#Worldwide #Information #Blogger #LucSchrijvers: #Update: #anarchist #news and #information from all over the #world - 14.01.2020

Today's Topics:

   
1.  Greece, APO: We do not forget - we do not forgive the murder
      of the fighter Nikos Temponera. Rally on Thursday, January 9 at 6
      pm By anarchist group "malevolent horse", [machine translation]
      (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
  
 2.  Announcement Of The Anarchist Political Organization APO On
      The Mobilizations Of December 5th And 6th [machine translation]
      (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
3.  Greece, Vogliamo tutto e per tutti: Solidarity with
      squatters [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
4.  Spain, cnt-sindikatua: CNT before the call for a general
      strike on January 30 (ca, it, pt) [machine translation]
      (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
5.  Union of Syndicalists ZSP: Hostel24 is still not paying!
      [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
6.  US, black rose fed: Generations of Struggle: Interview with
      an Iranian Anarchist (2005) (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)


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Message: 1






N. TEMPONERAS LIVES IN OUR GAMES -- ON THE WAY TO BRING THE GOVERNMENT AND TERRORIST TERRORISM -- "We will bury our dead once more, tighten
our hearts, raise our banners, fight and WE WILL WIN. GUIDES OF HOPE THE FIRST DEAD. " ---- Announcement of the Occupation of TEI of Patras
- January 9, 1991 ---- On January 8, 1991, militant professor Nikos Tembonera falls dead in front of the Bud school in Patras, struck by the
assassin's hand. N. Temponera selflessly stood by the students who were occupied and fighting against the bill for education of the then
Mitsotakis government. He was confronted with the assassination squads of the UNNED (led by the local president of the organization Yiannis
Kalambokas, and with him the Maragos, Spinos, Grammatikas, etc.) who were attacking schools with the indignation of "indignant citizens". to
open the squats. Occupations had begun since the beginning of October 1990 with most schools occupied and pupils on the streets demonstrating.

Massive and militant protests are raging across the country in the coming days, clashes are raging, and protesters are once again confronted
with MAT repressions.

N. Temponera's assassins have been on the run for years, while Cornbock was "rewarded" for his actions and appointed as a bank manager in
Volos. Lawyer of the Corn was the well-known neo-Nazis and member of the Golden Dawn Michael Arvanitis. At the time when Cornacocca is free,
as is Corconeas, and the prosecutor at the Golden Dawn trial, Adamantas Economou, proposes acquitting the accused of killing Fyssas by not
recognizing the existence of criminal organizations, many anti-terrorists are found. exterminating sentences and sentenced indictments,
while there is also a sweeping repressive attack on social-class struggles, spaces and structures of the movement.

Today, 29 years later, we honor the fighter N. Tebonera and continue to be on the streets of the fight for a better society. Against the
heinous state attack on every social and class acquis, against the plundering and bleeding of the afflicted social base, on state and
interstate terror, the repressive campaign, the murderous attacks and the torture of dissidents, the demonstrators. Organize in every
school, school, neighborhood and workplace and put a stop to the antisocial plans of the rulers. To take up the battlefield, to keep the
path of resistance open and alive.

29 years later, N. Tebonera, with his fighting stance, continues to be a source of inspiration for the struggles that erupt today and keep
the path open for social and class counterattacks.

WE DON'T FORGET - WE DON'T FORGET THE MURDER OF NIKOS TEMPONERA AGAINST 29 YEARS OLD IN PATRA

THIS STEP BACK TO THE GOVERNMENT'S REPRESENTATION AND THE TERRORIST TERRORISM

CONCENTRATION-ROAD

THURSDAY 9 GENERAL, 6 PM TO THE "TEMPONERA" SCHOOLS

anarchist group "malevolent horse" - member of the Anarchist Political Organization

http://apo.squathost.com/

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Message: 2






Announcement of the Anarchist Political Organization on the mobilizations of December 5th in solidarity with the squats, against the
repressive campaign of the state and the ultimate, and on the demonstrations of memory and resistance of December 6th ---- On December 5th
and 6th, at the expiration of the ultimatum of the Ministry of Civil Protection against the squats and the people who struggle through
self-organized political and social structures, tens of thousands of people marched the streets all over Greece, defying the climate of
terror and blocking the repressive crescendo of the far-right government. ---- On December 5th, the day that the state ultimatum expired,
mobilizations in solidarity with the squats were organized in several cities, from Athens, Patra, Thessaloniki to Mytilene, Larissa, Volos,
Veroia and Karditsa, in which thousands of people participated. In Athens, more than 2,000 people responded to the call of No Pasaran! and
marched in the center of the city. In Thessaloniki, a demonstration in solidarity with the squats that took place in the area of Kato Toumpa
was supported by hundreds of people. Two days before, on December 3rd, another large solidarity demonstration took place in the center of
the city, during which a large banner was placed in front of the Labor Centre. In Patra, almost 200 people participated in the demonstration
called by the open assembly of comrades in solidarity with the squats and against state repression, which started from the occupied space of
Parartima.

