Jalil Bozorgmehr, Taqrirat Mosaddeq dar Zendan, edited by Iraj Afshar, Tehran, Iran Zamin publishing house, 1359/1981.
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Dear Aria, there are
by Arj on Thu Aug 25, 2011 06:25 PM PDTDear Aria, there are multiple fallacies in your argument that could be based on preconceived notions, oversimplificans or simply flawed reasoning!
For instance, no one claimed that the entire coup was undertaken by just a few individuals such as Rashidian Bros, Shaban Bimokh and Kermit rousevelt! Each of these characters represent a network of assets (i.e. Foreign intelligence such a CIA, MI6, their rented and bought out media and mouth pieces who prepped the public opinion for the coup, their fifth column, religious figures and their political and financial supporters such as bazaris, their pawns and bands of thugs who escorted the military tanks on the streets) who were involved in laying the groundworks for the coup well before its fruition on 28 Mordad.
There were little resistence to the coup because Dr. Mosadegh, a firm believer in non-violent resistence, refused Tudeh party's request for armed strugggle. Despite your attempt at trivializing the anti-colonial movement by using the Tudeh Leaders' connections with Soviets and generalizing, there were many left-leaning activists who where not members of Tudeh or even communist. Not to mention that Tudeh Party's considerable popular base among the working class and general public had less to do with global politics than domestic issues! Dismissing such a base as Soviet spies or stooges of foreigners was one of the main reasons for Shah's eventual downfall.
Mosadegh's refraining from the use of violence was the main reason for the lack of formidable resistence to the coup. That indeed is why comparing Iran of 1953 with the 2003 Iraq is laughable! what are your intentions behind such a comparison, that Saddam was more popular than Mosadegh? Or that Iranians are more in favour of foreigners and their puppets than Iraqis?!
I am amazed at comments by
by Fariba Amini on Thu Aug 25, 2011 11:25 AM PDTI am amazed at comments by Anglophile. I guess the name speaks for itself!
Mosaddeq
did not have a woman in his cabinet not because he did not believe in
women's equality. He wasn't even given the chance to start anything.
Whatever he tried to do, someone or some power tried to undermine him.
The British are good at that: Slander and lies about Mosaddeq and his cabinet and government.
The propaganda machine in Britain branded Dr. M. as anti-Jew. there is a photo of Dr. M. with the Jewish community leaders.
They said he was sickly and cried all the time!
They called him poor old Mossy!
They said he did not have etiquette !
In
fact, they were shaken and stunned that an old frail man (but a smart
and educated man) brought down the entire British Empire to its knees
and that was pretty sad for a boasting empire. Alas, they hated him
from day one. You know why? he didn't care about the pounds they were
spreading around.
Mosaddeq never wanted to become a Swiss citizen. Another lie, a very bad
one! You see, you cannot distort history ; it's right there black on
white. Let me end by this comment by a story I heard from the late father of a dear
friend, Mr. Houshang Pirnazar:
"Knowing how much I respected and cherished Mossadegh, he told me a story. He was sure it would intrigue me.
As the story goes, when he was a student at Columbia
University in the 1950’s, one late evening, he was stopped by a
policeman. He had a car with Oklahoma license plates, lived in New
Jersey and went to school in New York. The policeman asked him why three
different locations? Since he was a foreigner, this was illegal.
Houshang Khan didn’t have a good answer. He sort of shrugged. Then the
burly officer asked him where he was from and he said he was from Iran.
The police officer then told him, I will let you go. “Do you know why?
Because you come from a country whose Prime Minister stood up to the
mighty British. I know all about him. I have great respect for that
man.” The policeman was Irish! "
Tolerance; Shah; USA
by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on Thu Aug 25, 2011 11:04 AM PDTWe can only understand the time period well, if we
understand this era conicides with McCarthyism in U.S and the phobia towards not just the communists but anything they disliked to be associated with the communists.
Right on point! That is what the British used to scare American. Hence the coup to bring Mossadegh down.
By the way Mossadegh was not so rare. How about Bakhtiyar? He was very tolerant of all views. See where it got him! Being tolerant does not help if the other side is sharpening their knives!
Shah had no choice but to side with the USA. He was not a strong person. He owed his power to US or at least thought so.
