Independent Student Movement - CIS in United States Congressional Reports

CIS in United States Congressional Reports

The United States Congressional Research Service report dated September 5, 2012, stated the following regarding CIS: “Opposition/”Green Path Hope.” All of the blocs and personalities below can be considered part of the Green Path of Hope opposition/revolutionary movement. However, overall leadership of the opposition is unclear, with several components competing for preeminence and the ability to determine the direction of the protest movement. Student Opposition Leaders/Confederation of Iranian Students/Office of Consolidation of Unity (Daftar Tahkim-e- Vahdat). Staunch oppositionists and revolutionaries, many now favor replacement of the regime with secular democracy. Generally young and well-educated, want free and open media and contact with the West. Many are women. One key bloc in this group is the Confederation of Iranian Students (CIS), led by Amir Abbas Fakhravar, who was jailed for five years for participating in July 1999 student riots. CIS, committed to non-violent resistance, is an offshoot/competitor of the Office of Consolidation Unity, which led the 1999 riots. At the time of those riots, most students were strong Khatemi supporters, but turned against him for acquiescing to hardliner demands that he crack down on the rioting. The crackdown killed four students. Student leaders currently attempting, with mixed success, to gain support of older generation, labor, clerics, village-dwellers, and other segments. CIS supports imposition of severe sanctions against Iran, including a total oil sale embargo, to deprive the regime of the funds it needs to pay its security forces. CIS and other student activists purportedly developing list of Iranian officials who they assert have committed major human rights abuses—an intended parallel to the “deck of cards” of alleged Saddam-regime “war criminals” developed by the United States before the overthrow of Saddam."