On December 6th, day of commemoration of the murder of 15 years old student Alexis Grigoropoulos and the social revolt that followed eleven
years before, within a climate of repression and terror, tens of thousands of people participated in the demonstrations of memory and
resistance. Demonstrations took place in the morning and in the evening of that day in all big cities. In Athens, the police proceeded in
arrests, in order to prevent people from reaching Propylaia, where the demonstration was called. Comrades from the Anarchist Student's
Assembly "Arodamos" were among those who were arrested and were transported to General Police Headquarters along with their banner and flags
and were released only after the end of the demonstration. More than 10,000 people participated in the afternoon demonstration, within which
the anarchist bloc of No Pasaran! gathered more than 3,000 demonstrators. At the end of the demonstration, the police made tens of arrests
in the Exarcheia area, beat, forced to undress and tortured people. The brutal scene of violence in Exarcheia that took place in the
demonstration of September 6th has happened before at the end of the massive demonstrations of September 14th and November 17th. The tens of
incidents of people who were forced to undress, were abused and tortured, while captured by the police occupation army, is inextricably
linked to the strategy of the repressive campaign which aims to terrorize and neutralize the people of the struggle. In Thessaloniki, both
the morning demonstration, called by the students' unions and the anarchist student's assembly Ataxia and the evening demonstration from
Kamara, in which more than 2,000 people supported the anarchist and antiauthoritarian blocs. In Patra, the morning demonstration was
supported by school and universities' students and political organizations. In the evening, the demonstration called at Parartima was
attended by 500 people. During the demo, clashes with the repression forces broke out. The police that had surrounded the center of the
city, attacked the protesters by direct hits from teargas cartridges fired from riot guns, brutal beatings and violent arrests, injuring
comrades and charging seven of them, four of whom with heavy charges.

While state repression and terrorization and the murderous repressive mechanisms continue to be the spearhead of state politics in order to
discipline those who struggle and to subjugate the society as a whole, it is clear by the participation of tens of thousands of people all
over Greece in the demonstrations of resistance and solidarity, that the clash in the streets with the murderers of Riot Police and the
development of solidarity between the people of the struggle can open the way and become the basis for the social and class counterattack
against repression and their ultimate.

While the arrests and the state violence are used to uproot resistance, new rounds of conflict with the authority are emerging due to the
brutal antisocial policies and the looting of the social base, reminding the fact that December revolt is still present over the world of
Authority.

Let us block them from unfolding their plans undisturbed. Let's stay in the streets. Against the state, repression and their murderous
police. Against the capital and its brutality. We call on everyone - the people of the struggle, the youth, the workers, the students - to
participate in the struggle, in every social field in order to block the wave of state repression and prepare our counterattack for the
creation of a world without oppressors and oppressed, for a society of freedom, justice and equality.

All the world revolts against its repressors. In Chile, Bolivia, France, Syria, Palestine and Turkey and in thousand other places, where the
desire for freedom is an everyday struggle. In order to sail from the bays of revolt, to the open seas of social and class counterattack and
emancipation. In order to destroy the decayed world of fear, submission and poverty. In order to live the only life worth living, the life
of struggle for Social Revolution.

?? PASARAN! HANDS OFF THE SQUATS, THE PEOPLE OF THE STRUGGLE AND SOCIAL-CLASS RESISTANCE

SOLIDARITY WITH THOSE ARRESTED ON DECEMBER 6TH

STOP ALL PROSECUTIONS AGAINST THE SEVEN COMRADES ARRESTED AT THE DEMONSTRATION OF DECEMBER 6TH IN PATRA - HANDS OFF OUR COMRADES

FOR SOCIAL REVOLUTION, ANARCHY AND LIBERTARIAN COMMUNISM...

THE STRUGGLE GOES ON!

Anarchist Political Organization - Federation of Collectives

http://apo.squathost.com/announcement-of-the-anarchist-political-organization-on-the-mobilizations-of-december-5th-and-6th

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Message: 3






If we do not resist all neighborhoods our cities will become modern prisons
Demonstration of resistance and remembrance for the seven years since the assassination of migrant-worker Shahzat Lukman-Friday, January 17,
6pm, p. Mercury ---- On January 17, 2013, fascists Dionysis Liakopoulos and Christos Stergiopoulos kill cold-blooded migrant worker Shahzat
Lukman in Upper Petralona. ---- The Lockman assassination was not the first, nor the last. Paul Fyssas, Z. Kostopoulos / Zackie Oh, E.
Topaloudi, P. Zifle, A. Petrou, Eboukas Mamasubek ... and the list is not over. State, capital and their fascist gangs are killing. Anything
that does not fit into the patriarchal, orthodox, ethno-heterodox rule of the free market is treated with violence, depreciation, and targeting.
In the years of the capitalist crisis and after the December 2008 uprising, the disadvantaged regime activated its fascist reserves to help
maintain the status quo. During the so-called memorial years, we saw the Golden Dawn's electoral breakthrough, its entry into parliament,
and its attempt to gain power on the street. It is no coincidence that particular pieces of the media / business cluster, which today
support the ND government, prioritized the ASE's rise by giving it a leapfrog moment or even asking them to "take it seriously" to claim a
share in power co-management. So while the ATHEX Nazis were violent and murderous and as the ruling bargains between the South-ATHEX did not
work, after the assassination of Paul Fyssas, the regime decided to pull the bridle by arresting many of its members. The subsequent trial
became yet another show of the bourgeoisie to convince us of its commitment to democratic ideals. We have no expectation of civil justice
for us; fascism sweeps the streets through collective anti-hierarchical, anti-institutional, self-organized and radical actions.

At the time of SYRIZA's social-democratic management of the state, but also after the transition to AL-governed ND, the state, nationalism,
fascist gangs continued. However, the AAA transactional baboon is no longer necessary. The regime returned to democratic practices and
national goals. The creation of concentration camps for immigrants and the evacuation of migrant squads from the first-to-left signified the
deceit of the electorate on the one hand. Rallies and crowns on Macedonians, strategic agreements with EEZ killer states, racist and
homophobic populist sermons, intolerant fascist-based mobilizations against the refugee establishment, institutionalized and media-driven,
heroic marking the nationalist turn of state and society So the far-right ND came on the same footsteps, turning the existing concentration
camps into a closed one, abolishing the AMKA for immigrants, while herds of racists organized hate events. At the same time, squad
clearances, beatings, torture, repressive attacks and repressive attacks on self-organized combat structures and those who fight are the
application of the "law and order" doctrine.

