Iranians warm to possible thaw in relations after president's remarks
An
Iranian woman walks past a mural showing a gun painted with an
interpretation of the American flag on the wall of the former US embassy
in Tehran on September.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Throughout the capital, Iranians sense a new future in the air
- 'It's not like I've seen anything, but I feel it,' one retiree says
- The new president's outreach to Western countries resonates
- Optimists express themselves at a CNN open microphone in Tehran, but so do pessimists
Iran wants to talk. With
the United States. With Europe. With everyone who's been skeptical of
the country. And Iran is willing to discuss its nuclear program,
President Hassan Rouhani says.
"I just feel it. It's not
like I've seen anything, but I feel it," said retiree Syed Ali Akbar.
"It's the best thing to do. We've been hurting ourselves for years."
International economic
sanctions against Iran have strained day-to-day living in Iran, making
essential goods such as medicine expensive and hard to come by. That
punishment has taken a toll.
Iran ready to make a nuclear deal?
"The sanctions have hurt
us. Prices have gone up. There are things you can't find," said Hossein
Mohamadi at the Barbari Bread Shop.
To many Iranians, Rouhani
seems to be really advancing the "hope and prudence" slogan he used
during his successful campaign to become president in June, posturing as
a centrist and reformer against hardline conservatives that
characterized previous president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Rouhani had been Iran's national security council chief and its lead nuclear negotiator.
"With Mr. Rouhani here, we've become more hopeful that things will improve," Mohamadi said.
Ramin Atouri, 28, is a part of the young generation to whom Rouhani appealed in his stump speeches.
Atouri dislikes political isolation and applauds diplomacy.
"Everything is solved through friendship. War and sanctions and conflict never solve anything," Atouri said.
A new sense of optimism
Without doubt, the long
years of hostility between Iran and the United States leave many
Iranians wary and distrustful of Western countries. Those feelings
endure and were captured by an open microphone that CNN set up Wednesday
on a busy street in Tajrish Square, inviting passers-by to send a
personal sound bite around the world.
"I say hello to all
America," said one woman named Zahra. "Your behavior is not very good.
Your politics is about war and it's terrifying.... Don't create so many
restrictions for us. Don't impose on us so many sanctions. Let us make
progress."
In general, however,
there's a whiff of euphoria for the first time in many people's memory.
That was also expressed at the open mike.
"America is a great
county and we want to have good relations with America, and our
government is working to make that happen," said Reza, who didn't give
her last name. "We hope American politicians understand the
circumstances, and through positive talks we can thaw this relationship
that has been frozen for 35 years, so we can live side by side as
friends."
A Tehran-based author and political analyst also sensed change in the air.
"So far he has done more
than we expected," Sadegh Zibakalam said about the new president. "Ever
since the elections, there is a mood of optimism. There is a mood of
hope. Wherever you go in Iran, you can see people happier."
Zibakalam went so far as
to say Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, also has altered
his rhetoric, joining the prevailing hopefulness.
"I cannot fail to detect
some changes with regard to the attitude of the supreme leader ever
since the elections," Zibakalam said.
Wherever Iranians
gathered and did business, they spoke to how new ground was being broken
-- and whether they believed it was for real.
At a carpet store, Sadegh Kiyaei, 50, believed a new day was dawning.
"He's the hope of the
future of Iranians, especially the way he's talking to the world and
especially to America," Kiyaei said of the new president. "We believe
the two nations -- Iran and America -- they believe they need each other
and like each other. They feel it's the right time to get together and
start talking at least."
One mother, however,
didn't endorse that sentiment. She is going to press ahead with her
efforts to leave Iran. If there's a better future for her and her son,
it's outside Iran, she said.
"In my view, I don't
think you can get anywhere here in Iran," said the mother, Khoshvakht,
who declined to give her last name. "I haven't lost hope. I just don't
think anything has changed. I'm just not that optimistic."
Her son, Omid, didn't like her mother's plan to leave. "I want to stay," he said. "My friends are here."
Wishing for an easier life
At the open microphone,
several speakers didn't need prompting to broach perhaps the biggest
subject on the international community's mind -- whether Iran is
building nuclear weapons.
Iran says its
controversial atomic program is for peaceful energy purposes. But
several Western countries want Iran to fully comply with a United
Nations agency's inspectors looking into whether the nuclear development
is to build a bomb.
"Hi, America," said one man named Mohsen. "As far as I'm concerned, I don't think they're making bombs."
Then, he added, "With all the sanctions they put on us, it's like putting a gun on someone's head.
"You respect our civil rights and we'll respect yours. It's just humanity," he concluded.
Hassan Ahmadi has been a barber for 30 years and has three kids. He wants affordable medicine for his family.
"There's been a lot of
tough times and rising costs," Ahmadi said. "One hundred percent, I want
to see better relations, so we can live a little easier.
"I'm hopeful that change will happen so we can escape all the worry," he added.
Those who held contrary opinions were equally effusive.
"I don't have hope
because I don't think Rouhani is everything in Iran. He still has
someone over the top of him," said Ali Ahadi at a newspaper stand. That
superior is the ayatollah.
A coffee shop owner
agreed. "The final decider is the supreme leader. Maybe if things
change, then he'll change his mind. So in the end, I'm not optimistic,"
proprietor Amin, who declined to give his last name. "We just want to
live in peace. That's my only wish -- to live in peace."
Perhaps the most commonly shared view on Tehran streets was rejection of how Western leaders harshly characterize the country.
"I know they call us
terrorists, but you show me which one of us is terrorists?" Ahadi said
at the newsstand. "Iranians are (hospitable) and kind and honest."
No comments:
Post a Comment