Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – April 17, 1983

Before the start of the public session, I read the reports in my office. Saddam spoke at the seminar of scholars from fifty countries being held in Baghdad and engaged in a great deal of demagoguery. During the public session, several bills were passed. At the end of the session, I handed it over to Mr. Mohammad Khamenei, the Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, so that he could gain experience presiding over the chamber during his term as deputy. At noon, a group of representatives from Gilan came and spoke about the high price of rice in Gilan and sought solutions. They complained that because of the opposition of the representatives from Zanjan and Miyaneh, the Astur Dam had come under doubt. People from Mazandaran also came to obtain the National Bank hotel for the university. In the afternoon, we had a meeting to revise the booklet on the positions of the [Islamic Republic] Party. Then there was a meeting of the party's Central Council, where the war and relations with the Soviet Union were discussed. Mr. [Mir-Hossein] Mousavi, the Prime Minister, and [Habibollah] Asgaroladi first expressed their disagreements, and Mr. Asgaroladi became very angry. Mr. Mousavi spoke about weak management and the problems of land, rice, and... that had arisen because of weak [management].

Late at night, I returned home. Regarding war propaganda, it was decided in the meeting that its tone should be one of victory, not of lack of success. Some were worried that people would lose trust in media reports if the realities of the results of Operation Valfajr 1 were not told. From the beginning, we have tried as much as possible to tell the people the realities of the front, but the enemy usually resorts to psychological warfare and, with the extensive resources of its Eastern and Western supporters and the reactionaries of the region, distorts the facts in its own favor; even in defeats such as the liberation of Khorramshahr and Fath ol-Mobin, it presents them as victorious withdrawals to boost the morale of its people and soldiers.

In the end, those opposed to the propaganda during this operation were convinced that in war, it is not logical to reveal realities that would benefit the enemy, although because the fighters are dispersed among the people, the truth becomes known. I spoke with Mr. [Hassan] Ghafouri-Fard, the Minister of Energy, about the Astur Dam. He is intimidated by the opposition of the representatives. Mr. [Abbas] Sheibani was pleased about doctors returning from abroad and said that a group of them were going to Kerman.