March 17, 2009
Reform Candidate Withdraws in Iran
By NAZILA FATHI
TEHRAN — Reversing a decision made five weeks ago, Mohammad Khatami, the reformist former president, has decided to withdraw from the June presidential race to support a political ally, a close aide said Monday.
According to news reports, Mr. Khatami said at a meeting with campaign staff on Sunday that he expected to withdraw from the race, but one of his aides, Saeed Leylaz, a political analyst and economist, said Monday that his departure was certain. He has not yet formally announced the move.
“He does not want to compete with Mir-Hossein Mousavi,” said Mr. Leylaz, referring to a former prime minister who announced last week that he would run in the presidential poll on June 12, in which the current leader, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is expected to seek reelection.
“The most important goal is to prevent Mr. Ahmadinejad from re-election, not to get Mr. Khatami elected,” Mr. Leylaz said. “The chances of getting a reformist president elected would decrease if we have several candidates running.”
In the meeting on Sunday, Mr. Khatami told campaign staff members that Mr. Mousavi might stand a better chance of winning, Mehr news agency reported.
“Opponents want to divide my supporters and supporters of Mousavi,” Mr. Khatami was quoted as saying. “It is not in our interest. Also, some conservatives are supporting Mousavi.” He added: “Mousavi is popular and will be able to execute his plans, and I prefer he stays in the race.” Mr. Leylaz said that Mr. Mousavi’s announcement to run last week came unexpectedly, even though Mr. Khatami had consulted with him before he had announced his bid for the office on Feb. 8. Prior to the announcement, Mr. Khatami had said that he would run only if Mr. Mousavi did not, to avoid diluting the reformist vote.
“Mr. Khatami was offended and felt betrayed,” Mr. Leylaz said.
Mr. Khatami, 65, won a landslide victory in 1997 and was in office for two terms until 2005. A charismatic leader, he was expected to draw considerable support in the upcoming poll. More than 20,000 supporters showed up at his speech last week in the southern city of Shiraz despite government restrictions.
But Mr. Khatami also has strong enemies among politicians who oppose more political and social openness. His reform agenda, which included a détente with the West, suffered major setbacks when he was in office. Powerful hard-line institutions blocked many of his efforts and many of his allies were jailed.
Mr. Mousavi was the country’s prime minister from 1980 to 1988. He is well-remembered by many Iranians for managing the country during its eight-year war with Iraq. His presidential platform is not yet clear, but in the past, supported protectionist economic policies.
Mr. Mousavi, who is also a painter and architect, stayed out of politics for the past two decades and had turned down calls to run as presidential candidate in previous elections. His wife, Zahra Rahnavard, was the dean of the prestigious women’s university, Al Zahra, from 1998 to 2006 and is close ally of Mr. Khatami.
President Ahmadinejad, whose aides have said he will seek reelection, is supported by the conservative Iranian establishment. But his economic policies have unleashed economic inflation of over 25 percent, and two major setbacks last week suggested that he might be losing support ahead of elections.
Parliament rejected last week a major element of his proposed budget to cut energy subsidies and to distribute the money directly among the poor. And one of his leading allies, Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi, lost a bid to replace the powerful cleric Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, as the head of the Council of Experts, which is responsible for supervising the conduct of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Mr. Rafsanjani is a pragmatic politician who has supported Mr. Khatami.
Another reformist candidate, Mehdi Karroubi, has said that he will remain in the race.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/17/world/middleeast/17iran.html?ref=world
Its a moot point as The Supreme Leader of Iran holds all the power...The President is merely a figurehead and mouthpiece with little legal authority within the Iranian Govt. The Supreme Leader appoints and has complete command of the Mil. and their leadership, controls the appointment of Judges, has legal authority over all foreign and domestic policy, etc. He even has the unilateral power to dismiss the President after the Supreme Court, which the Supreme Leader appoints and controls, deems him unfit for duty.... In essence, the Religious Zealots control Iran regardless of who is President..
Originally Posted By ChrisLe:
Its a moot point as The Supreme Leader of Iran holds all the power...The President is merely a figurehead and mouthpiece with little legal authority within the Iranian Govt. The Supreme Leader appoints and has complete command of the Mil. and their leadership, controls the appointment of Judges, has legal authority over all foreign and domestic policy, etc. He even has the unilateral power to dismiss the President after the Supreme Court, which the Supreme Leader appoints and controls, deems him unfit for duty.... In essence, the Religious Zealots control Iran regardless of who is President..
True. But the position of president does matter. Because rhetoric matters. While all decisions of foreign and domestic policy are made by the supreme leader, the president has a voice and a platform for that voice, which can help to set the tone of Iran's politics. He can severe as a moderating voice, or as an inflammatory one. I'd rather have a voice of moderation thrown into the mix, than having 4 more years of Ahmadinejad fanning the flames and throwing fuel on the fire.
Some may see the president's position as nothing more than window dressing for a theocracy; but each president has his own power base of supporters. Ahmadinejad's is the Revolutionary Guards. Khatami's is the reform movement. Which group would you prefer have access to a public platform that they could use to their advantage.
Agreed, but how far can a moderate President stray from the Supreme Leader's Islamic agenda? The Supreme Leader wields a lot of power and it wouldn't be the first time that he has removed a President from Office for straying too far from the Supreme Leader's view of what Iran should be.... Ultimately it will all come down to the poeple if they want to effect change. Iranians are a very politically aware and intelligent people. Unlike other Islamic States where the media and propaganda are controlled by the State, Iranians have a good grasp of the world view. If they want to effect change, they have the means by which to do it........
Originally Posted By MK262:
Originally Posted By ChrisLe:
Its a moot point as The Supreme Leader of Iran holds all the power...The President is merely a figurehead and mouthpiece with little legal authority within the Iranian Govt. The Supreme Leader appoints and has complete command of the Mil. and their leadership, controls the appointment of Judges, has legal authority over all foreign and domestic policy, etc. He even has the unilateral power to dismiss the President after the Supreme Court, which the Supreme Leader appoints and controls, deems him unfit for duty.... In essence, the Religious Zealots control Iran regardless of who is President..
True. But the position of president does matter. Because rhetoric matters. While all decisions of foreign and domestic policy are made by the supreme leader, the president has a voice and a platform for that voice, which can help to set the tone of Iran's politics. He can severe as a moderating voice, or as an inflammatory one. I'd rather have a voice of moderation thrown into the mix, than having 4 more years of Ahmadinejad fanning the flames and throwing fuel on the fire.
Some may see the president's position as nothing more than window dressing for a theocracy; but each president has his own power base of supporters. Ahmadinejad's is the Revolutionary Guards. Khatami's is the reform movement. Which group would you prefer have access to a public platform that they could use to their advantage.
In complete agreement. Very bad news, and I'm very disappointed to read this. With the current political and economic crises that could have put Ahmadinejad in a very precarious electoral position, his primary (and most viable) opponent has called it quits. Khatami may not be popular on these boards, but he is a smart and conscientious man who would have been a much better option for both Iran and the Intl community (including the US). It also probably confirms what many have suspected, which is that Khamenei has become increasingly supportive of certain aggressive stances. Also, not good.
ETA: Let's hope Moussavi is as popular and viable a candidate as they are indicating in the article.
