What Are the 'Aghazadeh' Up To? 'Householders, Unemployed, Shepherds'

The participation of some government officials in Iran in the Twitter campaign "Where is Your Child?" has so far undermined and trivialized the phenomenon of "Aghazadegi" (the privilege of being the child of a powerful person) in the Islamic Republic. This campaign has recently emerged on social media, with people wanting to hear from officials and holders of old and new power about the current situation of their children: What are they doing? Where do they live? How much do they earn? What is their lifestyle like? And how much have they benefited from the potential privileges of their parents? The "Where is Your Child?" campaign is actually a reaction to the controversial wedding of the son of the Iranian ambassador in Denmark, the controversial statements of Mehdi Mohammadi, the son of Tahmasb Mohammadi, disputes in Parliament over the job position of Masoud Pezeshkian's daughter, the dismissal and arrest of Ahmad Araqchi, the former currency deputy of the Central Bank and nephew of Abbas Araqchi, rumors about the family of Valiollah Seif, the former head of the Central Bank, leaving Iran, and the recent conflicting news about the arrest of Mohammad Baqer Nobakht's son with a quantity of weapons. All these cases have been widely shared on various social media platforms, prompting some to ask those in power what their children are really up to. While many users of social media believe that due to the spread of the phenomenon of Aghazadegi, the campaign "Where is Your Child?" should be changed to "Where is Your Family?", the responses of Islamic Republic officials to questions about the status of their children are inconsistent with the prevailing perception of Aghazadegi in Iran. Unemployment, simplicity, avoidance of government facilities, and political privileges are almost common themes in most responses from participants in this campaign about their children, which have been mocked by social media users. The campaign "Where is Your Child?" is indeed a reaction to the controversial wedding of the son of the Iranian ambassador in Denmark, the controversial statements of Mehdi Mohammadi, disputes in Parliament over the job position of Masoud Pezeshkian's daughter, the dismissal and arrest of Ahmad Araqchi, rumors about the family of Valiollah Seif leaving Iran, and the recent conflicting news about the arrest of Mohammad Baqer Nobakht's son with a quantity of weapons. One notable and almost common point in most of these questions is the status of women among the officials of the Islamic Republic, most of whom, despite having higher education, take on the role of "householder." From "householding" to "consulting in the job market," Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, responded to the question by stating that "my son has a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and a master's in market management and lives in Tehran with his wife and daughter." Zarif wrote that his son is not "employed" anywhere and does "consulting" in the job market. Regarding his daughter, he wrote that "my daughter is an interior designer and lives in Tehran with her husband and daughter, mostly occupied with raising her child." Zarif's son-in-law, however, has a master's degree in management and is the manager of a private company, while the foreign minister's daughter-in-law, with a doctorate in nanotechnology, spends most of her time "raising her child." According to Mohammad Javad Zarif, "his children returned to Iran immediately after completing their studies in the United States and have been living in their homeland for over six years." "My sons do not have government jobs," Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the head of the Planning and Budget Organization, tweeted, stating, "God has blessed me with three sons; my eldest son is a master's student in economics, another is a doctoral student in civil engineering, and my youngest son is an undergraduate student in foreign languages, all living in Tehran and none of them have government jobs. My only daughter-in-law is also a doctoral student in chemistry and occasionally teaches part-time." Abbas Salehi, the Minister of Culture, also explained about his family, stating that he has "two sons and one daughter," with his eldest son having a master's degree from Tehran University, "not having a fixed job and collaborating with some institutions in research on a project basis." The second son of the Minister of Culture, according to himself, "graduated this year from the University of Isfahan," and his only daughter has "completed fourth grade in a public elementary school." Salehi also explained in response to some users' questions that his children studied in public schools and did not use "any quota" to pass the entrance exam. However, the Minister of Culture's response was met with reactions from users, who asked him to clarify which school his children attended. He replied that they studied in public schools. "Engaged and pursuing education," Hossein Alizadeh, the media advisor to the President of Iran, tweeted that "I have two sons; the first is an engineering student at Sharif University and a master's student in transportation at Amir Kabir University; both without any quota; engaged and pursuing further education, and the second is in the eleventh grade of mathematics." "Householder, part-time work," Mohammad Ali Abtahi, a reformist political activist, wrote: "I have three daughters, all living in Tehran. Faezah has a bachelor's degree in anthropology from Tehran University; she is a householder and a part-time elementary school teacher." Abtahi added that his other daughter, Fatemeh, has a bachelor's degree in commerce from Allameh Tabatabai University and is a householder, working two days a week "remotely in the support section of a private startup company." The third daughter of Abtahi, named Farideh, is, according to her father, "a third-year art student at Tehran University." "Householder," "working in a non-governmental company," Mostafa Hashemi Taba, former Vice President, also explained that "I have three children, two daughters and one son, all educated." He stated that "one of my daughters has a bachelor's degree in IT and the other has a bachelor's degree in midwifery, both are housewives and have no jobs, and I have never made any recommendations for work for them." Mr. Hashemi Taba added: "My only son has a master's degree in one of the humanities fields and is currently working in a non-governmental company." "Cleric, soldier, householder," Javad