Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – December 19, 1995

Last night the children were gathered. Mr. Aminian—my brother-in-law, who has a carpet shop in Belgium—was here. He assessed the new policy of the currency commitment and the stabilization of the exchange rate as beneficial for Iranian carpets. He does not accept the rumor that carpets have become cheaper in Iran. He said prices are the same as before; inside the country there is more carpet, but abroad the price of Iranian carpets has risen by 20 to 30 percent, and the merchants have sold their warehouses at a good profit. Some inside the country are spreading misleading propaganda.

Early in the morning, Mr. [Abdol-Hossein] Vahaji, [Director-General of Customs], telephoned about the export of goods through the free zones and also reported that this month too the export of carpets is in good shape. With the members of the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution, I went to meet Ayatollah Khamenei. In the official talks, the discussion revolved around successes and positive effects. But in the private talks, which were to remain confidential, Ayatollah Khamenei complained that the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution had not taken serious action in the matters of combating cultural invasion, the enemies' opposition to the Guardianship of the Jurist, and the mischief of the intellectuals, and while offering exaggerated praise, he asked specific members to be more active; especially since the council is appointed by the Leadership and belongs to this domain. I did not see fit to debate this matter, and they said they would speak with me privately about it later. We also took a group photograph.

I returned to my office. The Brazilian ambassador had come to say goodbye; because of a promotion, he is leaving earlier than scheduled. He is satisfied with the friendly atmosphere of Iran and the hospitality of the people and is hopeful about the development of relations.

The members of the Central Council of Lebanon's Hezbollah came. Mr. Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah, while reporting on the situation and the work, gave good analyses of the state of Lebanon's peace issues and the positions of Syria, Iraq, Hamas, Palestinian Jihad, and Lebanon. They are satisfied with the progress of the resistance's work and with bringing Israel to exasperation in southern Lebanon. I too raised questions about the region's issues and the possibilities regarding the success of the peace plan and the acceptance of the evacuation of the Golan, and in that case, Syria's joining and Hezbollah's problems, so that they act vigilantly in their plans.

My brother Mohammad came. For the assistance to Kurdistan after the trip, he brought the proposals; it is more than one billion and two hundred million tomans. He spoke of the agreement with the Central Bank and the Minister of Industries regarding the foreign-currency share.

Mehdi came and said that Mr. Fallahian's view is that, instead of inviting the Iraqi Minister of Intelligence, based on the previous arrangement during his presence in Iran, he should be invited to Iraq on his behalf; I agreed. It was arranged that Libya would be informed.

In the afternoon, for the opening ceremony of the twelfth round of the International Quran Memorization, Recitation, and Interpretation Competition, I went to the Hosseiniyeh Ershad; the Quran recitation and tawashih, the welcome of [Mr. Seyyed Mehdi] Imam-Jamarani, [Head of the Endowments and Charity Affairs Organization], and my detailed speech, and the awarding of prizes to several people, including a seven-year-old girl named Ruqayyeh Mohammadi who has memorized the entire Quran and did well in the examination; her father is a mechanic. At sunset I came home.