Reactions Continue to the Statements of the President of Tehran University: A Sociologist Claims the University is Under Security Control

A sociologist reacted to the recent statements of the President of Tehran University regarding the dismissal of professors, stating that in the past two years, the "most active professors" have been expelled. Gholam-Hossein Ebrahim Baisalami, a sociologist, told the "Khabar Online" website that the university opposes promoting professors "not aligned with the ruling faction." This dismissed professor from Tehran University and former member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly added: "The administration of the university is in the hands of security forces and guards." Mohammad Moein, the President of Tehran University, claimed on March 11 that: "We have no dismissed professors at Tehran University. When the claim of a dismissed professor is mentioned, it means that a professor's contract with Tehran University has been unilaterally terminated for various reasons." He further stated: "If you find a case of a dismissed professor, introduce them to me. I am fully prepared to hold a session with the media and debate with this claiming professor." Following these statements, Azin Mohadd, who holds a post-doctorate in music from Harvard University, addressed Mohammad Moein, stating that she is willing to "debate" on this matter, asking: "Is the faculty body still fully employed as it was before September 2022? I am not." Now, Gholam-Hossein Ebrahim Baisalami has also stated: "Now that the President of Tehran University has invited dismissed professors to debate, we are fully prepared for the debate, and our request is that he should not be deterred from this beneficial matter for any reason." This professor, deprived of academic activity, announced that during the nationwide protests last year, "I requested that the President of the university and the student deputy defend the students instead of being against them." According to the legal consulting center "Dadban" on February 9, more than 66 university professors have been "dismissed, suspended, or forced to resign" in the past two years. In this context, members of seven scientific associations in the country warned on September 10 about the "widespread dismissal of professors and security confrontations with students," stating that the gradual and currently accelerating "dissolution" of the scientific institution exacerbates the current disastrous inefficiency of the governing system. On the other hand, Gholam-Hossein Ebrahim Baisalami, a former member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, emphasized that "security and selective institutions" have not allowed some professors to "change their status" for years. He stressed that "most of the dismissed professors hold high academic ranks and have been dismissed for political reasons." Another sociologist, Mehdi Soleymani, also stated on March 6 that "those currently active within the university and those who have been expelled and are outside are not against each other but are both against the expelling institution." He added that the process of "purification" in universities has three mechanisms, including strict control of admissions, control of faculty members through the promotion and status change system, and finally the expulsion of opposing professors. Confrontations with students and professors at Iranian universities have significantly increased following the nationwide protests last year after the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the Islamic Republic's "morality police."