Clinton: Time for Iran to 'open up,' follow Egypt

[oberliner]

Source: AFP

WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hailed the "courage" and "aspirations" of anti-government protests in Iran on Monday, and pressed Tehran to follow Egypt's example and "open up" its political system.

"We wish the opposition and the brave people in the streets across cities in Iran the same opportunity that they saw their Egyptian counterparts seize in the last week," Clinton told reporters during a visit to the US Congress.

"We support the universal rights of the Iranian people. They deserve to have the same rights" as those demanded by protesters to helped oust Egypt's Hosni Mubarak "and that are part of their own birthright," she said.

She spoke after Iranian riot police fired tear gas and paintballs at protesters staging anti-government demonstrations in Tehran under the pretext of rallies supporting Arab uprisings, websites and witnesses said.

Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jHUsn2tSlRVh3KzOeppZvAmOT8EQ?docId=CNG.ebeff272fc0b04d38c80f83bba916cbc.6f1

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This could really be happening!

[Uncle Joe]

1. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, oberliner.

[dipsydoodle]

2. Can't she keep her nose out of anything ?

She is making a bad situation worse apart from which did she have permission to speak this time ?

[oberliner]

5. How is she making things worse?

Not sure I get your POV here. Can you elaborate?

[dipsydoodle]

7. She is being selective again.

Happy to interfere in Iran's politics at the exclusion of equally bad situations elsewhere where US interests need protection. Georgia and Azerbaijan are but two such countries.

[oberliner]

10. Interfere in Iran's politics?

Iran's politics? Seriously?

[Name removed]

8. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[leveymg]

3. Half the states in the region are despotic kingdoms or police states, the others are theocracies.

They all deserve to have the same rights, Hillary. Not just the "Axis of Evil" countries.

Her idealism is selective and thus highly unpersuasive.

[dipsydoodle]

4. Highly selective

especially given Azerbaijan's record of elections.

[DURHAM D]

9. Oh right - she should have made a statement about the massive protest marches

that occurred in Azerbaijan today.

Oh wait - that isn't happening.

[TomClash]

6. Great

A military dictatorship orchestrated by Israel.

[Matilda]

11. A history lesson for Ms Clinton...

Many years ago, back in the 1950s, Iran did have a democratically elected prime minister, who had a genuine commitment to reform. His name was Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh. He knew that Iran had first to be financially independent in order to be truly free, so he tried to renegotiate the contracts with big oil companies. When they refused to discuss the matter, he announced that he would nationalise the oil industry.

That, of course, was his undoing. Great Britain, with the aid of CIA agents, undermined him, and helped the hated Shah back to power, even though Mossadegh had balanced the budget and created a trade surplus. Those things couldn't make up for going against the interests of the big powers.

Mossadegh was beaten, imprisoned and after a show trial, was shot by a firing squad.

That's what happens to the good guys.

A link to his biography:


http://www.mohammadmossadegh.com/biography/

[oberliner]

12. That was over fifty years ago

All the more reason to be on the right side of history this time around.

[Matilda]

14. Given the hysterical reaction to Hugo Chavez' nationalisation

of the Venezuelan oil industry, do you really think anything would be done differently now?

[jkappy]

13. The Egyption Uprising Was Anything But US Sponsored So

bears no resemblance at all to Iran's own democratic movement, which is fully supported and Fostered openly and clandestinely by the US and Israel.

But you knew this kind of pressure was coming---we did not stand in the way of the Egyptian people, so the first place we bring our brand new spanking attitude is to guess where---Iran, that's where we bring our newly discover Fervor for Democracy...

[Tx4obama]

15. IRAN: here's a link with live blog updates, photos, and tons of video

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x416104