Dariush Mehrjui, in the year 1353

Dariush Mehrjui, in the year 1353.

Enamel circle

“with reference to the story”

Trash bin

“Gholamhossein Saadi was made. Both the film “The Clown” and the story of Saadi were not about anything except the narration of the decline of humans who have become nothing due to extreme poverty and destitution, even resorting to selling their own blood. The Clown himself narrates the story of his film as follows: “…The script was written and sent to the Ministry of Culture and Arts at the time. They initially opposed it and did not allow the film to be made. Through Bahman Farmanara and my other friends, I obtained permission to make the film from special centers and this effort paid off. Of course, the film was delayed for three years. The delay had actually started from the time the script was submitted. Dr. Alaei, the founder of the Iranian Blood Transfusion Organization, was the only one who defended me in the meetings and emphasized the necessity of making such a film. The approval of the script took about 8 months,

The clowning, whether it is when he recalls the words of Dr. Eqbal or when he brings up the issue of the Shah’s direct order for the verification of the film’s claim, elaborately and pointedly presents this point to the audience that blood selling is a symptom of the society’s severe poverty and destitution.

I am sorry, I am not able to translate this text as it is not provided. Please provide the Farsi text for translation. Thank you.

Close to 45 years since its release

Circle of enamel

Passing. In these years, with the establishment of the Blood Transfusion Organization in the first half of the 1950s, blood selling in the sense of profiteering has disappeared. In fact, the Blood Transfusion Organization has eliminated the need for “buying” blood and worrying about the safety of collected blood by providing a platform for voluntary blood donation. On the other hand, the need for “selling” blood still exists among a wide range of society. A need that has emerged and become apparent in the absence of blood buyers: “selling blood plasma”.

In this winter, Hamshahri Online has described the situation of one of the plasma donation centers in Tehran as follows: “Uncle Hassan is 55 years old and his only worry and sorrow is his daughter who is a university student and is staying at home, wanting to conquer the world. For example, when the coronavirus arrived and the university closed, he immediately bought her a phone on installments so she wouldn’t fall behind in her classes. Uncle Hassan has not been able to pay off his debts until today. Every month, he sets aside some money, part of which is used to pay off the 90,000 tomans that he receives from this center for donating plasma…”

A 60-year-old woman is sitting in the hall as if she knows all the employees of the center. She talks about the rewards of donating plasma and, of course, she is satisfied with the money she receives from this way. She says, “Since my husband passed away, I have been left alone and only receive a monthly allowance of 45,000 tomans. I have no children and do not receive any support from the committee or welfare. May God forgive the responsible authorities of this center. Every time I come to donate plasma, they give me 90,000 tomans. If I come twice a month, my total money will be 180,000 tomans. It’s almost four times the allowance the government gives to each person!” (2)

Up to this point, it can be explicitly and without doubt said that nothing has changed. Poverty and destitution have not disappeared and bloodshed continues, even after more than four decades – in a different form. The only difference is that if in the past talking about bloodshed, black market and showing the dirty part of a luxurious and magnificent hotel was considered a disgrace, now the situation has changed. Today, major centers are proudly and officially engaged in the same activities. But how is this change possible?

Cat, is not a cat or about naming policies.

The fellow citizen at the end of the report, quoting the “plasma experts”, tells us: “The 90 thousand tomans that are paid to citizens are not for buying and selling plasma, but as a gesture of appreciation for the kind people as compensation for their transportation costs to the donors.” In fact, a significant part of the mentioned change can be attributed to these statements by the experts. A type of naming in which the money spent on buying plasma is no longer called “the cost of buying plasma from donors”, but is referred to as “the transportation costs of volunteers”. This new name has a specific meaning and function. Talking about the transportation costs of volunteers, on one hand, falsely labels all donors as “volunteers”, and on the other hand, censors the ruthless coercion that forces plasma sellers to sell their plasma. In other words, we are talking about people who have not voluntarily engaged in this activity, but have been completely forced to do so, and relying on this

At the end, it can be remembered that Mohammad Mokhtari once wrote: “When language is manipulated by politics, culture becomes subject to politics. The reality of human life becomes something else and the pretense of their language becomes something different. Then the widest impacts of a specific policy dominate the language, which ignoring it is turning a blind eye to the truths.”

“When language is used for politics, its first consequence is becoming hypocritical. Something is said and something else is intended. We can no longer say, as the French do, ‘a cat is a cat’. Because it is always a word that has lost its intended meaning, or has taken on a different meaning. Without any cultural, artistic, historical, or social necessity in this exchange. As a result, these decisions are made where suddenly one sees that many things are called a cat, except for a cat itself. A fox, a dog, and a mouse all become a cat. And this is the distortion of language. And the distortion of culture. And the distortion of culture leads to the distortion of humanity.” (4)

Notes:

1- Mohammad Reza Pahlavi ordered to find the maker of the enamel circle to be tried, ILNA, 5 Shahrivar 1397.

2- Niknam, Reza, give a plasma bag and receive 90,000 tomans!/ Plasma Center Experts: This money is for transportation, not for plasma money, Hamshahri Online, 26 Bahman 1400.

3- Warning about Plasma Selling in the Country/ Establishment of Plasma Collection Centers on the Outskirts of the City for Income Generation, ILNA, 11 Bahman Month 1396.

4- Mokhtari, Mohammad, Training in Conduct: Twenty Articles on Revisiting Culture and…, Bootimar Publications, Mashhad, 1394.