[Marxism] A touching appeal from an old friend

[Shawn Redden]

<http://cnn.site.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Fighting+tears%2C+shah%27s+son+calls+crisis+a+%27moment+of+truth%27++-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=405400667&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2Fmeast%2F06%2F22%2Firan.crown.prince%2Findex.html&partnerID=211911/>

Fighting tears, shah's son calls crisis a 'moment of truth'

By Elise Labott
CNN State Department Producer

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The son of the former shah of Iran called Monday 
for solidarity against Iran's Islamic regime, warning that the 
democratic movement born out of the election crisis might not succeed 
without international support.

"The moment of truth has arrived," Reza Shah Pahlavi said at 
Washington's National Press Club. "The people of Iran need to know 
who stands with them."

Pahlavi has lived in exile since 1979, when his father, Mohammad Reza 
Shah Pahlavi, was overthrown during the Islamic Revolution. Under the 
shah's regime, Iran saw nationalization of its oil and a strong 
movement toward modernization. Still, his secular programs and 
recognition of Israel cost him the support of the country's Shiite 
clergy, sparking clashes with the religious right and others who 
resented his pro-West views.

The son now lives in the United States with his family, where he 
spends much of his time talking about the Islamic regime in Iran.

During his remarks, he broke into tears when he spoke of "bullets 
piercing our beloved Neda," a woman killed Saturday by Iranian police 
at a protest in Tehran, whose death has become a rallying cry among 
demonstrators in Iran.

The Iranian regime, he said, was a "sinking Titanic" that might not 
survive the demands for democracy and human rights reverberating 
through the country.

Citing anecdotes from people inside the Iranian establishment, 
Pahlavi said he had heard that security forces have begun to distance 
themselves from the regime.

"It has already started," he said, citing reports that members of the 
security forces have gone home after their shifts ended and changed 
into plain clothes to join the protesters.

"Many, many elements within the security forces, within the 
Revolutionary Guard, are showing discontent," Pahlavi said. "There is 
an amazing reflection that is happening. ... This is a movement that 
has blown out of proportion."

Pahlavi praised the statements and tone of President Obama, saying 
that any outside attempt to interfere in Iran's internal affairs 
"will give the tyrants the excuse they need to paper over their own 
differences and target every man struggling for freedom as a foreign 
agent."

But he said there was a difference between interfering in a country's 
sovereign affairs and standing for principles of human rights and 
democracy.

"We welcome that. This is effective. It is important," he said. "This 
is precisely what Iranians at home demand world leaders, particularly 
someone like President Obama, who after all his entire message of 
hope and change and affirmative action ... was a big inspiration to 
many."

But, he added, Obama and other world leaders must be prepared to 
change their tactics if the violence against protesters gets much 
worse.

"The question is, what will the world governments do this time?" he 
asked. "Are we going to have Tiananmen Square revisited? Or is [it] 
going to be this time different?"