Free Republic

Iranian Reformist Leader Reza Khatami: 'Reform is a Revolutionary Process;' 'The Conservatives Are the Enemies of Social Freedoms' In an interview with the Egyptian government paper Al-Ahram Weekly, Dr. Mohammad Reza Khatami, the leader of Iran's largest political party, the Islamic Iran Participation Front, addressed the problems facing reformists in Iran. Khatami, who is currently serving as first deputy speaker in the sixth Majlis (Iran's parliament), was banned, along with his party, from contesting the recent parliamentary elections. Khatami, 45, is the brother of Iranian President Muhammad Khatami and is married to a granddaughter of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, and was...

Feb 18, 2004 AP Interview: Reformer Criticizes Islamic Control, but Says Demonstrations Too Risky By Brian Murphy/ Associated Press Writer TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - The leader of Iran's ruling clerics must be made more accountable to reform demands and should shed some powers to break a "vicious circle" of control, the most prominent dissident lawmaker and brother of the country's president said Wednesday. But Mohammad Reza Khatami - who was deputy parliament speaker and among more than 2,400 candidates blackballed from Friday's elections - warned against public demonstrations to demand change, saying Iranians have no appetite for another revolution. In...