IRAN, by RAMIN TALAIE
photos and text c Ramin Talaie
I arrived in Tehran to get a head start on this year’s presidential elections in Iran. There was not much excitement in the air as in the prior years. All seemed routine and normal five weeks before the June 17th election date. However, this being Iran, there is no such thing as routine.
Over 1,000 people exercised their constitutional rights and signed up at the Ministry of Interiors to run for the office of the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
A few days later the Guardian Council, one of Iran’s unelected political bodies, reduced the field of 1,014 to 8, disqualifying the masses, and allowing the predicted top names to move forward.
Most Iranians complained that in 8 years, Khatami, a reformist cleric, brought them no real positive change. Local and foreign media favored the front-runner and former president pragmatic Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Inside Iran the reformists talked of boycotting the election as all signs pointed to Hashemi and conservatives to win.
A few days later the Iranian soccer team beat Bahrain qualifying on top of their division to advance to World Cup Soccer games in Germany in 2006. The win incited Iranians, especially the youth, to run into streets and celebrate the victory.
Women who normally are not allowed to attend games were present in large numbers with painted faces in green, white, and red along with young men who openly danced to piercing music in the middle of major avenues in Tehran. Police and members of Basij (Iran’s paramilitary group enforcing morality and Islamic laws) were simply too outnumbered to do anything.
Standing in the middle of a major avenue taking pictures with a few other photographers, we all knew this was not about the game. They just wanted to dance. The boys wanted to show the latest moves seen on MTV coming over illegal satellite, as the girls clapped and cheered them on to the rhythm of music.
Eventually people dispersed as more police and Basij took to the streets. Going home, I witnessed a group of riot police chasing hundreds of youth and beating them wildly with their batons. I didn’t dare to follow them or snap any pictures.
As things began heating up between the candidates, out of nowhere Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn, was spotted at the Nama-ze-Jumeh (the Friday prayers). Penn showed up in Iran as a journalist working for the San Francisco Chronicle.
For days people talked about Sean Penn as Iranian press chased him all over Tehran to get a glimpse of him. I finally caught up to him on his last day in Tehran when he visited the Film Museum.
However, the highlight of the crazy week in Tehran came as hundreds of brave women took to Tehran University for un-permitted demonstration asking for equal rights.
All blocks leading to Tehran University was closed off by edgy riot police. Crossing the street, a few of us formed a little group and forced our way in to reach the demonstrators. The police pushed back but most of us got through. It was clearly not a good idea for us to be there.
Everyone was tense and trying to stay near each other. A handful of men in plain clothing video tapped everyone and every woman holding signs. They were undoubtedly members of Etellaat, Iran’s secret police.
After taking a few shots, I looked up checking on my friends to see where everyone was. Men standing on the parameters of the protesters were being arrested and pushed out. Police had formed a circle around us to keep away more press and passersby away. Empty buses were brought in to block the demonstrations from the other side of the street. We were trapped!
Shooting as quickly as we could we keep talking to each other watching for the police and avoiding the Etellaat’s cameras.
I got chills running up my back as I looked around at these brave women. I felt this is what it must have felt like covering civil rights marches in the south during the 60’s. The women had strong demands. They chanted Persian poetry celebrating women’s place in society and ignored the fear tactics used by the police.
These women had taken on the Iranian government head on by asking for equal rights and demanding a change to the constitution challenging everything that is wrong in Iran especially towards women.
On the elections day, all eyes were on Hashemi. Although he took the majority of the votes that day, but he lost Tehran, the capital, to hardliner mayor Ahmadinejad.
A surprising strong showing by Ahmadinejad resulted in Iran’s first ever election runoff between him and Hashemi Rafsanji. Through the following week reformist joined forces around Hashemi Rafsanji to no avail.
At the end, all predictions were wrong. The extreme conservative, Ahmadinejad, who wanted to place a martyr from Iran-Iraq war in every square in Tehran, had won the elections.
Again nothing is normal here as we were offered a tour of Iran’s nuclear facility by the Ministry of Islamic Guidance known as Ershad. Ershad is in charge of providing visa and monitoring journalist activities in Iran. About 43 journalists, mostly foreign, jumped on the opportunity to visit the site.
We saw a nuclear reactor and power plant under construction along with heavy security. The facility is under contract by Russian and all laborers and engineers were Russians. It was fascinating to think this place will be the top hit target by Israel and America the second it goes operational.
Iran was again showing its old signs, unpredictable and exciting. I could not resist thinking what if I get stuck here!
Two days later after an adventurous two months in Iran, I was on an Austrian Air flight to Vienna.
It was an amazing feeling to have witnessed so much and having the freedom to leave it all behind.
