Azari Jahromi: Many Recipients of Government Currency Have Yet to Be Revealed

Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, Iran's Minister of Communications and Information Technology, welcomed the judiciary's crackdown on currency offenders but stated that a large portion of the list of recipients of the 4200 Toman currency has not yet been published. On Sunday, July 24, Mr. Jahromi tweeted that the transparency process in this regard has taken a 'suitable path,' but the publication of the entire list and 'utilizing public oversight to uncover wrongdoings' is important. Earlier, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the judiciary spokesperson, mentioned in a press conference that several individuals have been arrested and several companies sealed in the case of offenders related to the import of mobile phones with government currency. In the past three weeks, following protest gatherings in commercial centers and markets in Tehran and several other cities, lists titled 'currency offenders' have been published. However, critics have always emphasized that these lists address only a very small portion and do not cover some areas, such as automobiles. During the protests a few weeks ago, demonstrators initially shouted slogans against inflation and the disorder in the currency market, but the slogans quickly turned political, targeting the internal and foreign policies of the Islamic Republic. Recently, Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi stated that the airing of televised confessions by several dancing girls and the renewed rumors about the filtering of Instagram were merely aimed at 'diverting public attention' from the transparency of the currency market. In recent weeks, several officials of the Islamic Republic, including Mohammad Shariatmadari, the Minister of Industry, Mine, and Trade, have deemed the publication of the complete list of offenders as inappropriate and against the private sector. The statements by the Minister of Communications and the judiciary spokesperson were released on the same day that Hassan Rouhani's cabinet met with the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic. Prior to this meeting, the website 'Alef' reported that Ayatollah Khamenei had summoned the government delegation to explain economic problems. A few days ago, the Supreme Leader also requested a report from Hassan Rouhani regarding the distribution of coins and currency. Following instability in Iran's currency market, Eshaq Jahangiri, the First Vice President of Iran, announced that the currency needed for imports and the currency resulting from exports would be provided to the monetary and banking network of Iran's economy at the rate of 4200 Tomans per dollar. This action drew criticism from several officials and economic experts, including Akbar Turkan, an advisor to the President, who stated that importers sell goods brought in with the 4200 Toman currency at the price of 8000 Tomans per dollar. Ultimately, Rouhani's government effectively acknowledged the failure of this policy in July and created a 'secondary currency market,' which means a three-tiered currency system. According to a table announced by the U.S. State Department's policy director, the return of U.S. sanctions against Iran will begin on August 4 in the automotive and gold trading sectors, and sanctions on oil, energy, and banking transactions will commence on November 4.