One of many Crimes Under Khatami's Reign of Terror!

Photo from Iranian.com

This letter was published (Sept. 26,2006) on Amir's blog a while ago in response to Khatami's visiting St. Andrews.

This letter is an email from Sayeh Saidi-Sirjani, daughter of one of the many intellectuals butchered during Khatami's presidency.

From: Sayeh, sayehssirjani@yahoo.com
Subject: URGENT on khatami’s visit to the UK to receive honorary award from St. Andrews University
To: ns30@st-andrews.ac.uk,
On-lineEditor@theherald.co.uk,
letters@theherald.co.uk,
foraffcom@parliament.uk,
press.enquiries@judiciary.gsi.gov.uk,
general.queries@dca.gsi.gov.uk

Dear Dr. Scott,
I am the daughter of late Iranian scholar ” Ali Akbar Saidi Sirjani”. Sirjani was author of more than 29 books on Iranian literature and history (see: www.saidisirjani.com) In his open will, he has specifically pointed to Mohammad Khatami as responsible for his murder. After 1979, Khatami was appointed as Khomeini’s special agent at ” Keyhan” newspaper. He inaugurated the torturing intellectuals through his special powers gained as the consequence of being in charge of the only newspaper. Then he became the head of ” ershad” - same as department of censorship.

Khatami banned my Father’s works. He burned his books. When in March 1994, 28 armed Islamic republic guards entered our house in guise of postmen, - where my mother and I were all alone, and where we were hold hostage for 3 whole days, - they took all my father’s hand-written and ready to publish works: complete set of his works on his project on a new Persian Dictionary; his tapes of his interviews with his best friends, some of the greatest Iranian intellectuals such as Ali Dashti, Dr. Parviz Khanlari and Dr. Mozafar Baghaie Kermani; “Tarikh bidari Iranian” a 2-volume work on the Iranian Constitutional Revolution; along with any piece of paper with my late father hand-writing on it. They took all his published and non published works, his notes and letters including 2 unpublished books saved on his computer.
Sirjani’s murder was announced as a death in prison: on November 1994. Then Khatami became president of Islamic Republic three years later, only after he did his best in cutting strong roots of Iran’s culture and literature and any opposition against Islamic Republic.

The young generation of Iranian Student however did stand up. You most certainly have seen the video of his last speech in Tehran University, where students kept chanting “enough lies.” Some of the most brutal arrests and killings of students happened during khatami’s 8 years as the chief executive of the Islamic Republic.

Now your university, St. Andrews, is ruining its reputation by inviting Khatami. I am writing to you asking to CANCEL this invitation. Khatami deserves nothing but a fair tribunal dealing with the Islamic Republic’s many crimes against Iranians. The Arrest of Khatami is something the UK ought to do, not rewarding him with an honorary degree.
Attached please find useful information related to Mohammad Khatami.

With best wishes,
Sayeh ( Saeedi) Sirjani
Saidi Sirjani Center for Persian LiteratureP.O.Box 1076Genoa, NV 89411U.S.A