In Chase and Escape (5)

Rereading the book "Consistent with Freedom", the Memories of Seyyed Mohammad Mehdi Jafari in five episodes

Taleghani's Advice to the Old Mortician
Episode V: The Revolution

Raha Amini: Seyyed Mohammad Mehdi Jafari was on the welcoming committee of Imam Khomeini and became a member of the Propagation Committee on radio and television. He was the one who read Imam's message about the reopening of schools on the radio because the news anchor had said an abundance of Arabic term were used in the message which they had no idea about! Some time during April 1979, Jafari quitted his job in IRIB to return to the Language Academy and deliver lectures in The University of Tehran. He also kept his work in Ayatollah Taleghani's office. One of the issues discussed in depth in Jafari's memoirs is the story of the 65-page critique by some members of the Freedom Movement concerning the interim government's function back in the late 1979 spring and the resignation of 14 movement members from the party in the December that year. Written by Ezatollah Sahabi, the manifesto deals with topics like religious tyranny, the close relationship between traditional clergy, on the one hand, and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps and the Islamic Revolution Mujahedin Organization, on the other hand, setting honest Marxists as a part of the revolution's inner forces, the interim government's actions which were alien to the revolution, censuring the non-nationalization of large institutions and banks, government's performance in the Kurdistan issue, etc. In his interview with Ghasem Yahusseini (the book's author), Jafari expounded on such criticisms saying that "In the beginning, 13 of us who had tendered their resignations intended to form up a newfangled body, however, the initiative never materialized due to lack of a reasonable sense of harmony in the group, which soon fell apart. In general terms, our resignation had nothing for us nor the society, but we had no other choices." The resignation was signed by 13 members; no. 14 was Mohammad Ali Rajaei whom they failed to find to receive his signature. Rajaei was inclined towards the Islamic Revolution party, but, as Jafari says, had personal devotion towards Bazargan. "Do you here them cry Death to Bazargan? Be wary not to do anything that I, Heaven forbid, hear them shout Death to Rajaei," Jafari once told Rajaei who in response said "You know that I have a wholehearted devotion towards Bazargan and extremely loathe such cries and slogans; I hope my actions will not lead me there." One of Jafari's recollections of the "hot revolution days" is about Dr. Yadollah Sahabi's tears before Imam Khomeini on Hoveyda's execution. "Dr. Sahabi met with Imam Khomeini to prevent Hoveida's execution. 'No matter how you sentence him,' Sahabi said, 'but please do not kill this guy so we can get information from him.' 'I will not step in,' said Imam. 'I never wanted you to interfere,' said Sahabi, 'just do not let them kill him so his expertise does not go away.' I even heard about Sahabi's tears before Imam. Some may have thought that Sahabi's cries were for Hoveyda, but the fact of the matter is that he cried for the wellbeing of the revolution and the loss of an invaluable source of data."

Jafari's memory of his last meeting with Ayatollah Taleghani on September 7, 1979 when he led the Friday prayer in Tehran's cemetery is also interesting: When after the prayers Taleghani inaugurated the cemetery's mortuary he told the old mortician "Remember to wash me well when I come under your hands, old man!" "God forbid, sir," said the old mortician. Three days later, Taleghani died.

Translated by: Abbas Hajihashemi

Source: Mehrnameh Monthly, No. 5