Photos: Ayoub mzee
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
WHEN: Starting at 9:00 a.m.WHAT:
The United Nations Development Programme Discussion on "The U.S. Launch of the Arab Human Development Report 2009 (AHDR)":
9 a.m.: Amat Alsoswa, Assistant Secretary-General at the United Nations and Assistant Administrator at the United Nations Development Programme's Regional Bureau for Arab States, delivers remarks on "Summary of AHDR 2009: Challenges to Human Security in the Arab Countries"
9:45 a.m.: David Yang, Senior Adviser at the United Nations Development Programme's Washington Liaison Office; Bahgat Korany, Professor of International Relations and Political Economy at the American University of Cairo; and Marina Ottaway, Director of the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, participate in a panel discussion on "The Arab State and Human Security"
11 a.m.: Riz Khan, host of the Riz Khan Show on Aljazeera Network; Thomas Friedman of the New York Times; and Bahgat Korany of the American University in Cairo, participate in a panel discussion on "Why Have Obstacles to Arab Human Development Prove to Be So Stubborn?" WHERE: The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1779 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC.CONTACT: 202-331-8670, http://uk.mc274.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=unicdc@unicwash.org; web site: http://www.undp.org/ NOTE: RSVP to http://uk.mc274.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=wdc.events@undp.org by July 27. WHEN: 9:00 a.m.WHAT: The Center for Global Development Discussion on "The Pentagon and Development: Programs and Structures." Speakers: David Jea, Visiting Associate at the Center for Global Development; and Todd Moss, Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development.WHERE: Center for Global Development, 1800 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Third Floor, Washington, DC. CONTACT: 202-416-4000 ; web site: http://www.cgdev.org/ WHEN: 9:30 a.m.WHAT: McKinsey and Company News conference on "Unlocking Energy Efficiency in the U.S. Economy."WHERE: National Press Club, 14th and F Sts., NW, First Amendment Lounge, Washington, DC.CONTACT: Monica Runggatscher, 212-415-5158, http://uk.mc274.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=monica_runggatscher@mckinsey.com ; web site: http://npc.press.org/
WHEN: 10:00 a.m.WHAT: Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearing on "Responding to Pakistan's IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) Crisis." Witnesses: Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration Eric Schwartz; and Jon Brause, Deputy Assistant Administrator of the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance at the U.S. Agency for International Development.WHERE: Room 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building. CONTACT: 202-224-4651; web site: http://foreign.senate.gov/WHEN: 10:00 a.m.WHAT: House Foreign Affairs Committee Hearing on "New Challenges for International Peacekeeping Operations." Witnesses: U.S. Representative to the United Nations Susan Rice; Edward Luck, Senior Vice President/Director of Studies at the International Peace Institute, and Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General; retired Army Col. William Flavin, Directing Professor in the U.S. Army Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute's Doctrine, Concepts, Training, and Education Division, U.S. Army War College; Erin Weir, peacekeeping advocate for Refugees International; Richard Williamson, partner at Winston & Strawn, LLP, former Special Envoy to Sudan and Ambassador to the U.N. Commission on Human Rights; and Brett Schaefer, Fellow in International Regulatory Affairs at the Heritage Foundation.WHERE: Room 2172 Rayburn House Office Building. CONTACT: 202-225-5021; web site: http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/
WHEN: 10:00 a.m.WHAT: The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Event on "MCC and Global Health Initiatives: Paving the Road to Healthy Lives." WHERE: MCC, 875 15th St., NW, Washington, DC.CONTACT: 202-521-3850; web site: http://www.mcc.gov/ NOTE: RSVP online: http://www.mcc.gov/rsvp/july29 by July 28.
