“Hemayat, hemayat, bazaari
ba gheirat!” (Supporting you, supporting you, courageous bazaaris!)
“Marg bar in dolat-e
mardam-farib!” (Death to this hypocrite government)
“Sorieh ra raha kon, fekri
be hal-e ma kon” (Leave Syria alone, do something for us)
31 comments:
I don't understand. Why are Iran's police forces able to stifle such protests so easily, but they can't perform simply taxation/expropriation to stifle the value of foreign currencies?!
Something tells me the government is making money off the appreciation.
Apparently, based on other websites, these riots were caused by attempted arrests of bazaaris and money-changers over black market currency exchanges.
If that's what is going on then it is wise of the Iranian government. If there are enough arrests of people speculating on dollars, soon very few will buy them on the black market and the exchange rates will be only a function of imports and exports.
I am not displeased to see sarafis and bazaaris, who make the most money for the least work of any Iranians, put in jail!
I would like to ask Dissident/Daruish,are these not the majority of the Iranian working class people of south Tehran who are sick and tired of this theocracy?
"“Hemayat, hemayat, bazaari ba gheirat!”
LOL! The day Iranians are with the rich opportunist bazaaris is the day you see a snowball in hell.
Interesting development with this particular slice of Tehran's social strata protesting this time: the Bazaris, rather than radicalized students.
However the key strata-- the more numerous lower strata-- which is pious, has yet to make a significant appearance. As long as Iran maintains the loyalty (or passivity) of this class, it's my opinion that the chances of regime change through coervive sanctioning remain low.
Exactly Mark. The sanctions have destroyed the most hated of all Iranian groups, the bazaaris!
I agree with Mark's analysis. The protest is probably orchestrated by Teharn's minority middle class. It is quite possible that the key strata may decide to support this group with Khamaniei taking a neutral stand using Ahmadinejad as a scapegoat.
The protest is a direct result of frustration. Frustration of high inflation, unstable currency, and tight markets. Many are waking up losing so much in just a few days, then watching the President give no reasons for hope in three hour live press conference and finding the government spending $Billions to help Asad's regime instead of Rial and on top arresting currency traders as culprits... Well everyone including conservative merchant class have limited patience.
perhaps because the bazaris are more aware of how serious is the damage they are protesting ahead of the people who are going to be driven further down into poverty, and perhaps the regime will be successful in demonizing the "money changers" for the damage that the regime brought on.......
but what then?
as the damage deepens and becomes too obvious to escape from creating a point of national focus, will the people buy into the story that it's all the doing of people who hate iran and not the fault of the theocracy?
To those people who claim this a protest that supports Khamenei against Ahmadinejad are deluded.These people chanted their support for the Syrian people and against the regimes policy concerning Syria and the whole state of the economy.
What happened today in Tehran had all the markings of spontaneous protests by people fed up with a plummeting currency and skyrocketing prices. Imagine that someone’s rial-denominated wealth is cut by a third in a week, with no light at the end of the tunnel. You might argue that his/her wealth remains the same in rial. But the fact is the cost of living in Iran is practically pegged to the dollar, when rial loses its value against dollar, the prices of imported goods that are basically purchased in dollar goes up, and soon all the prices across the board go up, affecting the bazaaris as well as the middle and working class people.
It’s been nearly six months that the warning signs of a looming currency-induced crisis have been there in the open for the government to notice. We have followed the currency situation in the blog closely, for the obvious reason that a plummeting rial will have enormous impact on the society, not just economic but also political and especially social.
The government kept blaming the foreigners and the situation kept getting worse. Yes, the sanctions have caused the oil revenues to be cut in half and Iran’s banking sector to be cut off from global financial system, as intended. But these sanctions are the direct result of the increasing isolation of the country and the government does not want to, or cannot, accept the fact that unless it comes to terms with the West on some acceptable nuclear policy the situation will get worse by the day.
