AHMADINEJAD USES UNIVERSITIES FOR POLITICAL ENDS

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 RPO DUBAI 000013

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/IR, LONDON FOR GAYLE, BAKU FOR HAUGEN, BERLIN FOR PAETZOLD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/15/2016
TAGS: IR PGOV SOCI
SUBJECT: AHMADINEJAD USES UNIVERSITIES FOR POLITICAL ENDS

REF: REF A: DUBAI 006053, REF B: IRPO 0009

RPO DUBAI 00000013 001.3 OF 002


CLASSIFIED BY: JILLIAN BURNS, DIRECTOR, IRAN REGIONAL PRESENCE
OFFICE - DUBAI, DEPARTMENT OF STATE.
REASON: 1.4 (D)

1.(S) SUMMARY. PRESIDENT AHMADINEJAD APPEARS TO BE CONTINUING
HIS EFFORTS TO REORIENT UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES MORE IN LINE WITH
HIS HARD-LINE IDEOLOGY, AS WELL AS USING THEM FOR HIS OWN
POLITICAL GAIN. A RECENT PRESS REPORT INDICATES THAT
AHMADINEJAD IS TRYING TO CHANGE THE FOUNDING COMMITTEE OF
ISLAMIC AZAD UNIVERSITY (IAU). IAU HAS TRADITIONALLY BEEN
ASSOCIATED WITH EXPEDIENCY COUNCIL CHAIR ALI HASHEMI RAFSANJANI
AND IS OFTEN REFERRED TO AS "RAFSANJANI U" (REF A). SEPARATELY,
THE CHANCELLOR OF PETROLEUM UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY CLAIMED
AHMADINEJAD IS INAPPROPRIATELY INSERTING HIMSELF INTO HIS
UNIVERSITY'S ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS. THE GOVERNMENT HAS ORDERED
PETROLEUM UNIVERSITY'S HEADQUARTERS TO BE MOVED FROM TEHRAN TO
ABADAN. THE CHANCELLOR BELIEVES THE MOTIVE IS NOT ACADEMIC BUT
POLITICAL, TO APPEASE RESENTMENT IN KHUZESTAN FOR ECONOMIC
INEQUITIES. IF AHMADINEJAD SUPPLANTS RAFSANJANIS INFLUENCE
OVER IAU, HE WILL HAVE SUCCEEDED BOTH AT WEAKENING HIS RIVAL AND
OPENING UP MORE CAMPUSES TO HIS INFLUENCE. END SUMMARY.

2.(U) DOMESTIC PRESS INDICATES THAT PRESIDENT AHMADINEJAD IS
INSERTING HIMSELF IN THE OVERSIGHT OF ISLAMIC AZAD UNIVERSITY
(IAU),A MOVE THAT MAY BE INDICATIVE OF AN ONGOING POWER
STRUGGLE WITH EXPEDIENCY COUNCIL CHAIR ALI HASHEMI RAFSANJANI.
AS REPORTED IN REF A, IAU IS CLOSELY ASSOCIATED WITH EXPEDIENCY
COUNCIL CHAIR ALI HASHEMI RAFSANJANI, WHO IS A MEMBER OF THE
FOUNDING COMMITTEE (PRESUMABLY SIMILAR TO A BOARD OF TRUSTEES).
WITH MORE THAN 70 CAMPUSES, IAU IS OFTEN REFERRED TO AS
"RAFSANJANI U." LAST YEAR, ROOZ NEWSPAPER CLAIMED A POLITICAL
SHOWDOWN WAS BUILDING BETWEEN RAFSANJANI AND AHMADINEJAD OVER
CONTROL OF THE IAU SYSTEM, FEATURING CABINET ATTACKS ON IAU'S
CHANCELLOR, DR. ABDOLLAH JASBI, AND CALLS FOR HIS REMOVAL.
ADDITIONALLY, AHMADINEJAD CRITICIZED IAUS HIGH TUITION RATES.
ROOZ SUGGESTED THAT IAU WAS THE ONLY INSTITUTION THAT
AHMADINEJAD'S SUPPORTERS HAD NOT SUCCESSFULLY INFILTRATED, AND
THESE STEPS WERE SALVOS IN A PROXY STRUGGLE BETWEEN AHMADINEJAD
AND RAFSANJANI.