We remain on the streets, in battlefields and defenses of our struggles and spaces. For us the enemy is not national but class. It is
against the exploitation and oppression of man by man. It is against homelands and borders, against nationalism and intolerance.

Let us not get used to the death that state, capital, and power relations offer us generously.

Solidarity is our weapon.

The struggle against the state, capital and their fascist reserves for a world of equality, solidarity, justice and freedom.

Demonstration of resistance and remembrance for the seven years since the assassination of migrant worker Shahzat Lukman - Friday, January
17, 6pm, Mercouri Square, Upper Petralona.

anarchist collectivism Vogliamo tutto e per tutti

https://vogliamotutto.espivblogs.net/2020/01/11/saxtzat-loykman-demo-17-1-2020/

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Message: 4






CNT calls to participate massively in the strike of 30-E. ---- "Between the November press conference and the formulation of the strike, a
point has been included that was not there before," said the anarcho-syndicalist organization. ---- CNT, assuming the claims of the
Pensioners Movement in all its points of the claim table, together with the rest of the unions and social movements, called a general strike
for January 30, 2020. This was made public through a press conference held on November 26, 2019, in which the common bases for its
realization were laid. ---- Before the general strike notice submitted to the Basque Government and Navarro, the CNT does not subscribe
point 4 (the recognition of its own system of labor relations and social protection), introduced by a party of the conveners, the Social
Charter . This point was not included in the brief that was presented together with the Pensioners Movement at the press conference on
November 26. It is something that CNT wants to make clear.

The points for which the CNT calls for a strike are those agreed upon and presented at the press conference, in which the Government of
Madrid, Gasteiz and Iruñea and the employers, were required to:

The lost purchasing power of pensions and salaries and their automatic revaluation are immediately recovered based on, at a minimum, the
increase in the cost of living;
Repeal the labor reforms of 2010 and 2012, which have increased precariousness and attacked the right to collective bargaining; in addition
to eliminating also the regressive aspects of the pension reforms of 2011 and 2013;
Establish a minimum pension of 1,080 euros and a minimum interprofessional salary of 1,200 euros;
End the gender gap in wages and pensions;
Early retirement without penalty with 40 years of contributions;
A network of public, universal and free public health services;
That the amount of the Guaranteed Income and the RGI be 100% of the Minimum Interprofessional Salary, and the development of a specific
regulation to complete the minimum pension at 1,080 euros.
To achieve this, on January 30 we will fill the streets of Araba, Bizkaia, Gipuzkoa and Nafarroa again, participating in the general
mobilization announced and supporting the general strike, despite the changes included in the legalization of the strike.

Unity is our strength and mobilization and struggle are the only guarantees to achieve our goals. The future is in our hands.

http://www.cnt-sindikatua.org/index.php/es/todas-las-noticias/1608-cnt-ante-a-la-convocatoria-de-huelga-general-del-30-de-enero.html

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Message: 5






The Association of Polish Syndicalists continues to protest against Hostel 24 located on ul. Lelewela 35a in Bydgoszcz. The protest is
related to the lack of salary payments for former employees of the Hostel. Some employees did not receive payrolls even in 2013! The
employer does not pay despite the existence of final payment orders. ---- There have already been two protests under the Hostel itself and
under the Hostel manager's villa. The matter became quite loud in the local media in Bydgoszcz: an article from Gazeta Pomorska and a
broadcast from Radio Pik . ---- This Saturday at 14:00, at Hostel 24 on ul. Lelewela 35a there will be another ZSP picket. ---- Below is a
video from the previous picket under the Hostel manager's house. ---- The management of DSE, which owns Hostel 24, posted a message on the
hostel's website saying that "Hostel 24 Bed & Breakfast was never an employer of people participating in demonstrations" and called the
demand for payment for the work done "unlawful extortion" and informed on "submitting a notification to the Prosecutor's Office of suspected
offense".

Such activities, which discredit the Board completely, will not, of course, cause the Association of Polish Syndicalists to cease their
activities, which are aimed at obtaining due payment for former hostel employees.

https://zsp.net.pl/hostel24-nadal-nie-placi

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Message: 6






Tudeh Party members and supporters of Mohammad Mossadegh in Tehran, Iran in 1953. Wikimedia Commons ---- The original introduction for this
interview opened with the telling words "there is a high probability that the current path of imperialist geo-politics in the Middle East
will eventually lead the United States into open conflict with Iran" and then advised us that "basic internationalism compels us toward a
better understanding of this country and those who struggle within its borders." These words couldn't ring more true today. ---- This
interview was done with Payman Piedar, the editor of Nakhdar, a Farsi/English-language anarchist-communist magazine (scans of the
publication can be viewed here along with other documents). In this 2005 interview he speaks on his experience within Iran's revolutionary
left, his political evolution towards anarchist-communism, and his socio-political analysis of the country and social movements. This
appeared in The Northeastern Anarchist, published by NEFAC (North Eastern Federation of Anarchist Communists) which was a predecessor
organization of Black Rose/Rosa Negra.

NEA: Could you talk about how you first came to revolutionary politics? What influences directly led to your development?

