Interior Minister's Warning About the Influx of Dirty Money into Power and Elections

The newspaper Shahrvand has highlighted the Interior Minister's statements regarding the "influx of 20 trillion tomans of dirty money" and its impact on "power and elections" in Iran. The newspaper Javan, affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, criticized the government, particularly the Women's Affairs and Family Department, for facilitating the travel of a "180-member delegation" of women activists from NGOs to attend the UN's "Commission on the Status of Women" in New York. The newspaper Etemad reported on the "third price surge" of milk and dairy products this year, stating: "In the last couple of days, the price of milk increased again by 200 tomans." According to this newspaper, the year 1393 began with "the price of low-fat milk at 1,600 tomans per liter and full-fat milk at about 2,000 tomans, while it was approved that dairy prices would only increase by 15% this year. However, currently, the price of low-fat milk in the market is 2,400 tomans and full-fat milk is 2,800 tomans," indicating that "while it was supposed that milk prices would only increase by 15%, low-fat milk has increased by 50% and full-fat milk by 40%." The newspaper Qanoon reported that as part of the ongoing series of concert cancellations, "Alireza Ghorbani's concert at Beheshti University in Tehran" has also been canceled. The Interior Minister's warning about the "influx of dirty money into the realm of power and elections" was reiterated in Shahrvand's front page. The Minister of Interior, Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, stated on Tuesday at the 11th National Festival for the introduction and selection of written works in the field of narcotics and psychotropic substances that "when we mention under-the-table payments, bribes, rent-seeking, smuggling, inequality, and undue privileges in the economy, we refer to these unofficial financial resources that we call 'dirty money.'" The Minister noted that "the figure for smuggling is reported to be 10 trillion tomans," adding that "if drug smuggling is also 10 trillion tomans, it can be said that 20 trillion tomans are entering the economy through hidden channels, and it can no longer be said that this economy is healthy and that a logical and legal competition is formed. Those who have this money can easily infiltrate and buy people and laws, creating problems." Rahmani Fazli, who also serves as the Secretary of the Anti-Narcotics Headquarters, emphasized that "we have neglected the economic aspect of narcotics, and this issue has not been examined scientifically, fundamentally, and practically." He mentioned that "a person has been identified who, with five classes of education and at the age of 35, had a financial turnover of 2 trillion tomans due to the trafficking of 400 tons of narcotics," and has advanced drug trafficking under covers such as construction and import-export. He stated, "If we want to achieve a healthy economy, we must close the door to the influx of dirty money into the economy." The Minister insisted that "banks that have not implemented anti-money laundering laws must be held accountable," questioning, "Do we not have laws in this regard that this individual was able to open an account in the name of deceased individuals? Why have financial and banking officials not provided reports on the financial flows for deceased individuals, and if reports were provided, why were they not investigated?" Shahrvand noted that the Minister had previously expressed similar concerns about the influx of dirty money from drug trafficking into elections and reiterated on Tuesday that "we are also facing the presence and entry of this money into the political sphere. If this money is not controlled, it will enter all areas. Smuggling and terrorism seek to gain power to create a safe haven and will certainly spend money for this purpose. If we are not vigilant and do not take care, a portion of this dirty money will certainly seek to enter the realm of power and politics." The newspaper Shahrvand pointed out that "the Minister's similar statements made last week were criticized by some conservative members of parliament," including Aladdin Boroujerdi, the head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the 9th Parliament, who stated regarding Rahmani Fazli's comments on "the influx of dirty money into the electoral arena" that "it is essential for the country's officials to base their statements on documents and evidence and to refer the discussed issues to the judiciary." Boroujerdi also mentioned that "a letter from several members of parliament has been sent to the Minister of Interior," in which questions regarding Rahmani Fazli's recent statements were raised, and the representatives demanded his accountability. The newspaper Shahrvand also referred to the reaction of Hossein Sobhaninia, a member of the parliament's presiding board, who stated, "Certainly questioning the electoral environment is not in the country's interest," and "if Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli has documents in this regard, he should present them to the judiciary so that legal action can be taken against the offenders." However, the newspaper emphasized that on Tuesday, the Minister stated that "one of the issues discussed in the Expediency Council is the financial transparency of those entering the electoral sphere," adding, "In the new party bill we submitted to the government, we also emphasized that all parties must have financial transparency. The revolution is the result of the blood of martyrs and the resilience of the people, and we cannot allow this dirty money to contaminate power through various channels due to a lack of vigilance." According to Shahrvand, the Minister also said, "What is wrong with announcing that all electoral candidates should use a single account for their expenses so that it can be accounted for? In some cases, assistance has been provided to electoral candidates that the recipient has perceived as benevolent, but later something else has happened behind the scenes." The Javan newspaper attacked the Iranian delegation's trip to the UN's "Commission on the Status of Women," criticizing the government for facilitating the travel of a "180-member delegation" of women activists from NGOs to attend the meeting. In a report titled "A Women's March to the Land of the Devil," they severely criticized Shahindokht Molaverdi, the Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, stating, "What message does Molaverdi bring to America with this number of accompanying women, especially just a few weeks before the end of our exhausting negotiations on the nuclear issue, and when the Leader of the Revolution always considers the Islamic Republic of Iran as a creditor to America and the West, not a debtor and accountable to them?" The Javan newspaper wrote: "With less than a week until the 59th