ACSA's offer of Free Memebership to all Iranian Citizens turned down by Iranian Government

Los Alamos, NM (BELLNAC) September 20, 2007 — Less than 24 hours after its announcement of the "Free Membership for Iranian Citizens" program, the American Computer Scientist Association (ACSA) is already under fire from the Iranian Government.

An alleged representative of the Iranian Government called ACSA at 9:30 AM on September 19, 2007 regarding the ACSA press release issued only yesterday announcing free membership and an opportunity to communicate with others throughout the world, seeking freedom and free self expression for their homeland.

The representative claimed to be calling "on behalf of President H.E. Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad" from the "Permanent Iranian Mission to the United Nations", presumably in Geneva, Switzerland.

The representative indicated that the 'Iranian people' did not want any 'Western Ideologies' for Free. He insisted that the ACSA could be causing itself trouble by revealing information that involve the private state affairs of the Leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly those involving sales and distribution of petroleum products and Iran's relationship with its partners and customers 'throughout the world'".

The representative advised the ACSA officer, over the phone, that "strong steps would be taken" to prevent the ACSA and its membership from "further soliciting participation from Iranian civilians and exchange of information by internet, including but not limited to those under Iranian foreign policy regarding unapproved activities."

The representative then hung up the phone indicating that this "would be the only prior notice given to the ACSA."

An ACSA Public Relations Office responded to the negative telephone reaction:

"We at ACSA are only interested in maintaining an air of Full Self Expression and Free Exchange of Information about Computer Science and other topics for all civilians on the Planet without discriminating against anyone. That the Iranian Government engages in such confrontational behavior is not surprising. However, we shall continue to offer Free Membership to all Iranian Citizens except those within the present regime in Iran, unless and until its regime changes to one devoted to its people first having Freedom and Full Self Expression and a Free Exchange of Information, along with Free Enterprise. ACSA shall continue to endorse such Freedoms for all civilians on the planet. To the extent Mr. Ahmedinejad or the string pullers behind the Iranian Regime solicited this foray into such a negative telephone response this morning, he and they can, quite simply, rest assured we will continue to be about Freedom: of speech, of enterprise and that Membership in our association for Iranian citizens will continue to be Free."

The full text edition of the original ACSA Press Release may be read by CLICKING HERE, or by visiting: http://www.acsa2000.net/IranMembersPR.htm .