http://www.nimrooz.com/html/912/153123.htm
Parviz Sayyad

Amongst the news in the month of October, one which particularly enchanted me was the conviction of a US member of the House for making false statements to the House, bribery and abusing his political and diplomatic stature. This “Disgrace of the Earth” (A phrase commonly used by the Islamic Republic’s judiciary system when referring to a person convicted in the Islamic court), is no other person but Congressman Robert Ney, a Republican, representing the State of Ohio who became a leading figure to promote the interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the US Congress.

You may already know that one way of reducing a sentence following the conviction of a defendant in the US Federal Courts would be to strike a deal with the judicial authorities. For instance in Bob Ney’s case, had he been convicted for all the charges made against him, the financial penalties aside, he would have been sentenced to life imprisonment. However, he made a deal with the Federal Courts via his legal representatives to plead guilty to a couple of the charges to evade prosecution for the rest of the scandal in return!

He was sentenced to ten years imprisonment for pleading guilty to corruption charges arising from the influence peddling investigation of lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Jack Abramoff, a con man, whose main occupation was to head-hunt high profile personalities to promote illegal businesses in exchange of bribery, was at the centre of a political scandal along with a few other corrupt politicians and influential figures in 2006. Bob Ney confessed to engaging in illegal transactions with Abramoff as it involved a few more well known corrupt figures so that he could have charges made against him in relation to his dealings with the Islamic Republic dropped.

Although his convictions do not make any reference to his “dealings” with the Islamic Republic of Iran, however, this didn’t prevent the news from spreading out amongst investigative journalists and media. Amongst such media, the weekly magazine Newsweek writes on 23 January 2006: “Ohio Rep. Robert Ney personally lobbied the then Secretary of State Colin Powell to relax U.S. sanctions on Iran. A convicted airplane broker who had just taken the congressman and a top aide on an expense-paid trip to London, NEWSWEEK has learned. Ney’s lawyer confirmed to NEWSWEEK that federal prosecutors have subpoenaed records on Ney’s February 2003 trip paid for by Nigel Winfield, a thrice-convicted felon who ran a company in Cyprus called FN Aviation”.

Furthermore, Associated Press unveiled Bob Ney’s dealings with yet another infamous influence peddler. The Syrian born Fouad Al-Zayat who is a well known gambler in London casinos and is better known as “The Fat Man”, was acting as a middleman between the Islamic Republic procurers and his connections in the USA to supply technical equipment to the Mullahs.

Until recently, these kinds of wheeling-and-dealings had not been exposed to the mainstream Iranian community residing in Washington. Bob Ney who had spent a few years in Iran and could more or less speak Farsi was better identified by his close friendship with two other Iranians who ran his private and public affairs with the Islamic Republic. These two well-read characters are Houshang Amir Ahmadi; acting as the toll man and the financial aid incumbent and the other is Trita Parsi; acting as cultural mediator and so called foreign affairs advisor.

There is a well known expression, “The butler had a servant himself”! Amongst all the servants of the Islamic Republic in the USA, Houshang Amir Ahmadi is the best known of them all. One wonders why when he appoints himself as a candidate to run in the presidential elections, despite his servitude and obedience he keeps getting casted out by the “Guardian’s Council”!

In contrast to Amir Ahmadi, with the exception of those Iranians residing in Washington who are familiar with his superfluous flattery towards the Islamic Republic, Trita Parsi remains otherwise lesser exposed amongst the rest of the Iranian community in the USA.

“He who introduces himself as the president of the National Iranian American Council, used to live in Sweden for several years before he decided to settle down in the USA. So far, he has done nothing but to promote the interests of The Islamic Republic and although he actively tries to foster reconciliation between the USA and the Islamic Republic of Iran, and hence prolong the ruling of the Mullahs, he considers himself an Iranian in exile!” wrote Iranian.com website.

In any case, this person as the president of the afore mentioned council, which is made up of a handful of members and pretends to a bunch of ill informed politicians to be representing all the Iranians abroad, claims that he played an instrumental and clandestine part in organizing Mohammad Khatami’s recent visit to the USA.

It’s quite natural for all those in Washington who oppose the “Supreme Leader’s Regime” to become suspicious of the activities of a person who is not yet a citizen of this country, to launch a National Council for the Iranian Americans and to become the foreign affairs advisor to a member of the House of Representatives!

From the remarks made by the Islamic Republic’s envoy, and in particular Rafsanjani’s comments, plus all the ample financial backing he gets to splash out in the form of bribery, it’s painfully obvious for some, how this person who claims to be a Zoroastrian, demonstrates his servitude and loyalty to a bunch of Mullahs.

In the aftermath of the US political changeover, and following the switching of their American masters, we’ll have to wait and see how these two well-read characters would tie up the loose ends together and which corrupt politician(s) would fall into their trap this time to promote the interests of the Islamic Republic.

Any how, Congressman Bob Ney’s case just like the serial murders in Moscow, goes to show that within the political scenes, wherever in the world happens to unveil a “Disgrace of the Earth”, the footprints of the ruling Mullahs in Iran would be evident. The only difference being that in the case of Moscow serial murders, they copied the idea from the Russians, and in the case of Congressman Bob Ney they could be the source of imitation of how to offer sweeteners to corrupt politicians.