ĦĦĦĦTEHRAN, Dec. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Iran's reformists battle through a tough year
in efforts to establish what they have pledged "a rule of law and a civil
society."
ĦĦĦĦNearly at every turn, the reformists headed by President Mohammad Khatami
meet with strong resistance from the country's conservatives, making painstaking
the drive to promote a more open,freer society.
ĦĦĦĦMohsen Armin, deputy speaker of the reformist-majority Majlis (parliament),
said in late November, "We will do our best as long as we are hopeful that our
efforts will bear a fruit," while admitting "once our hopes are dashed, we will
stop."
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ĦĦĦĦKHATAMI TURNS TO LEGISLATION TO CURB CONSERVATIVES' POWER
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ĦĦĦĦAmid spats with hardliners, the embattled president submitted two bills to
the Majlis in September in hope of curbing the political power of conservatives.
ĦĦĦĦThat was the first real bite during Khatami's two-term presidency at his
opponents.
ĦĦĦĦOne of the bills redefines the presidential authority, enabling Khatami to
remove the judicial and parliament officials who are found to have violated the
Constitution or overstepped their powers.
ĦĦĦĦThe other, called "electoral reform bill", aims to curtail or end
supervision by conservatives in the Guardian Council over the electoral system.
ĦĦĦĦThe two bills have won approval at the Majlis, though some of the
parliamentarians still believe that the president's executive powers lack teeth.
ĦĦĦĦBoth bills, however, have yet to get a go-ahead from the Guardian Council
before being made law, a paradox in Iran's political hierarchy.
ĦĦĦĦThe Guardian Council has in the past blocked reformers from standing for
office and shot down many reform bills aimed at liberalizing the state economy.
ĦĦĦĦThe council now charges the two bills with running counter to the
Constitution, saying the bills implicate interference with other state powers.
It also fears that the bills may eventually lead to dictatorship.
ĦĦĦĦThe reform-minded officials, for their part, threaten to resign en masse if
the two crucial bills are really killed off.
ĦĦĦĦIf the conservatives do not heed the public demand, "we will withdraw the
reformist presence from the regime," warned Mohammad Reza Khatami, the
president's brother who heads the reform-leaning faction in the Majlis, the
Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF).
ĦĦĦĦBut President Khatami himself vows to stay on track and never quit
defending "the people's rights and their legitimate freedom."
ĦĦĦĦThe contention is feared to move on until the State Expediency Council
interferes again to end the crisis with a final arbitration.
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ĦĦĦĦPOLITICAL DUEL SPARKS CRACKDOWN
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ĦĦĦĦSince Khatami was first elected president in 1997, his politicalduel with
conservatives has claimed heavy casualties.
ĦĦĦĦMore than 80 pro-reform newspapers have been shut down and dozens of
journalists put in jail, local reports say.
ĦĦĦĦEven members of the Majlis have to suffer despite their parliamentary
immunity from prosecution.
ĦĦĦĦThe reports say more than 60 MPs have been prosecuted for critics in
parliament or political gatherings.
ĦĦĦĦIn one of the cases reported months ago, the hard-line Judiciarytried to
put behind bars three lawmakers for "spreading lies" and "insulting state
officials."
ĦĦĦĦLawmaker Hossein Loqmanian faced a 10-month sentence as a result, with his
colleagues Mohammad Dadfar and Fatemeh Haqiqatjou bracing for tough sentences as
well.
ĦĦĦĦAlthough the case ended peacefully, the stand-off between the Legislature
and Judiciary was unprecedented in Iran's modern history.
ĦĦĦĦThe two camps recently flexed muscle over a controversial poll on the
Iran-US relations.
ĦĦĦĦAbbas Abadi, one of the most prominent reformists, was arrested in November
on charge of being paid by the Washington-based Gallup polling agency to manage
a pro-American show:
ĦĦĦĦThe opinion poll illustrated that almost 75 percent of Iranians favor
Iran-US dialogue.
ĦĦĦĦAnother clash resulted in capital punishment over a religious issue last
month.
ĦĦĦĦUniversity professor Hashem Aghajari was sentenced to death by alocal court
after questioning the conservative clergy's interpretation of Islam.
ĦĦĦĦReformists denounced the sentence as a harsh crackdown on freedom of
expression.
ĦĦĦĦFor the time being, Iran's reform movement is in balance, with Khatami and
his followers having parliament and presidency in hands, and hard-liners
controlling the courts, security forces and powerful legislative vetting bodies.
ĦĦĦĦThe reality is kind of popular support which swept Khatami to presidency in
1997 and 2001 vis-a-vis executive powers being held by conservatives.
ĦĦĦĦOn the prospects for Iran's reform movement, IIPF head
Reza Khatami has this to say: "There is always hope for betterment, however, the
future does not look very bright." Enditem
ĦĦĦĦby Jiang Xiaofeng ĦĦĦĦ
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