When the Law Is Not for All: Farzaneh Sadegh’s Anger Over Bag Inspection and the Removal of Ardabil Airport Director

According to Rokna’s economic correspondent, news emerged on the evening of Wednesday, October 15, that an immediate order had been issued to dismiss the director general of the Ardabil airports province. The order came in response to Minister Sadegh’s protest when an airport security officer, in accordance with protocol, attempted to inspect her bag. The controversy deepened when the minister refused the inspection, stormed out of Ardabil Airport, and departed for Tehran.

That reaction not only squandered an ethical opportunity to emphasize the rule of law but sent a troubling message: the performance of a legal duty by a diligent officer in the aviation security system was not only unacknowledged, but became the basis for a managerial change at the provincial level.

What Do Domestic Laws Say?

Under Iranian law, entry and exit are subject to specific security protocols, and all citizens are bound to observe them. Even political officials are not exempt from airport security checks within the country. While certain procedural facilitation might be extended to officials, exemption from inspection or legal control does not exist.

Passports bearing political status are issued under the Passport Law of 1972 (1351), and their privileges depend on the Political Relations Law of 1964 (1343) or the Vienna Convention (1961). According to paragraph 2 of Article 39 of the Vienna Convention, diplomatic immunities expire after the mission concludes, and within Iran, officials traveling on political passports no longer enjoy immunity.

Additionally, Article 13 of the Passport Law requires holders of political passports to surrender them to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs upon entering the country, at which point they shall be regarded as ordinary citizens. The responsibility for inspection is assigned to the law enforcement force under Article 5 of the same law.

Law Enforcement for All, Not for a Select Few

In modern legal systems, a foundational principle of administrative justice is that laws must apply equally to everyone — whether an ordinary citizen or a high-ranking government official. When a minister, whose office is under the same legal framework as others, refuses a simple bag inspection and demands a political reaction, the message it conveys to society is that top officials are above the law.

Airport security officers, under protocol and regulation, must inspect all passengers — including officials — to ensure flight safety, prevent the entry of prohibited or hazardous items, and uphold international aviation security standards.

If the dismissal of the provincial airport director was motivated by political pressure rather than an objective evaluation, it underscores a problem: the law being used as a tool for controlling political behavior. Dismissal decisions should be based on documented overall performance, not immediate reaction to a single event.

Examples from Other Countries: Officials Are Also Subject to Rules

To underscore how unusual this incident is in many countries, consider these practices:

United States
Presidents, ministers, senators, and other officials traveling through public airports are subject to the same TSA protocols or equivalent security checks. No official can claim broad immunity from basic security screening, except under tightly controlled and special arrangements.

United Kingdom

In the UK, airport security rules (CAA and border security regulations) require all passengers to pass security checks without discrimination. No official, regardless of rank, is formally exempt from such protocols.

Canada, Australia, and European Countries

In these countries too, any official traveling through airports must comply with aviation security, border control, anti-terrorism regulations, etc. There is no blanket exemption for someone on official duty — unless a judicial or security directive is specifically issued by multiple authorities.

The Ardabil incident is not merely a dispute between a minister and an airport officer; it reveals a deeper weakness in the legal culture of a country where officials appear to believe they are different from others and not subject to law. Yet officials are public servants and should be more directly accountable under the law.

Therefore, it is expected that the Minister of Roads and relevant authorities treat this as an opportunity to correct the approach to legal responsibility, issue a public apology to the officer who fulfilled his duty, and affirm strongly that the law is for everyone.

Reaction from the Airports & Air Navigation Company

In response to media coverage about the Ardabil Airport incident, the public relations office of the Airports & Air Navigation Company of Iran issued clarifications to the public:

Organizational changes are routine and occur based on administrative evaluation and managerial considerations. The replacement of the Ardabil airport director was carried out within that context and is not related to the controversies raised in the media. Similar managerial changes have been seen recently in some airports.

According to official rules and directives, inspection of belongings carried by government officials — including members of the government, ministers, and high-ranking officials — is subject to specific regulations approved by competent authorities.

The Airports & Air Navigation Company has always sought to facilitate passenger departure and arrival processes and improve airport service standards across all airports, prioritizing quality service improvement for travelers.

It is worth noting that recently a trilateral summit among Iran, Russia, and Azerbaijan was held in Baku, during which ministers traveled across the Astara border to inspect North-South corridor projects. During the two-day summit, field visits and negotiations on border transport projects were conducted and important decisions were made. The widespread circulation of tangential content from opposition media channels during this time is seen as an attempt to undermine attention to this strategic event.

Finally, the Airports Company requests that the public and media rely on official sources for news and information to prevent the spread of rumors or inaccurate interpretations.

Public Relations, Airports & Air Navigation Company of Iran.