US Offers Grants to Help Oppose Iran's Clerics

Guy Dinmore, The Financial Times:

The Bush administration has put the democratisation of Iran out to tender--offering money to groups and individuals inside the Islamic republic--in what officials describe as the start of a long-term effort to pay for opposition to the ruling clerics. READ MORE

A tender notice posted on the US State Department website is soliciting bids for grants totalling $3m (€2.3m, £1.57m). It notes that the Iranian government may not apply because current US sanctions prohibit funding for official purposes, but these may be waived for non-governmental organisations.

The Iranian government has protested against what it calls illegal interference, diplomats say.

Proposals should focus on “promotion of democracy and human rights in Iran”, the notice says. Priorities include development of political parties and media, labour rights, civil society, and human rights, particularly women's rights.

An official in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor said the tender was in keeping with the procedure for ensuring open competition in issuing grants.

The initial amount is small but the department's Middle East Partnership Initiative has separate funding for democracy promotion in the region running into tens of millions of dollars.

Some senators are proposing a bill that would raise $50m, specifically for Iran. Unspecified funding for Syrian opposition groups has been approved by Congress.

“We have turned opposition into a profession,” said Ray Takeyh, analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations, a New York think-tank. “This money is going to go up.”

Iranian analysts say there is little chance in the current climate of US-Iranian hostility of groups inside Iran accepting US money. They would risk retaliation from the government, and also their credibility among some sectors of society.

However, the official tender notice does not exclude funding for Iranian opposition groups in exile. In recent months, many new exiled organisations have sprung up, waiting for such a moment.

“We are starting from scratch,” a US official said. “We don't know who the players are in Iran and Syria.” The Bush administration had not let go of the idea of “regime change” in those two countries, he added, but saw the process as a long-term project.

The Department of State website includes the following statement:

Project activity should take place abroad. U.S.-based or exchange projects are strongly discouraged.

It appears to me that the groups that can best assist the Iranian people in their quest for democracy and human rights in Iran are excluded.

Those inside of Iran cannot apply for these funds and expect to remain free for long. I can't imagine many legitimate groups inside the country applying. It would be more likely that the Iranian government would create their own groups inside of Iran to apply for the funds.

Am I missing something here?