Payman Piedar (PP): In 1969, when I was only thirteen, the Shah's regime announced that the bus fare was going to be risen from 2 to 5
Rials[at the time 700 Rials was equivalent to US$1]. That an obvious blow to the average family economy. So a demonstration was organized
and I participated in it. Our school a huge contingent-quite spontaneously, I should add-marched down the "24 of Esfand" street, which was a
major street then as well as now, breaking every bus's windows that passed by. Riot police chased us for two hours. It was amazing and
more-so because it was the first ever "direct action" that I had been involved in.

For the next two years my political participation was, individually, through writing progressive/political poetry on the black board at our
school. The reader should know that Persian culture in general, and the political culture in particular, is very poetic. Since we have had
thousands of years of authoritarian governments, the political resistance to the status quo, also, has always manifested itself through
poetry-metaphorically speaking to the masses and educating them through verses that would be recited in the privacy of everyone's home or in
social gatherings. As the saying goes: "Poetry runs through our blood."

NEA: Leading up to the 1979 revolution, what was the left-political atmosphere in Iran like? Were you involved in any revolutionary groups
who were active as these events unfolded?

PP: To answer this question properly, a quick review of the twenty-six years prior to the February Revolution of 1979 is in order. On August
18, 1953, when a CIA-organized coup overthrew the first ever Democratic (national bourgeois) government of Doctor Mosadegh in Iran, and
brought the lackey Shah back to his throne, it was a huge blow to both the social movements and the revolutionary organizations. However,
four years after the return of the Shah to power, on December 7, 1957, when the then U.S. Vice president, Richard Nixon visited Tehran, he
was met with a militant student demonstration which threw tomatoes at his motorcade. On that dark day three students were murdered by
police. They became martyrs and, consequently, the student movement was born.

Nevertheless, over the next fourteen years the shadow of an imperialist dictatorship through the fascist regime of the Shah was to be
predominant. The traitorous leaders of the Tudeh Party (so-called Communist Party, lackeys of our Soviet neighbors to the north) had long
left the political scene into exile in East Germany. The remnants of the National Front (bourgeois party of Doctor Mosadegh) were in total
disarray. In short there was no room left for any open political activities or organizations, let alone revolutionary ones. Every sign of
discontent would be crushed in its inception, and the only spaces left fairly intact were the Mosques and religious schools. However, during
that period the most intellectually advanced of the student movement began a meticulous study of the socio-economic conditions of the
country all the way to the post coup d'etat period-i.e. the transformation of Iranian society from a "semi-feudal/semi-colonial" state to a
"peripheric" (dependent) capitalist society.

The 1963 "Kennedy-Rostow pact" had done its job: A land reform was imposed and the capitalist social relation was born. Of course, in order
to save face, the puppet regime of the Shah pretended it was "his policy" and called it "The White Revolution". To sum up: what the short
lived national-bourgeois government of Mosadegh did not get (or better said, was not given) the chance to do was done by the hegemonic
imperialist power of the United States.

The above socio-economic analysis and consequent political ramification is summarized in a book called: Mobarezeye Mosalahane ham Strategy
ham Tactic["Armed Struggle: As Both a Strategy and Tactic"]by comrade Masoud Ahmadzadeh. Alongside comrade Amir Parviz Poyan's brilliant
book Mobarezeye Mosalahane va Rade Theory Bagha["Armed Struggle and the Refutation of the Theory of Survival"]they became the theoretical
cornerstone of the revolutionary organization called: "Organization of The Iranian People's Fedaie Guerrilla" (OIPFG). The first public
manifestation of this revolutionary organization was on the dawn of "19 Bahman 1349" (February 9, 1971), when a group of thirteen guerrillas
attacked the "Siahkal" security forces in the northern region. This announced the birth of the armed struggle.

For the next three years, while finishing high school, I became a staunch supporter of OIPFG. I would distribute - clandestinely of course -
their leaflets in our school, leaving copies on telephone booths, in sandwich stores, and in a billiards club that I frequented with friends.

Seven months after the arrival of OIPFG on the political stage, another armed group called "Peoples Mojahedin of Iran" with a slightly
radical-Islamic tendency (parallel to the "liberation theology" of Latin America) came into existence. However, in subsequent years up
until, and after, the February Revolution of 1979 they would go through transformations, which I will not get into here. I left Iran for
England in August 1974, and a year later to the United States, to attend university. But I kept my strong allegiance to the armed struggle
in Iran for the next eleven years to come.

NEA: Before Khomeni was able to lead the fundamentalist backlash and counter-revolution, what radical gains were made by the Iranian people
through the February 1979 events?

PP: Well, unfortunately a majority of the Iranian people got fooled into supporting the so-called referendum that the Khomeni regime had
proposed (for the establishment of the Islamic Republic). That was the death sentenced for the organized left.

Nevertheless, before the reorganization of the counter-revolution and its total control over all areas of civil society, every sector of the
Iranian society was so thirsty for the so-called new founded "freedom" that they won through their own self-organization. Workers started
the Shoura ("soviet" or "council") movement in many factories and even the peasants of the ethnic Turkaman minority (in the Northern region)
organized themselves in the same fashion. Women held a major demonstration demanding the right to refuse wearing the religious attire
(forceful covering of their body). Students held lively debates and started organizing themselves into various leftwing groupings. The Kurds
(the largest and most radical ethnic minority) immediately created their autonomous zone of control (either through the bourgeois Democratic
Party of Kurdistan, or The Komole, a leftwing petite-bourgeois organization with a strong pro-worker/peasant tendency), with their Armed
Pishmarge (namely "self-sacrificing guerrilla") ready to shed their blood to defend their territory.

