Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – March 21, 1981

At the turn of the new year, Messrs. Khamenei and Musavi Ardebili [1] were my guests at home. Coincidentally, last year as well, these same gentlemen along with Mr. Beheshti [were my guests]. Mr. Musavi [Ardebili] spoke about his meeting yesterday morning with the Imam and discussed the plan for investigating and trying the perpetrators of the March 5 [14 Esfand] university incident [2]. Generally, useful points were raised in the general discussions. Together, we listened to the Nowruz messages—the messages of the Imam, Bani-Sadr, Rajai, Beheshti, and myself. The messages were dry and somewhat lacking in content, and because they were all delivered from memory without notes, the phrasing was not very fluent either. The Imam's message had a different appeal. Late at night, our own guards and the guests' guards came to see us, and each of us gave them two thousand five hundred tomans as an Eid gift (Eidi).

In the morning, a group from the IRGC recruitment screening committee arrived and spoke about the quality of selection in the IRGC; it is not very encouraging, as the likelihood of infiltration by unfit individuals is high.

Mr. Kamal Tabatabaei and a group of other relatives, Dr. Hadi, the family of Martyr Motahhari, and then Mr. Mahdian arrived. We spoke with Dr. Hadi about plans for the new year, and Mr. Mahdian spoke about the threat that radical views pose to investment and consequently to production growth. The point is correct. The lack of planning and the ambiguity surrounding property rights are very harmful; this year, Parliament must clarify the status of property rights and production activities.

Ali [my nephew] came from the Sarpol-e Zahab front; he made me very happy and reported on the high morale of the volunteers at the front. Ali himself is one of the volunteers and wishes to return to the front. How good and self-sacrificing these young people have become!

In the early evening, my brother Mohammad and his wife came, and we had extensive discussions regarding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the statements of the Libyan ambassador. We had no dinner; the guards prepared something, and we ate.