Regarding communist parties: yes, yes, and no. USA never had much of a communist party. It was always a joke. USA knows how to marginalize opposition. It does not ban them just uses the media to make them look like kooks.
India was actually very successful in this regard, and in my view, had Iranian leaders (both left and right) been more into Iran than other countries interest, Iran could have maintained its non-aligned stand, riding on the back of Soviet-US conflict.
You are probably right on this.
Lesseons of Mossadegh Era
by aynak on Thu Aug 25, 2011 10:57 AM PDTThanks dearest Fariba, thank you for a great blog.
Parham: "So are you saying Mossadeq did the right thing by not sending people out
in the street to stop the coup due to his belief in non-violence?"
Parham, I have spent quiet a bit of time looking at this from many different angles, and researching it. The conclusion I have come across, is that Mossadegh was in a lose-lose situation, because of Shah's decision to go with the coup:
Reality: Mossadegh, was a democrat in the truest sense of the word:
--Respect for law/Tolerant of other views/process was much more important to him than power.
In a backward country like Iran, when even in 1973 the Shah so shamelessly states, Marxists must die (look at the interview posted), and basically as we observed post revolution, every group is thinking of WHOLE SALE POWER GRAB, having a rare individual like Mossadegh who geninuely believes in power sharing, puts him at a distinct disadvantage.
On the left, His tolerance of Tudeh party, by his foes is interpreted as his sympathy for the Communists, where as in reality, he believed in their rights as Iranian to form parties and have a voice. On the other hands, due to the world atmosphere of East/West (post WWII) the Tuedeh party was viewing Mossadegh as a form of national bourgeois, tolerance of which they could use as a ladder to achieve their ultimate goal of joining Iran to the socialist camp.
On the right, human rights, rights to join parties and unions were all under fire. We can only understand the time period well, if we understand this era conicides with McCarthyism in U.S and the phobia towards not just the communists but anything they disliked to be associated with the communists.
So in my view, Mossadegh had way too many things going against him. Given that true nationalists were few and many people in Iran, had either sold themselves to the interest of the Brits or the Soviets (a trend that had started from post Safavid era), the choice for Mossadegh it seems to me was to give in to U.S or the Soviets.
Note many people looking back, fault him for not asking the well organized Tudeh officers for instance to prevent the coup.
Given that Mossadegh did not even believe in that approach, and potentially in a counter coup Tudeh party would have ended up as the big winner, I really could not question his move, in NOT trying to turn this into a Tudeh party win or worse a prolonged armed conflict between the then East and West camp.
Dr.Ramin Kamran, has pointed to an excellent fact that this all happened post Stalin's death. That in my view points to the simple fact that, at the time Mossadegh and Nehru really were using their independence based on the conflict between East-West. India was actually very successful in this regard, and in my view, had Iranian leaders (both left and right) been more into Iran than other countries interest, Iran could have maintained its non-aligned stand, riding on the back of Soviet-US conflict.
Alas our leaders had their alligence elsewhere.
In my view, had Shah not betrayed Iran, and remained faitful to constitution and not sided with U.S, Iran could have had a chance still, even post death of Stalin. However, with the Shah siding with U.S, Mossadegh had very limited option. Now imagine, if Shah had said no the coup, how much more popular he would have been, but also how much he could have reduced the influence of Tudeh party?
This would have been democracy at its best. Did Italy or France have strong commuinst parties at the time? How about U.S? The answer to that is yes, yes and yes.
This was a battle for Irans future, that the Shah, due to his inability to make the correct decision LOST, granted he had many opportunity to correct this decision, but he was not smart enough to do so, and there was very little Mossadegh could do to help. The proof is not in 1953 coup, but what happened in 1979.
anglophile jan
by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on Thu Aug 25, 2011 08:53 AM PDTPoints taken and all right. I agree. But I still cannot figure out how you changed from a dude to a lady :-)
BTW: We used to have Queens in Iran. The Sassanids had Azarmidokht and Pourandokht. I am not a huge fan of Mossadegh nor his enemy. I do think on the whole he did more damage than good. But his intentions were good or that is what I am told. However I do not argue with his big fans their minds are made.
VPK jon
by anglophile on Thu Aug 25, 2011 08:49 AM PDTAnglophiles come from both genders. In Britain there is no sexual discrimination. We have Kings and Queens.
We have Churchill and Thatcher. Wonderful isn't it.
