Full Text: The President of Iran's Letter to President Bush��

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Thu, 11 May 2006 14:48:19 -0700 (PDT)

[DitzisDumpster]Full Text: The President of Iran's Letter to

President Bush;

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.lemonde.fr/web/imprimer_element/0,40-0@2-727571,50-769886,0.html

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006A.shtml#1

 

 

 

Full Text: The President of Iran's Letter to President Bush

Translated by Le Monde Tuesday 09 May 2006

 

Mr. George Bush,

President of the United States of America

 

For sometime now I have been thinking, how one can justify the

undeniable contradictions that exist in the international arena -

which are being constantly debated, specially in political forums and

amongst university students. Many questions remain unanswered. These

have prompted me to discuss some of the contradictions and questions,

in the hopes that it might bring about an opportunity to redress them.

 

Can one be a follower of Jesus Christ (PBUH), the great

Messenger of God, Feel obliged to respect human rights, Present

liberalism as a civilization model, Announce one's opposition to the

proliferation of nuclear weapons and WMDs, Make War and Terror his

slogan, And finally, Work towards the establishment of a unified

international community - a community which Christ and the virtuous of

the Earth will one day govern, But at the same time, Have countries

attacked; The lives, reputations and possessions of people destroyed

and on the slight chance of the ... of a ... criminals in a village

city, or convoy for example the entire village, city or convey set

ablaze.

 

Or because of the possibility of the existence of WMDs in one

country, it is occupied, around 100,000 people killed, its water

sources, agriculture and industry destroyed, close to 180,000 foreign

troops put on the ground, sanctity of private homes of citizens

broken, and the country pushed back perhaps fifty years. At what

price? Hundreds of billions of dollars spent from the treasury of one

country and certain other countries and tens of thousands of young men

and women - as occupation troops - put in harms way, taken away from

family and love ones, their hands stained with the blood of others,

subjected to so much psychological pressure that everyday some commit

suicide and those returning home & #65533; suffer depression, become sickly

and grapple with all sorts of aliments; & #65533; while some are killed and

their bodies handed of their families.

 

On the pretext of the existence of WMDs, this great tragedy came

to engulf both the peoples of the occupied and the occupying country.

Later it was revealed that no WMDs existed to begin with.

 

Of course Saddam was a murderous dictator. But the war was not

waged to topple him, the announced goal of the war was to find and

destroy weapons of mass destruction. He was toppled along the way

towards another goal, nevertheless the people of the region are happy

about it. I point out that throughout the many years of the ... & #65533; war

on Iran & #65533; Saddam was supported by the West. & #65533;

 

Mr. President,

You might know that I am a teacher. My students ask me how can

theses actions be reconciled with the values outlined at the

beginning of this letter and duty to the tradition of Jesus Christ

(PBUH), the Messenger of peace and forgiveness.

 

There are prisoners in Guantanamo Bay that have not been tried,

have no legal representation, their families cannot see them and are

obviously kept in a strange land outside their own country. There is

no international monitoring of their conditions and fate. No one knows

whether they are prisoners, POWs, accused or criminals.

 

European investigators have confirmed the existence of secret

prisons in Europe too. I could not correlate the abduction of a

person, and him or her being kept in secret prisons, with the

provisions of any judicial system. For that matter, I fail to

understand how such actions correspond to the values outlined in the

beginning of this letter, i.e. the teachings of Jesus Christ (PBUH),

human rights and liberal values.

 

Young people, university students and ordinary people have many

questions about the phenomenon of Israel. I am sure you are familiar

with some of them.

 

Throughout history many countries have been occupied, but I think

the establishment of a new country with a new people, is a new

phenomenon that is exclusive to our times.

 

Students are saying that sixty years ago such a country did no

exist. The show old documents and globes and say try as we have, we

have not been able to find a country named Israel.

 

I tell them to study the history of WWI and II. One of my

students told me that during WWII, which more than tens of millions of

people perished in, news about the war, was quickly disseminated by

the warring parties. Each touted their victories and the most recent

battlefront defeat of the other party. After the war, they claimed

that 6 million Jews had been killed. Six million people that were

surely related to at least two million families.

 

Again let us assume that these events are true. Does that

logically translate into the establishment of the state of Israel in

the Middle East or support for such a state? How can this phenomenon

be rationalized or explained?

 

Mr. President,

I am sure you know how - and at what cost - Israel was established:

Many thousands were killed in the process. Millions of

indigenous people were made refugees.

 

Hundred of thousands of hectares of farmland, olive plantations,

towns and villages were destroyed. This tragedy is not exclusive

to the time of establishment; unfortunately it has been ongoing

for sixty years now.

