Iranian MPs Can Engage in Physical Pranks

Rooz Online

As Iran’s parliament, the Majlis, was busy passing legislature that would further limit the flow of information in the country two days ago, hardline representative Mehdi Kootchakzadeh, who has turned into a hot spot for journalists because of his repeated incidents of fist fights or verbal attacks, once again snubbed and insulted Iran’s media community by calling it “corrupt,” prompting the reaction of the country’s media and even the state-run and pro-regime publications and sites.

These remarks came as the Majlis was discussing the passage of a bill that limits photo journalists’ presence at the Majlis to the first hour of the parliament’s sessions. The restriction is a response to published photographs and even video clips that show MPs sleeping, displaying devil horns behind another PM’s head, yawning, and even engaging in “physical pranks.”

Iran’s domestic media including the ILNA labor news agency reported Kootchakzadeh’s insult in these words: “During yesterday’s session of the Majlis, Mehdi Kootchakzadeh the PM from Tehran insulted journalists who were at the session by calling them corrupt and trash writers.”

“While it is true that all those who are here are called journalists, but like all other sections of society, they too have corrupt ones and trash writers among themselves who write only half of what we say,” he said. His remarks were lauded by some other MPs who chanted, “Excellent, excellent.”

According of Fars news agency, Mohammad Dehghan, a member of the presiding board of the Majlis tried to justify Kootchakzadeh’s remarks and minimize its impact by telling reporters that “what Kootchakzadeh said was about ‘anti-revolutionary’ reporters.” Dehghan then said that what Kootchakzadeh said was regarding foreign journalists. In reality however, all reporters present at the Majlis were from Iran’s domestic media and from state-run newspapers and publications, each of whom is screened at multiple levels before being allowed to even enter the assembly.

Kootchakzadeh, a well-0known pro-Ahmadinejad representative, is the leading figure who presented the bill to limit the presence of photo journalists at the Majlis. According to the bill, video and still photographers and photo journalists will be allowed to remain in the Majlis sessions only for the first hour. Their presence can be extended by the speaker of the parliament. Kootchakzadeh had initially recommended that photo journalists should remain in the hall only for the first 15 minutes of a session. The reasons Kootchakzadeh presented for this restriction was that photo journalists took photographs and videos of all of representatives’ actions and behavior in the Majlis building and published or posted them in their publications and sites, thus disrespecting the representatives.

Mehr news agency called the bill and the event “A bad day for journalists.” It wrote, “Kootchakzadeh is normally an angry man. He sometimes throws objects at Ali Motahari while at other times he gets angry at reporters and curses them. He first came into prominent news when he mistreated a reporter from Shargh newspaper during the seventh Majlis. He physically attacked the Shargh reporter. In another incident he got physical with another reporter at the Majlis cafeteria. But his comments yesterday were rather unprecedented. But the publication of photographs showing some Majlis representatives sleeping or engaging in non-legislative activities has prompted 162 representatives to call for a law to amend the house rules government photo journalists’ presence in the Majlis.”

Asre Iran website also criticized Kootchakzadeh. “Kootchakzadeh’s creaming, yelling, threats etc have been repeatedly published and posted on websites prompting a group of MPs to draft a bill to limit the presence of photo journalists in the Majlis sessions.” “The bill was passed in a committee, to the surprise of many as if this was the most important issue before the country,” it wrote.

Habibollah Salahshoor, an associate of Kootchakzadeh had recently called all those involved in cinema as corrupt and worthless.

But even after Iran’s pro-state media complained and reacted to Kootchakzadeh’s remarks, instead of apologizing, he reiterated what he had said in subsequent contacts with the media. According to Tabnak website, Kootchakzadeh told news agencies after the Majlis session, “Yes! Some journalists are trash writers. I am not standing here to apologize but to enlighten! Neither you need me nor do I need you!” He then read out a pre-written statement in which he mentioned the recent detention of a number of journalists by Iran’s security forces to support his view that some reporters were corrupt. He also said that corrupt individuals existed in all sections of society, even among the clergy.