Former prince says Iran ready for democracy

By Linda CarmanPrint Story | Email Story
Reza Pahlavi (Photo By Linda Carman)
WILLIAMSTOWN — The outside world should cease implicitly tolerating the repressive theocratic regime in Iran, that country’s former crown prince, Reza Pahlavi, told a Williams College audience Monday night. “It is incumbent upon the world to say, ‘We will not condone these violations of human rights’ and not legitimize the regime by entering negotiations with the regime,” Pahlavi said at a press conference Tuesday morning. A resident of the United States since 1984, Pahlavi attended Williams during the Iranian Revolution. During his talk Monday, he called his visit here an emotional homecoming. And he underlined his country’s need for a secular democracy. “You don’t need to send troops,” he said, stressing that the outside world should simply “not cut a deal with the regime.” Speaking on “Iran: Past, Present, Future,” he maintained that regime has lost the support of its people, and he noted that 90 percent of voters boycotted the last parliamentary elections. Pahlavi, author of “Winds of Change,” has written numerous political articles and was recently featured in The Wall Street Journal. He wants international support for a national referendum by the Iranian people to determine their own political future. Not only should the outside world withhold its support on human-rights grounds but out of enlightened self-interest, he said. Elaborating on his topic at the press conference, he maintained that change would produce “immediate ramifications in our area,” ramifications such as a drastic reduction in terrorism and a better climate for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “This wall has to crumble,” he said. Theocrats in the Islamic Republic in Iran are a significant element in encouraging the insurrection among some Shiite groups in Iraq, he maintained. “Any kind of democracy next door is bad news for them,” he said. “They give every encouragement of the insurgency.” He added that the groups “will do everything to put a wrench into the system. They have every reason to try.” And, he said, the growing influence of Shiite clergy in the Iraqi centers of Najaf and Karbala would diminish that of the Iranian regime. He charged that they “are behind the financing of radical groups” and that they have sent funds and people into Iraq. In his talk, Pahlavi stressed that the majority of Iranian citizens have come to the conclusion that they need a modern, progressive government, but they are stuck with a medieval, anti-democratic theocracy that quashes dissent and jails dissidents. “It has lost any kind of legitimacy. It has to be brought down, but my position has been that the preferred method is non-compliance and civil disobedience,” he said. The change is inevitable, he said, and international reaction can help expedite that change. The current regime will not vote itself out of office, he said. “After 25 years, Iranians have no hope for any kind of improvement or reform within the system,” he said. Underlining his country’s quest for freedom, Pahlavi noted that people in Iran held vigil after the attacks of 9-11, while those in some other Muslim countries celebrated. He rejected the notion of a “clash of cultures,” insisting, “It’s about freedom, liberty. What you value for yourselves, don’t monopolize.” He also maintained that the climate in Iran is more favorable to change than that in Afghanistan and Iraq. “Invest in the process of change. Engage with the people of Iran, with the democratic opposition, with the diaspora,” he urged. On the other hand, sending delegations of diplomats to break picket lines to meet with the regime “takes the wind out of the sails” of regime opponents, he said. “Do not cut a deal with the current regime in Iran,” he said. “The message is that people do care.” He said that message could be conveyed “without us having to send a single Marine.” During the question-and-answer period, Pahlavi said most clerics in Iran favor a secular system because the current system taints them. “The concept of secularism does not frighten clerics in Iran,” he said. “We’re where Europe was at the end of the Spanish Inquisition … life under the Islamic republic has been hell.” Pahlavi’s talk was part of his effort to spread his message “beyond the White House and Capitol Hill that a clearer engagement with democratic forces in Iran will achieve not just tangible results but psychological support as well.” He wants to mobilize citizens to demand government action. Now, he said, the United States is sending mixed signals, with on one hand President George W. Bush saying he stands with the people of Iran and on the other, State Department delegations meeting in Switzerland with representatives of the regime. While he believes the people of Iran will change their government, as those in Chile, Argentina and South Africa have done, he said he was concerned about the passage of time. He wants the change to occur “before yet another generation of young Iranians has to be sacrificed,” and before the current regime gets even closer to having an atomic bomb and perhaps prompting military action, which, he said, is “totally unnecessary in Iran.” Asked what form of government he favors, and whether that form might be a constitutional monarchy, he replied that his entire focus is on a national referendum. “My focus is how do we get from here to the day we go to the polls.” He said that he favors a secular government that guarantees human rights but that the final form matters less than its being arrived at democratically. “I can’t put a timeline on it, but we’re much, much closer,” he said. Since its inception, the clerical regime in Teheran as been the epicenter of extremism and radicalism, and it needs to export that radicalism to ensure its survival, he said. After the death of his father, Shah Muhammed Reza, he transferred to the University of Southern California, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in political science. “I really appreciated the understanding and sympathy shown to me while I was at Williams,” he said. “I was not the normal student freshman.” He noted the difficulty of “being low key with the need to have adequate security.” But he quipped that he would rather face an assassin “than ever have to take another exam. I hated exams. Always did.” Asked if he would return to a secular democratic Iran, he said, “Of course. It’s my country.” But he declined to specify a particular role he might play. “I stand ready to serve,” he said. “But first, let’s save the country.”
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Senior Golf Series Returns in September

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. -- The Berkshire County Fall Senior Golf series returns in September with events on five consecutive Wednesdays starting Sept. 18.
 
It is the 22nd year of the series, which is a fund-raiser for junior golf in the county, and it is open to players aged 50 and up.
 
The series will feature two divisions for each event based on the combined ages of the playing partners.
 
Golfers play from the white tees (or equivalent) with participants 70 and over or who have a handicap of more than 9 able to play from the forward tees.
 
Gross and net prices will be available in each division.
 
The cost is $55 per event and includes a round of golf, food and prizes. Carts are available for an additional fee.
 
Golfers should call the pro shop at the course for that week's event no sooner than two weeks before the event to register.
 
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