By the way, while on the subject, Dr Mo was a misogynyst. No female in his cabinet/ no women's right to vote/ no mixed schools for a while.
how about that ?
Dear anglophile
by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on Thu Aug 25, 2011 08:37 AM PDTDisclaimer: this is a joke!
Did you have a trip to Sweden or IRI? You seem to have changed your gender :-) But still you are not my type so don't get your hopes up.
Fariba
by Parham on Thu Aug 25, 2011 08:35 AM PDTSo are you saying Mossadeq did the right thing by not sending people out in the street to stop the coup due to his belief in non-violence?
Parham listen to your goddess:
by anglophile on Thu Aug 25, 2011 07:57 AM PDTShort signtedness does a lot of damage! Mrs Amini
Anglophiles are not noukar inglisa otherwise Dr Mo's nephew and Mrs Amini's idol, Farhad Diba, a card carrying anglophile, should be noukar englissa.
key shoma bache ha ye chizi yaad migirin?
violence
by Fariba Amini on Thu Aug 25, 2011 07:30 AM PDTYes, sometimes it is but if you don't believe in violence, you just don't. politicians are different from one another.
I just read Cheyney's comment that they should have bombed Syira too! well, let's see if by bombing countries and creating havoc, democracy will flourish! Democracy is not just free elections. If Germany was able to build after WWII it is because it had a history of democratic rule.
Iran could have become a full fledged democracy if only the West had not interfered. All the institutions and groundwork were there.
They preferred dictatorship at that time. It is all about profits and interests not people.
Funny that Ann Lambton, the mastermind behind no compromise with Mosaddeq, the one who advised Eden and the British government had said that the Qajars were corrupt and later wrote a critique of the shah's land reform. Short signtedness does a lot of damage! Mosaddeq was not corrupt and he was a man of law. But he stood up to the Briitsh and they did not appreciate it.
Oops...
by Parham on Thu Aug 25, 2011 07:27 AM PDTI should have said "Shahollahis AND nokarane engelis".
Sorry!
And as for your whimsical flight of fancy
by anglophile on Thu Aug 25, 2011 07:11 AM PDTThink of what would have happened if he had stopped the evil forces on the 28th...
First a major correction:
the evil forces WERE STOPPED on the 28th!
But if they were not:
Islamic revolution would have happened on 22 Bahman 1332 (at the latest) -
LOL
I too call it a coup
by anglophile on Thu Aug 25, 2011 07:06 AM PDTIt was a coup by Dr Mo that was foiled on 28th Mordad. Isn't it funny Parham that for once we agree with other :0))
The whole world calls it a coup...
by Parham on Thu Aug 25, 2011 06:01 AM PDT... except for Shahollahis in denial.
Dear Fariba
Many thanks for the answer. I guess I'd have preferred reading that he was just taken by surprise on the 28th, thinking the matter was already settled on the 25th. Proves to me that sometimes violence is necessary and a good politician should know how to use both violence and non-violence -- of course in extreme cases/only when necessary.
Think of what would have happened if he had stopped the evil forces on the 28th...
Regards
علائق شخصی یا مملکتی ؟
rashidThu Aug 25, 2011 06:33 AM PDT
I am not an expert on the coup or a historian and have never claimed to be.
خانمها و آقایان عزیز
خواهشآ و برای خدمت به خودتان و ایران بروید معنی کلمه ( کودتا ) را در بیاورید .
کودتا یعنی اجرای یک طرح سیاسی و با توسل به نوعی خشونت از طرف جناح پائین دست حکومت علیه جناح بالا دست همان حکومت . بالا علیه پائین کودتا نمیکند بلکه در صورت مصلحت یا داشتن قدرت کافی پائین دست را برکنار میکند .
به نظر می اید بیشتریها یا کمتریهای ما دنبال این هستیم که با نوشتن ، مسائل و دوست داشتنی های شخصی را دنبال کنیم تا تاریخ و مشکلات واقعی ایران .در واقع مصدق با نپذیرفتن استعفا و انحلال مجلسی که هشتاد درصد آن اعضای جبهه ملی بودند و اقداماتی خشونت آمیز با پشتیبانی ایت الله کاشانی و حزب توده علیه بالا دست یعنی شاه قانونی ایران کودتا کرد و متقابلآ در 28 مرداد 1332 ، با پشتیبانی یا رضایت ضمنی یا دستکم بیطرفی بیشتر مردم ، با ضد کودتا مواجه شد . خارجی ها هم که البته همه جا حضور دارند و کار خودشان را میکنند . آنها معمولآ با حرکتهای نیرومند تر مقابله نمیکنند بلکه همراه آن میشوند تا استفاده یا سوء استفاده کنند .
