Musicians Urge Rouhani to Defend the Dignity of the Music Community

The issue of canceling or opposing music concerts in the city of Mashhad and Khorasan Razavi province continues, with various national officials in the executive and judicial branches continuing to take positions on the matter. Ali Mozaffari, head of the judiciary in Khorasan Razavi province, stated in an interview with the Mizan news agency, affiliated with the judiciary, that the topic of concerts is 'just an excuse' and accused some high-ranking officials of focusing on concert issues instead of the economic problems of the people. He said, 'Unfortunately, some statements are not worthy of high officials, and the main priorities and concerns of society and the people, such as economic issues, should not be neglected.' This judicial official's remarks seem to refer to comments made by Hassan Rouhani, the President, on Tuesday, in response to recent events regarding the cancellation of concert permits in Khorasan Razavi province and opposition to holding concerts in Mashhad. Rouhani stated, 'Anyone who wakes up in the morning and finds a podium cannot legislate, and the minister should not comply because the minister must obey the law.' These statements by Rouhani led to over three thousand musicians and journalists in the field signing an open letter addressed to Rouhani, calling for the restoration of the dignity of the music community and the revival of respect for musicians. In the beginning of this open letter, the signatories expressed their happiness with Rouhani's reaction to what they described as the 'illegal remarks of the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance regarding the acceptance of the prohibition of music concerts in Mashhad.' Ali Jannati, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, had stated last week that following the opposition of Ahmad Alamolhoda, the Friday prayer leader of Mashhad, to holding music concerts in Mashhad, the ministry had 'abandoned' the idea of holding concerts in this city. Ahmad Alamolhoda emphasized in his Friday prayer sermon on August 13 that 'concerts cannot be held next to the dome of Imam Reza.' He also told concert enthusiasts, 'If you want concerts, do not be from Mashhad; go live in another city.' Following Alamolhoda's remarks and the Ministry of Culture's announcement of abandoning the concert in Mashhad, six other Friday prayer leaders from different cities also called for the suspension or limitation of music concerts in their cities. According to the Shargh newspaper, the signatories of the open letter to Rouhani warned that such behaviors and oppositions would lead to the 'weakening of the rule of national law.' The signatories, comprising musicians and media personnel, stated that the 'weakening of the rule of national law' has begun through the denial of 'a single legal authority and normalizing tribalism.' Ali Motahari, a representative from Tehran, also reacted to Alamolhoda's remarks on Wednesday, stating to the 'House of the Nation' news agency that 'there should be no discrimination regarding the execution of concerts in different provinces, as the country is not a federal government, and it is not the case that Khorasan Razavi has autonomy and specific laws governing it.' The number of signatories to the open letter to the Iranian President, as emphasized by the Shargh newspaper, continues to increase. In another part of this letter, they emphasized that 'such a problem may begin with a speech, but the solution is certainly not just a speech.' These more than three thousand musicians and journalists addressed Rouhani, stating that 'the unitary constitutional rule must be practically demonstrated.' Iranian musicians have asked the President to act as the 'guardian of the country's constitution,' as they wrote, 'this time, music and musicians have been sacrificed.' The signatories of this letter also called for practical, clear, and binding action from the government and the Islamic Republic to restore the mentioned deprived right and to ensure that this situation does not happen again. In the conclusion of their letter, the musicians and media personnel reminded Rouhani of his electoral promises regarding citizen rights, demanding 'the restoration of the dignity of the music community and the revival of respect for musicians,' emphasizing that they want 'at least as ordinary citizens, their right to earn a living to be recognized.' According to the Shargh newspaper, individuals such as Hamid Matbassem, Shahdad Rouhani, Azad Mirzapur, Saeed Nayeb-Mohammadi, Hamidreza Afideh, Keyvan Farzin, and Farshad Tavakoli have signed this letter so far. A few days prior, Hamidreza Nourbakhsh, the CEO of the House of Music of Iran, also sent a letter to Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, regarding the controversies surrounding concert organization, asking him to address this issue as the 'final arbiter' and 'highest authority in the country.' No news has yet been published regarding Khamenei's response to this letter.