 

A regime has been established which does not show mercy even to

kids, destroys houses while the occupants are still in them, announces

beforehand its list and plans to assassinate Palestinian figures and

keeps thousands of Palestinians in prison. Such a phenomenon is unique

- or at the very least extremely rare - in recent memory.

 

Another big question asked by people is why is this regime being

supported? Is support for this regime in line with the teachings of

Jesus Christ (PBUH) or Moses (PBUH) or liberal values? Or are we to

understand that allowing the original inhabitants of these lands -

inside and outside Palestine - whether they are Christian, Muslim or

Jew, to determine their fate, runs contrary to principles of

democracy, human rights and the teachings of prophets? If not, why is

there so much opposition to a referendum?

 

The newly elected Palestinian administration recently took office.

All independent observes have confirmed that this government

represents the electorate. Unbelievingly, they have put the elected

government under pressure and have advised it to recognise the Israeli

regime, abandon the struggle and follow the programs of the previous

government.

 

If the current Palestinian government had run on the above

platform, would the Palestinian people have voted for it? Again, can

such position taken in opposition to the Palestinian government be

reconciled with the values outlined earlier? The people are also

saying why are all UNSC resolutions in condemnation of Israel vetoed?

 

Mr. President, As you are well aware, I live amongst the

people and am in constant contact with them - many people from around

the Middle East manage to contact me as well. They dot not have faith

in these dubious policies either. There is evidence that the people of

the region are becoming increasingly angry with such policies.

 

It is not my intention to pose to many questions, but I need to

refer to other points as well.

 

Why is it that any technological and scientific achievement reached

in the Middle East regions is translated into and portrayed as a

threat to the Zionist regime? Is not scientific R & D one of the basic

rights of nations.

 

You are familiar with history. Aside from the Middle Ages, in what

other point in history has scientific and technical progress been a

crime? Can the possibility of scientific achievements being utilized

for military purposes be reason enough to oppose science and

technology altogether? If such a supposition is true, then all

scientific disciplines, including physics, chemistry, mathematics,

medicine, engineering, etc. must be opposed.

 

Lies were told in the Iraqi matter. What was the result? I have no

doubt that telling lies is reprehensible in any culture, and you do

not like to be lied to.

 

Mr. President, Don't Latin Americans have the right to ask, why

their elected governments are being opposed and coup leaders

supported? Or, why must they constantly be threatened and live in fear?

 

The people of Africa are hardworking, creative and talented. They

can play an important and valuable role in providing for the needs of

humanity and contribute to its material and spiritual progress.

Poverty and hardship in large parts of Africa are preventing this from

happening. Don't they have the right to ask why their enormous wealth

- including minerals - is being looted, despite the fact that they

need it more than others?

 

Again, do such actions correspond to the teachings of Christ and

the tenets of human rights?

 

The brave and faithful people of Iran too have many questions and

grievances, including: the coup d'etat of 1953 and the subsequent

toppling of the legal government of the day, opposition to the Islamic

revolution, transformation of an Embassy into a headquarters

supporting, the activities of those opposing the Islamic Republic

(many thousands of pages of documents corroborates this claim),

support for Saddam in the war waged against Iran, the shooting down of

the Iranian passenger plane, freezing the assets of the Iranian

nation, increasing threats, anger and displeasure vis- & #65533;-vis the

scientific and nuclear progress of the Iranian nation (just when all

Iranians are jubilant and collaborating their country's progress), and

many other grievances that I will not refer to in this letter.

 

Mr. President,

September Eleven was a horrendous incident. The killing of

innocents is deplorable and appalling in any part of the world. Our

government immediately declared its disgust with the perpetrators and

offered its condolences to the bereaved and expressed its sympathies.

 

All governments have a duty to protect the lives, property and

good standing of their citizens. Reportedly your government employs

extensive security, protection and intelligence systems - and even

hunts its opponents abroad. September eleven was not a simple operation.

 

 

Could it be planned and executed without coordination

with intelligence and security services - or their extensive infiltration?

Of course this is just an educated guess.

Why have the various aspects of the attacks been kept secret?

Why are we not told who botched their responsibilities?

And, why aren't those responsible

and the guilty parties identified and put on trial?

 

All governments have a duty to provide security and peace of mind

for their citizens. For some years now, the people of your country

and neighbors of world trouble spots do not have peace of mind.

After 9.11, instead of healing and tending to the emotional wounds

of the survivors and the American people - who had been immensely

traumatized by the attacks - some Western media only intensified

the climates of fear and insecurity - some constantly talked about

the possibility of new terror attacks and kept the people in fear.

 

Is that service to the American people?

Is it possible to calculate the damages incurred from fear and panic?

 

American citizen lived in constant fear of fresh attacks

that could come at any moment and in any place.

They felt insecure in the streets, in their place of work and at home.

Who would be happy with this situation?