But, again, unfortunately none of the above mass organizations lasted more than a few months. The counter-revolution established their
various reactionary armed organizations, namely the Pasdaran Enghelab (so-called "Guardian of the Revolution"), Basij (an armed youth
formation), and worst of all The Hezbolaah Party (you could call them the fascist brigade, or "Falange"), and immediately started to smash,
break up, and in the case of the Turkamans, carry out vicious executions. In Kurdistan a massive bombardment of their camps took away all
the progressive gains that the masses had made for themselves. And, of course, the regime started to create its own "Islamic Shouras",
"Islamic women associations" and "Islamic student associations" (which was the extension of the previous pro-Khomeni student organization
that was already active prior to his return to Iran). However, what it could never accomplish was to come up with any sham organization
which could claim having the interest of any ethnic minority in heart.

Image result for Pasdaran Enghelab
Tehran mural of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the late founder of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
NEA: What became of the radical left in Iran following this counter-revolution? Was there an active exile movement abroad? What was your
political activity of this period?

PP: In order to answer this question properly, I should say that all the intense class struggle (moreover, the massive anti-Shah front)
convinced the imperialists that the Shah's time was over. They finally came around and accepted Khomeni's compromise (and promise) of going
to reside in the city of Ghom and not intervene in political matters in Tehran. However that was all a bluff in Khomeni's part. We could say
that he was very astute and cheated everyone. That is, he cheated all the discontented Iranian masses on one hand, and all the imperialist
powers on the other. He not only shoved his plan of the Islamic Republic down our throats, but also antagonized more than ever the whole
Middle East region. Khomeni's rhetoric of extending his reign into Iraq (since the majority of the Iraqis are Shia Muslim and Saddam's
Baathist regime was Sunni) gave the United States imperialists the excuse to give the green light for Saddam to invade Iran with the hope of
getting rid of his regime for one that was more in line with their immediate interests. We should not forget that Khomeni's regime (in Bani
Sadre's presidency) constantly bombarded the Kurdish rebellious region, which is the frontier with Iraq, and had already killed many Iraqis.

So the situation was tense at any rate. When the war between Iran and Iraq broke out in late 1980, it gave Khomeni the best weapon to finish
the dismantling of all the remaining peoples' movements, and consequently all the leftist organizations in the country. At this point anyone
who had the means to escape abroad did so. As a result, a huge anti-Islamic Republic movement flourished in exile. Mojahedin's leadership
helped Bani Sadr (The first Iranian president under Khomeni) to escape with them to Paris. They immediately created the first bourgeois
opposition to the Islamic Republic called the "National Resistance Council" (NRC).

At this time I had just finished my Masters in the United States and decided to move to Paris for intense political activity. The
organization that I was sympathetic to was a small group which had branched out of the OIPFG right after the February 1979 revolution
(following the theoretical line of comrade Ahmad Zadeh) known as "Ashraf Dehghani Group." However we officially used the same name (OIPFG)
and emblem. The next two and a half years (1981 to late 1983) was the most memorable time ever for me personally in terms of political
organizing and agitation. We were the first, among the eight groups, to initiate an all-out radical offensive against the pro-Khomeni
Islamic Falange (which had ties to the Iranian Embassy), who would try to kick us out of the Cite Universite where we would hold our weekly
gatherings. They even had the tacit support of the CRS (special French police battalion). We were also the first who brought the issue of
the NRC being in the pockets of the imperialists to light, trying to isolate them from the real anti-Islamic Republic and anti-imperialist
movement.

NEA: At some point you evolved from a Marxist-Leninist position to anarchist-communism. Could you explain what led to a reassessment of your
politics? How did you first come into contact with anarchism? Is there much of a conscious history of anarchism within the Iranian left?

PP: The OIPFG was really an eclectic organization. It claimed to be Marxist (it's socio-economic analysis of the Iranian society in my
opinion was, and still is, quite valid) and Leninist, because it believed in the hierarchical organization of the vanguard: the Communist
Party (embodying all the other arrogance of Lenin, such as believing that the workers are incapable of developing beyond an economist
understanding of the struggle so it needs revolutionary vanguard-a strata outside of the work process to lead the proletariat to
revolution). It also included bit of Maoism (the need to create a People's Army) and foco theory, or Guevarism (because we did not have to
have a vanguard party at first, as a guerrilla group we could act as a small engine which would in the process give inspiration to the
bigger engine, or mass movement, to come along and lead the revolution).

Of course all these different elements were interpreted in the concrete historical situation of Iranian society, and it made sense to me for
a long while (1971-1985). For the next few years I lived in South America. At this time I still, with nostalgia, held onto the "glorious
path of the fallen comrades" and defended the theoretical contributions that they had made during all those years. Rejecting all the
opportunist factions that had done damage to the organization, I felt that something was wrong. Since I remained committed to my core
communist ideals it occurred to me that it was the organizational type that I increasingly found objectionable. The defeat of the revolution
in general (specifically, its democratic aspiration), and the destruction of the Iranian Left (movement of socialist ideals) in particular
was very hard to digest.

So in search of answers I re-read a lot of Marx's key texts, and added to the list of my readings the various schools of thought that I had
no knowledge up to that point: council communism, autonomist-Marxism, Frankfurt School, and the Situationist International. I also immersed
myself into reading many feminist writers, and to boost my spirit I went back to reading novels - mostly works by South American and
European writers.

In 1989 I had made up my mind to go back to school. This way I would get back into the habit of reading more systematically. This time I
chose anthropology, and moved to New York City. It was in 1990 that I had my first real encounter with anarchist politics. I joined an
anarchist study group, and it did not take long to discover when and how the working class took the wrong turn in its historical struggle
for the liberation of humanity. Over the next few years I focused my reading on the works of the major anarchist-communist theorists.

