Interview with Shapoor Valipoor

By: Morteza Rasouli Poor

In the Fifth Book of Iran Contemporary History, there is an article entitled “Notes on Ashtianizadeh’s Memories Regarding Reza Khan’s Background and the Coup de Ta on Esfand 3rd” written by Shapoor Valipoor. In his article, while mentioning the emergence of disagreement between Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and Mostafa Fateh after the Coup de Ta on August 19th which led to his arrest and detainment, the above mentioned writes:
“The fact about why the king, despite closeness and even consultation on some matters with Fateh, turned against him and sent him to prison is a story which I hope to write some day in order to clarify what great evil dictatorship and autocracy is and what it does even with the distinguished, servitors of the society.”
Valipoor’s hint in that article encouraged us to call him and ask for more information on the matter. In other words, this was an excuse for conversation. In the same meeting and first session we realized that he has relatively vast information and experience through his family background and previous political-social activities the explanation of which can be useful, educational and revelatory for the present generation. Accordingly, the interview moved beyond what we initially expected.
During several interviews, in addition to answering the questions, Valipoor talked about his acquaintance with Fateh, memories and issues from the Bakhtiari tribe leaders and chiefs, their trend of thought, disarmament of Bakhtiaris, murder of Sardar As¢ad, formation of Charmahal Union, formation of Iran No party by Teimoor Tash and Davar, receipt of monthly allowance by Mohammad Reza Pahlavi from the former oil company by Fateh when he was crown prince, the reason for his inclination and drawing to Tudeh party and explanation of this party’s destructive role in providing the ground for the destruction of two generations of society and deviation of intellectual movement, nationalization of oil industry, some memories from Bakhtiar and his family, Ismail Raein, Ata-Allah Khosravani, Gholamreza Pahlavi and many other subjects in detail and with much enthusiasm and due to suffering and named them sessions of pain exchange. What follows here is a selection from ten hours of interview with the above mentioned.

□How were you drawn to the Tudeh Party?
I remember it was 1939 or 1940; one night about five or six of my father’s old friends who had participated in the constitutional revolution were in our house. One had a broken arm due to gun shot and his hand hanged from his body for the rest of his life like a piece of wood. Another was shot in the ankle and walked with a cane all his life and another had been shot in the flank such that the wound was infected all the time and he couldn’t even go to the city in the winter to treat it. They complained that we spent our youth on the constitutional revolution and hoped for peace and order to prevail. At this time Reza Shah ordered the Bakhtiari chiefs to sell their properties to the government or exchange them for properties elsewhere to take the tribal base from them. This was reason enough for the Shahrekord state to plunder some small landowners. I was a 15-16 year old youngster at the time and I witnessed the disaster which had fallen on these people instead of safety and rule of law and this really affected me.
It is good to know that back then no one had the right to travel without the permission of the police department, or to have a radio without the permission of the constabulary. As I remember you couldn’t even drop a letter into the mailbox because an officer stood there and asked for your ID comparing it to the information on the envelope. I had seen how the police officers gathered around people in elections forcing them to vote for certain people. Overall it was suffocating and the people didn’t have the least bit of freedom. At this time a friend of ours came to Tehran and he was to come back to Isfahan after a month; he was detained for three months. I asked the reason and he said: “while leaving Tehran they detained me because my last name was Sobhani and they thought it is Sanjabi and said you are a chief of the Sanjabi tribe who is on exile in Tehran and you want to run away.” After a few months of investigation they let him go. In such a close, oppressive situation we thought of a refuge until in summer of 1941 the condition changed and we were drawn to political activities. Especially when some of the leaders of the Tudeh party were among the 53 who were jailed by Reza Shah and suffered damages we thought the only way to freedom is to join this party. On the other hand the youth are usually idealist, emotional and vulnerable and unfortunately after thefall ofReza Shah, the distinguished governors could not or would not attract this enthusiastic and excited generation and the Tudeh party used this chance in its favor.

□Talk about your activities in the Tudeh party.
At first I was the speaker of the labor section. Then I became the chief of Tudeh party youth organization in Isfahan. In the second congress of the party in 1947, I was Isfahan’s representative. Then I worked as a member of the university committee and after some time I was introduced to the military academy for service although I was had educational exemption. Also there were two Tudeh networks in the academy and I was responsible for one of them. When I got out I became a member of the general organization and organized the party’s activities as the person responsible for two cities of Isfahan and Yazd. In addition, printing of the newspaper which was publicly published in Naghshe Jahan printing office in North Lalehzar of Tehran and distributed in Isfahan was my responsibility. In fact I was the link between Tudeh Party and Isfahan and Yazd’s state committee until 19th August 1953. About the Coup de Ta in 1953, since I was fully aware of the military network in the organization and because they had announced they will act against the Coup, I was awaiting their reaction and I knew that they could stop it but unfortunately they couldn’t do anything because there was no single leader. After that I lost hope completely and I realized I am only a puppet. So I drew away and cut all relations with them.
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