WHEN: 10:00 a.m.WHAT: Center for American Progress (CAP) Discussion on “Ukraine in Crisis.” Address by the Speaker of the Urkainian Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) Volodymyr Lytvyn. Other speakers: Rudy deLeon, Senior Vice President of National Security and International Policy at CAP; and Samuel Charap, Associate Director of Russia and Eurasia at CAP.WHERE: CAP, 1333 H St., NW, 10th Floor, Washington, DC.CONTACT: 202-741-6246; web site: http://www.americanprogress.org/
NOTE: RSVP at: http://www.americanprogress.org/events/2009/07/Ukraine.html/rsvp WHEN: 12:00 p.m.WHAT: The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) Discussion on "Toward a Low-Cost, Clean Energy Policy." Speakers: Keynote remarks by Senate Republican Conference Chairman Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn; other speakers: Daniel Botkin of the University of California, Santa Barbara; and Kenneth Green of AEI.WHERE: AEI, 1150 17th St., NW, Wohlstetter Conference Center, 12th Floor, Washington, DC.CONTACT: Veronique Rodman, 202-862-4871, http://uk.mc274.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vrodman@aei.org; web site: http://www.aei.org/ NOTE: RSVP: https://www.aei.org/aeisecure/accReg?pub=Events&pubId=100093&getThis=1
WHEN: 12:00 p.m.WHAT: The Middle East Institute (MEI) Discussion on "The Iranian Elections and the Struggle for Democratic Change." Speakers: Mariam Memarsadeghi, Adviser on Human Rights to international democracy organizations; and Akbar Atri, Iranian human rights and democracy activist.WHERE: MEI, 1761 N St., NW, Boardman Room, Washington, DC.CONTACT: 202-785-1141; web site: http://www.mei.edu/ NOTE: To register, go to: http://www.mei.edu/Events/Calendar/tabid/504/ctl/EditReg/Mid/1423/ItemID/103/d/20090729/Default.aspx WHEN: 1:00 p.m.WHAT: The National Press Club Newsmaker Luncheon Program Address by Senate Foreign Relations Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass. on “America and China on the Road to Copenhagen: Toward a Climate Partnership.”WHERE: National Press Club, 14th and F Sts., NW, Ballroom, Washington, DC.CONTACT: Melinda Cooke, 202-662-7516; web site: http://npc.press.org/
WHEN: 1:00 p.m.WHAT: The Woodrow Wilson Center (WWC) Discussion on "The Cyprus Negotiations: One Year Later." Speakers: U.S. Ambassador to Cyprus Frank Urbancic. The negotiations refer to the conflict between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Crypriots and the attempts to develop an institutional arrangement acceptable to both communities.WHERE: WWC, One Woodrow Wilson Plaza, Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC.CONTACT: 202-691-4000; web site: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/
WHEN: 2:00 p.m.WHAT: House Foreign Affairs Committee Asia, the Pacific and the Global Environment Subcommittee hearing on "Ushering in Change: A New Era for U.S. Regional Policy in the Pacific." Witnesses: Marlene Moses, Chairman of the Pacific Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Nauru to the United Nations; and Alcy Frelick, Director of the Office of Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Island Affairs in the State Department's Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.WHERE: Room 2172 Rayburn House Office Building. CONTACT: 202-225-5021; web site: http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/ WHEN: 2:00 p.m.WHERE: The Heritage Foundation Discussion on "Voting Rights-And Wrongs: The Elusive Quest for Racially Fair Elections." Speakers: Abigail Thernstrom, Adjunct Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and Vice Chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; and Hans von Spakovsky, Legal Scholar at the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the Heritage FoundationWHERE: Heritage Foundation, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE, Van Andel Center, Washington, DC.CONTACT: 202-675-1752, http://uk.mc274.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=lectures.seminars@heritage.org; web site: http://www.heritage.org/NOTE: RSVP: http://www.heritage.org/press/events/ev072909a.cfm
WHEN: 3:30 p.m.WHAT: House Foreign Affairs Committee Hearing on "Sudan: U.S. Policy and Implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement." Witnesses: Earl Gast, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Bureau for Africa at the U.S. Agency for International Development.WHERE: Room 2200 Rayburn House Office Building. CONTACT: 202-225-5021; web site: http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/WHEN: 3:00 p.m.
WHAT: Woodrow Wilson Center Discussion on “Enough! – Emerging US and African Leadership on Food Security.” Speakers: Roger Thurow and Scott Kilman, Wall Street Senior reporters and authors of Enough; Franklin Moore, Deputy Assistant Administrator, USAID Africa Bureau; H.E. Amadou Ba, Ambassador of Senegal to the U.S., Steve McDonald, Consulting Director, Africa Program, Wilson Center, co-moderator Marshall Bouton, President, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, co-moderator.
WHERE: 5th Floor Conference Room, One Woodrow Wilson Plaza, Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington DC
CONTACT: 202-691-4000; web site: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/
NOTE: RSVP: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=events.event_rsvp&event_id=543299
World Security Network reporting from London, July 23, 2009
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
Ayatollah Hashemi-Rafsanjani-the two-time former president of Iran who heads both the top political arbitration body, the Expediency Council, and the clerical body, the Assembly of Experts -delivered a sermon July 17, 2009 at the Tehran University and talked about "restoring trust" and called for a dialog between opposition and the regime, while thousands of protesters were chanting "estefa" (=resign) outside. Even though Rafsanjani's sermon did not explicitly challenge Ahmadinejad's regime, his critique could be shaking the clerical pillars that the current regime is based on.Since Ahmadinejad's historic electoral fraud at the beginning of June, the Iranian nation has not calmed down. While protests were still sweeping the streets of Tehran last week, opposition supporters and their leader Moussavi were gathering outside the Friday prayer at Tehran University to attend Ayatollah Rafsanjani's long-awaited sermon. Speaking at a prayer service that is traditionally used as a showcase for the regime, a heavily protected Rafsanjani talked about "restoring trust" and called for a dialog between opposition and the regime, while thousands of protesters were chanting "estefa" (=resign) outside. Even though Rafsanjani's sermon did not explicitly challenge Ahmadinejad's regime, his critique could be shaking the clerical pillars that the current regime is based on.
