Replies

REFORMIST PARTY HOLDS ANNUAL CONGRESS AMID QUESTIONS ABOUT COALITION'S FUTURE.

Iran's main reformist political group has just completed its annual two-day congress, but questions about the reformists' role in the February 2004 parliamentary election remain unanswered. Meanwhile, President Hojatoleslam Mohammad Khatami is encouraging the unenthusiastic reformists to participate in the election. The Islamic Iran Participation Party's (IIPP) fifth annual congress began on 16 October, and items on the agenda include domestic and foreign affairs, the upcoming parliamentary election, the economy, the performance of the party, and its activities in the coming year, ISNA reported. Participating in the congress are 147 provincial representatives, 113 central party officials, and 100 none-voting observers, including a vice president, cabinet ministers, and national-religious activists. Officials from the Islamic Iran Solidarity Party and the Executives of Construction Party were also guests at the congress.

IIPP Secretary-General Mohammad Reza Khatami, who is the deputy speaker of parliament and the president's younger brother, reportedly made some daring observations in his opening speech on 16 October. According to Mehrdad Serjooie's article in "Iran News" on 19 October, Khatami "openly question[ed] the powers of the Supreme Leader." He also said, according to dpa on 16 October, that fundamentalist interpretations of Islam by some of those in government are driving people away from religion and the Islamic system. "This will not only increase the trend towards secularism, especially among the youth, but also lead to more influence from abroad for overthrowing the system."

A milder version of the speech was provided by IRNA. Mohammad Reza Khatami said that Iran's constitution is adequate and does not need to be changed. The problem, according to Khatami, is not the absence of laws but the absence of the rule of law. He added that the constitution is implemented in an ambiguous manner, and the connection between responsibilities and accountability is missing. "Yas-i No" reported on 15 October that the rest of the sessions would be held behind closed doors. IIPP official Hussein Mahmudzadeh shed light on the course of these sessions, however, explaining that it is still not clear if the party will participate in the election. Many would like to leave some room to maneuver on the issue.

A little more than a week before the IIPP congress, in the evening of 8 October, leaders of the reformist 2nd of Khordad political factions met with President Khatami and parliament speaker Hojatoleslam Mehdi Karrubi to discuss the parliamentary election, IRNA reported on 9 October. Khatami said that a suitable atmosphere would ensure a massive public turnout, and he emphasized acting within a constitutional framework. Karrubi reportedly echoed Khatami's comments. All the meeting participants stressed the need for intra-factional unity. This was the second such meeting; the first took place on 2 October (see "RFE/RL Iran Report," 6 October 2003).

Second of Khordad groups went into the earlier meeting with a sense of despair about the upcoming election, the "Sharq" newspaper reported on 4 October. Some of the more radical reformist groups, such as the Mujahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization, even advocated a boycott of the election. Yet President Khatami and Karrubi emphasized the importance of public participation, according to "Sharq." The performance of both the legislative and executive branches was criticized, and the need for their coordination and unity was stressed. Parliamentarian Jamileh Kadivar was at the meeting, and she said that the 2nd of Khordad groups expressed concern about restrictions on public choice in the election. The reformists' lack of success in getting laws amended also is worrisome to the country's top elected officials. Khatami and Karrubi met on 9 October with members of the Guardians' Council, Fars News Agency and state television reported. The meeting was convened on Khatami's invitation and reportedly was intended to address some of the differences between the elected executive and legislative branches of government and the unelected guardians -- namely, the establishment of provincial election-supervision offices, supervisory boards, and the fate of the twin bills. The bills were introduced in September 2002 and were intended to reduce the power of the Guardians' Council in elections and to strengthen presidential powers.

When asked about the outcome of the meeting, Karrubi was noncommittal, saying that there was a lot to discuss, such as the annual budget, the fourth development plan, the February parliamentary election, and other future elections. He said that differences should be reduced and "we should all move forward within the framework of the constitution and the aspirations of the imam." This latter series of meetings -- those of the reformists with Khatami and Karrubi, and that of the Guardians' Council with Khatami and Karrubi -- is indicative of the weak position in which the reformists find themselves only four months before the election. According to a report in "Entekhab" on 13 October, the absence of the Executives of Construction Party and of the student movement at these meetings raises questions about their role in the election. (Bill Samii)

Source: RFE/RL Iran Report Vol. 6, No. 42, 20 October 2003

TOUGH POLITICAL COMPETITION IN MAZANDARAN.

Ahmad Vaseqinejad, secretary of the reformist Solidarity Party in Mazandaran Province, said on 30 September that the reformists could win 50-60 percent of the 290 seats in the February parliamentary election, ISNA reported. He said that parties and political groups will not be as relevant in this election as they were in the 2000 parliamentary election. The public has become frustrated with the reformist parties, he said, and he warned, "what happened in the local council elections [February 2003, when there was low voter turnout] could also happen in the parliamentary elections." Mohammad-Ali Minafar, secretary-general of the conservative Islamic Coalition Association in Mazandaran Province, said in the 29 September "Farhang-i Ashti" daily that the conservatives could win up to 150 seats (51 percent) in the upcoming parliamentary election.

Minafar said that the public is unhappy with the reformists because they did not fulfill their electoral slogans. He also predicted that some reformists would not win approval as candidates. (Bill Samii)

Source: RFE/RL Iran Report Vol. 6, No. 42, 20 October 2003