Ghavam Saltaneh

Prime Minister of Iran and Patriot with my Father

In the photo above, master statesman Prime Minister "Ghavam Saltaneh"  with dark glasses, who helped rid Iran of Soviet occupying troops following World War II. Beside him is my father Anoshiravan Sepahbody, Foreign Minister of Iran in white suit (center). I am standing at the far left in white suit too. You can also see Malek-ol-Shoara Bahar, with Black. He was a famed poet and Minister of Culture in havam'sabinet seen here in complete attendance.  As war ended, the occasion for the photo was the arrival of the first French airplane a Languedoc, at Tehran airport. We took a ride over the Damavand mountain and the province of Mazanderan.

American Pressure

It is interesting to note that during the Summer of 1945, the Americans who were still occupying part of Iran, wanted  to sell for tens of millions of dollars their military surplus: tents, military wears, canned food as well as an array of totally needless junk. A "garage sale" as they say in America. The cabinet was almost entirely opposed to this forced purchase including my father Anoshiravan Khan Sepahbody. One of the member of the cabinet informed the American Embassy. It was on a Friday, the Persian weekly holiday. The US ambassador demanded to see my father immediatly.  My father was in Shemiran at the German Embassy summer resort which had been taken over by the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since this was not an urgent problem and that in addition the US ambassador had been arrogant, my father told him to come the next day, a Saturday, to the Ministry. This matter of fact reply made the American ambassador furious and he complained to the Shah. The Ghavam cabinet fell and  a new one was formed with a different Minister of Foreign Affairs. The military surplus was finally bought by the army but the American ambassador was recalled home. Tit for tat. In the photo left, my father walks forward with Prime Minister Gahvam Saltaneh keeping pace behind following a cabinet meeting.

With the Russians refusing to leave Iran, and with the Azerbaijan affair in full crisis, master statesman Gahvam Saltaneh was asked once again to become Prime Minister and form a new Government. Ghavam wanted my father as Minister of Foreign Affairs, but the Shah and others insisted that because of the Americans it would be better to nominate someone else to this position. Thus, my father became Minister of Justice. While in this position, he refused to sign the death sentence of an individual. My father was against the death penalty and resigned from the position rather than sign. He was lauded by many in Iran for this action. He became a Minister without potfolio and in August 1946, he was nominated Head of the Iranian Delegation to the Paris Peace Conference. While there, he became also Ambassador of Iran to France, a position which he had also held before the World War II.

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