Ahmad Ahmad Memoirs (17)

Edited by Mohsen Kazemi

Ahmad Ahmad Memoirs (17)
Edited by Mohsen Kazemi
Soureh Mehr Publishing Company
(Original Text in Persian, 2000)
Translated by Mohammad Karimi

Temporary Custody of the Police

The Police Custody had a round courtyard and a three-storey building around that yard. They had put a group in each cell, but the ones who had resisted, including me, had put in solitary confinement. My cell had a window opening to the courtyard. The guards were so rude and bad-tempered. They behave with us as we were wild animals. For example when they wanted to give our food, first they would look inside the cell and wait until the prisoner would go far from the door and then he would open the door slowly and put this of food behind the door and close it fast.
The trousers that I had were not easy to wear. One day, the guard that my brother had allured came to me. When he became sure that I was Ahmad Ahmad asked what I needed. I said: “I need pajamas, but I do not have the money.” He said that he would afford it. The next day he came and brought me a pair of pajamas and threw it inside my cell and went so fast.
The foods were awful. Almost every day they would give us soups and on Fridays bouillon. At the beginning I could not eat soup. One day that hunger was killing me, I started to eat that soup unwillingly. After few spoons suddenly I saw a black round shape that sank in the bowl when I moved the spoon. I moved the spoon again and I spotted some white downs on that black thing. When I looked more carefully I found out that it was a kind of beetle that was called “Rozeh-khan”. It was smashed in that soup. I was vomiting.
Some days later, they took me to a bigger room along with nine other people. I knew none of them, but most of them looked young people with Islamic appearances. After few days they let us to have meetings with our families and friends. The first person who came to visit me was a colleague of mine. He told me that Haq-shenas School had given my file to the police intelligence. He also said the teacher lady was so impatience and crying. I said: “Tell her not to wait for me. I will be in prison for a long time. It is better for her to marry somebody else.” After that visit the food quality got better. The conditions also got better and they let us to have some morning joggings.
A few days passed like this and by the dialogues we had it was clear that all of our ten people were INP members but in different branches. Because of the secrecy that all of us was used to we would not talk so much in this regard. When we understood who we were a good friendship was created among us. Day by day the conditions got better. The guards stopped that kind of insulting behavior and even opened the cell doors for us. Thus we could go to each other’s rooms.
When INP members knew each other in the police custody, we say out prayers together. When we got more familiar with each other, some questions came to our minds. For example, why we were there? And if we were there what was our task? What we had to do? Was everything over by being imprisoned? What was INP mistake? All these questions forced us thinking. We concluded first of all we had to make ourselves before thinking of making the society. We found the prison a good fortune for self making. Our friends started the job by narrating their memories and how INP was discovered. Then we also discussed INP mistakes and weaknesses.
In this regard, the clergy Mohammad Javad Hojjati Kermani began teaching us Koran interpretation. We took part in those classed enthusiastically. Mr. Abbas Agha Zamani (Abu Sharif) had gathered all the jihad verses and would give them to us and we would memorize and learn them in possible times.
The job that Mohammad Javad Hojjati Kermani(1) did in the police custody and later is really appraisable. His attempts and proselytizing had a big effect on us to be more familiar with Islamic thoughts and could help us mentally to be more persistent in our fight against the regime.
During those days we had no loss of time and we had filled our time with different programs such as sport, reading Koran, ideological or moral discussions, narrating memories and… In this atmosphere INP members could find a well understanding of each other. This understanding became the bases for future revolutionary moves outside prison.
We passed three months in the police custody and then for passing trial in the preliminary and revisionary courts, they sent us to Jamshidiyeh Prison (garrison).

1- The clergy Mohammad Javad Hojjati Kermani, son of Abdulhussain, was born in a clerical family in Kerman, south-east Iran. He began learning Islamic teachings and in young ages became a clergy. From early teen ages he was sensitive to the activities of Pahlavi regime. In 1951 he went to Qum and began studying there in grand ayatollahs’ classes. In early 1960s he began organizing the youth in Kerman to teach them Islamic thoughts during preaching sessions and by publishing useful books and pamphlets. He had debates with the bishop in Kerman and later wrote a book titled: “The Messiah Face”. When Mohammad Bukharai assassinated Hassan Ali Mansour in February of 1965, he made a speech in Jame’ Mosque in Tehran and then was arrested. When freed he joined INP in 1965 and when it was discovered he was arrested again along with other 55 members. After the trails in the preliminary and revisionary courts he was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. The defense speech of Mr. Hojjati Kermani in Pahlavi courts is a golden page in Islamic Revolution history.