Blocking of accounts of prominent figures who were collecting donations for earthquake victims
On the eve of the anniversary of the Kermanshah earthquake, the Iranian government's treatment of prominent figures who tried to help earthquake victims has become a new story. The Iranian judiciary has summoned some of these individuals and even frozen their bank accounts.
The 7.3-magnitude earthquake in western Iran in November 2017, in addition to the devastation and deaths of more than 500 people, also revealed another picture of the people's distrust of the Iranian government, even in times of crisis. The people's distrust of government relief agencies went to the point where they preferred to deposit money into the personal accounts of prominent individuals rather than any government accounts.
Now that a year has passed since the incident, officials, who in the eyes of the people have not played an effective role in the reconstruction of the earthquake-hit areas, are now trying to act as equal observers for the people.
The summons of Ali Daei, a prominent Iranian football figure, regarding bank accounts used to raise funds for the Kermanshah earthquake victims, once again raised the issue of legal action against prominent figures who intended to help the earthquake victims.
In recent days, Iranian police have issued summonses to prominent figures, including Ali Daei, to provide explanations about the money that has been deposited into their accounts.
These summonses brought many reactions, examples of which were the videos that Ali Daei posted on his Instagram page of the construction process and public aid to children, and wrote: "The construction of people's houses is also being carried out with more determination. If the gentlemen continue, we will achieve our goals in the earthquake-hit villages of Kermanshah before winter sets in. If there are no stone-throwing and disruptions, soon all loved ones will be able to settle in their own homes."
Sadegh Ziba Kalam, a professor of political science, was another prominent figure who announced on his Instagram page that his bank account had been blocked in connection with collecting aid for earthquake victims.
He wrote about it as follows: "Personally, I am very happy with this action by the judiciary, and I had previously said that I had vowed a sheep so that the prosecutor would close my account, but by defending the residents of Omid Village and the compatriots who have deposited money into this account, I will protest both to the esteemed presidency of the judiciary and to the Article 90 Commission of the Parliament against the judiciary."
Zibakalam also published an open letter addressed to Sadegh Larijani, the head of the Iranian judiciary, writing: "Let's say that a complaint was filed against me alleging misappropriation of collected funds. In which court would this complaint be heard and a verdict be issued condemning me and freezing my account? The result of having power and authority but not being accountable is no better than this."
People distrust the government.
Ziba Kalam had previously said in an interview with Deutsche Welle about people's distrust of the government, "From a sociological perspective, the Kermanshah earthquake showed that people's distrust of the government has deepened compared to 2013. We had seen signs of this distrust in that year, but the authorities refused to see these signs. Now people are willing to trust people like "Sadeq Ziba Kalam" and say we will put money in your personal account, but we will not give money to the Red Crescent and the Imam Khomeini Committee or the local mosque and the Friday imam."
Gholam Ali Jafarzadeh, a representative from Rasht in the Islamic Consultative Assembly, also expressed regret that after 39 years, people say they do not trust the governing institutions and want to provide assistance to the affected areas themselves.
Majid Rafizadeh, an expert on Middle East affairs, also wrote in a note in the Huffington Post: "Given the history of numerous earthquakes, including the Bam and Rudbar earthquakes, the Iranian government should have sufficient competence and experience in dealing with such natural disasters, but the Islamic Republic considers its security and survival to be a priority over the welfare of the Iranian people. The Islamic Republic's officials spend most of their time intimidating and executing people and usurping the country's wealth and giving it to the IRGC to finance its regional plans and terrorist puppet groups."
The recent behavior of the judicial system towards prominent figures has taken place in a situation where using the potential of these individuals to collect public donations with government support is not uncommon in the world, but in Iran, the public's distrust of the government on the one hand and the lack of transparency in the functioning of the judiciary on the other hand have become reasons for the government to take the path of obstruction and legal action against these individuals.
A look at the recent subpoenas that have been made public shows that, contrary to the judiciary's claims of transparency, the recent subpoenas have been directed at those who, by chance, had been reporting to the public about their donations.
Source: Voice of America