session of the Commission on the Status of Women Beijing +20 in New York, which our country is also set to participate in with a 180-member delegation to present a report on the status of women in the Islamic Republic of Iran, it is noted that the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women contradict our laws and Sharia, and no achievements are expected from it, while it is unclear on what basis this delegation, more than 100 of whom are representatives of NGOs, has been selected and what goals are pursued behind the scenes of this selection." Zahra Chidhari, in the Javan newspaper's report, quoted the objections of Zahra Taqizadeh Nouri, a conservative member of the 9th Parliament, and Fereshteh Rouhafza, the head of the women's branch of the Basij Student Organization, against the trip of a delegation of Iranian women to the UN's "Commission on the Status of Women," stating, "It has not been long since the Vice President for Women visited the Vatican to interact on women's and family issues; a trip that, regardless of the criticisms leveled, had no tangible achievements considering our religious and national perspectives on the subject of women and family and the differences between this perspective and that of the Vatican." The Javan newspaper described the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Women's Affairs and Family Department of the 11th government and the UN Population Fund as "a move in the dark without coordination with the Center for Women and Family of the Presidency in signing an agreement with the UN Population Fund," adding, "However, the presence of a 180-member delegation at the Beijing +20 meeting, which is set to take place from March 9 to 20 in New York, has raised sensitivities in this regard." The Javan newspaper also called for a "security" review of the presence of Iranian women at the UN meeting, referring to the Iranian delegation as "a group without security clearance" and stating, "The number and composition of the participating NGOs raise questions, as none of them have the necessary qualifications and approvals from security authorities." The newspaper wrote: "The question of who the representatives of these 100 NGOs are and how they were selected remains unanswered in relation to the Beijing +20 meeting. Notably, it appears that the United States has issued three-month visas for individuals with no travel restrictions across the US, while in previous years, Americans have imposed the strictest restrictions on Iranian diplomatic delegations, allowing them to go only a few kilometers beyond their place of residence after obtaining visas, and only with a few-day visa." The Javan newspaper referred to some women present in this delegation as "controversial figures" and expressed concern that members of NGOs might present unrealistic issues regarding women in the country at the global podium. However, the newspaper quoted Shahindokht Molaverdi, the Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, regarding the Beijing +20 meeting and the content of the report prepared for presentation at the meeting, stating, "We have an obligation to the United Nations and believe that we must address both achievements and challenges and obstacles, as reports must be presented in a specific format; however, the speculations currently being made about our country's report, such as presenting a feminist approach, are incorrect, as this report has been prepared and submitted under the supervision of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs." The Javan newspaper noted one of the reasons for its criticism of the presence of a delegation of Iranian women at the UN's "Beijing +20" meeting, stating, "This convention allows Baha'is to engage in cultural activities to publish their misleading books, and these differences and contradictions further obscure the potential achievements of such a meeting." The newspaper Etemad reported on the "third price surge" of milk and dairy products this year, stating: "In the last couple of days, the price of milk increased again by 200 tomans." According to this newspaper, the year 1393 began with "the price of low-fat milk at 1,600 tomans per liter and full-fat milk at about 2,000 tomans, while it was approved that dairy prices would only increase by 15% this year. However, currently, the price of low-fat milk in the market is 2,400 tomans and full-fat milk is 2,800 tomans," indicating that "while it was supposed that milk prices would only increase by 15%, low-fat milk has increased by 50% and full-fat milk by 40%." Etemad emphasized that the recent price increase of milk is not related to all brands, as only a few have raised prices due to increased production costs without the approval of the Support Organization, and accordingly, the Dairy Industries Union has promised that prices will return to previous rates in the coming days. Mohammad Reza Esmaeili, the CEO of the National Dairy Industries Union of Iran, confirmed in an interview with Etemad that "prices have increased in recent days by several companies," but stated that "there has been no resolution for price increases." However, since "dairy industries are currently operating at a loss, a limited number of factories have raised prices for some products to prevent losses, which does not apply to all dairy factories." According to Mohammad Reza Esmaeili, "Currently, there has been a renewed increase in dairy product prices, and factories have agreed that prices should be reduced," and the National Dairy Industries Union is not seeking further increases in dairy product prices because as dairy product prices rise, due to decreased purchasing power of the people, the market share of factories will also significantly decrease, which is not in the interest of dairy industries." The newspaper Etemad recalled that the third price increase of milk occurs "while it was revealed this year that some dairy companies were adding palm oil to their products, which had impacted the market for these products for a while," and at the time of the revelation of such actions, "officials and spokespeople for dairy industries and various factories claimed that the reason for this illegal action was the low price of dairy products, and they used this trick to reduce production costs of their products." The continuation of the series of concert cancellations; Alireza Ghorbani's concert in Tehran, Sirvan Khosravi in Bushehr, was reported by the newspaper Qanoon, stating that as part of the ongoing series of concert cancellations, "Alireza Ghorbani's concert at Beheshti University in Tehran" has also been canceled. The newspaper noted that Ghorbani's concert in Chenaran was canceled last week, and this concert, which was scheduled to take place on Tuesday at the Aboureyhan Hall of Beheshti University, was canceled for the second consecutive time, just a few hours before the concert was to be held, following the announcement from the university's supervisory council.