Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – June 19, 1983

After suhoor and prayer, I slept until seven in the morning. Then I went to the Majlis. I read the reports. In the open session, before the agenda, I spoke about the crime of Ba'athist Iraq and the martyrdom of six—or three—of the Al-Hakim clerics. Messrs. [Seyyed Mohammad Mahdi] Jafari [representative of Dashtestan] and [Seyyed Abolhasan] Haeri-Zadeh [representative of Birjand] spoke before the agenda about the late Dr. [Ali] Shariati. Two bills were passed, and Mr. [Habibollah] Asgaroladi [Minister of Commerce] spoke for two hours in his own defense and about the problems of the Ministry of Commerce.

At noon, Mr. Naseri came and complained about the governor of Zanjan. The gentlemen who were members of the delegation from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance sent abroad to inspect the cultural centers came and gave their report; although they had been traveling for 55 days, they had nothing important to report. In the afternoon, Mr. [Gholamreza] Aghazadeh, Minister without Portfolio [and head of the Economic Mobilization Headquarters], came and complained about the pressure being exerted against him by his opponents and was worried about the outcome of the disputes. I said that his conduct at the meeting of the Headquarters for Following Up [the Imam's Eight-Point Decree] with the board of directors of the Carpet Company was the reason for their reaction, and that the other cases were similar.

I attended the joint meeting of the [Construction] Jihad of Isfahan and the representatives of Isfahan and spoke briefly. The Central Council of the [Islamic Republic] Party held a meeting. The [members of the] Positions Commission were selected; myself and Messrs. Rabbani [Amolshi] and [Mohsen] Doagoo and [Mohammad Reza] Bahonar and Jasbi. The Election Headquarters was also determined, and there was much discussion about the events in Isfahan. These days, the dispute between Mr. [Jalaleddin] Taheri [Friday Prayer Leader of Isfahan] and his opponents, including the [Islamic Republic] Party and the clergy and the Revolutionary Guards, has spilled over into street demonstrations. Messrs. [Ghorbanali] Dori [Najafabadi] and [Mohieddin] Fazel Harandi and [Seyyed Hassan] Beheshti were assigned to investigate and resolve the problem. We were guests of the President for iftar. After iftar, we discussed with him the Foundation for the Compilation of the History of the Revolution and the Revolutionary Guards and the Army and the Ministry of Intelligence and the Islamic Revolution Documents Center, and made some decisions.