 

Why was the media, instead of conveying a feeling of security

and providing peace of mind, giving rise to a feeling of insecurity?

Some believe that the hype paved the way - and was the justification

- for an attack on Afghanistan. Again I need to refer to the role of

media.

 

In media charters, correct dissemination of information

and honest reporting of a story are established tenets.

I express my deep regret about the disregard shown by certain

Western media for these principles. The main pretext for an attack

on Iraq was the existence of WMDs. This was repeated incessantly

- for the public to, finally, believe - and the ground set for an

attack on Iraq.

 

Will the truth not be lost in a contrive and deceptive climate?

Again, if the truth is allowed to be lost, how can that be reconciled

with the earlier mentioned values?

Is the truth known to the Almighty lost as well?

 

Mr. President,

In countries around the world, citizens provide for the expenses

of governments so that their governments in turn are able to serve them.

The question here is what has the hundreds of billions of dollars,

spent every year to pay for the Iraqi campaign, produced for the citizens?

As your Excellency is aware, in some states of your country,

people are living in poverty.

 

Many thousands are homeless and unemployment is a huge problem.

Of course these problems exist - to a larger or lesser extent

- in other countries as well. With these conditions in mind, can the

gargantuan expenses of the campaign - paid from the public treasury

- be explained and be consistent with the aforementioned principles?

 

What has been said, are some of the grievances of the people

around the world, in our region and in your country. But my main

contention

- which I am hoping you will agree to some of it - is:

Those in power have specific time in office, and do not rule

indefinitely,

but their names will be recorded in history and will be constantly

judged

in the immediate and distant futures.

The people will scrutinize our presidencies.

 

Did we manage to bring peace, security and prosperity for the people

or insecurity and unemployment?

 

Did we intend to establish justice, or just supported special

interest groups, and by forcing many people to live in poverty

and hardship, made a few people rich and powerful

- thus trading the approval of the people and the Almighty with

theirs'?

 

Did we defend the rights of the underprivileged or ignore them?

 

Did we defend the rights of all people around the world or imposed wars

on them, interfered illegally in their affairs,

established hellish prisons and incarcerated some of them?

 

Did we bring the world peace and security

or raised the specter of intimidation and threats?

 

Did we tell the truth to our nation and others around the world

or presented an inverted version of it?

 

Were we on the side of people or the occupiers and oppressors?

Did our administration set out to promote rational behaviour, logic,

ethics,

peace, fulfilling obligations, justice, service to the people, prosperity,

progress and respect for human dignity or the force of guns.

Intimidation, insecurity, disregard for the people, delaying the progress

and excellence of other nations, and trample on people's rights?

 

And finally, they will judge us on whether we remained true to our

oath

of office - to serve the people, which is our main task, and the

traditions

of the prophets - or not?

 

Mr. President,

How much longer can the world tolerate this situation?

Where will this trend lead the world to?

How long must the people of the world pay

for the incorrect decisions of some rulers?

How much longer will the specter of insecurity - raised from the

stockpiles

of weapons of mass destruction - hunt the people of the world?

How much longer will the blood of the innocent men, women and children

be spilled on the streets, and people's houses destroyed over their heads?

Are you pleased with the current condition of the world?

Do you think present policies can continue?

 

If billions of dollars spent on security, military campaigns and troop

movement were instead spent on investment and assistance

for poor countries, promotion of health, combating different diseases,

education and improvement of mental and physical fitness,

assistance to the victims of natural disasters,

creation of employment opportunities and production,

development projects and poverty alleviation, establishment of peace,

mediation between disputing states and distinguishing the flames

of racial, ethnic and other conflicts were would the world be today?

Would not your government, and people be justifiably proud?

 

Would not your administration's political and economic standing

have been stronger? And I am most sorry to say, would there have been

an ever increasing global hatred of the American governments?

 

Mr. President, it is not my intention to distress anyone.

If prophet Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Ishmael, Joseph or Jesus Christ

(PBUH) were with us today, how would they have judged such behavior?

 

Will we be given a role to play in the promised world, where justice

will become universal and Jesus Christ (PBUH) will be present?

Will they even accept us?

 

My basic question is this:

Is there no better way to interact with the rest of the world?

Today there are hundreds of millions of Christians,

hundreds of millions of Moslems and millions of people

who follow the teachings of Moses (PBUH).

All divine religions share and respect on word and that is monotheism

or belief in a single God and no other in the world.

The holy Koran stresses this common word and calls on an followers

of divine religions and says: [3.64]

 

Say: O followers of the Book! Come to an equitable proposition

between us and you that we shall not serve any but Allah and (that)

we shall not associate aught. With Him and (that) some of us shall not

take others for lords besides Allah, but if they turn back, then say:

Bear witness that we are Muslims. (The Family of Imran).

