مجموعة ٢٨ /٦٧ "بلاد فارس: تقارير سنوية، ١٩٣٢-" [و‎‎١‎٧‎٥] (٦٤٤/٣٤٩)

[15259] B 10
19
80. Despite M. Kazemi’s statement that a list of regulations for travellers
was being posted up in all custom-houses, it took His Majesty’s Legation nearly
the whole year to obtain a copy from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. When the
text was eventually received at the end of October, it was found to be somewhat
long and complicated, but it undoubtedly helped to clarify the position, and it is
^ to be hoped that future travellers will benefit from it>. The good impression caused
by the adoption of a more reasonable attitude by the Iranian authorities towards
pilgrims was, however, somewhat marred by a typically inconsiderate action
at the time of Muharram. The movement for the unveiling of Iranian women
was then in full swing and no Iranian woman in a chadur was
allowed to enter the shrine in Meshed. This, of course, did not
apply to foreign women, but in view of the physical resemblance between many
Iranians and Indians, the Iranian Government decided to restrict the number
of foreign pilgrimages to Meshed during the months of Muharram and Safar
(the 25th March to the 21st May) in order that the fanaticism of the local
inhabitants might not be aroused by the spectacle of some women being allowed
into the shrine veiled while others were not. No visas were, therefore, issued to
Indian pilgrims during those two months. What was a matter for regret was
that the Iranian Government took no steps to communicate this decision to the
Government of India, with the result that when pilgrims arrived at the frontier
at Mirjawa, where they normally obtained their visas (before the earthquake they
used to obtain them at Quetta), they were summarily turned back. In view of the
considerable distances involved, pilgrims were thus subjected to much hardship.
Moreover, it took His Majesty’s Legation ten days to extract any explanation
from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and it later even transpired that, when
the Under-Secretary had proposed giving some notice of the decision of the
Iranian Government, M. Kazemi had decided that it and the reasons therefor
were too delicate for any advance notification to be given. By this time the milk
had been spilt and there was not much to be gained by crying over it; but the
opportunity was taken to impress with some urgency on the Ministry for Foreign
Affairs the desirability in future of bringing regulations of this nature to the
notice of all concerned without any delay.
(g) Visits by non-Moslem British Subjects to the Shrine at Meshed.
81. Prior to the disturbances in the holy shrine at Meshed in the summer of
1935, it had been virtually impossible for any European to enter it except in
disguise. After the disturbances, however, the authorities began to encourage
visits by Christians, doubtless in pursuit of their policy of destroying the power
of the mullahs. Two parties of British travellers, including members of His
Majesty’s Legation, were thus able to visit the shrine that autumn, being
accompanied by substantial escorts of police and shrine officials. In each case it
was given out by the authorities that the parties consisted of Turkish pilgrims.
82. These visits were repeated on a far larger scale at the end of August'
1936 by a party of British and Austrian students who were touring Iran under
the auspices of the National Union of Students. It was again given out by the
police that most of the party were Turks, but a local paper, referring to the arrival
of the party in Meshed, announced that they were all British, and there can be no
doubt that the news of their visit to the shrine was widely known. In fact, His
Majesty’s consul-general for Khorassan received sufficient evidence as to the local
reaction to the visit to convince him that serious anti-British feeling was thereby
being aroused in Meshed, which might gravely endanger the lives of British
residents there in the event of future disturbances. His Majesty’s Minister
accordingly decided that, until the Iranian Government’s anti-clerical
propaganda had so far affected public feeling that visits by non-Moslems weie
no longer regarded locally as sacrilegious, everything possible should be done to
prevent them being made by British subjects.
(h) Zahidan Railway.
83. The Iranian Government, who had raised the question of the reopening
of this railway on several occasions in 1935, did not refer to it at all in 1936.
84. A telegram was received from the Government of India in November
stating that, owing to the great fall in trade by this route as a result of the
introduction of the Iranian exchange restrictions, it was proposed to withdraw