|
|
A Brief Note on the Life of Khosrow Golsorkhi
By Iraj Bashiri Copyright, Bashiri, 2008 |
Khosrow Golsorkhi was born in 1944 in the city of Rasht in northwestern Iran. He was executed on February 18, 1974, in Tehran.
Like many poets of his generation, there is very little information on the early stages of his life. An Iranian journalist, poet, and communist activist, Golsorkhi was involved in anti-government activities. Along with the movie director Keramat Daneshian, he was convicted for having plotted to kidnap the Shah's son, allegedly to force the SAVAK to release some members of their group from prison.
In a show trial in which Golsorkhi and Daneshian were expected to recant their affiliation with the left, both the poet and the director spoke strongly against the regime, detailing the harm that programs such as the "White Revolution" had inflicted on Iran and the Iranian people. As a result of their not abiding by orders, their trial was cut short and both were executed shortly thereafter. Golsorkhi and Daneshian chose the military show trial as the venue for their protest on live TV in support of the masses because, at exactly the same time, the Shah was hosting the Conference for Human Rights in Tehran.
Various censored and uncensored versions of the trial proceedings have appeared since 1979 when it was broadcast for the first time. The poignant point of the trial is when the chief judge of the military tribunal interrupts Golsorkhi's praise of Islam and Marxism and directs him to limit his statements to his own defense. Golsorkhi refuses to do so and continues his speech on the theme of defense of the masses. When the chief judge persists on his demand, Golsorkhi stops his speech saying, "I will then sit down. I will not speak and I will sit down," and he sits down. That is the last time the public saw both Khosrow Golsorkhi and Keramat Daneshian.
Top of the page