Iran is in a Constitutional Crisis!

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Iran is currently in a Constitutional Crisis brought on by a fight between reformists and hardline conservatives.

In Iran, all candidates must get the blessing of the fundamentalist Guardians Council to run for office. The calls for liberty and freedom have been growing quite loud, and to counter reformists, the Guardians Council disqualified liberal candidates in mass.

117 "Reformist" members and other liberal-minded legislators have resigned from office. This, in turn, denies the 2/3 needed for quorum. As a result, the Iranian Legislature is paralyzed!

Also, the Iran Constitution does not have a remedy for this.
Here's the story from al-Jazeera

 

Damn......I posted an article about this here just a few days ago.....I guess noone reads my posts anymore

 

I read it.

I don't expect to get many responses either.

 

I read both of yours, there just isnt much to say though. Iran has been in a crisis for the last decade or so now and it has been led in the right direction, albeit slowly.

 

Should I be happy or sad for Iran that there are political problems there?

 

Sad.

Iran is actually experiencing a backlash of the conservatives. The struggle between reformers and conservatives has been going on for years in Iran and the ruling reformers had to face stalward resistance by the conservatives and were achieving change only slowly. But they achieved change.

The current backlash is not at least a result of the US pressuring Iran with their pompous demands for regime change and democracy (Iraqi style?) - in a time of an outside threat the people more likely support their rulers, no matter how repressive they are.
Since Iraq the Iranians are perfectly aware how a US liberation looks alike, and they haven't forgotten the rule of the US backed Shah too.

The US hawks have given the hardliners in Teheran extra ammo against the reformers who tried to achieve change in Iran: They were able to accuse them to appease the US when demanding reforms, being traitors on Iranian sovereignty and interests. Now the reformers are in an awkward situation:</font>

• They either boycott the elections in protest against the conservatives and lose influence or
• they stay in the game losing face to the public for caving in to the conservatives.

Great, isn't it?

Why can't people like Bolton, Cheney and Ledeen for a change simply keep their foaming traps shut? By bullying Iran the US have achieved about the opposite of the change they wanted: The hardliners are now in a stronger position than before. Congrats.

A good article: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/FA23Ak02.html

[ February 02, 2004, 13:12: Message edited by: Ragusa ]

 

Read them too. And like Joacqin stated, there isn't much to say about that. That "reformation" is the strong power in Iran isn't new. And that conservatives struggle to keep power isn't neither. The obvious problem is, how far will the conservatives go to keep their power ? I don't have any clue how that should be figured out. It all comes down if they would use violent means at some point to stop "reformation". Which would be in the end futile, but propably would stretch things longer and make it bloodier.

The indicator for the growth-rate of laxity seem to be ski-sport-resorts. The seem to get lax and more lax every year, goes the saying. So, when will they have open après-ski and don't need to hide their rum with creative means ? 30 years ?

 

I knew, just knew, that the United States would get blamed for Iran's Crisis!

@ Ragusa

The Guardians Council is mostly clerics and other religious leaders. They disqualified about 2,500 liberal candidates in an attempt not lose more ground.

This is not the result of a backlash at the United States - not even close.

If the United States is to blame, it is due to its ideas of liberty and freedom. They are beginning to bloom in many Middle East states - albeit very slowly.

 

^^^^^^^^ chumming the water.

 

You're sure, France isn't to blame for that part? Liberté! Fraternité! Egalité!

The first time the Iranians wanted democracy they got regime-changed by the US & UK and got the Shah. An autocrat doesn't really mean liberty and freedom if you ask me. The second time they got Khomeini, bad luck, but they're working on it. And they do not need any foreign country trying to influence their interior business to please US national interest.

And you might have noted that I used the words "extra ammo" - what I wanted to say the US meddling in hasn't made it easier for the reform candidates.

[ February 02, 2004, 22:34: Message edited by: Ragusa ]