Motahari in Shiraz: When Two Brothers Become Heads of Power, the Situation Deteriorates

Ali Motahari, a representative from Tehran in the parliament, delivered a speech in Shiraz on Tuesday under "heavy security measures," which, according to reports, was accompanied by many controversies. Mr. Motahari commented on the arrest of journalists, stating that "when two brothers become heads of power, the situation deteriorates." Mr. Motahari traveled to Shiraz to attend the court session for those accused of attacking him and spoke at the university in the city on the evening of November 10. According to the Iranian Labor News Agency, ILNA, Mr. Motahari's speech was held "under heavy security measures." The report stated that the security forces at Shiraz University "closed the university doors and even prevented students from entering." Fars News Agency also reported that "an excessive gathering of students in front of Shiraz University led to their protests and a significant presence of law enforcement around the university." The Student News Agency reported that students outside the Hall of Hikmat chanted slogans such as "Guidance, be ashamed, leave the university alone," "The Safavid Association must be disgraced," "We do not want a one-voiced university, we do not want it," "We do not want a security university, we do not want it." However, according to IRNA, "a large portion" of the students present in front of Shiraz University were members of the "Basij Student Organization of Shahid Bahonar Technical and Vocational College" in Shiraz. After Mr. Motahari's speech, some students chanted support for him, while others shouted, "The defender of the seditionist deserved revolutionary action against him." According to the report, only a few journalists and photographers "with the help of the organizing students" managed to attend Mr. Motahari's speech, as the university's security prevented other journalists from entering. The Student News Agency, affiliated with the Basij Student Organization, reported that Mr. Motahari labeled the media ban on former President Mohammad Khatami as "illegal" and also deemed the house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi as "illegal." Regarding Khatami's media ban, he stated: "A group sits together and simply declares that from tomorrow he is banned from the media." He emphasized that Mousavi, Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard should not be imprisoned without trial in a "den." Mr. Motahari also identified "errors by certain governmental institutions," "mischief" by former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and "some mistakes" by Mousavi and Karroubi as "three types of violations" in 2009. This principlist representative also referred to the mistakes of "certain governmental institutions" in 2009, stating that the recent arrests of journalists also reflect this issue. He added: "What relevance does the IRGC Intelligence have in arresting them? Don't we have a Ministry of Intelligence? If they are spies, there should be transparency." The local website Shirazeh quoted this parliament member stating regarding the recent arrests of journalists: "When two brothers become heads of power, the situation deteriorates." Mr. Motahari had previously mentioned that the lack of his questions directed at the Minister of Justice regarding the house arrest of the Green Movement leaders in the parliament might be influenced by the fact that two brothers head two branches of power. Ali Larijani, the Speaker of Parliament, and Sadegh Amoli Larijani, the head of the judiciary, are brothers. Mr. Motahari's repeated request for the investigation of the "instigators" of the attack against him was also noted. On Tuesday morning, Mr. Motahari attended the fourth and final session of the court for those accused of attacking him. Mustafa Torkhamdani, Mr. Motahari's lawyer, also reported that the court sessions regarding the attack on Mr. Motahari have concluded and a ruling is likely to be announced within a month. Meanwhile, Mr. Motahari wrote on his Instagram page that "all" the defendants in his attack expressed "regret" during the court recess. According to the report, Mr. Motahari told his attackers that if the court pursues the case against the "instigators" of this incident, the likelihood of his "forgiveness" of the attackers "increases." He also responded to the judge's request for "forgiveness" by stating that "if the matter were purely personal, I would do it, but the issue has a public aspect and is essentially a disease and plague that has afflicted the revolution and must be treated." Mr. Motahari had previously stated that the attackers against him in Shiraz had "organizational orders" and demanded the trial of the "commanders and instigators" of the attack against him. Ali Motahari traveled to Shiraz on March 9, 2015, to speak at Shiraz University, where he was "beaten by plainclothes forces" at the airport and ultimately forced to return to Tehran. He had previously implicitly identified some of his attackers as being affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Reports indicate that there are 11 defendants in the case of the attack on Mr. Motahari, eight of whom are the attackers. While Mr. Motahari and his lawyer have stated that they do not have any complaints against the officials of Shiraz University, two officials from this university and the head of the student organization that invited Mr. Motahari are also among the defendants.