Motahari's Reaction to Mortazavi's 'Apology': His Supporters Are More Guilty Than He Is

The Vice President of the Iranian Parliament states that Saeed Mortazavi, the former prosecutor of Tehran, by admitting his mistakes regarding the victims of Kahrizak, has recognized 'civil protest in the Islamic Republic.' However, he asserts that more guilty are those who supported him. Ali Motahari said in an interview with ISNA on Wednesday, September 24, that referring to the Kahrizak victims as 'martyrs' indicates that Mortazavi acknowledges 'civil protest' in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Saeed Mortazavi expressed 'shame' and 'apology' in a letter submitted to the appeals court regarding the events of 2009 in Kahrizak prison. During the protests against the results of the 2009 presidential election, dozens of protesters were sent to Kahrizak detention center at Mortazavi's discretion, where they were tortured and mistreated, resulting in the deaths of at least four individuals, including Mohsen Rouhalamini, Amir Javadi-Far, and Mohammad Kamrani. Although the complaint from the family of Ramin Aghazadeh was not addressed during the proceedings. After the trial, Mortazavi, Ali Akbar Heydari-Far, and Hassan Zarei-Dahani (known as Judge Hadad) were sentenced to permanent dismissal from judicial services and five years of dismissal from public services, although at that time the court acquitted Mortazavi of the charge of complicity in the murder of Mohsen Rouhalamini and of false reporting in the Kahrizak case. Ali Motahari also mentioned that 'it was a positive step for Mortazavi to admit his mistake in a letter,' but 'it would be good if he also wrote a letter regarding the case of Zahra Kazemi.' Zahra Kazemi, an Iranian-Canadian journalist, died in Evin prison in 2003 when Mortazavi was the prosecutor of Tehran. At that time, the Iranian judiciary claimed that the cause of her death was fainting and hitting her head on the ground, but the investigative committee of the sixth parliament accused Mortazavi of beating Zahra Kazemi during her detention. The Vice President of the Iranian Parliament emphasized that more than Mortazavi, those who 'created something called Mortazavi and supported him' are guilty. He stated, 'When you give such extensive powers to an inexperienced young man that he can shut down any publication he wants and treat suspects as he pleases, he will naturally become unruly, and it is human nature.' According to Mr. Motahari, 'Individuals who sought power from Mr. Mortazavi used him as a tool and hid behind him, and their cases should also be investigated.' Saeed Mortazavi worked as a judge in the press court since the mid-1990s, during which many independent and critical publications were shut down. After a while, with the expansion of the powers of the public and revolutionary prosecutor during Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi's presidency in the judiciary, Mr. Mortazavi was introduced as the prosecutor of the capital, a position he held until September 2009. During the protests against the results of the 2009 election, he also issued arrest warrants for dozens of political and civil activists. After being dismissed from the Tehran prosecutor's office, he was appointed as the deputy of Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei, the then Attorney General of the country, but after a while, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad brought him into the government and appointed him as the head of the anti-smuggling headquarters. Mortazavi's last controversial position in Ahmadinejad's government was the presidency of the Social Security Organization, which not only led to the impeachment of the then Minister of Labor but also a case of his violations in this organization is under judicial review, although he claims that he has been acquitted of most of the charges against him in this case.