A Jewish Member of Iranian Parliament?
Hold on one minute. I was surfing cnn.com today and saw an article about the National Post, a conservative Canadian paper. The paper was retracting a claim that the Iranian Parliament has been discussing making Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians wear colored strips of cloth on their clothing identifying their religious group. I didn't see the actual paper (we'd likely be Globe and Mail people if we got the national paper at all...), but was surprised that cnn.com stated "Iranian lawmakers, including the country's sole Jewish parliamentarian, have flatly denied the National Post story..."
Stop the presses. A Jewish member of Iranian Parliament? Yep. His name is Maurice Motamed. I did some further poking around and found this article in the opinion section of the National Review (also one of the top ten magazines I'm not likely to get caught reading, but that's beside the point): "The Mysterious Reappearance of Mr. M".
Now, I have never heard of Pooya Dayanim (author of the article), but since he got published in the National Review, which, in spite of its conservative viewpoint, I would generally assume to print articles which at least have a basis in truth, I'll give a bit of credence to what he has to say. Among others, he claims: "Every year he (Motamed) donates one month of his salary as a member of parliament to the Palestinian struggle to liberate Jerusalem from the hands of the Zionist Infidels." Donates his salary? To the Palestinians? I'm inclined to assume one of three things:
1) Mr. Motamed has been completely brainwashed by his lifetime in Iran and has swallowed the party-line whole.
2) The Iranian government holds some sway over his family - maybe they are keeping his great-aunt locked up and they threaten to kill/torture her unless Motamed agrees to help fuel the Iranian propaganda machine.
3) The situation in Iran is dire - for some reason, the 25,000 Jews who live there aren't leaving. Perhaps they don't think they would be able to gain entry to the US and for some reason they don't want to go to Israel (the Iranian goverment's repeated assurances that they would love to blow Israel out of the water, perhaps?). Mr. Motamed is doing his best to protect them from further persecution by reassuring the high-ups in the Islamic Regime that the Jews are loyal.
In any case, I have a hard time disabusing myself of the notion that time is running out for the Jews of Iran. Why don't they leave? It's a mentality I just don't understand. I can't imagine a Jewish mother anywhere in the world who hasn't plotted at one time or another for her children's safety. Shortly after Soulmate and I got engaged, I came to the realization that our children (b'ezras H-shem) will have dual citizenship - American and Canadian. They will be able to travel on either passport and be protected by the governments of two countries. G-d forbid, but if we should need to, Canada is a vast country with at least some opportunities to escape into the wilderness. I can't even fathom bringing a Jewish child into the world in Iran. It would be like giving birth in a den of hyenas.
For whatever the reason, Maurice Motamed has decided to serve the anti-semitic Islamic government in Iran. I'm not sure we'll ever know the real story.
Stop the presses. A Jewish member of Iranian Parliament? Yep. His name is Maurice Motamed. I did some further poking around and found this article in the opinion section of the National Review (also one of the top ten magazines I'm not likely to get caught reading, but that's beside the point): "The Mysterious Reappearance of Mr. M".
Now, I have never heard of Pooya Dayanim (author of the article), but since he got published in the National Review, which, in spite of its conservative viewpoint, I would generally assume to print articles which at least have a basis in truth, I'll give a bit of credence to what he has to say. Among others, he claims: "Every year he (Motamed) donates one month of his salary as a member of parliament to the Palestinian struggle to liberate Jerusalem from the hands of the Zionist Infidels." Donates his salary? To the Palestinians? I'm inclined to assume one of three things:
1) Mr. Motamed has been completely brainwashed by his lifetime in Iran and has swallowed the party-line whole.
2) The Iranian government holds some sway over his family - maybe they are keeping his great-aunt locked up and they threaten to kill/torture her unless Motamed agrees to help fuel the Iranian propaganda machine.
3) The situation in Iran is dire - for some reason, the 25,000 Jews who live there aren't leaving. Perhaps they don't think they would be able to gain entry to the US and for some reason they don't want to go to Israel (the Iranian goverment's repeated assurances that they would love to blow Israel out of the water, perhaps?). Mr. Motamed is doing his best to protect them from further persecution by reassuring the high-ups in the Islamic Regime that the Jews are loyal.
In any case, I have a hard time disabusing myself of the notion that time is running out for the Jews of Iran. Why don't they leave? It's a mentality I just don't understand. I can't imagine a Jewish mother anywhere in the world who hasn't plotted at one time or another for her children's safety. Shortly after Soulmate and I got engaged, I came to the realization that our children (b'ezras H-shem) will have dual citizenship - American and Canadian. They will be able to travel on either passport and be protected by the governments of two countries. G-d forbid, but if we should need to, Canada is a vast country with at least some opportunities to escape into the wilderness. I can't even fathom bringing a Jewish child into the world in Iran. It would be like giving birth in a den of hyenas.
For whatever the reason, Maurice Motamed has decided to serve the anti-semitic Islamic government in Iran. I'm not sure we'll ever know the real story.
posted by Sarah at 16:33
7 Comments:
"...I came to the realization that our children (b'ezras H-shem) will have dual citizenship..."
Are you sure about this? I would consult w/ the US embassy or some knowledgeable attorney about this before you assume anything. A lot has changed in the last half decade. I never thought in my lifetime I would need to flash my passport crossing the US/Canada border. I also understand there is US legislation in the works to fingerprint all foriegn nationals who cross over into the US, to include Canadians. Things are changing.
When dealing with governments and bureaucracy it's best to assume as little as possible.
Well, since I'm an American, my children are also American and are entitled to American passports. Since they will likely be born in Canada and their father is Canadian, they will be entitled to Canadian passports. Now, the American government may not like the fact that they can hold two passports, but they will be legally entitled to each passport which, surprise, makes them dual passport holders.
AnySara is correct: http://www.richw.org/dualcit/law.html (The FAQ was written by a dual American/Canadian citizen.)
Apparently they'll have to do fun things like file US taxes returns and be registered with the US embassy, though.
You might also be interested in this article on why some Jews aren't leaving Iran:
http://www.jta.org/page_view_story.asp?intarticleid=16678&intcategoryid=2
maurice motamed is my father's cousin.
I can't find any other source that confirms his "donations".
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