IRAN: RATIONING 'TO CONTINUE' DESPITE PROTESTS

AKI ^ | 6/27/07

[Valin]

Tehran, 27 June (AKI) - The Iranian government will continue to ration petrol, the parliamentary speakership announced, despite violent public protests overnight in the capital Tehran and elsewhere that erupted again on Wednesday. Deputy parliament speaker Javad Bahonar told MPs that oil minister Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh will shortly unveil a plan to sell petrol at market prices to private citizens who need to buy more than the 100 litres per month they are allowed under the government's newly introduced rationing. Bahonar however declined to state what the commercial price of fuel would be.

Some MPs denied that the rioting on Tuesday and Wednesday had anything to do with the government's rationing measures. "The attacks on the petrol pumps were organised well in advance by 'agents provocateurs' working for the US government, who incited some deranged individuals to set petrol stations alight," Morteza Tamaddon told journalists.

He also claimed that thousands of counterfeit dollars had been paid to these 'deranged individuals' .

The parliamentary speakership did not include in the agenda of the emergency session convened on Wednesday a motion tabled urgently by a group of MPs proposing an immediate halt to the limit on private drivers of 3.3 litres of petrol per day, which they termed an "unpopular and provocative" measure.

Under the government rationing, private cars which cannot use compressed natural gas (CNG) get 100 liters of petrol a month, and those with CNG 30 litres. Taxis and other vehicles with special permission are allowed 800 litres per month.

The maximum quota for each government car is 10 litres per day, the Iranian news agency IRNA said, quoting a statement issued on Tuesday by the oil ministry.

The rationing measures came into force late on Tuesday, at just two hours notice, sparking rioting at petrol pumps in Tehran and elsewhere. Protests reportedly spread on Wednesday to Ahwaz and Khorramshahr in the south of the country, where members of the public clashed with riot police deployed to guard petrol stations.

Long queues were reported at petrol stations late on Tuesday and on Wednesday in Tehran and other cities.

Iran is the world's fourth largest oil producer. But despite its huge energy reserves, it lacks refining capacity and imports some 44 percent of the more than 70 million litres of petrol the country consumes daily. State fuel subsides in place for years have encouraged fuel consumption, allowing token prices at the pump of just 8 eurocents per litre which has now increased by 25 percent to 10 eurocents per litre.

Iran has a large budget deficit largely caused by fuel subsidies and the inflation rate is estimated at 20-30 percent. New UN sanctions against Iran contained in a draft resolution prepared by Britain would severely limit imports of petrol and fuel for Iranian airforce and navy ships and planes as well as for cars, and would sharply curb crude oil exports, according to unnamed UN diplomats interviewed by Adnkronos International (AKI).

[Valin]

More here
Serious Unrest in Iran
AntiMullah ^ | June 26th, 2007 | Iran Sources via Alan Peters

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1856862/posts
Posted on 06/26/2007 9:34:56 PM CDT by FARS

Protests At Iran Fuel Rationing
BBC ^ | June 27th, 2007 | Frances Harrison

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1856878/posts
Posted on 06/26/2007 10:34:35 PM CDT by GravityFree

Iran:Photos of the torched gas stations
Wednesday, June 27th, 2007 @ 11:36 UTC
by Hamid Tehrani
Thanks to Jomhour we can see 62 photos of the torched gas stations and traffic jam in Tehran as Iranians protested fuel rationing today.

http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/2007/06/27/iranphotos-of-the-torched-gas-stations/
or
http://www.bubbleshare.com/album/189716/overview#6800059

Gateway Pundit
http://gatewaypundit.blogspot.com/2007/06/rioting-against-regime-in-iran.html
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
MASS RIOTING Against the Regime in Iran (Video!)

[Mach5]

Floggings will continue until morale improves...

[P-40]

Bahonar however declined to state what the commercial price of fuel would be.

Must be still trying to work that out with Jimmy Carter.

