Letters to the President

Petr Lom was the only foreigner allowed to follow Iranian President Ahmadinejad's populist trips to the country's countryside. During these visits, he received numerous letters — ten million, according to the government — from poor citizens asking for help. Many of them were certain they would receive support, possessing blind faith in the President. This trust was based on sporadic positive responses from the President, who once sent a chador to a little girl and sometimes donated money to some families from his own pocket. However, most of the letters asking for financial assistance ended up in the hands of employees at the Presidential Letters Center, who simply filled out forms and did nothing. These letters serve as a common thread in describing the Iranian President's absurd populism and the hypocrisy of the ruling regime.