Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
has repeated his claim that there are no gay people in Iran, and
added that perhaps CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer, who asked the question,
might be “in contact” with people who engage in gay sex.
In 2007, while speaking to students at
Columbia University, Ahmadinejad asserted that there are no gay
people in Iran.
“In Iran, we don't have homosexuals
like in your country. In Iran, we do not have this phenomenon. I
don't know who has told you we have that,” he said in response to a
student's question on the death penalty Iran imposed on gay people.
During a news briefing, Blitzer
referenced Ahmadinejad's previous comments, then asked, “Could you
tell us, are there homosexuals in Iran?”
“My position hasn't changed,”
Ahmadinejad responded. “In Iran, homosexuality is looked down upon
as an ugly deed. Perhaps there are those who engage in such
activities and you may be in contact with them and more aware of
them, but in Iranian society such activities, thoughts and behaviors
are shameful. Therefore, these are not known elements within Iranian
society. Rest assured, this is one of the ugliest behaviors in our
society. It is against divine will, divine teachings of any and
every faith, and it is certainly at the detriment of humans and
humanity. But as the government, I cannot go in the streets and stop
my population and ask them about specific orientations. So, my
position is clear about that.” (The video is embedded in the right
panel of this page.)