"Imagine that someone’s rial-denominated wealth is cut by a third in a week, with no light at the end of the tunnel"
Mr. Uskowi, it seems apparent that you are the relative of wealthy bazaaris and sarafis.
However, your relatives do not represent the majority of Iranians. In fact, those two professions are despised by most Iranians.
"But the fact is the cost of living in Iran is practically pegged to the dollar"
That's absolutely not true. The dollar has quadrupled since the beginning of the year. Few other things have.
Anon 3:55 PM,
I do not have a single wealthy or not-so-wealthy bazaari relative!
Anon 3:56,
The dollar has gone from 20,000 rials in January to its current arte of 35,500. A huge rise, but not quadrupled. The prices have been rising in excess of 30 percent, and you will see even steeper price rises in the next few months because of the plummeting rial.
Anon 3:56 PM
No,you and your relatives represent the majority of Iranians,LOL!
street currency dealer are like
street drug dealer
both must be arrested and keep away from the street
I think the Revolutionary Guard is heavily involved in the sarafi / money exchange / havaleh business wihch makes it hard to arrest them.
In the past, Bazaris did not want to pay taxes imposed by the government and closed their stores in a protest, arguing that the government has no business with them.
They (bazaris) had big profits and at that time they did not want to share their wealth with society; many of them made profits on expensive merchandise and jewelries.
Today the same bazaris- hypocrytes blame the government, that because government's wrong policies, they cannot do a business !!!
And there are agents on hand to make videos and transfer them to "freedom lovers" in the West.
Dissident
Anon 1:53PM
I have alrady posted my comment related to The Bazaris.
They did not want to pay taxes in the past and share their wealth with the society..
To respond to another part of your question, I would tell you that the laziest, uneducated and petty criminals strive usually in bigger cities and in many cases; in the world, they populate southern part of cities...
In Iran, those who wish to vandalize public property, common criminals and western paid agents supported by hypocrites. will initiate any disturbances...
Some of the commenters obviously did not see the fact that most of the protesters were not merchants but rather other folks close by the Bazar who joined the protest and made it grow to several thousands before the riot police showed up. It shows that people on the streets are tired, frustrated and does not take much for them to start protesting or rioting.
Mr. N. Uskowi 3:45PM
Iran cannot come to terms with the West, because one and sane enough, cannot come to terms with blackmailers and hipocrytes..
Iran; however,already submitted proposal to suspend the 20% enriched uranium in exchange for lifting sanctions and time will show the true intention of the western adversaries.
Like in the past, the West is using pretext to undermine and change systems in the world.
North Korea's deal has shown what one can expect from western promises. After the NK suspended and frozen activities on its reactors; after six years (from the 1994 Agreed Framework) sanctions were not lifted by the US nor full diplomatic relation established. Moreover, construction of the first of two light water reactors began in August 2002 and was halted after couple months.
Even remaining agreements were not honored, because the US did not provide sufficient funding and some of agreed oil supplies were delivered late.
Therefore, any honest person can assume that western policies are pretexts to achieve other goals.
In that situation Iran has to be very carefull and assume that it is the West which should come to terms with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
There still has been a small hope that Obama will abandon dogmatic policies of conservatives in his second and final term.
The current economical turmoil was anticipated and engineered by the West and will be quashed by the responsible and patriotic population of Iran.
Dissident
Anon 8:38 PM
The regime doesn't want to come to terms with the West but the people do.
And one more thing why can't the mullahs share the wealth of the country with the nation instead of fluttering it away to Syria Iraq Lebanon and gods knows where else?
The Bazaari are there to make a living from their own toil.They are not liable to share their "wealth"with the whole country except through fair taxes.
Stop defending a lost cause because the people are fed up with this regime.Start looking for employment in Mac Donald's.
"except through fair taxes."
LOL. Taxes in Iran are optional, i.e. nonexistent. Bazaaris pay no income or sales taxes.
That's why Iran's GDP numbers are like 1/10 of the US (or 1/15?) -- no one reports income.