[Valin]

Ping

[HIDEK6]

The beatings will continue until morale improves.

[Valin]

Valin predicts: Mr. Peanut will come out with an in depth study and article proving that these riots are to be laid at the feet of George Bush and the (cue the ominious music) the Neo-Cons.

[jiggyboy]

"The attacks on the petrol pumps were organised well in advance by 'agents provocateurs' working for the US government, who incited some deranged individuals to set petrol stations alight," Morteza Tamaddon told journalists.

[reagan_fanatic]

"The attacks on the petrol pumps were organised well in advance by 'agents provocateurs' working for the US government, who incited some deranged individuals to set petrol stations alight," Morteza Tamaddon told journalists. He also claimed that thousands of counterfeit dollars had been paid to these 'deranged individuals' .

Baghdad Bob! Good to hear from you again!

[Valin]

I think what we’re seeing with this statement is what’s known as a....creative alternative to the truth. :-)

[jalisco555]

Rationing petrol in Iran is like rationing ice in Alaska. Only grotesque governmental mismanagement can lead to such an anomaly. And I bet the people there know it.

[Aquinasfan]

Iran has a large budget deficit largely caused by fuel subsidies and the inflation rate is estimated at 20-30 percent.

Stupid mullahs.

[agere_contra]

The attacks on the petrol pumps were organised well in advance by 'agents provocateurs' working for the US government, who incited some deranged individuals to set petrol stations alight,"

I wish this were true. I doubt the 4 Billion dollar risk-averse bloatocrat CIA has enough initiative to do such a thing

[agere_contra]

New UN sanctions against Iran contained in a draft resolution prepared by Britain would severely limit imports of petrol and fuel for Iranian airforce and navy ships and planes as well as for cars, and would sharply curb crude oil exports

This seems like an occasion where sanctions might actually be of use. Iran is so oddly structured on petrol that very little needs to be done to knock the whole edifice over.

[nuconvert]

“will shortly unveil a plan to sell petrol at market prices to private citizens who need to buy more than the 100 litres per month they are allowed under the government’s newly introduced rationing.”

LoL. They’re cracking already.
The Iranian people seriously underestimate the power they have against the regime.

[Valin]

Wednesday, June 27
Petrols Couponization resulted to nightly riot in Tehran
by Jadi on Wed 27 Jun 2007 03:06 AM PDT

http://jadi.civiblog.org/

In Iran petrol (benzine) “was” cheap. Before the 1979 revolution it was less that 1 cent for a litre and in the last year it was around 10 Euro cents and the government was arising the price each year by 15%. They’ve intended to rise the price to “world standards” in less than 10 years. People were considering this 15%, as an official inflation and were adjusting every other thing with it.

At his first year of presidency, Ahmadijenad told that this 15% is one of the problems of our economy and said “this year the oil price will be just like the previous year!”.

But what about this year! He said “We are going to limit each persons usage of the gas because one of the economies problems is high oil usage!” and he decided to 1) couponize the fuel and 2) rise up the price.

Yesterday they just announced that “Each car will have a 100 litre per month limitation and the prices are arises too. And if you are going to use more than your coupon, the price is 50 Euro cents per litre!” this means about 5 times more!!! People were mad. At first they went into the long ques to get petrol and after waiting hours and hours there, the riot started. Fire+Petrol+Angry people resulted to armed police and then guards standing in front of each pump!

I can not understand this government. They have to guard pumps, they have to use armed police against women, they have to use secret police against students and the prisons are full of dissidents; even dissident mullas. They should be ashamed. They can not kill everybody. They can not force anybody to believe what they believe.

One friend from a newspaper told me that they’ve got an order which says “you may nor write anything about oil prices or last nights uncalms in the newspapers”. But we have weblogs, we have internet and we have mobile phones. Here are some photos. From Mellat News / ISNA which is an official news agency and from the Dourbin (means Camera) site.

[nuconvert]

Thanks for the link