With the pressure of national democratic movements and the international community increasing, Ahmadinejad's political legitimisation has been heavily relying on his religious leaders and the theocratic structure of the Iranian republic. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader and highest power in Iran, was one of the first national figures to confirm the results of the presidential election and one of the first clerics that threw his political and religious weight behind Ahmadinejad. With him and the Guardian Council, which soon ruled out an annulment of the election, Ahmadinejad had the most important clerical and political forces gathered behind him and strengthened his presidency within the republic, even though the civil movement against his regime gained power every day.
In the past week, a month after the election, two major clerical figures have directly or indirectly challenged the legitimacy of Ahmadinejad's presidency and his supporter Khamenei. Just a couple of days before Rafsanjani delivered his sermon, one of the most senior Shiite clerics, Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, publicly questioned the legitimization of the current Iranian government in a Fatwa published on an Iranian website. In his Fatwa, an opinion concerning Islamic law that can be legally binding, Montazeri declares Ahmadinejad's presidency illegitimate and dismisses a regime "that is based on force, oppression, [and] changing people's votes [...]" as not religiously or legally valid. Referring to the "Stalinist regime and medieval torture", Montazeri's Fatwa declares the government's violent outbursts on protesters and Ahamdinejad's electoral fraud as religiously unjust and challenges the clerical superstructure of the Iranian government, while calling on the Iranian people to resist. This is not the first time that the 87-year-old Ayatollah, who was once supposed to replace Khomeini, has openly criticised the Iranian clerics. But other than in 1989, when he was jailed for opposing mass executions, his recent Fatwa could, similar to Ayatollah Rafsanjani's sermon, have a serious impact on the current political situation in Iran.
With multiple national and international Internet sources publishing Montazeri's Fatwa, regime opponents inside and outside Iran perceive his Fatwa as the momentum of the Iranian democratic movement. While various Internet blogs are used by exile Iranians to express their hope for a democratic and Islamic Iran, Monatzeri's Fatwa could inspire a political movement that is based on Islamic beliefs and democratic values.
His critique could also affect the religious establishment in the holy city of Qom, especially Khamenei, who has been notoriously supportive of Ahamdinejad's system and is responsible for delineation and supervision of general Iranian policies. Reformist Islamic scholars hope that Montazeri's critique will shift religious debates within the clerical circle towards a more open theological debate that can incorporate new approaches and is less hostile to democratic influences.
In addition, Montazeri's assessment could hold chances for the international community and their effort to start a dialog with Iran, not only in regards to its nuclear weapon program. Although the publication of Montazeri's Fatwa went considerably unnoticed among Western media, various politicians and public figures have emphasised its importance in the development of a modern and Islamically based Iranian nation. Angelika Beer, former member of the European Parliament, refers to the Fatwa in her latest newsletter, stating that it gives "a glimpse of hope" that the Iranian clerics will not approve Ahmadinejad's actions in the longer term and might open up for a dialogue with the Western world.
But is Montazeri's Fatwa another important piece in the puzzle that leads to a new reformed Iran, or is it only a minor setback for Ahmadinejad's regime? We spoke to Dr. Reza Molavi, executive director of the prestigious Centre of Iranian Studies in Durham, about the chances for a democratic Iran, the role of the Western world and the changing role of the clerics in a theocratic nation.
Ayatollah Montazeri publicly questioned the legitimization of the current Iranian government.WSN: "Various microbloggers talk about the impact of Montazeri's Fatwa on the Iranian clerics. In what way will the religious superstructure in Iran change in the future?
Dr. Reza Molavi: "Fatwas like the one issued by Montazeri and sermons like Ayatollah Rafsanjani's have, together with the civil movement, shaken the main pillar on which the Iranian republic stands. The cleric and Ahmadinejad both want to preserve the Islamic Republic and none of the hardliner clerics wants Ahmadinejad to leave, as they would lose all their political power. With his Fatwa, that states that the idea of a superior spiritual leader that has political power is not in conformity with Islam, Montazeri joins other clerics such as Ayatollah Ali Sistani and strengthens the reformist leg of the Iranian clerics. It shows that there is a movement within the clerical establishment that understands religion as going beyond and being independent from politics and that advocates for a secular state in which one clerical elite that bundles all political power would be unnecessary.
WSN: "Montazeri calls in his Fatwa for the resistance of the Iranian nation. Do you think the civil movement will facilitate change in Iran?
Dr. Reza Molavi: "The genie is out of the bottle now and Montazeri's Fatwa certainly gives hope for a change in Iran. to read more you have to register here