My answer to the last part of this question (whether or not there has ever been a conscious anarchist history in Iran) is a resounding no.
There is not much of a conscious history of anarchism within the Iranian left. Worse still, most of the radical Left in exile has since
moved to the right, having since become social democrats.

However, inside Iran I have met some free spirited young anarchists. By introducing Nakhdar to this milieu my hope is that we could make a
small impact and the next generation will not make the mistakes of the previous ones.

NEA: Do you feel that there is important insight for anarchists to draw from traditional Marxism?

PP: Yes, definitely. I believe that the anarchist thinkers have unfortunately not contributed as much as Marx (and some of the Marxists
after him) in the realm of economic theory. For example, Kropotkin has written comparatively little in that respect. Marx still is an
important reference for all anti-capitalists. Do not forget that Bakunin was very much influenced by Das Capital. For me Marx remains one of
the greatest revolutionaries of all time. I would add that there is a consistency in all of his writings. I would not diminish his ‘early'
writings or separate them from his ‘later' work. Of course, I disagree with his political stand against Bakunin in the First International,
and all that came after it, but it does not diminish his accomplishments.

I should also add that in my opinion we should separate Marx and Marxism (at least what I understand of it) from Lenin and Leninism. Still,
we could learn quite a bit from other Marxist thinkers from the above mentioned school of thoughts. However in the organizational realm we
have to rely 100% on anarchist thinking and practice. At least that is where I draw my take on anarchism.

NEA: What is the current political climate in Iran? Do you see potential within any social struggles for anarchism or libertarian communist
politics to gain influence?

PP: The current political climate in Iran is terrible. In general there is apathy all over the political spectrum. The reason is that
Khatami's presidency (as we had predicted in Nakhdar) was a sham and did not bring any meaningful change. The false hope was that he could
‘stand up' to the so-called ‘conservative' faction and could bring liberalization of the political atmosphere on the one hand and create
more jobs for the youth (who currently represent 65% of the workforce) on the other. He did not accomplish either. Newspapers have been shut
down; workers' claims on months of back pay have been ignored, and their daily demonstrations in front of their respected factories are
being attacked. Wage increases for teachers and nurses have been postponed, the number of political prisoners and the torture of students
(or any other dissident intellectuals) who dare to raise their voice is on the rise again. Finally, the desperation of the unemployed youth
has caused an increase in the drug addiction (currently over two million!) and prostitution in particular. The corruption is skyrocketing,
and the decadent lifestyle of a small class (the ‘Nuevo Rich') is sickening. And it is becoming increasingly worse, with no progressive
alternatives in sight. Consequently the average Iranian is in total despair.

However there has been an attempt, in the last month or so, by a few radical students and some ex-liberals. They published an open letter on
the internet asking for the international community to intervene by pressuring the Islamic Republic to hold a referendum for the
constitutive assembly. They believe that if they could raise one million signatures-from all Iranians, both inside and outside of Iran-their
plan can have a chance to succeed.

I personally do not believe in such a plan. My answer to the last part of your question is - again unfortunately - no. The current apathy in
general, and the disastrous situation of the working class movements in particular (not to mention the almost non-existence of any radical
political organizations), makes me have no such hope. But I am not pessimistic either. I truly believe the liberation of the working class
is in its own hands. The situation is very explosive and any moment the masses could rise up spontaneously. And that is where the real
alternative would have to be shaped. Nevertheless we have to be realistic.

In Iran we have been living in a political culture that has been nourished in a very authoritarian fashion for thousands of years. The
tolerance even within the left has not been huge. It has to be learned. And that takes time. We should know by now that real social change
(in a truly radical sense) does not happen over night. It takes generations to be shaped. Even in the West, where there has been this
historical precedence for over a century now, we do not see such occurrences either.

NEA: What are the fundamental differences between the organization of Capital under the Imperial regime and under the Islamic Republic? How
has the form of struggle changed?

PP: First of all I should remind the reader that the Shah's regime was a puppet one (from 1941-53 to British imperialism, and right after
the coup of 1953 through 1979 to U.S. imperialism). After the coup the oil consortium was divided 51% for the United States and 49% for the
British imperialist power. There was a permanent military presence by the United States (10-20,000 troops) in Iran.

By 1972, under the Nixon (Kissinger) doctrine, the Shah's regime became the gendarme of the Persian Gulf. That is to say after the Vietnam
fiasco the U.S. world strategy had changed for the regionalization of conflict (Low Intensity Conflict). Therefore the role of ‘watch dog'
was given to the Shah. At one point the Shah sent the Iranian military to crush an uprising by the Marxist guerrillas in Oman. For that
purpose the creation of OPEC became an economic and political necessity. The price of oil would go up (a defeat for the Europeans, and a
gain for the U.S.) but at the same time the Shah would buy billions of U.S armaments in exchange. The dumping of other U.S. products[into
the Iranian market]was also widespread.

In short, for twenty-four years the economic, political, military, as well as cultural imperialism of the United States was predominant in
Iran. The European Imperialists were present, but only on a minor level. However, the coming of the Islamic Republic was through a real
revolutionary upheaval; no matter how much it's now hated by the majority of the population.

While the Shah's regime was hated from the very beginning, it took a while (especially in light of eight years of war with Iraq, and the use
of the national-chauvinist rhetoric against the Arabs) for the people to realize that the Islamic regime has been the greatest impediment
for progressive social change. In Iran at the moment 89% of the population are in the opposition. The survival of the remaining 11% is
completely dependent on the regime. In other words, they are in one way or another receiving their salary from the regime.

