Ayatollah Khamenei Visits
The Family of Martyr Edik Nersisian
Visit Date: 26/12/1985
The photo of
Martyr Edik Nersisian
Martyred in Sarepol-Zahab, Kermanshah
Martyred on 27/9/1983
It’s late in the evening but the lights in the Office of the President are still on. The President is presiding a meeting with the economic officials of the related ministries. The big television on the far side of the room is on but the sound is turned down. The officials who themselves are responsible for many shortcomings in the country are either blaming others for the bad, economic situation or only justifying themselves in front of the President. And the President, as usual trying hard to lessen the differences and encourage them to do something to solve the people’s problems. All in the heart of the President is the people of Iran. He really likes to be among them rather than participating in such official sessions.
Anyway, the President sometimes looks at the television which has a program about the martyrs of the Holy war. The appearance of this particular martyr family shows that they are not Muslims. A martyr’s mother is being interviewed and he wishes that, instead of listening to those officials, he could hear what the martyr’s mother was saying. But he’s happy as he has already arranged to meet some of these Christian families, as in the previous year.
Markar, was now at home together with his parents to watch the interview with his mother to be broadcast on TV that evening. He had also made calls to his sisters Hilda and Ofilia and his brother Albert and to many relatives and friends to watch the program. In short, all Armenians in Taslihaat District and probably all Armenians in Tehran were waiting to watch the interview with Markar, his sister and his mother, the martyr’s mother. Markar was also the Captain of the Ararat Football Team and all Armenians knew him well.
Four days ago, reporters from the Iranian TV had interviewed the mother, brother and sister of martyr Edik Nersisian and last night, only a few minutes before it would be broadcast, the worst happened: lights went off in our district! This, of course was not unusual as during those war years it happened in many districts. Therefore almost all Armenians and people in Tehran did watch the interview except the martyr family! And this was really saddening especially to my mother who had so bravely said: it was our duty to sacrifice for our country and to be proud of our martyrs.
Anyway, since after the broadcasting of the interview, our telephone never stopped ringing. They all said how wonderful it was, how bravely she talked about her martyred son. The Armenian priest in our district, our representative in the Parliament and even the members of the football team Ararat praised my mother for what she had said and thanked her a lot. This continued today also. Many Muslims in our district came to our house to talk to my mother and praise her.
The Visit
Among those who came to see us there were some people we didn’t know at all and we thought that maybe they were members of the People’s Mobilization who helped the war-efforts. We talk to them but they say nothing about the TV interview. They only ask: Will the parents of the martyr be at home this evening?
ـ Yes, they will, why?
ـ Some officials would like to meet the martyr’s family.
We think perhaps they are officials of the Martyrs Foundation and, having watched the interview, they decided to come and meet us.
Later in the evening the same two persons along with a few others knock at our house-door. They come in and we think that they are the guests. We welcome them and offer them seats but they say: the principal guest is yet to come, and after a few minutes they do inform us that the President, Mr. Khamenei will be here soon.
The martyr family couldn’t believe it. Mother is exited and hastily tries to put the house in order and she brings fruits and sweets and puts them on the big table in the room and rearranging chairs. The President’s companions say to her: Mother, don’t trouble yourself; it is not necessary to do these things. The companions have brought us a bunch of flowers and a framed picture of the Imam; Markar set them on the table. Now the door-bell rings and Mr. Khamenei enters. When our family saw the President in person, they believed it, but they’re still thinking that his visit was arranged after last night, that is, after the interview was broadcast.
After saying salaam, the President sits on a chair on the far-side of the table and Markar and the martyr’s father sit on his left and his companions sit down on the right side. There are 3 children among the companions whose faces resemble one another; they must be brothers, we think. But we don’t know who they are and we don’t want to ask about them. The martyr’s mother is standing near the kitchen and Mr. Khamenei says: please come and sit down here.
So mother sits next to her husband and says: Thank you, you’re most welcome.
Mr. Khamenei usually sits on the floor in Armenian houses. The Armenians who are better-off have furniture, but what is a must in all Armenian houses is a table, even in very poor families.
