Ext 5001/41 'PERSIA – INTERNAL (Miscellaneous despatches).' [‎18v] (36/248)

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Shortly afterwards, the British authorities found five men in the internment
camp, whom the Soviet authorities had interned and then forgotten about, so
His Majesty’s Embassy had pleasure in informing the Ministry for Foreign
Affairs that it disclaimed all interest in them. Assuming that the Soviet
authorities have now been good enough to liberate them, the total number oi
Persians released from internment during the quarter was sixty-two.
21. Thirteen Persians now remain interned in Persia, twelve in the Persia^
camp at Tehran and one, the Mullah Kashani, in the British camp a
Kermanshah. A few more, including General Zahedi, are interned in Palestine.
On the 2nd June the Persian Prime Minister enquired of His Majesty's
Ambassador whether the internment of those in Persia could not be commuted to
forced residence in the small town of Mahallat, fifty miles east of Sultanabad.
The proposal has been approved by all concerned, except that Kashani is to
remain provisionally at Kermanshah; the future of Zahedi and the others in
Palestine is not yet decided.
Internal Politics and Soviet Interference.
22. Bayat was still in office at the beginning of April, owing largely to the
inability of the Deputies to agree on a successor. His Government was, however,
slowly disintegrating. Nasrullah Intizam, the Minister for Foreign Affairs,
resigned on the 1st April; Ibrahim Zand, Minister for War, had gone to Palestine
for medical treatment; and the Russians were bringing increasing pressure to
bear on Bayat to dismiss Sururi, Minister of the Interior, who had shown firm
ness in dealing with Tudeh activities. A deadlock appeared, moreover, to have
been reached in the Majlis, with Government supporters and opponents in
roughly equal strength. This became evident when the Majlis, meeting again for
the first time after the No Ruz recess on the 3rd April, proceeded to elect its
new president. Seyyid Muhammad Sadiq Tabatabai, the retiring president,
who was a strong supporter of Bayat, was re-elected by a majority of one vote
over his principal rival, Farrukh, the nominee of Bayat’s opponents in the
Chamber. Bayat, however, appeared to enjoy the support of the Shah, who was
believed to be working to expose the futility of the Majlis, and of the Russians
to whom a state of continued administrative paralysis was not unwelcome.
23. On the 15th April Seyyid Zia deposited a motion of non-confidence in
the Government on the bureau of the Majlis, requesting an early debate. The
motion was subsequently withdrawn by the Seyyid when he learnt that Bayat
intended to clarify the position of the Government, at the next meeting of the
Majlis. This took place on the 17th April, when Bayat made a long speech
which was frequently interrupted by cries of dissent, defending his Government's
policy, and asking the Chamber to judge between his Government and their
opponents. He complained that instead of taxing the Government in open debate
his critics had for some time done their best to undermine the Government’s
authority by spreading false rumours such as, for instance, the alleged arming of
the tribes and the formation of a tribal bloc, or the stories that the Americans
leaving Persia were destroying or removing all the installations they had built
in this country. He claimed" special credit for the speed with which he had
settled the Millspaugh problem and denied that it had any adverse effect on
Persia’s relations with the United States. When, however, the vote was taken
only forty-five Deputies voted for Bayat, with three against and forty-three
abstentions. The Government thereupon resigned.
24. Although the Shah sent messages urging the Deputies to find a
successor to Bayat without delay and to put an end to the crisis, no Government
had been formed by the end of April. After endless argument the Deputies
decided to nominate representatives from each parliamentary fraction to meet
together and try to find a solution. At a secret meeting of these representatives
on the 24th April Mahmud Bader received most votes, with Qawam es Sultaneh
a close second, and Mansur, Pakravan and Sadiq Sadiqi far behind. Bader
was, nevertheless, not chosen because the Russians were against him. The
inability of the Majlis to come to a decision was indeed due largely to the fact
that some thirty or forty Deputies wished to elect a candidate pleasing to the
Russians; and although they were unable to impose a man of their choice on the
Majlis, they were able to block anyone of character and ability proposed by their
opponents.' The Tudeh meanwhile were demanding a coalition Government in
which they would be represented, although they have only eight members in
Parliament. The result was a compromise, with the selection of a candidate who
was considered a harmless nonentity. On the 2nd May Ibrahim Hakimi
(Hakim ul Mulk), who is old and deaf and has played no important part in