St Andrews' Students Association rejects witch-hunt against Khatami
Friday, October 27, 2006 
A historic university has defended its decision to award the former president of Iran an honorary degree. Mohammad Khatami will by honoured by the University of St Andrews and will officially open its Institute for Iranian Studies when he visits the Fife town next week. The move has angered Scottish Conservative MEP Struan Stevenson who has described the leader as a "tyrant" and compared him to Heinrich Himmler, one of Hitler's right-hand men.
Dean Godson of the right-wing think-tank Policy Exchange agrees: "If Sir Menzies et al wanted to celebrate genuinely liberal forces in Iran ... they should have given an honorary degree to those who are paying the price for really opposing the regime. Why not give one to Ahmed Batebi, the leader of the student uprising of 1999, who cannot continue his university courses?"
Lior Ben Dor, spokesman for the Israeli embassy in London, said: "Although Mr Khatami is trying to demonstrate the nice and moderate face of Iran, we should bear in mind that even when he was the president, the regime in Iran continued developing its nuclear weapons, deceiving the international community." Lord Janner of Braunstone, a senior Jewish politician, also questioned whether the visit was appropriate, saying the former president had previously praised Hizbollah, the guerrilla group.
A spokesman for the Education Not for Sale students group [a front organisation for the Alliance for Workers' Liberty], backed by the NUS, said it wanted the award to be withdrawn unless Ahmad Batebi, a student jailed in 1999 following pro-democracy protests, was freed.
A university spokesman said: "Far from being a slur on Scotland, Mr Khatami's willingness to come to St Andrews as the most senior Iranian politician to visit the UK since the Shah over 30 years ago says much for the international standing and reputation of the university."
St Andrews' Students Association supports the decision to honour Khatami:
"While it would be easy to oppose Khatami's award on the basis of tensions which existed in Iran during his presidency, we believe Khatami himself predominantly adopted a brave stand to promote liberal values. This personal courage, combined with his subsequent work in building inter-faith dialogue and communication, coupled with his notable achievements as a scholar, make him a very suitable candidate for such an award."
Tribune, 27 October 2006