Iran is the home of my son’s best man

Recently my youngest son got married in Ormoc and his best man was a long-time Iranian friend Bharam. We called him ‘Barry’ for short. They went to school together in London when both our families were in exile, they from the Shah Pavlavi empire and we from the Marcos dictatorship. He and my son kept in touch even after we returned home after the revolutions in our respective countries which coincidentally happened in the month of February. At the wedding reception, Barry regaled the visitors with a hilarious speech telling guests that he is just as puzzled as they must be how, he a Muslim should be present as the best man in Christian wedding. There were more funny anecdotes on their friendship which began in London days when they were still young boys. It may be worth mentioning that in the City of London School where they went to, there were many Jewish boys with whom they also formed friendships.

I was not at the reception because I was with my husband who was confined in hospital then. But Barry is dear to us. I did not care if he was Iranian or Muslim or whatever. It never figured. What I did remember was how our beloved dog, Ripley, who has since died, used to whine and jump even if Barry were still meters away from the doorbell. I used to tease Barry that there must be some truth to sexual attraction between animals and human beings. Ripley lost her composure at the sight of Barry.

Because of this friendship I feel more acutely the Iranian nuclear crisis. In a few days, I will be attending Iran’s National Day or what had been deemed the 28th anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. I also fervently hope that it will not be lost on the guests that Iran is one of the world’s oldest and continuing major civilizations with a history of more than 6,000 years. Moreover it is strategically located being right smack in the center of Eurasia.

The very diligent Iranian Ambassador Jalal Kalantari has dutifully done his best to inform local journalists on the nuclear crisis. As he explains it, its nuclear program is for peaceful uses. Like most developing countries his government is concerned that when the oil runs out they will be ready and capable as the Western countries with nuclear energy. He claims that this is what the Western powers led by the US do not want to happen. "They want us to continue depending on the West," he said. Kalantari adds that Iran’s breakthrough with nuclear energy will also mean breaking the western monopoly on nuclear energy and therefore its economic hegemony.

There is a dichotomy between our experience of Barry’s friendship and news reports that his home is a place where ‘bombs’ are being made that I seek to resolve in my mind. Like Barry, I am just as puzzled how peoples are divided by governments and their policies.

That being said, Sheikh Sabah al-Sabah cautioned the Iranian president in a recent visit that the crisis could drag the entire region into war unless Iran satisfied the world that it was not seeking to build an atomic bomb. He told reporters that he had a frank talk with the president of Iran. "We told him that if nuclear energy will be used for peaceful purposes we will be first to welcome it," Sheikh Sabah told The Times at Bayan Palace in Kuwait City. "But if it is the intention of his leadership to use this energy for military purposes, then we will be very unhappy. I hope they use their heads, that they will be reasonable, that wisdom will prevail. They must avoid this very dangerous stage which at present they are in and avoid the dangerous situation that might befall them," the 77-year-old ruler said. Kuwait is Washington’s closest ally in the region. Asked about the threat of US or Israeli military action, the Emir replied: "I hope that the confrontation will not happen, but everything is possible."

Well, who and what are we to believe if we are merely reading newspaper reports and are unable to determine who is telling the truth? That is my and I suppose every journalist’s dilemma who wishes to be impartial.

As a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran is legally entitled to enrich uranium. The problem, Iranians say is when Western nations treat the issue as a political problem. A diplomatic delegation from Algeria, Cuba, Egypt, Malaysia, and Sudan, and the Syrian representative of the Arab League recently visited the nuclear site near the central Iranian city of Isfahan included ambassadors before the IAEA files its report to the UN. A visit to the nuclear sites is also planned for Western envoys and reporters.

Meanwhile the Saudis are flexing their muscle in a bid to end the Palestinian crisis. The usually diffident Saudi King is flexing his muscle to mediate in the Palestinian crisis more significantly by inviting Hamas and Fatah leaders together to the holy city of Mecca. This is viewed by Middle East watchers as directed against growing Iranian influence. For whatever reasons, Saudi Arabia has the power and prestige to end Palestinian divisions if it puts its mind to this effort.

But is it ready to challenge Iran and its regional allies? King Abdullah’s mediation between Ismail Haniyeh, the prime minister and leader of the Islamist movement Hamas, and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president is a bold move to defuse the crisis in the region. The Saudi king will try to forge a deal on a national unity government. As the "Custodian of the Two Holy Shrines" he has the power to persuade the fighting groups to come together in the name of Islam no matter their differences. The oil-rich, conservative kingdom is anxious about the continuing chaos and violence in Iraq, the increasing Iranian influence across the region – in Iraq, Lebanon and, most recently, in the Palestinian territories – and the widening divide between Sunni and Shia Muslims.

Back home, if there is anyone who should feel slighted by Senate chief, Manuel Villar’s newly-found bravado in the Upper House, it should be Franklin Drilon. What Villar is telling Filipinos is Drilon did not do his job while he has achieved a feat – 15 bills in a session – wow. Hold on. Was he not part of the Senate while the senators dragged their feet with one thousand bills already approved by the Lower House languishing in their freezing cold, energy guzzling halls by the seaside? I didn’t hear him complain then. Is it a coincidence that this newly found activity may have something to do with the coming elections? Think again Mr. Villar of the thousands who suffered because the Senate failed to pass those bills then. Think of the many journeys local officials had to make to Manila following up those bills.

A punishing schedule should have been unnecessary if they did their job then. I’ll say it again — the Senate is an expensive white elephant in a poor country like the Philippines finding it tough to be at par with its neighbors with unicameral legislatures.

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