The European imperialists are now the predominant presence in Tehran. And that of course happened since the taking over of the U.S. embassy
by the Islamic students, which resulted in the breaking off of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Iran. Most of the European capital
investment is either in the oil/petrochemical or mining industries, but also in the auto industry, electronics, etc. However, because of the
infamous "axis of evil" role that the Iranian regime has been playing in the region (supporting fundamentalist Islamic movements,
particularly in Lebanon, and now Iraq) it has forced them to move toward semi-self sufficiency in the making of the light military
armaments. The country's connection with the Pakistani nuclear program, as well as other ambitious plans has made a headache for the
hegemonic reach of U.S. imperialism in the most volatile region of the world. The Islamic Republic had been taking advantage of the internal
rivalry between the imperialist powers up until now. They have good relations with Cuba, which is helping them in the medical field in
exchange for oil. They also have invited Chinese capital and expertise in the development of the transportation infrastructure.

So as you can see there is quite a difference between the role of the capital in the two periods. Nevertheless, 85% of the economy is still
in the hands of the State. Private investment is small (only some in commerce, and the importation of goods in the light industry and
service sectors).

On the last part of the question I should say that because of the change in the historical period (i.e. non-existence of mass movements
during the Shah's time to the rise of the consciousness and the involvement of millions of people in all areas of socio-political activity),
there has definitely been a change in the political, as well as social and cultural, struggle. The participation of the masses, especially
women and youth, has been enormous.

NEA: Over the last few years we have seen an incredible resurgence of the Iranian student movement. The student movement has always played
an important role in Iranian revolutionary history. What are your thoughts on the movement and its role in the Iranian struggle?

PP: Well yes, since its inception the student movement has been quite active. As I have already said, most of the revolutionary cadres from
the 1950s through the 1970's had risen from this very movement. However after the war with Iraq the Islamic regime tried to silence the role
of the student movement with a so called "Cultural Revolution" (i.e. closing the universities for 2-3 years in order to clean up the student
assemblies from the radical elements, and by admitting the youth from the families of the "martyrs" of the war without the entrance exam,
thereby "Islamisizing" the very core of the defeated movement).

It worked for a short while, but through a drop in the quality of the curriculums, and, consequently, the lowering standard of the graduate
body, the dialectical reemergence of discontent caused the student movement to again gain momentum. After Khatami came to power in the late
'90s, the student movement started to rejuvenate itself. However, liberalism has taken over the radical ideas of the previous decades.
Nevertheless, because Khatami has not fulfilled his promises the very same liberal body of student associations is becoming the Achilles
heel of the regime. Here we have to recognize that because of its mostly middle class origin the student organizations are never a
homogenous movement. A big chunk will always either be for the status quo, or else have a very reformist (academic) agenda at most.

But in the final analysis the small yet very active radical elements have come to bear the theoretical as well as agitational/mobilizational
revolutionary role. And here is where we can find the next generation of the "organic intellectual" that any revolutionary movements need.
For that matter, in his last lecture at the Tehran University student meeting for the occasion of the "16 of Azar"[December 8th]day of the
student movement, Khatami, whose second term in office is coming to an end, was booed, and the students shouted "Khatami: shame on you!" and
"You are a traitor!". We should hope that in this round of deep socio-economic crisis and illegitimacy of the whole political establishment
the student movement plays its historic role once again.


Woman in the Iranian Revolution of 1979.
NEA: And the current situation within the Iranian women's movement?

PP: There is quite a big gap between the student and the women's movement in Iran. Gender equality, and subsequently women's issues, as we
all know, is a relatively new phenomena on a world scale, and especially in the so-called "third world" countries. However, Khomeni's
Islamic regime has dealt a huge setback for certain social issues (i.e. the loss of abortion rights; the inequality of laws of divorce and
child custody; forced Islamic attire). But also in this area, after the war (and because of it) the lack of a qualified workforce ended up
to be in the favor of women. They forcefully gained quite a lot of space in civil society. They have waged courageous battles and have won
quite a bit. They are now over 60% of university student enrollment. In all areas (science, humanity, art, etc.) their participation is
increasing year by year.

Under the fascist regime of the Islamic Republic, Shirin Ebadi, the first Iranian woman lawyer and human rights activist became the first
"Muslim woman" to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Her winning of this award, even though politically motivated, put the struggle of the Iranian
women (as well as other democratic rights) in the international spot light. It also has pressured the Islamic regime, and will inevitably
help the cause of women's struggles for future generations to come.

I am quite optimistic that the Iranian women (like any other country) will play a large part (if not the core) of any movement for radical
social change. After all, aren't they (well, not all of them) the ones who give birth to the future revolutionary generations? And aren't
they, alongside the anti-patriarchal male activist, who will permanently (re)educate the cause for gender equality? Of course, in addition
to the women's movement, we should not forget to mention the gay and lesbian movement - which is quite in its infancy in the Iranian society.

NEA: Most of the official labor organizations in Iran are State organs. Recently we have witnessed certain sectors of the Iranian
proletariat bypass these mediators in favor of acting autonomously. Does this represent a further radicalization of the Iranian working class?

PP: Not necessarily so. As far as I know, on the surface it looks like more radicalization of a certain sector of the proletariat. We can
observe daily manifestations of their discontent on a national level: strikes, sit-ins, work stoppages, etc. But so long as the workers do
not have the freedom to form their own organizations independent of the State, and subsequently, so long as the "yellow
syndicates"[pro-capitalist unions]are predominant, we cannot talk of a successful "bypassing" of these mediators as such.

