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Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, August 2008, pages 51-52 Human Rights “U.S. and Iran: It’s Time to Talk!”
USING “RED HOTLINE phones,” individuals in Washington, DC had the opportunity to talk with individuals in Iran on June 10. The Capitol Hill event was made possible by the Campaign for a New American Policy on Iran, Enough Fear, various partner organizations, conscientious citizens, Iraq veterans, as well as current and former congressional members. A simultaneous nationwide “Call-in to Congress for Diplomacy with Iran” campaign included Americans from around the country. A round of speakers took turns at the podium as volunteer Farsi translators manned three red phones in the background, facilitating conversation between Americans and Iranians on the other ends of direct lines. Among the noteworthy remarks, Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) stated that “our message today is simple: it’s time to talk to Iran, in fact, it’s past time.” She recently introduced H.R. 5056, the Iran Diplomatic Accountability Act of 2008, the congresswoman explained, to foster “direct, comprehensive, unconditional, bilateral talks with Iran.” The resolution directs the president to appoint a liaison who is well-versed in Iranian issues and international negotiation, respected by both countries, and who would report to Congress regularly. Lee’s co-chair of Congress’ Progressive Caucus, Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), emphasized that “an attack against Iran would have devastating consequences for our nation, the region, and for the world.” Congresswoman Woolsey warned that the consequences would include retaliation against U.S. troops and allies in the region, spiking oil prices, and threats to the U.S. domestic economy, and that an attack would poorly serve American strategic interests in the Middle East. Asserting that “Congress is not going to stand aside while [President Bush]…expands the occupation of Iraq into Iran,” Woolsey stressed that it is time for “vigorous diplomacy” between the two countries. Former Rep. Bob Barr (R-GA), the Libertarian Party’s presidential nominee, declared that there has been “far too much saber-rattling and far too little intelligent negotiation and discussion over the past several months.” A graduate of an international high school in Tehran, Barr asserted that instead of a continuing “tragic series of lost opportunities,” the U.S. should be “building what all rationality tells us should be a very productive, strong, continuing, long-term, political and economic relationship with the people and the government of Iran” due to its strategic position and natural resources. Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) argued that U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East has been “a disaster,” pointing out that it’s impossible to divorce U.S. economic problems from its foreign policy. Despite Washington’s “bad-mouthing,” Paul said, Iran is not a demonstrably imminent threat to the U.S. Moreover, he stated, “sanctions and embargoes are initial acts of [unwarranted] war.” Countless speakers agreed that Americans have learned from Iraq that war is not a simple solution. Instead the U.S. should use diplomacy with Iran—a country that, historically, has not been the aggressor during conflicts. Nor are Iranians anti-American. Geoff Millard, president of the DC Chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War, noted that “the top advisers in the State Department need to be doing what we’re doing” and start talking to Iranians. Stated one person who used the red phone to Iran: “I’m so glad that information is flowing between our two nations so that we can get to know each other a bit better.” Despite the tensions, another participant said, it’s “not really about politics when you pick up the phone to just talk.” Conversation topics ranged from the weather to job occupations and the minutia of daily life to politics and religion. Many of the Iranians on the line were curious about how the Americans were going to vote in the upcoming presidential elections. Some conversationalists even got to exchange e-mails with MarYam, Nima and Morteza, the volunteers speaking in Iran, demonstrating that reaching out truly can lead to establishing relationships over what too often has been presented as an impossible divide. —Nina Hamedani |
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