Boycotting World Philosophy Day

On April 27, 2006, the Iranian-Canadian philosopher Ramin Jahanbegloo was arrested in Tehran on a charge of fomenting a “velvet revolution” against the Islamic Republic. Mr. Jahanbegloo was placed in a 6-by-10-foot cell in Evin Prison. To keep his mind active while in solitary confinement, he scribbled nearly 2,000 aphorisms on the back of tissue boxes.

Four months later, he was released on bail and fled into exile. He surfaced late in 2007 in Istanbul at World Philosophy Day, an annual gathering of intellectuals sponsored by Unesco to celebrate philosophy’s contributions to the “principles and values on which world peace depends: democracy, human rights, justice and equality.” Mr. Jahanbegloo, now a professor at the University of Toronto, describes World Philosophy Day as “a great initiative,” which is why he is dismayed by Unesco’s decision to hold this year’s main event in Tehran, a city where, he says, “no free debate or critical thinking is possible.”…
Unesco hasn’t budged, and some are now calling for a boycott. “We are asking philosophers not to go because if they do it’s going to politically, morally and culturally legitimize an illegitimate regime,” Mr. Jahanbegloo says. There are also plans for an alternative conference that will be held online, titled Philosophy4Freedom. The theme will be philosophy’s role in promoting freedom and human rights.

“We’re listening and we’re trying to respond,” says Sue Williams, a spokeswoman for Unesco. The gathering in Tehran is an “important event,” she says, but there are also related events being held in Mexico City; Dakar, Senegal; Tunis and at Unesco headquarters in Paris. Asked if Unesco believes that Iranian philosophers will be able to speak freely in Tehran, Ms. Williams says, “We haven’t had any feedback suggesting that this will not be the case.”

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(Thanks, C!)