Hashemi Rafsanjani Criticizes Double Standards Against the Ministry of Culture

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the head of Iran's Expediency Discernment Council, criticized the double standards applied to the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance compared to other cultural institutions such as the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB). He stated that currently, it is only this ministry that faces scrutiny. The Farhikhtegan newspaper reported on Tuesday, December 9, the remarks of Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani during a meeting with Reza Salehi Amiri, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, in which he mentioned that this ministry has always been under attack due to the diversity of viewpoints. Hashemi Rafsanjani said, 'While many music and film productions are created and broadcasted by other cultural and media institutions, there is less sensitivity towards these organizations. However, regarding the productions related to the Ministry of Culture, which are state-related, there is a high level of sensitivity, criticism, and demands, and sometimes the minister is questioned and held accountable.' In the last days of Mehr month, Ali Jannati's resignation from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance was officially accepted, and Reza Salehi Amiri replaced him. One of the major controversial issues during Jannati's tenure was the opposition of some hardliners to holding music concerts in religious cities such as Mashhad and Qom, which led to the resignation of the director of the Culture and Guidance office in Qom province. In his farewell speech, Jannati spoke of the existence of 'think tanks for undermining the government, especially the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance' and stated that 'ill-wishers... created a new challenge, subject, and controversy every day, and therefore we had to spend a lot of our working time responding to them.'