So you say you want a revolution...

Iran is heating up to the boiling point. The only question is, will the western world recongnize this as their opportunity to help these students, laborors, and women's rights groups in their time of need? Allow me to explain.

Last Tuesday, riots broke out slowly, and then they became up in the thousands spreading all through the land. The numbers grew into the hundreds of thousands. The students were in confrontations with the Islamic Guardsmen. They threw rocks, and they injured some of them. In return, some of the students were killed.

As far as the western governments go, they are doing absolutely nothing to help these people. One student leader, Abbas Hakim Zadeh, who has a word of advice for those in Washington:

"If there is any dialogue and conversations or negotiations between the Islamic Republic and the international community, whether the United States or other countries individually or collectively, if it is around the nucleus of human rights, democracy and the openness in Iran, it is something worthwhile to consider," he said.

"However if the idea is for Iran to get security guarantees embedded in it that the regime can suppress the human rights and the will of the people, that is something the Iranian student movement, the Iranian labor movement and the Iranian women's rights groups reject firmly and totally." [continue reading]

While Mr. Pouryousefi, a friend and colleague of Mr. Zadeh, wants help from the human rights groups and not money from Washington; Reza Pahlavi wants Washington to do more than talk. Talk is cheap, he says. He is right.

"Fantastic, we love to hear that, motherhood and apple pie," Pahlavi said of Bush's statements that the United States supports a free, democratic Iran.

"What remains to be seen again is in what concrete way the U.S. administration will take the necessary steps," Pahlavi told Reuters ...[continue reading]

It would also appear the riots first broke out in Tabriz. This is significant. Not so much as to why, as to where. (There were state-sponsored cartoons that depicting members of the Azeri minority as cockroaches.) The significance is this; every revolution that has been successful has started in Tabriz.

The Washington Post reports on a policy which may be the next step if the UN, the EU, and any other group of countries or entities fails diplomatically with Iran.

The plan is designed to curtail the financial freedom of every Iranian official, individual and entity the Bush administration considers connected not only to nuclear enrichment efforts but to terrorism, government corruption, suppression of religious or democratic freedom, and violence in Iraq, Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian territories. It would restrict the Tehran government's access to foreign currency and global markets, shut its overseas accounts and freeze assets held in Europe and Asia. [continue reading]

See, there are other pressures that may be applied after diplomacy fails besides war. This is a good thing. What we need to do is put pressure on the White House to instruct Voice of America in Iran to take on the regime. They need to speak openly about democracy and the means to achieve it. Otherwise, why are we paying it?

We should also pressure our own government to help these students. They need more than words. They can instruct groups such as Human Rights Watch, Women's Rights, and labor groups, along with students in America as to the situation in Iran. They need to know about the riots. We were successful in the Ukraine, we were successful in Lebanon-sort of, and we can be successful in Iran without firing one shot. It is all up to you.

Here are the sources I used for this article: Determined Foes Mount Challenge To Iran's Mullahs, by Eli Lake, Thursday, May 25, 2006; Shah's son urges action on Iran, by Reuters, Tuesday, May 30, 2006; and U.S. Urges Financial Sanctions On Iran White House Tries to Enlist Europe, Japan, by Dafna Linzer, Monday, May 29, 2006 all have interesting articles on the state of Iran.

Eli Lake from the NY Sun is a voice I have heard before. He is one of those reporters you dream about. He reports the facts, just the facts. He has also truly been a voice in the wild, beside us bloggers. I really respect him.

For those of you who do not know what I think al-Reuters, allow me to just say this. I do not like them. That is the long and the short of it.

The last article from the Washington Post was written by an AP writer named Dafna Linzer. I do not know this person, so I will comment directly about the article. As far as Reuters, however, generally get a bad taste in my mouth when I read them. Phewy.

Now that we have my opinion about the topics I am about to present, I hope you will understand why I took the time to express my disdain and admiration.

Pictures courtesy of The Spirit of Man.

Category: Iran.