Karimi Qodusi, a member of the National Security Commission of Parliament, also explained that he has seven children, including three sons and four daughters. Qodusi stated that two of his sons are clerics living in Qom, and one of his other sons is "serving in the IRGC." This member of Parliament added: "Two of my daughters also live in Qom and are engaged in religious studies. One of the daughters is in Tehran working on her doctoral thesis in Islamic philosophy. Another daughter is a householder living in Mashhad." Qodusi also mentioned that all his sons-in-law and daughters-in-law are clerics living in the cities of Qom, Mashhad, and Tehran, and "none of them have government jobs." "Education abroad and domestically," Mohsen Hashemi, the head of the Tehran City Council, also stated that "I have three sons, one of whom is studying abroad, and the other two are studying in the country, and therefore I have not made any recommendations for employment in the public sector for them." Regarding his wife's status, he said, "My wife has a bachelor's and master's degree in French language and international relations, but she is a householder." The head of the Tehran City Council continued, "My two sons are married, one of my daughters-in-law, who is abroad with her husband, has a master's degree in architecture. The other daughter-in-law also has a master's degree in nutrition and is not working anywhere." "Householder" and "shepherd," Nader Qazizadeh, who has represented the people of Urmia since the eighth Parliament, also stated that "I have two daughters and two sons. Both of my daughters have master's degrees and are housewives." Qazizadeh added: "One of my sons is a medical student at Urmia University who works in a hospital. My other son, who is a veterinary student at Azad University of Urmia, has sheep and is engaged in shepherding." "Translator" and "jewelry-making intern," Shahin Dokht Molavardi, the special assistant to the President for citizen rights, also tweeted that "I have two daughters; one is a freelance translator, and the other is taking a vocational training course in jewelry making." "We are all together!" Ali Rabei, the former Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, also tweeted that "we are all together! I am happy that my children are with me along with five grandchildren. They have all studied at Iranian universities. None of my two sons have government jobs, and my only daughter is busy raising her children, and the one who is mostly with me lives in section 70 of Behesht Zahra." "Householder" and "my office manager," Morteza Hajji, the editor-in-chief of the Hamshahri newspaper, also wrote about the latest status of his children, stating that "I have three children, two of whom are daughters and one son." Mr. Hajji stated: "One of my daughters has a master's degree, and the other has an associate degree, but both are housewives and do not have any specific job or position." The editor-in-chief of Hamshahri newspaper continued that "my only son has a degree in mechanical engineering and is temporarily my office manager at Hamshahri newspaper." "Householder" and "soldier," Mohammad Bat'hai, the Minister of Education, also announced that "I have two children. My eldest child, who is a daughter, is a householder, and my son is also serving his military service, and my children have not traveled to any foreign country except for the holy sites." The totality of these limited and insufficient self-disclosures shows that the sons of officials in the Islamic Republic, according to their own claims, not only do not have political jobs and high positions but also lack stable jobs altogether. The status of women, daughters, and daughters-in-law of the powerful is also more evident than anything else in these self-disclosures; many of them, despite having university degrees, are unemployed and are only engaged in household duties and raising children. According to the "General Family Policies" document, which was issued by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic in September 2016, being a wife, mother, and householder is the only "role and mission" that he has assigned to women, and the "economic" role is entirely assigned to men. As this issued document shows, Mr. Khamenei has determined the main functions of the family in Iran based on the "Islamic model," and for this reason, the main role of women in society has been reduced to traditional functions and roles. He has explicitly asked the heads of the branches and the head of the Expediency Council to support the "dignity and honor of wifehood, the role of motherhood, and householder duties for women and the role of fatherhood and economic responsibilities for men." User reactions: Hassan Asadi Zayd Abadi wrote about Hamid Reza Aref, the son of Mohammad Reza Aref, whose "good gene" saga has become a lasting part of Iran's political literature, stating: "But if Aref wants to participate in the challenge of where is your child, his explanations won't fit in one tweet. So much so that the good gene and friends are busy serving the people." Hossein Mehrzad also wrote: "Most of the time, in response to where is your child, they say the prince is not working in the government. We respect their choice between a government job with a six or seven million salary and getting projects worth hundreds of millions with daddy's privilege." Yeganeh Khodami also tweeted: "At this rate, we should look for jobs for the children of the officials of the country. These statistics have raised the unemployment rate." Farshid Ghazanfarpour also wrote: "Stop this challenge of where is your child, please; we have tolerated all of this: unemployed, householder, student, working in a private company, but Qazizadeh has leveled everything with his statement that my son is a shepherd." Hossein Ohadi also sarcastically addressed the officials of the Islamic Republic, writing: "Where is your child, mother of Sohrab Ahrabi? Where is your child, mother of Sattar Beheshti? Where is your child, mother of Neda Aghasoltan? Where is your child, mother of the victims of Kahrizak, environmental activists, the missing of 88 and 78, the executed of summer 67, and the dark years of the 60s? Where is your child, mother of the martyr of Karbala 4? There are many questions; who will answer?" Maryam Talashi also wrote, "Don't ask the officials where your child is; ask where the children of others are? Where are the working children? Where are the children of the earthquake victims of Sarpol Zahab? Where are the missing children of Baluch?"