البته طبیعی و حق هر فردی است که پدر و مادر یا خاطرات خود را دوست داشته باشد حتی اگر همه دنیا قضاوت دیگری داشته باشند . این غریزه است و از وجود آدم بیرون نمیرود و به ندرت پیدا میشوند که بتوانند آنرا نادیده بگیرند .
به هر صورت امروز مقاله ای از کیهان لندن پیدا کردم که اطلاعات و تحلیل نسبتآ واقع بینانه ای در باره 28 مرداد و مصدق و شاه ارائه کرده .
امیدوارم دوستداران شاه و مصدق و کلآ هر ایرانی که به وطنش بیش از خودش یا بیک اندازه علاقه دارد آن را بخوانند تا شاید بتوانیم به این کشورخدمتی کنیم . آدرس پیوند : //www.kayhanpublishing.uk.com /Pages/archive/khandaniha/article/Sale89 _10/Boghrat_1_ Mosaddegh_Shah_1383_Aug2004.htm
Rashidian brothers, Shaban Jafari.............
by Aria on Wed Aug 24, 2011 10:53 PM PDTThe cold war was at its peak during 1953 –Korean conflict, French’s last years in Vietnam before U.S. involvement in that region, African nations uprisings (left or right) and etc. – and Iran was not excluded from this global game.
Both east and west were involved in Iran. Soviets had a major apparatus, Tudeh Party, operating at its behest with colorful characters such as Kianuri and the rest of the communist tribe and the British had the Rashidian brothers and a few others. Any one person who takes/took any money on behalf of a foreign government is certainly betraying his own country. That is what it is, no excuse.
But, to say that 4 Rashidian brothers, one Shaban Jafari and his protégés, and one Kermit Roosevelt with a briefcase full of dollars overthrew a popular government such that as Mossadegh’s, simply defies the logic.
The U.S. government with 160,000 troops, billions of dollars in funds, as the head of coalition forces (with other countries/armies and their resources) could not even keep a Green Zone safe in Baghdad. How is that 4 brothers, one wrestler/body-builder and one secret agent can overthrow a government????? And when Mossadegh’s government falls, not even one hand-grenade goes off afterwards, nobody gets assassinated in retaliation, no bomb is set off, and all of sudden peace takes over……….
The truth is the Iranian population masses weclomed the change.
Respectfully,
Well it may have been iniated in the west, but that does not
by amirparvizforsecularmonarchy on Wed Aug 24, 2011 10:18 PM PDTmake it a coup.
The reason
Since it was Mossadegh that broke with the constitution, not the shah who was legally allowed to remove him when parliament became dissolved and he did refuse making the removal (not coup) necessary.
This topic is more pertinent to Irans immediate future... //iranian.com/main/blog/amirparvizforsecularm...
some facts
by Fariba Amini on Wed Aug 24, 2011 09:38 PM PDTDear Parham,
The quotation I mentined were the very words of Dr. Mosaddeq to my father. It is also mentioned in Kinzer's book. Dr. Mosaddeq truly believed in parliamentary methods in order to achieve his goal.
Dear Aria,
Thank you for you kind words about my father. I have not read Mr. Mirfetrous's book, i have skimmed through it and found many flaws. I also heard that he received a sum of money from Farah Pahlavi to write the book. I cannot vouch for this as I do not like to say things without ample docments. However, there is a recent trend among some "historians" or "scholars" to twist the history of the coup either by blaming Mosaddeq, the Tudeh or the clergy. There is no question that foreign powers and their Iranian agents had direct role in the coup. I have looked myself at dozens of documents in the British and French archives which testify to this fact. Now, having said that the coup would have never been realized without the direct involvement of many Iranians. Shame on all of them!
