On Monday, October 27, 2008, on the occasion of his visit to Austria, the former president of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, was scheduled to give a lecture at the University of Vienna on “Global Ethos – Law and the Dialogue of Cultures.”

Numerous protests have been sent to the Rector of the University of Vienna, Prof. Georg Winckler. They have been published in the German edition of the Faculty Forum.

The SPME Austria Chapter joined these protests with the following letter that was sent to the Rector of the University of Vienna and the organizers of Khatami’s lecture in Vienna.

“The Austrian Chapter of the international organization of academics, Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, joins the protests against the planned lecture to be given by former Iranian president Khatami at the University of Vienna.

Even though Khatami dissociated himselffrom Ahmadinejad’s statements, violations of human rights, illegal lawsuits and executions of opponents of the regime as well as of members of religious minorities have been on the agenda during his entire time in office.

We also point out Khatami’s halfhearted dissociation from Ahmadinejad’s denial of the Shoah, which he relativized in front of US media by saying the Holocaust might be a fact but has been abused as an excuse for oppressing the rights of the Palestinians.

We particularly recall the anti-Semitic show trial against 10 Iranian Jews, who were sentenced to prison for many years for alleged spying for Israel, in July 2000. The charge of “spying” admittedly was dropped, but the accusation of “cooperation with a hostile state” remained.

Khatami also declared solidarity with Roger Garaudy, who was sentenced by a French court for Holocaust Denial (presentedin the book „The Founding Myths of Modern Israel“).

It is more than questionable, that the former president of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, of all people, is to give a lecture on the topic of “Global Ethos – Law and the Dialogue of Cultures” within a series of lectures on world ethos and law at the University of Vienna.

For the board of the Austrian Chapter of Scholars for Peace in the Middle East:

Mag. Dr. Ruth Contreras, chairwoman
Mag. Eva Muehlhofer-Gurion, vice chairwoman
Mag. Traude Litzka, secretary

*****

Response by the University of Vienna**)

Dear Dr. Contreras,

The series of lectures entitled “Weltethos and the Law”, presented in conjunction with “Project Weltethos”, addresses itself first and foremost, although not exclusively, to the students of the law school. The goal of this project is to make known the irrefutable ethical aspects of the law on all levels. In addition, the representatives of Project Weltethos and of different religions should discuss efforts to develop common ethical principles. This search for common ethical principles has to be seen also against the background of globalization; this search poses a special challenge for the development of a legal/political concept that corresponds to the process of globalization.

We have used the presence of former President Khatami on the occasion of the “35 Years of Dialogue Initiative – St. Gabriel” celebration as the basis of an invitation for him to give a guest lecture in this lecture series.

The theme of the lecture stems, on one hand, from the general theme of the lecture series „World Ethos and the Law“, and on the other hand, from the „Dialogue of Cultures“ to which Dr. Khatami has issued an appeal, in his 1998 address before the UN General Assembly, in direct contrast to a feared “Clash of Civilizations”. A further basis for the invitation and choice of theme was the fact that Dr. Khatami had already discussed Hans Küng’s concept of a “World Ethos” on the occasion of a “Weimar Discussion”, to which he had been invited by German President Rau together with Hans Küng and the Orientalist Josef van Ess in 2000. (This Weimar Discussion was published in 2001 by ”deux mondes” in Heidelburg).

Since finishing his second term as president, Dr. Khatami has been the leader of the „Center for Dialogue between Cultures“. 14 days ago the Center held a conference in Teheran in which many important people participated, including former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, former President of Portugal Jorge Sampaio, Romano Prodi, and the former Premier of Norway Kjell Magne Bondevik.

As long-term participants in the dialogue initiative mentioned earlier, we have had many occasions to meet with Dr. Khatami. Our first occasion was a 1993 conference on Christian-Islamic dialogue; this was followed by two meetings in Teheran; and lastly at a 2002 interreligious roundtable sponsored by President Klestil on the occasion of then-president Khatami’s official state visit.

On all these occasions we have experienced Dr. Khatami as a balanced, discriminating, and open thinker, a man who concerns himself sincerely with dialogue, and who especially confronts the danger of the isolation of Islam in today’s world.

To our knowledge Dr. Khatami has distanced himself from the unacceptable utterances of (Iranian) President Ahmadinejad about the Holocaust. The fact that Khatami supports the Palestinians in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict cannot be the basis for refusing to continue the dialogue. If we cannot speak with a man like Khatami, then we must ask ourselves how peace will ever be achieved in the Neat east.

In regard to criminal procedure, i.e. the violation of civil rights that took place during Dr. Khatami’s time in office, we must call to your attention the legal and political boundaries placed on the Iranian president. We believe that a few things improved in Iran under Khatami’s term as president, although clearly too few. It also needs to be said in this context that the West, with its basic mistrust of Dr. Khatami, didn’t make it any easier.

Based on these considerations we do not consider it questionable or risky for Dr. Khatami to give a lecture during the seminar series, in which a wide spectrum of opinions can be debated and the possibility of consensus. We wish to make participants of both faculties familiar with a prominent Islamic position that can be discussed at the end of the semester by members of both faculties.

With best regards,

Richard Potz
Gerhard Luf

*) Thanks are due to Prof. Emily Tall, Buffalo University, for editing the translation of the letter of concern.
**) Thanks are due to Dr. Martha Birnbaum for the translation of this letter.