Tehran, IRNA – The Iranian Parliament has allocated five seats to its religious minorities, two of which belong to the Armenians of the North and Armenians of the South. Robert Beglaryan is the current representative of the Armenian community of southern Iran in Parliament. This is his fourth term as a member of Parliament.
Even though Beglaryan was born in Tehran, he was living in Isfahan in 1979 at the height of the Islamic Revolution. In an exclusive interview with Iran Daily, Beglaryan reminisces about those times and rejects claims of discrimination against minorities in Iran.
Where were you in 1979 when the Islamic Revolution prevailed? What lasting memories do you have of those days?
I was a 17-year-old high school student when the revolution occurred. I remember the revolutionary demonstrations and movements well. All over the country there were revolutionary fervor and, later, the joy of its victory following the fall of the Pahlavi regime.
Isfahan was one of the cities where a lot of revolutionary movements took place. The first martial law was imposed in this city. Most students at my high school were feeling the revolutionary spirit, following the developments and, directly or indirectly, participating in them.
The memory that is etched in my mind is of the participation we Armenians had with the rest of the revolutionaries in Isfahan. I remember that after the victory of the revolution, in those very early months, when the Islamic Revolution Committees had been formed to manage the cities and ensure security, we witnessed the cooperation of our fellow Armenians with Muslims to run the Armenian neighborhood. Adjacent to the Armenian Jolfa neighborhood were the Muslim-populated neighborhoods of Sichan and Hossein Abad, and we were closely connected. Armenian elders were in touch with Muslims and cooperating with them. I witnessed how everyone, from youngsters to elders, participated in meetings held in mosques and churches to govern and plan for the city.
I was present in some of these meetings. I would leave these mosques alongside the Muslims to establish order and watch over the city. February and March 1979 were very chilly, too, but it didn’t affect our work. What remains in my memory is the coordination and solidarity that was formed between every Iranian, regardless of religion, political predisposition, and age. Until the revolution could determine its direction and the administrative and disciplinary affairs could settle into their proper routines, everyone was concerned with the security of the people and the cities.
So it seems that during the revolution the religious minorities were working arm in arm with the Muslim community of Iran. Is that correct?
Yes, the religious minorities, depending on the city and the position that they were in, were involved in the revolution in different shapes and forms. I personally witnessed the collaboration of the Armenian community of Isfahan with Muslims from up close. This collaboration has continued even beyond the victory of the revolution to this day.
Were the demands and slogans of religious minorities, specifically Christians, different from the Muslims during the revolution?
Our slogans and demands were exactly the same because we have been part of the same Iranian society. In the Armenian community of Isfahan, where I closely observed their lives and activities, this view held sway that what the majority of people follow is correct. Therefore, the hegemony of revolutionary discourse won many over.
Some dissenters to the revolution have been constantly advocating in the past several years that religious minorities have no freedom in Iran and are being discriminated against. What discriminations have you witnessed?
Unfortunately, this propaganda has always been made against the Islamic Republic. Yet, as historical records and evidence show, Christians have been living alongside Muslims in Iran for centuries. In the case of Armenians, for example, the era of the Safavid King Shah Abbas, which was around 400 years ago, is quite notable in history.
Christians and Muslims have very deep ties. The historic presence of Christians and other minorities and the role they played in Iran’s affairs — which is evident in the architecture of Iran — indicates that Christians and Muslims have been coexisting peacefully. Of course, in the wake of various historical and political conditions and developments, dissimilar views may have predominated at times and created some problems, but if we were to look at the general trajectory, it has always been trusting.
A clear example of this is the Iranian Constitution, wherein the rights of minorities are protected, their languages are authorized, their religions are officially recognized, and their freedom in holding religious rituals and having exclusive schools are maintained. The presence of minorities in various associations and the role they play in diverse social realms including art, science, sports, university, and membership in Parliament all show that the people of Iran, whether Christian, Zoroastrian, Jewish, or Muslim know how to coexist peacefully.
There may be differences in taste, naturally, but to claim that the rights of minorities are being violated in Iran is not correct because our life experiences as Iranian Christians do not corroborate it. There have been many times when we held meetings with the foreign diplomatic corps, and the topic of the rights of minorities came up. We have openly invited them to come to Iran and see our lives for themselves and be informed about the realities.
Do you have any specific problem which is attributable to being a Christian in Iran?
The problems that every Iranian faces, such as economic problems, are shared by us Christians and other minorities, and this has nothing to do with our religion or the government’s view toward the minorities. Of course, there may be cases of social, cultural, or legal issues that we believe can be assessed and solved in time. For example, the amount of ‘diya’ [financial compensation paid to a victim, or heirs of a victim] was once different for Muslims and non-Muslims, but with the decree of the Leader of the Revolution, that issue has now been solved, and diya has been made equal.
We are optimistic that with patience and dialogue, some remaining problems will be solved.
Source: Islamic Republic News Agency – IRNA
