Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's Memoirs - December 19, 1999 I had a meeting with Sheikh Abbasali Alizadeh, the then-head of the Tehran Judiciary. During the meeting, he provided a detailed account of the disorder and mismanagement within the judiciary under t

Seyyed Abolfazl Mousavi Tabrizi visited today. He expressed his frustration with Mr. [Seyyed Mahmoud Hashemi] Shahroudi, [Head of the Judiciary], for dismissing him from his position and appointing him as an advisor. He expressed interest in being appointed as the Friday Prayer Imam of Tabriz, but Ayatollah Khamenei did not offer him the position.

Mr. [Seyyed Jamaleddin] Dinparvar, [Head of the Nahj al-Balaghah Foundation], and Mr. Shafiei also came by. They complained about the National Land and Housing Organization demanding a large sum of money for land that was granted to the Nahj al-Balaghah Foundation years ago. They sought my help to resolve the issue.

Seyyed Ahmad Mousavi also visited, asking for assistance with the challenges he faces regarding his responsibilities in Lebanon and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the reformist period.

In the afternoon, Mr. [Abbasali] Alizadeh, the Head of the Tehran Judiciary, came by. He discussed the disarray in the judiciary under the previous head, Mr. [Ali] Razini, and presented his plans for reform. He also provided an explanation for his opposition to the recent Court of Appeals ruling regarding Mr. Gholamhossein Karbaschi, but his reasoning was not convincing.

In previous diary entries, I had noted that the Court of Appeals had reduced Karbaschi’s sentence under Article 25 of the Law on the Amendment of Certain Justice Laws. However, Mr. Alizadeh, as the head of the Tehran Judiciary, quickly invoked Article 18 of the Law on the Formation of General and Revolutionary Courts, requesting the Supreme Court to prevent the implementation of the ruling and overturn the decision. The Supreme Court, influenced by both internal and external forces within the judiciary, promptly accepted the request and blocked Karbaschi's release. Alizadeh's explanations for his actions were not convincing during today's meeting.

For Iftar, I hosted the staff of the Expediency Discernment Council Secretariat.

The death toll from the flood in Venezuela has surpassed 2,000, with over 7,000 missing or injured. In Sri Lanka, a bomb exploded near President [Chandrika Kumaratunga] while she was delivering a speech, injuring her and killing several people. The Tamil Tigers are suspected of being responsible. Another bomb exploded at an opposition rally, resulting in heavy casualties. Meanwhile, the Macau Peninsula in southeastern China was officially handed over to China. The Portuguese had controlled the island for centuries as a colony, and it seems this is Europe's last colony in the East.