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Iran's clerics take the first
round
By Hooman Peimani
Last
week the powerful Guardian Council rejected two bills
presented by Iranian President Mohammad Khatami.
However, the development did not surprise those
following the factional rivalry within the Iranian
political system. Unlike what Khatami hinted a few
months ago when he presented the bills to the Iranian
parliament, he has no intention to resign in reaction to
the rejection. Instead, he has declared his plan to
reach a compromise with the Guardian Council. That move
will certainly further erode his already damaged
credibility among those Iranians who are dissatisfied
with his lack of decisiveness even to implement his own
limited reform program.
Late last year, Khatami
publicized his frustration with the conservative faction
of the Iranian ruling elite, which had prevented him
from fulfilling his election promises on the
liberalization of Iranian society. The preventive
measures, according to Khatami, deprived the head of the
executive branch (Khatami) of the power required for
performing his constitutional duties and for embarking
on his promised reform program. To end the resulting
deadlock, Khatami presented to the Iranian parliament
two bills, of which one meant to secure his
constitutional power as president, which he described as
a necessity for discharging his duty. Another sought to
limit the Guardian Council's control over the election
process by limiting its vetting power of candidates and
by making changes to the criteria for such vetting.
Unsurprisingly, the parliament dominated by
Khatami's supporters, the reformist faction, approved
the bills after going through a process deliberately
prolonged through filibustering of the rival minority
faction. As provided by the Iranian constitution, the
approved bills were sent to the Guardian Council. Acting
practically as a type of upper house of the parliament,
the council is in charge of determining the
compatibility of all approved bills with the Iranian
constitution and the religious law (sharia).
After a few months of deliberations, the latter rejected
the two bills on the ground of their violating the
constitution. In such a case, the bills can be submitted
to the Expediency Council headed by former president
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. That council arbitrates
between parliament and the Guardian Council on disputed
bills, a process usually done by changing certain
aspects of the rejected bills to make them acceptable
for the Guardian Council.
However, on Sunday
Khatami refused to follow that path, as he correctly
recognized the satisfaction of the Guardian Council as
the only way to end the long process. In a letter
addressed to parliamentary Speaker Mehdi Karroubi, he
justified this decision since "referring the bill to the
[Expediency] Council will mean [that he] accept the
sharia and constitutional faults" as claimed by
the Guardian Council.
While rejecting the two
bills' alleged unconstitutional and anti-religion
nature, Khatami added, "I believe there is [a] need at
this phase to reach [an] understanding with the esteemed
Guardian Council." In his reference to the bill on the
presidential power, he stressed, "I believe there is no
major defect in the bill as far as the sharia law
and the constitution are concerned, and if there is any,
they are few and removable and there is complete
readiness on our part for [reaching an] understanding
with the esteemed Guardian Council."
Khatami's
willingness to hammer out his differences with the
Guardian Council reflects his intention to avoid a
crisis which could further weaken the Iranian regime.
Such an outcome could encourage the US government to
seek to destabilize the latter as part of its "regime
change" program. In his mentioned letter to Karroubi,
Khatami therefore stressed the sensitivity of the
situation and the necessity of national unity to deter
any such program. Thus, "while it rains stones from the
sky, it is extraordinarily important to strengthen the
bond between the government, the nation and the regime
at this sensitive juncture". In such a situation, it is
necessary to avoid a crisis over the rejected bills
through a compromise with the Guardian Council. "God
willing," Khatami added, "with the understanding between
[the] majlis [parliament] and [the] Guardian
Council, we will manage to calmly pass through this
phase." To meet that end, he attached to the letter two
booklets containing his government's proposals to deal
with its differences with the Guardian Council.
The rejection of the two bills dashed Khatami's
hope to revitalize his reform program through his
desired changes. Even if successful, his efforts to
reach a compromise with the Guardian Council would only
detract from the bills' usefulness. The changes proposed
are not even fundamental ones, as they are meant only to
enable the president to discharge his duties, a point
stated in Khatami's mentioned letter. Accordingly, "I am
against rejecting the bills. They were the minimum
requirements for running the country's affairs." The
acceptance of the Guardian Council-demanded amendments
or at least some of them as a price for the bills'
approval would only discredit the president in the eyes
of Iranians, and as such the approved bills would not
grant him even the minimum desired power. Khatami,
therefore, complained, "In their proposed amendments to
the bill, the Guardian Council has limited the
presidential powers to an extent that in certain
respects the authority of the president is much less
than that of an ordinary citizen."
Thus approval
of the bills, while avoiding a weakening confrontation
between the two rival factions, will not enable Khatami
to fulfill his promises. Moreover, an unacceptable
compromise for their approval will make them hard to be
sold to Iranians, who are losing interest in Khatami's
slow-paced and limited reform. The latter falls short
from creating a desired democratic political system.
Although he earlier hinted at resignation should the
bills not be approved, he has not shown any interest in
that option. Amid rumors about his resignation, Iranian
government spokesperson Abdullah Ramezanzadeh denied any
such intention last week as he emphasized, "The
administration of Mr Khatami is very hopeful about the
future of economic, social and cultural progress, and
thus the issue of resignation is out of the question."
The impact of the rejected bills on Iranian
society should not be exaggerated. The existence of a
reformist faction in the Iranian regime reflects the
strength of a popular pro-democracy movement in Iran,
but not a reason for its existence. Social and economic
developments beginning more than a century before the
emergence of the reformist faction have necessitated a
fundamental change in the Iranian political system,
which is yet to be realized.
The Iranians have
experimented with different ideologies and methods to
achieve that objective, as evident in several failed
popular movements throughout the 20th century. They now
seem to have finally opted for a gradual and peaceful
process to build a democratic society, while preserving
their independence and territorial integrity. This has
been reflected in a growing use of democratic means and
forums (public meetings, interest groups, media, etc),
despite their limits as dictated by the status quo, to
express their views. It has also manifested itself in an
aversion of violence as a way for a political change.
Within this context, the rejection of the bills
has been a clear setback for Khatami and a source of
disappointment for Iranians who support any effort for
the liberalization of their society. However, it will
not have a major impeding effect on the gradual process
of forming a democratic society. The major loser of this
event is Khatami, whose efforts to reach a compromise
with the Guardian Council will likely further damage his
popularity among the Iranians.
Dr Hooman
Peimani works as an independent consultant with
international organizations in Geneva and does research
in international relations.
(Copyright 2003
Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All rights reserved. Please
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