Well, it’s Christmas time and the President has come to congratulate the occasion to the family of the Christian martyr.
Then Mr. Khamenei begins with: May God bless these days for you and bless the dear martyr of your family who fought for his patriotic country; he is a source of pride and spiritual elevation for you in this world and the next world, I share your grief; he is as my own son.
Then he asks: Is this the photo of your martyr? And he points at a framed photo on the table.
Marker gets up and brings Edik’s photo in soldier’s uniform. Mr. Khamenei looks the photo affectionately for some time and asks:
ـ When was he martyred?
ـ September 1983, answers Markar.
ـ Was he a military officer?
Yes, he was a sergeant, served in Sarpol-Zahab vicinity, my mother says.
Markar gets up again and brings Mr. Khamenei a framed document and says: This was given us on your behalf.
It is a letter of appreciation; they were sent to the families of martyrs in the military.
May God grant you proper rewards, says Mr. Khamenei.
The father is old and looks broken and his face shows that he has worked hard in life and faced many hardships. His head is mostly down and speaks very little, but Mr. Khamenei tries to converse with him: How many children do you have?
ـ Four now, he answers.
My mother adds: We had 5 children; one son was martyred; now we have two sons and two daughters.
The President says: May God keep them under His protection, and adds: you know that martyrs are also alive.
The father says: oh yes, yes, yes.
The mother says: He gave up his life for his patriotic country.
May God bless your martyr and give him rewards, says the President.
He turns to the father again and asks him about his job.
He answers in a weak voice: I used to work in a sausage factory. Even uttering this short sentence makes him cough.
Mother who thinks what he said was not audible adds: he was a worker there.
Mr. Khamenei asks mother: Is this gentleman your son?
Mother who has an Armenian accent in her Persian replies: Yes, he is, my other son is not here, if he knew you’d give us the honour, he would have come.
ـ Well, please say salaam to him on my behalf.
The President then asks: was the martyr married?
ـ No, but he had a fiancée, and was supposed to marry later.
ـ Where exactly was he martyred?
At Sarpol-Zahab, he was an engineer in mine-finding, the brother says.
ـ Mine-finder, it’s important.
The brother goes on: yes, he was also the deputy commander at his garrison and, because of his selfless, courageous activities the commander had promised to officially enroll him in the army after his two-year service was over.
Mr. Khamenei looks at the martyr’s photo again and says affectionately: commendable boy, and adds: After all, it is this sort of sacrifices that keep countries and nations safe, it’s always been this way, that is, the best people in a nation sacrifice and give up their lives so that the whole society, all people living in a certain country could continue their lives. Here I may mention the Christian martyrs in the early stages of Christianity; your martyrs are our martyrs also because, as you know, Jesus Christ is our prophet too. And if those people did not struggle and sacrifice to spread Christianity, I mean, if it weren’t for those martyrs, today there would be no news of Christ, the New Testament and Christian teachings; the martyrs sacrificed their lives and Christianity is alive today.
We are all impressed by Mr. Khamenei’s knowledge of Christian martyrs and their importance, and mother who is touched by the President’s comments says: Nothing in this world is obtained without sacrifices, nothing! And the president says: excellent, bravo.
Then the martyr’s brother picks up a magazine from the table, shows it to Mr. Khamenei and says: It’s a magazine that publishes the biography of the martyrs.
ـ That’s interesting, what’s its name?
ـ It’s called “The Family”.
He then adds: and this is a photo of the martyr.
Mr. Khamenei pages through the magazine and says: And here is the account of the interview with your mother.
The brother says: Yes, with her and with me and my sister.
The President, who is evidently impressed by the high spirit of the martyr’s mother, says: you possess a high spiritual strength, thank God; this type of spirit is a source of pride and elevation for all of us.
It’s my human duty, says my mother.
ـ We are also proud to be living among people like you; this makes our responsibility heavier on our shoulders especially because of this greatness shown by you all. I pray to God to bless you and I hope you will be successful in all your affairs.
Our family is so excited at this warm, friendly atmosphere: they’ve forgotten to play host to their guests but Mr. Khamenei himself picks up one piece of cake and says: Well, we have this piece of cake and then we go away.