3.(SBU) ACCORDING TO CONSERVATIVE DAILY TEHRAN SIYASAT-E-RUZ,
AHMADINEJAD APPOINTED A FIVE-MEMBER COMMITTEE TO PLAN CHANGING
THE IAU FOUNDING COMMITTEE. FIVE OF THE SEVEN MEMBERS OF THE
FOUNDING COUNCIL OF IAU HAVE REPORTEDLY DIED OR RESIGNED,
LEAVING ONLY EXPEDIENCY COUNCIL CHAIR ALI HASHEMI RAFSANJANI AND
DR. JASBI. AHMADINEJAD'S ACTIONS REPORTEDLY LED DR. JASBI TO
ANNOUNCE HIS INTENTION TO RETIRE. ACCORDING TO THE PRESS
REPORT, AHMADINEJAD'S COMMITTEE IS COMPRISED OF MEMBERS OF THE
SUPREME ISLAMIC REVOLUTIONARY COUNCIL (SIRC),THE DECISION MAKER
ON ALL CULTURAL, RESEARCH, AND EDUCATION MATTERS. SIRC HAS
REPORTEDLY LONG BEEN DISAPPOINTED WITH IAUS EDUCATIONAL
STANDARDS. (NOTE: CONTACTS HAVE ALSO MAINTAINED THAT THE
QUALITY OF EDUCATION OF ISLAMIC AZAD UNIVERSITIES IS INFERIOR TO
THAT OF STATE UNIVERSITIES, WHILE THE PRICE IS HIGHER. ENDNOTE)
THE DAILY SURMISES THAT AHMADINEJAD WILL LIKELY GARNER THE
NECESSARY SUPPORT, VIA HIS COMMITTEE, TO INFLUENCE IAU
ADMINISTRATION.

4.(S) OUTLINING A SEPARATE EFFORT BY AHMADINEJAD AND HIS
GOVERNMENT TO USE UNIVERSITIES FOR POLITICAL ENDS, THE
CHANCELLOR OF PETROLEUM UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY TOLD IRPOFFS
THAT HE HAD BEEN INSTRUCTED TO SHIFT THE UNIVERSITY HEADQUARTERS
FROM TEHRAN TO KHUZESTAN. UNTIL RECENTLY, THE PETROLEUM
UNIVERSITY HAD THREE BRANCHES, ONE IN AHVAZ, ONE IN ABADAN, AND
ONE IN THE NORTH, PLUS THE MAIN CAMPUS IN TEHRAN. THE
CHANCELLOR BELIEVED HIS HEADQUARTERS WERE BEING MOVED IN AN
EFFORT TO ASSUAGE KHUZESTAN PROVINCE, WHICH HAS OFTEN COMPLAINED
OF NEGLECT FROM THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT. HE CALLED THE DIRECTIVE
INAPPROPRIATE, NOTING THAT UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES ARE SACROSANCT
AND SHOULD NOT BE USED AS A TOOL FOR POLITICAL GAIN. WHILE IT
IS POSSIBLE THE CHANCELLOR WAS SIMPLY PEEVED AT THE
RESTRUCTURING, HE MAINTAINED THE UNIVERSITY WAS BETTER SERVED BY
MORE DIRECT ACCESS TO OTHER IMPORTANT INSTITUTIONS IN THE
CAPITAL.

5.(U) THESE MOVES FOLLOW EARLIER REPORTS THAT PRESIDENT
AHMADINEJAD WAS ATTEMPTING TO PURGE LIBERAL AND SECULAR
PROFESSORS FROM UNIVERSITIES. PROFESSORS WHO ESPOUSE LIBERAL
VIEWS, PARTICULARLY THOSE IN THE HUMANITIES FIELD, WERE BEING
FIRED, FORCED TO RETIRE, OR SIMPLY DENIED FULL PROFESSORSHIPS.
PROFESSORS ARE ALSO GIVEN INCENTIVES TO SPEND THEIR SABBATICALS