Ramin Talaie
Tehran, Iran
READ RAMIN TALAIE'S BLOG
RAMIN TALAIE HOMEPAGE
MORE PHOTOS FROM IRAN BY RAMIN TALAIE
I arrived in Tehran to get a head start on this year’s presidential elections in Iran. There was not much excitement in the air as in the prior years. All seemed routine and normal five weeks before the June 17th election date. However, this being Iran, there is no such thing as routine.
Over 1,000 people exercised their constitutional rights and signed up at the Ministry of Interiors to run for the office of the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
A few days later the Guardian Council, one of Iran’s unelected political bodies, reduced the field of 1,014 to 8, disqualifying the masses, and allowing the predicted top names to move forward.
Most Iranians complained that in 8 years, Khatami, a reformist cleric, brought them no real positive change. Local and foreign media favored the front-runner and former president pragmatic Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Inside Iran the reformists talked of boycotting the election as all signs pointed to Hashemi and conservatives to win.
A few days later the Iranian soccer team beat Bahrain qualifying on top of their division to advance to World Cup Soccer games in Germany in 2006. The win incited Iranians, especially the youth, to run into streets and celebrate the victory.
Women who normally are not allowed to attend games were present in large numbers with painted faces in green, white, and red along with young men who openly danced to piercing music in the middle of major avenues in Tehran. Police and members of Basij (Iran’s paramilitary group enforcing morality and Islamic laws) were simply too outnumbered to do anything.
Standing in the middle of a major avenue taking pictures with a few other photographers, we all knew this was not about the game. They just wanted to dance. The boys wanted to show the latest moves seen on MTV coming over illegal satellite, as the girls clapped and cheered them on to the rhythm of music.
Eventually people dispersed as more police and Basij took to the streets. Going home, I witnessed a group of riot police chasing hundreds of youth and beating them wildly with their batons. I didn’t dare to follow them or snap any pictures.
As things began heating up between the candidates, out of nowhere Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn, was spotted at the Nama-ze-Jumeh (the Friday prayers). Penn showed up in Iran as a journalist working for the San Francisco Chronicle.
For days people talked about Sean Penn as Iranian press chased him all over Tehran to get a glimpse of him. I finally caught up to him on his last day in Tehran when he visited the Film Museum.
However, the highlight of the crazy week in Tehran came as hundreds of brave women took to Tehran University for un-permitted demonstration asking for equal rights.
All blocks leading to Tehran University was closed off by edgy riot police. Crossing the street, a few of us formed a little group and forced our way in to reach the demonstrators. The police pushed back but most of us got through. It was clearly not a good idea for us to be there.
Everyone was tense and trying to stay near each other. A handful of men in plain clothing video tapped everyone and every woman holding signs. They were undoubtedly members of Etellaat, Iran’s secret police.
After taking a few shots, I looked up checking on my friends to see where everyone was. Men standing on the parameters of the protesters were being arrested and pushed out. Police had formed a circle around us to keep away more press and passersby away. Empty buses were brought in to block the demonstrations from the other side of the street. We were trapped!
Shooting as quickly as we could we keep talking to each other watching for the police and avoiding the Etellaat’s cameras.
I got chills running up my back as I looked around at these brave women. I felt this is what it must have felt like covering civil rights marches in the south during the 60’s. The women had strong demands. They chanted Persian poetry celebrating women’s place in society and ignored the fear tactics used by the police.
These women had taken on the Iranian government head on by asking for equal rights and demanding a change to the constitution challenging everything that is wrong in Iran especially towards women.
On the elections day, all eyes were on Hashemi. Although he took the majority of the votes that day, but he lost Tehran, the capital, to hardliner mayor Ahmadinejad.
A surprising strong showing by Ahmadinejad resulted in Iran’s first ever election runoff between him and Hashemi Rafsanji. Through the following week reformist joined forces around Hashemi Rafsanji to no avail.
At the end, all predictions were wrong. The extreme conservative, Ahmadinejad, who wanted to place a martyr from Iran-Iraq war in every square in Tehran, had won the elections.
Again nothing is normal here as we were offered a tour of Iran’s nuclear facility by the Ministry of Islamic Guidance known as Ershad. Ershad is in charge of providing visa and monitoring journalist activities in Iran. About 43 journalists, mostly foreign, jumped on the opportunity to visit the site.
We saw a nuclear reactor and power plant under construction along with heavy security. The facility is under contract by Russian and all laborers and engineers were Russians. It was fascinating to think this place will be the top hit target by Israel and America the second it goes operational.
Iran was again showing its old signs, unpredictable and exciting. I could not resist thinking what if I get stuck here!
Two days later after an adventurous two months in Iran, I was on an Austrian Air flight to Vienna.
It was an amazing feeling to have witnessed so much and having the freedom to leave it all behind.
Ramin Talaie
Tehran, Iran
READ RAMIN TALAIE'S BLOG
RAMIN TALAIE HOMEPAGE
MORE PHOTOS FROM IRAN BY RAMIN TALAIE
posted by AMY at 3:22 PM
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