Marker shyly says: Please stay for supper.
And the President says: I have to visit some other places.
Marker feels that the meeting is coming to an end; he still has some questions to ask but the intimacy of the meeting overcomes his shyness and asks about the children present: Are they your children, sir?
Mr. Khamenei answers: these are my own children and, pointing at his companions, adds: And they are my friends.
Everyone looks at the children and the boys shyly gaze at the table, Maytham, the youngest is sitting next to Mr. Khamenei and on his side are Masu`d and Mojtaba. It is really a pleasant meeting for all of us, no standing on ceremony, very simple, intimate and familial with the presence of the children who are wearing very ordinary clothes; if we saw them in the street, we could never think that they were the President’s sons.
Later we found out that Mr. Khamenei often took his very young sons with him when visiting the martyr’s families. The reason for this behaviour became clear to us in later years when the sons of some officials went astray because they never had such close contacts with ordinary people in Iran; they could never feel the pains, difficulties and shortages in the life of the masses.
The martyr’s brother who still thinks that the President came to see them after last night interview, as lights went off in our district; we couldn’t watch the program; but all the people saw it except we!
Mr. Khamenei remembers the official meeting in his Office when he could only watch the television from a distantce not hearing anything, then one of president’s companions who’d seen the program said: It was a wonderful interview.
Mr. Khamenei says: So it was this lady; she was wearing glasses.
Mother says: Yes, yes. I was in a meeting, I could see the screen but the sound was turned down.
The brother knows that the President had not heard the interview and that he didn’t know that the family he was meeting was the same; the visit had been arranged earlier.
The brother adds: Yes, the interview was with my mother and sister and myself, but we couldn’t watch it.
Then Mr. Khamenei addressed one of his companions and says: ask our own Public Relation Office for one copy of that interview and bring it for this family, note it down so you won’t forget it.
The brother says to the companion: You don’t have to trouble yourself, only let me know and I come to pick it up.
Mr. Khamenei, with a piece of cake in his hand, says to everyone present: why don’t you are have some sweets? So everyone picks up a piece.
Then Mr. Khamenei asks: what was the first name of your martyr?
ـ Edik and he was an excellent university student.
The mother adds: He was actually excellent in many fields, among my five children, the martyr was unique.
The President says: When one gives something in the path of God, it should be the best and you’ve done this.
ـ It was my humanitarian duty; I had the opportunity to be the mother of one martyr.
President: May God give the best of rewards; we should never underestimate God’s rewards.
Markar: My mother really has a strong will and spirit.
President: Thank God.
Markar: My brother was martyred together with a Muslim comrade in his trench and when we went to the cemetery, my mother first paid respect to this fallen comrade and then visited the grave of his own son.
President: That’s great.
I am proud to have such a mother, says Markar, and adds: We truly thank you for your visit, we all were eager to meet you.
President: Well, thank God for this opportunity to meet such a good and strong family. I didn’t know that the lady we were supposed to visit was the same lady who was interviewed on TV, well, it was a fortunate coincidence.
One of the companions said: One of the important things she said was: Don’t you think that we are making these statements because we are being interviewed, no, we always say what we really think.
After this, the martyr’s brother shows Mr. Khamenei some photos taken at the mourning ceremony for the martyr and he adds: My brother was both a university student and a teacher at Sughumonian High-school; he taught mathematics there for two years and then joined the army to do his military service.
President: I understand, he has been an interesting personality from different aspects, and active on many fronts.
The brother: As I said, he was the captain of our football team Ararat, my brother and I used to be active in sports.
Mr. Khamenei: That’s good work. He then, while picking up his walking-stick, adds: Well, we must leave you now. I am very happy to have met this lady and this family. I will carry the memory of your meeting for a long time for your strong will and spirit.
Now everyone gets up.
My mother is truly happy; she smiles and says: we’re proud to have met you, it was a great honour.
Then the President prays for the health and happiness of the family and says: Let me give you something as a keep-sake, he hands some coins to the parents of the martyr and adds: these coins are made to honour our martyrs.
The parents thank the President and he says: Goodbye, goodbye.
***