Winehole23
04-22-2011, 08:48 AM
Hooshang Amirahmadi, the president of the American Iranian Council who knows Mashaei, told the Guardian: "The reformist movement in Iran did not succeed for various reasons. I think Mashaei has become another alternative and the regime is using this opportunity to heat up the next election in Iran. Mashaei is saying that Iranians are at first Iranians and Islam comes afterward.
"He is reviving a source of national pride of Iranians, something that has been neglected not only since the Islamic Revolution in 1979 but in the past two centuries."
Amirahmadi said: "After the revolution, an extensive obsession with Islam made the authorities neglect Iran's history and Mashaei is now seeking to promote this sort of nationalistic narrative. I think Ahmadinejad himself is also in favour of Iran's history and has sought to revive Iran's ancient glory and power."
Iranians are proud of their history and still largely celebrate many ancient traditions that goes back as far as the country's Zoroastrian era, such as the Persian new year, Nowruz.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/apr/21/ahmadinejad-iran-successor-wikileaks
"He is reviving a source of national pride of Iranians, something that has been neglected not only since the Islamic Revolution in 1979 but in the past two centuries."
Amirahmadi said: "After the revolution, an extensive obsession with Islam made the authorities neglect Iran's history and Mashaei is now seeking to promote this sort of nationalistic narrative. I think Ahmadinejad himself is also in favour of Iran's history and has sought to revive Iran's ancient glory and power."
Iranians are proud of their history and still largely celebrate many ancient traditions that goes back as far as the country's Zoroastrian era, such as the Persian new year, Nowruz.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/apr/21/ahmadinejad-iran-successor-wikileaks