There is a very interesting dynamic between Iran and the US.
In the US, you can't pass a penny to anyone - not as income for their work, not as money to purchase a good from them, not as a gift (gift taxes!) and not as an inheritance -- without needing to report it at the risk of very severe penalties (see e.g. Westley Snipes).
And that's just one of the reporting regimes.
The the U.S. has a very precise stranglehold on the finances of its its citizens.
On the other hand, in Iran every facet of social life (drinking, clothes, etc. etc.) is regulated. Thus Iran has a stranglehold on social interactions, but financially people are largely free (except for sanctions).
Anon 9:01PM
You support the LOST cause which qualifies you for Mac Donald's jobs, unless you are one of those paid pawns.
This pawns will wither and everyne of them will be forgotten forever.
Their money, they made like prostitutes will not preserve their "narcistic or schisophrenic beauty", during their withering and aging.
My cause is alive for the last thirty years and you waste your time in waiting for something that will not happen.
Look at Afganistan, not in a long time the Taliban will be back...
To attempt a possibility that the Islamic Republic will be defeated, one have to invade and occupy the territory.
Iran is not an unarmed entity as the Taliban is, in addition Iran has neighbours that will not let it happen (invasion and occupation)...
If Assad with a weaker army can resist for long time, it is unimaginable that Iran culdn't defend itself.
Even in a fantasy scenario, any attempt of an occupation would end in a Vietnam's way.
During my lifetime, all causes I supported have not been lost.
Even when I enjoyed and supported an event to bring the Persian Gulf islands into the Iran's jurisdiction, this cause is still alive and benefits Iranian nation.
Dissident
Anon 9:01PM
Your question "Why cann't the "mullahs" share wealth with the nation..?", can be answered that they share more than those Moguls from the KSA, US and other countries.
Try to find out, how many mansions Mr. Ahmedinejad possesses and what kind of meals were served during his children's marriage ceremonies, and compare it with Mr. Mitt Romney's (from the US) possessions and celebrations as well as his spending for the presidential election.
I will inform you that in the US 1% of populations (not mullahs), owns more than 90% of all wealth, and some of them even pay smaller percentage in taxes than other poorer groups.
I believe that those percentages and possession in Iran are closer to a common sense than in other places.
Dissident
Quote: "You support the lost cause which qualifies you for Mac Donald's jobs,unless you are one of those paid pawns."
----------------------------------
Why are you upset? Is it because you know what's coming around the corner to hit you hard?
Lets get this straight Dysentery.People whose cause is freedom are never "paid pawns".
But obviously you are one of those paid pawns.
" If Assad with a weaker army can resist for long time, it is unimaginable that Iran culdn't defend itself."
----
more loose and unformed fecal material from Dysentery.
Assad isn't defending against an army but against some small groups without discipline or heavy weaponry.
If the US or NATO send troops into Iran, there is no really effective resistance that Iran can mount except to hide, strip off their uniforms, and then fight the invaders as guerillas
Anon 2:57 PM
It is you who is cowardly hiding under the anonymous disguise, so your flawed characterization that regime will have to hide, HAVE NO CREDIIBILITY.
And there is another nonsene in your comment where you state that Assad is defending against some small groups, which to my knowledge are the NATO and other members with tons of money , spies and mercenaries.
Since you use the word "fecal" you should apply your skills at restrooms !!!
"It is you who is cowardly under the Anonymous disguise,...etc etc etc"
I'm not Anon 2:57 PM. But I like to know why if you're such a brave person,you have disguised yourself as an anonymous?
Also does this mean that you have no credibility what so ever because of your hypocrisy?
I wouldn't dismiss the influence of the bazaar in Iran. Lets not forget who chartered and paid for the the air France Boeing 747 plane that brought Khomeini back from France, and who paid for the posters and cassettes etc.
The bazaar financed the 1979 revolution, and they can play a similar role today. In fact the bazaar withdrawing support from the regime might be enough by itself to change the dynamics.
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