 

Mr. President,

According to divine verses, we have all been called upon to worship

one God and follow the teachings of divine prophets. To worship a God

which is above all powers in the world and can do all He pleases.

The Lord which knows that which is hidden and visible, the past and

the future,

knows what goes on in the Hearts of His servants and records their deeds.

 

The Lord who is the possessor of the heavens and the earth and

all universe is His court planning for the universe is done by His hands,

and gives His servants the glad tidings of mercy and forgiveness of sins.

He is the companion of the oppressed and the enemy of oppressors.

 

He is the Compassionate, the Merciful. He is the recourse

of the faithful and guides them towards the light from darkness.

He is witness to the actions of His servants,

He calls on servants to be faithful and do good deeds,

and asks them to stay on the path of righteousness and remain steadfast.

Calls on servants to heed His prophets and He is a witness to their deeds.

 

A bad ending belongs only to those who have chosen the life

of this world and disobey Him and oppress His servants.

 

And A good and eternal paradise belong to those servants who fear

His majesty and do not follow their lascivious selves.

 

We believe a return to the teachings of the divine prophets

is the only road leading to salvations. I have been told that

Your Excellency follows the teachings of Jesus (PBUH), and believes

in the divine promise of the rule of the righteous on Earth.

 

We also believe that Jesus Christ (PBUH) was one of the great prophets

of the Almighty. He has been repeatedly praised in the Koran.

 

Jesus (PBUH) has been quoted in Koran as well; [19,36]

And surely Allah is my Lord and your Lord, therefore serves Him;

this is the right path, Marium.

 

Service to and obedience of the Almighty

is the credo of all divine messengers.

The God of all people in Europe, Asia, Africa, America, the Pacific

and the rest of the world is one. He is the Almighty who wants to guide

and give dignity to all His servants. He has given greatness to Humans.

 

We again read in the Holy Book:

The Almighty God sent His prophets with miracles and clear signs

to guide the people and show them divine signs and purity them from sins

and pollutions. And He sent the Book and the balance so that the people

display justice and avoid the rebellious.

 

All of the above verses can be seen, one way or the other,

in the Good Book as well. Divine prophets have promised:

 

The day will come when all humans will congregate before the court

of the Almighty, so that their deeds are examined. The good

will be directed towards Haven and evildoers will meet divine retribution.

I trust both of us believe in such a day, but it will not be easy

to calculate the actions of rulers, because we must be answerable

to our nations and all others whose lives have been directly

or indirectly effected by our actions.

 

All prophets, speak of peace and tranquility for man

- based on monotheism, justice and respect for human dignity.

 

Do you not think that if all of us come to believe in and abide

by these principles, that is, monotheism, worship of God, justice,

respect for the dignity of man, belief in the Last Day, we can overcome

the present problems of the world - that are the result

of disobedience to the Almighty and the teachings of prophets

- and improve our performance?

 

Do you not think that belief in these principles promotes

and guarantees peace, friendship and justice?

 

Do you not think that the aforementioned written or unwritten

principles are universally respected?

 

Will you not accept this invitation?

 

That is, a genuine return to the teachings of prophets,

to monotheism and justice, to preserve human dignity

and obedience to the Almighty and His prophets?

 

Mr. President,

History tells us that repressive and cruel governments do not survive.

God has entrusted The fate of man to them. The Almighty has not left

the universe and humanity to their own devices. Many things

have happened contrary to the wishes and plans of governments.

These tell us that there is a higher power at work and all events

are determined by Him.

 

Can one deny the signs of change in the world today?

Is this situation of the world today comparable to that of ten years ago?

Changes happen fast and come at a furious pace.

 

The people of the world are not happy with the status quo

and pay little heed to the promises and comments made by a number

of influential world leaders.

 

Many people around the world feel insecure and oppose the spreading

of insecurity and war and do not approve of and accept dubious policies.

 

The people are protesting the increasing gap between the haves

and the have-nots and the rich and poor countries.

 

The people are disgusted with increasing corruption.

 

The people of many countries are angry about the attacks

on their cultural foundations and the disintegration of families.

 

They are equally dismayed with the fading of care and compassion.

The people of the world have no faith in international organisations,

because their rights are not advocated by these organizations.

 

Liberalism and Western style democracy have not been able

to help realize the ideals of humanity.

 

Today these two concepts have failed.

Those with insight can already hear the sounds of the shattering

and fall of the ideology and thoughts of the liberal democratic systems.

 

We increasingly see that people around the world

are flocking towards a main focal point - that is the Almighty God.

 

Undoubtedly through faith in God and the teachings of the prophets,

the people will conquer their problems.

 

My question for you is:

Do you not want to join them?

Mr. President,

Whether we like it or not, the world is gravitating towards faith

in the Almighty and justice and the will of God will prevail over all

things.

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