Mr. Ebrahim Nabavi, one of the newly turned reformists, is also one of those who is distorting part of that history claiming that Dr. Fatemi brought down the Shah's statue which is nonsense. Mosaddeq was against such actions and would never allow it. The agent provacateurs did all this in order to discredit the government and say that Dr. M. did not respect the monarchy. Mosaddeq always said that the Shah should reign but not rule acording to Iran's Constituion.
In fact I wrote a reply to him in Persian.
I am not an expert on the coup or a historian and have never claimed to be. I like to read about our history and write from time to time on different subjects that interest me. But enough reputable Iranian and scholars of Iran have written on this episode to conclude that YES, it was a coup initiated in London, directed from Washington and implemented in Tehran!
Albright was just working to foster divisions among Iranians
by amirparvizforsecularmonarchy on Wed Aug 24, 2011 08:56 PM PDTThe truth behind US/UK policy is here.
//iranian.com/main/blog/amirparvizforsecu...
Ma'adam Albright's apology - the "behind story"
by Aria on Wed Aug 24, 2011 08:53 PM PDTThere is this notion among some circles that Ma'adam Albright’s apology to Iranian people was a public admission by the U.S. government about its involvement, so-called guilt, in Iran in 1953. Nothing that can be farther from the truth than this.
Ma'adam Albright’s apology was nothing but a tactical move by the Clinton Administration trying to establish relationship with Khatami’s government. Her apology, Ma'adam Albright’s, coincided with the timing of the release of an article in New York Times titled, “Secret History.” The article, part true and part fiction, putting the blame of 1953 on U.S. and U.K. governments set the right platform for a public apology from a U.S. government official, in this case Mrs. Albright.
A few years later an IRI site, “Tabnak,” – operated by Mohsen Rezaie (former head of Revolutionary Guards) revealed the behind scene wheeling-and-dealing between Clinton and Khatami administration representatives about creating the right environment for public acceptance of the two governments establishing official relationship. The first step was the “part true/part fiction” story of New York Times, followed by Mrs. Albright’s apology. This scenario, not surprising, was derailed by the hardliners that did not allow it.
So, there is always a story behind a story. Had Mada’am Albright cared for the truth, all she should have done, had to read the U.S. Embassay archives/files of the time when the CIA Station Chief had stated his disbelief about how things had taken a turn against Mossadegh between 25 Amordad and 28 Amordad, indicating the U.S. government’s marginal role in the events.
Respectfully,
MY....
by maziar 58 on Tue Aug 23, 2011 09:51 PM PDT2 cent on this glorificationof Mr.Mossadegh
yes he was a true gentelman & a well educated Iranian of a well known family and he worked hard enough to create retirment account for workers,nationalized fishing industries in North &South (Shilat) shomal&joonoob ,nationalized Iranian oil indusry.....
the same year was voted man of the year choosen by America!! and put his portrait on the cover of Time magazine.
chera ? Because America offered a much better DEAL on oil excavation and profit sharing with Iran and slowly pulled the rug off under thr Brits by Iranians.
what happened from there on is just the pages of our destiny to where we are now and where we will be 50 years from now .
Iranian need to unite to change their future for better without violence and destruction of another generation.
with a majority of over 60% well equiped and educated Iranian today,
past is gone and cann't be changed lets envision a FREE Iran because you still can do all the neccesities for changes with all the tools available and at your disposition.
PS. thanks Mr.siavash for your true input.
Maziar
Well Pointed out Siavash
by amirparvizforsecularmonarchy on Tue Aug 23, 2011 08:51 PM PDTAn obviously disingenuous motive going on here, which you reveal by identifying such a blatant misrepresentation of character. Lies can't be the correct path to restoring harmony among Iranians, but I think some people clearly have other agendas.
Falsification of Characters. Pls read carefully
by Siavash300 on Tue Aug 23, 2011 09:36 PM PDT"Dr. Mosaddeq had cancer of the mouth. He had refused to leave Iran for treatment, saying that Iranian doctors were as good as foreign doctors and it would be an insult to them.
The Shah left his homeland in the midst of a Revolution he had only recently come to recognize as one. Even those who had brought him to power did not let him remain in their respective countries- but a few weeks- while he was ill with cancer and dying. He died in exile in a foreign land just like his father " Fariba Amini
Mosaddeq wanted to become Swiss citizen right after his graduation from university. Now, the old man who is dying from terminal cancer doesn't want to seek treatment out of Iran because he knew he is reaching the end of his life. What about if he was 40 years old? I am sure he would have gone to overseas for treatment. If he wouldn't, something is wrong because the medical equipments western countries offered at that time, Iran simply didn't have. Applying to become Switzerland citizen at the young age should be count, NOT unwilling to leave at old age or rather in death bed.
