September 24, 2007 4:05 p.m. EST
New York, NY (AHN) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was greeted by a diverse crowd of anti-war activists, holocaust deniers, Orthodox Jews and others outside of Columbia University Monday, as he arrived to speak to a crowded, highly-charged room full of students, faculty and reporters.
His visit began with a reproachful introduction from university President Lee Bollinger, who went through a list of the leader's most controversial remarks and actions. "You exhibit all the signs of a petty and cruel dictator," he said, criticizing what he called a "brutal crackdown" on dissidents and intellectuals, the execution of minors and his much condemned denial of the Holocaust, saying it showed that the Iranian leader was either " brazenly provocative or astonishingly uneducated." He also decried his pursuit of a nuclear program.
Ahmadinejad complained about the introduction, saying "In Iran, tradition requires that when we invite a person to be a speaker, we actually respect our students and the professors by allowing them to make their own judgment."
He focused much of his address on the merits of religion and the Prophet Muhammad and denouncing the Western mindset, which he said is characterized by materialism and greed and creates "an insecure psychological atmosphere, in order to justify their war-mongering acts in different parts of the world."
He refrained from calling the Holocaust a "myth," as he has in the past, and instead drew attention to the international community's response to the tragedy, which he said unduly punished the Palestinian people for the crimes when it established the Israeli state. "The Palestinian people had no role in it," he said. "Why is it that the Palestinian people are paying the price for an event they had nothing to do with?"
He also defended his country's nuclear program, saying that embargos and sanctions have created the need for them to develop their own energy. "We want the right to self-determination, to be independent," he maintained.
During the question and answer period, he refrained from giving a direct statement on the future of the state of Israel, denied that his country supports terrorism and claimed that "women in Iran enjoy the highest levels of freedom."
He also claimed, when challenged on his human rights records that Iran doesn't have the "phenomenon" of homosexuality. That, and his insistence that the Holocaust merits further research from "different perspectives" drew the loudest condemnations from the crowd.
He concluded his brief appearance by inviting Columbia University's faculty to come and speak in Iran and praying that "Almighty God" help "all of us to work hand in hand for a future filled with peace, justice and brotherhood."
John H. Coatsworth, the acting dean of Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs, said he regretted that Mr. Ahmadinejad didn't have more time to answer questions, or to more thoroughly respond to those raised.
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