Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – May 7, 1981

We had an open session, and the discussion on the proposal for the War Victims Foundation (Bonyad-e Jangzadegan) was not finished. Because it has single urgency and proposals are permitted, we have many proposals.

The remarks of Mr. [Ali Golzadeh] Ghafouri and Ms. [Azam] Taleqani, which were sloganistic and provocative, made me angry, and I lashed out at them. I must overcome this tendency to lash out; it is not good and is harmful. Some friends praised [my reaction] and some criticized [it]. The critics are right, but the intense desire for the progress of Parliament's work and the awareness of the mischievous behavior of some, along with their touching upon falsely sensitive points, make one angry.

In the afternoon, we had a Presidium meeting. We set the schedule for the coming week. One of the bills on the agenda is determining the status of signing decrees that were formerly held by the deceased Shah. Some are now under the authority of the Presidency. It is one of the controversial political bills. I also spoke with Mr. Rajai. My proposal is that they be divided up and each portion assigned to the relevant organization. A portion has also already been determined by the Constitution.

Mr. Yarmohammadi complained about the lack of discipline among the new Revolutionary Guard (Sepah) force guarding Parliament, saying that the required number is eighty, but only forty have shown up, their replacement was carried out without Parliament's approval, and they have no supervisor. He believed that the commander of the Tehran IRGC (Sepah) is pro-Bani-Sadr and did this intentionally. I spoke with IRGC (Sepah) headquarters; they sent a representative who also concurred with this, but when we called the commander of Parliament's IRGC unit, it became clear that this suspicion was incorrect: there are eighty of them, they do have a commander, and they are a battalion that has spent several months at the front and suffered many martyrs and wounded.

Mr. Larijani, managing director of Voice and Vision (Seda-va-Sima), came, and we discussed the filming of Parliament. There are difficulties involved: if we want to film well, there must be strong lighting, which bothers the members of Parliament. They are looking for a solution, and some measures are being implemented. He was concerned about disagreements among the organization's officials and wanted to propose replacing the managing director. I dissuaded him; it was agreed that I would help resolve the disagreements, and that he would also make efforts on behalf of the genuine religious forces who have been set aside.