Now, shah left the country because he didn't want bloodshed. He clearly said it in his book "reply to history". He was welll educated and well mannered. Truly gentleman who was deeply in love with Iran. His book "mission for my country" shows very clearly how deeply shah loved Iran and his people. Shah and his legacy of nationalism among military officers saved Iran from the hand of Arabs in 80's. His legacy of "Cho Iran Nabashad, Tan-e-man mabad". means, if there is no Iran, My body shouldn't exist saved Iran.
shah's tears in Mehrabad airport show his deep feelings about departing his beloved homeland despite his inner wish. Any fair person can see how these characters were being falsified in here.
Now, about Shaboon bi mokh. Mullahs always talk about shaboon and never talk about Tayyeb haj Rezaie who helped khomainie became famous in 1342.
Khomainie had frequent contact with "Tayyab" in Karamat Cafe(tea shop) during year 1342.
His gang were well paid by extortion in Ghable squar( Maydan-e Ghebleh) it has been marked as the most organized criminal gang in southern Tehran. Their contribution to making Khomainie famous is undeniable. Tayyeb and his prostitutes so called "Neshandeh Tayyeb" who were residing on Jamshid street next to brothel (Shahr -e-No) leading to riot and unrest on 10 Khoradad of 1342 in 2 cities of Tehran and Qum. That riot made Khomainie famous. Savak put Tayyeb in silent and kick Khomainie out of Iran.
There was a rumor that Mohsen Rezai was the son of Tayyeb. Khomaini assigned Mohsan Rezai as a chief of revolutionary gaurd. It was a gesture of appreciation to his father.
Mullahs never talk about Tayyeb, but constantly talking of Shaboon. In fact, I think rulling mullahs made Shaboon really famous.
Sincerely,
Siavash
Dear Fariba
by Parham on Tue Aug 23, 2011 01:42 PM PDTMany thanks for that reply. Is that a conclusion you have drawn yourself, or did you base it on (perhaps) a conversation you've had with your father, or one he had with Mossadeq?
Fariba not sure you realize how unfair your comment is.
by amirparvizforsecularmonarchy on Tue Aug 23, 2011 12:08 PM PDTYou say Mossadegh wanted "rule of law and democracy"
yet you must know by now that his legacy is that he broke the law, he did not uphold the law,
You say the west has being callig for "rule of law and democracy" for Iran,
yet our hstory suggests neocolonialism/domination not pursuit of these things, yes they say they want many things for iran, but in practice they are doing far from it.
I am influenced too by what I heard from family members on the subject. Let me say that all my famly members voted for mossadegh, ironically one of them, my grandfather who voted for him was a colonel that was given orders to depose him after M refused to relinquish power.
From him I learned, first hand accounts of exactly how he was removed and how all the popular stories promoted were nothing but lies regarding the operation, he had no motive to make that stuff up especially his pronationalist views.
Here's a different point of view on the west...
//iranian.com/main/blog/amirparvizforsecularm...
reply to Parham
by Fariba Amini on Tue Aug 23, 2011 10:45 AM PDTI will not reply to others because I have said what I have said. True that my father has greatly influenced me both politcially and personally and for that I am grateful but it is not because he worshiped Mosaddeq that I have come to admire the man. It is because he wanted to implement what the West is now prescribing for the Arab world and the rest: Rule of law and democracy. I am not a worshiper of anybody. men and women of politics are not saints. They are normal human beings who make mistakes. NF people did not "mardeh Rendi." as one claims but believed that they are smarter than the clergy. Well they were not !
but to reply to you dear Parham, I think the essence of what mosaddeq believed in was what we read today in all the literature: Non-violence. When some from the Tudeh party warned him of a coup and asked him to give them arms to confront the coup detachis, he replied, Dasteh oun nakhost vaziri ghat besheh ke aslaheh rouyeh mardom boland koneh. he did not believe in the use of arms or violence ; He belielved in non-violence as a means to obtain and keep power. I hope I answered your quesiton.