However, in the current fascistic atmosphere, it is definitely a progressive move forward that cannot be ignored. I hope that more workers
join in, especially in the oil sector, so the pressure against the State machinery would facilitate the opening of a space for the
advancement of the struggle of the whole society. That is still to be seen.

NEA: Apart from the anti-imperialist language of the Islamic Republic, there continues to be heavy investment in Iran by foreign powers,
most significantly the European Union. Could you speak a bit on imperialism's role in the oppression and exploitation of the Iranian people?

PP: You're right. As I mentioned above there has been an increase in the European investment capital in Iran. The Iranian State has made
sure that labor laws continue to be in favor of the imperialist investors (i.e. against the workers in general, in the oil, petro-chemical,
and mining sectors in particular). Long hours of work and no attention paid to any of the workers' grievances whatsoever of course benefits
the continuing cycle of foreign capital. On the other hand the militarization of civil society is another indirect favor to the domination
of the imperialist powers.

NEA: The Bush administration has been paying lip-service to the resistance inside Iran, particularly the student movement. This serves as a
dilemma for some of us outside Iran. We want to support the Iranian people's struggle against authoritarianism and capitalism, but we don't
want to support imperialism's agenda, particularly when we know it will never let developments take a proletarian course. On the other hand,
we want to support the fight against imperialism, but don't want to make the mistake of the many on the Left in the past of supporting
lesser authoritarian capitalist states against greater ones. Could you speak a bit about this and what position you feel we here can take to
show solidarity without supporting the Islamic republic or playing into imperialism's hand?

PP: Exactly. You do not want to fall into the trap of imperialist rhetoric. We know for a fact that the imperialists and local bourgeoisie
never want liberty and freedom for the oppressed masses, nevermind any sort of radical proletarian agenda.

Specifically in the case of Iran, the clear example was during Doctor Mosadeqh's "national bourgeois" government, when there was freedom for
political activity. Nevertheless the U.S. (in alliance with the British) preferred an inexperienced monarch who could be manipulated, and
later be an excellent puppet like the Shah. So they did away with democracy, and re-installed a fascist dictatorship. That has been the
imperialist policy all over the world for over half a century.

Of course times have changed and the imperialists don't mind having regimes that play the game of elections every four years. That way
people can be fooled and capital can become the only cultural "value". And that's where Bush's phony support comes from. But Iran (and most
of the Middle East, for now) is not the place to play that game. Because it is a highly important geo-political region (having 70% of the
world's oil reserves), the U.S hegemonic power does not want regimes that are not 100% in tune with their political and economic agenda. No
wonder the Saudi's primitive monarchism is their favorite regime - subservient, and loyal to the end.

So there is no dilemma for leftists in the west to support all democratic aspirations by the masses in Iran. Anarchist-communists (and the
Left in general) must stand with the Iranian people. But be sure that you are not supporting any imperialist agenda, and that you are firmly
behind a radical proletarian agenda. That is enough to scare not only the imperialists, but also their capitalist/authoritarian allies
(including the liberals) in Iran to their bones!

NEA: Maybe we should end with a question about the Nakhdar project. Could you talk about magazine, and how it first started? Also, how
successful have you been in reaching other Iranians (both inside Iran, and abroad) with anarchist ideas? Is there any way the broader
anarchist community could assist you in your efforts?

PP: In the early 1990s, I joined a few Iranian comrades who were publishing a libertarian-Marxist journal called Ghiam["Insurrection"]in
Farsi. It was a collaborative project between a handful of comrades from various tendencies within the Marxist tradition from both Europe
and the United States. My collaboration lasted two years since the journal ceased publication. It died because each member was in personal,
as well as ideological, crisis. In my case it was the beginning of the end of my Leninist tendencies.

A few years ago I got in touch with some of these old comrades (who were by then in different parts of the world) to initiate a new era of
ideological and political activities. I had already started the translation of a few basic anarchist theoretical texts. Subsequently I
planted the idea of Nakhdar["Neither God, Nor state, Nor bosses"]as an independent anarcho-communist publication for the "exiled" community
of radical Iranian activists.

At first, like any new project, the magazine was received with jubilation. A few comrades promised their contributions but were waiting for
the pilot issue. It was to be a theoretical as well as agitational publication that could be published twice a year. However with the lack
of commitment from most of these comrades it has ended up being a yearly. Nevertheless the publication of Nakhdar has been received
positively. Mostly from outside of Iran, however there has been some contact from inside Iran as well. Because of the lack of funding
Nakhdar now is being sent to only fifteen different Iranian publications in the United States and Europe, as well as roughly fifty
individuals internationally. It is also being smuggled into Iran and has a growing readership there.

It's early to say much about the short term success of anarchist ideas within the Iranian Left. We are behind, for example, Turkey in our
region of the world. Even though by talking to various comrades and friends on the both side of the world I'm assured of the growth of the
anarchism in the long term. The young population of Iran[65% of the population is currently between 18-25], who are politically much more
independent thinkers than before, is one of the elements of the future success of this ideology. Of course the dead-end politics of
traditional Left (authoritarian/hierarchical) is the main reason to be quite hopeful. As far as the help of the broader anarchist community,
I could say either send money (no matter how little) or independently redistribute (photocopy) Nakhdar as widely as you can within the
Iranian community in your area. There are Iranian-American youth who are thirsty for anarchist ideas. The road ahead is a long one but the
first step has been taken.

https://blackrosefed.org/interview-with-an-iranian-anarchist-2005/


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