Ms. Amini:
by Aria on Tue Aug 23, 2011 10:43 AM PDTI know that it is never easy for a daughter or a son, especially a loyal one, to go against the long-held beliefs of a lifetime that has kept a “parent” in a certain historical place and context.
I am also mindful of the honesty and integrity that your dear father and his mentor, Dr. Mossadegh, had dedicated a lifetime to, and had lived up by certain moral virtues. Equally, I am also mindful of the complexity of the 1953 events and the events that led up to them, that things were not as black and white.
But, I was wondering about what you think of Dr. Ali Mir-Fetros’s book, whom you personally interviewed. Mr. Mir-fetros’ book, unlike Mr. Kinser’s, which was one-sided and biased (cherry-picking certain events that let up to 1953) is one of the most thorough and comprehensive books ever written about the 1953 overthrow of Mossadgeh.
Not only Mir-fetros includes references from the monarchist camp, Ardeshir Zahedi memoires; Tudeh party officials, Babak Amir-khosravi’s numerous interviews; but, he provides detailed day-to-day, hour-by-hour, in some cases minute-by-minute account of events for the period between 25 Amordad to 28 Amordad, by Mossadegh’s closest allies and confidants. And, it is exactly those accounts by Mossadegh’s inner-circle that show that the US/UK Ajax plan was way too limited in scope, unlike some who try to depict it as otherwise; and, that between 25 Amordad and 28 Amordad events became very organic, which let to the toppling of Mossadegh.
The most sincere of these statements come from Dr. Sedighi, Mossadegh’s own cabinet memeber (there are numerous other ones as well).
Dr. Mir-fetros’ work is unique in the sense that his background is not that of a monarchist. As a matter of a fact he was an avid opponent of the Shah’s regime and was a political prisoner for a period of time and was tortured by the previous regime's security systems.
I am wondering what you think of Mr. Mir-fetros’s background and his book.
Respectfully,
Well if it ain't...
by Parham on Tue Aug 23, 2011 07:29 AM PDT... the legacy of Shaboon Bimokh...
I agree with
by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on Tue Aug 23, 2011 03:38 AM PDTSiavash; Rashid and Fozoli. This whole Mossadegh legend has gone too far. It did nothing but to divide our nation and let the IRI take power.
Reza shah, patriatic soldier
by Siavash300 on Tue Aug 23, 2011 12:12 AM PDTMs. Amini can not be objective because his father was a lawyer of those who were pro-mosaddeq. That is conflict of interest. Ms. Amini is not able to see many historical facts. For example, there is no any single trace in our modern history that Mosaddeq ever condemn his mongolian dynasty who treated Iran as a country of their enemy for 140 years. Mosaddeq was 19 years old when his upium addict uncle known as Mozafare-din shah signed the oil concession with Brits. Mosaddeq didn't speak out. He achieved his doctora degree in 1912 , so he could write a book in condemnation of oil concession. But he never did that. From 112 million pound annual ravenue of oil, Qjar was receiving 4 million pound and Brits was getting 108 million pound. They were robbing our country and Mosaddeq was quite. In fact, mosaddeq was quite for 50 years. The concept of nationalism came to picture after long strugle of Tudeh party with brits and U.S over occupation of northern providence of Iran by Stalin and his army. The movement of our people created Nationalism. The demonstartion of our people on 30 Tir and those who were killed in Maydon-e-Baharestan created Nationalism, not Mosaddeq. The blood of those who were killed prosper the concept of nationalism. They were chanting : "Nafete ma meli shodeh, Khak bar sar-e chirchil shodeh" . Mosaddeq was not patriatic for over 50 years.
All modernization and progress we were witnessing in Iran owe to Pahlavi dynasty. That is the fact. If there was no Pahlavi in Iran, Iran would have been like current Afghanistan. Women including Ms. Amini should have wear those BUKRA that Afghans wearing. Men would have had hat like the time of Qjar. We see how Afghani look on T.V. We would have been like them without Pahlavi dynasty. Talk is cheap. Talking doesn't accomplish anything. Just talking about Mosaddeq and Keep fantasazing about something that never took place. There is a expression in farsi that we say: "Un-written essay doesn't have error". Mosaddeq is UN-written essay.
Reza khan was a patriatic soldier who lived for Iran, modernized Iran and died for Iran. That is written essay.