Arseh Sevom–The complete annual report for 2012 is now ready for reading. The report does more than outline our organization’s accomplishments and finances over the past year, it also presents an overview of the context for civil society in Iran. Board President Bert Taken says, “During my two short visits to Iran in the mid 2000s, I was struck by the energy, creativity, and warmth of the people we met traveling through the country. During one trip, we brought several students and docents of Amsterdam’s Rietveld Academy for a two-week trip. We had tried to make plans in advance and were a bit frustrated at the difficulty of actually getting our schedules completely booked in advance. Would the trip be a disaster, we wondered? From the minute we arrived, however, our trip went like clockwork. Artists, architects, designers, and others were generous with their time and experiences, sharing so much with the group. This really gave me faith in the power of surprise when it comes to Iran. It reminds me that even in the darkest moments, that energy is out there, waiting for the opportunity. Even now, there are people who want nothing more than to work for a better society. Iran is not done surprising us, of that I am sure.”

Download the full report here: http://www.arsehsevom.net/site/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Arseh-Sevom_Annual-report-2012.pdf

Dear Readers,

Arseh Sevom seemed to really hit its stride in 2012 with successful trainings and an increase in readership on its website. An evaluation done of the organization at the end of the year by an independent consultant gave us the boost we needed as an organization, writing that some of the people interviewed called the organization “a living exercise in democracy.”

We also learned that every once in awhile what we do, no matter how small, makes a difference. We are just one of many forces influencing civil society. We are not the only one or the most important one. We are not alone. There are others fighting for human rights, advocating for the marginalized, addressing issues of poverty, volunteering to clean parks and beaches, rebuilding homes destroyed by earthquakes, and participating in the life of society.

It can be frustrating and emotionally draining for individuals and groups working to build a better society when their efforts are consistently met with suspicion and 4 harassment as they often are in Iran. A blogger in Iran suggested that civil society organizations need to be more open about what they do and what their role is in society in order to increase public support for their work.(1)

The challenge to be open and transparent is one that NGOs all over the world would be wise to take up. It’s one of the founding principles of Arseh Sevom, to be as open and transparent as possible while being realistic about security. In light of that principle, we offer a report on our 2012 activities.

This year’s annual report is more than an overview of our accomplishments and finance. It also presents an overview of the context for civil society in Iran combined with information on how Arseh Sevom addressed a number of these issues with its content, through training, and with advocacy. The report ends with the question of what’s next for Arseh Sevom? Like many organizations, Arseh Sevom is feeling the pinch of insufficient funding. The organization will continue at a reduced level in 2013, which means losing some of the momentum of the successes of 2012.

During my two short visits to Iran in the mid 2000s, I was struck by the energy, creativity, and warmth of the people we met traveling through the country. During one trip, we brought several students and docents of Amsterdam’s Rietveld Academy for a two-week trip. We had tried to make plans in advance and were a bit frustrated at the difficulty of actually getting our schedules completely booked in advance. Would the trip be a disaster, we wondered? From the minute we arrived, however, our trip went like clockwork. Artists, architects, designers, and others were generous with their time and experiences, sharing so much with the group. This really gave me faith in the power of surprise when it comes to Iran. It reminds me that even in the darkest moments, that energy is out there, waiting for the opportunity. Even now, there are people who want nothing more than to work for a better society.

Iran is not done surprising us, of that I am sure.

Bert Taken
President of the Board

1 Iran: Bill Before Parliament Would Smother NGOs: http://www.arsehsevom.net/2013/01/iran-bill-before-parliament-would-smother-ngos/

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Arseh Sevom — The elections are coming, which means candidates are finally registering, the internet is slowing, and paranoia is high. In the latest crackdown, dogs walked in public are being confiscated. Iran hasn’t budged on the press freedom index, hanging on to its spot as one of the six worst countries in the world. Workers refuse to let May Day go unnoticed: they celebrate, strike, and protest poor wages and even worse conditions. Ten political prisoners in Evin were transferred to solitary confinement, while permits have been issued for mining in protected natural areas.

Press Freedom Day

According to a report from Reporters Without Borders, Iran finds itself once again among the six worst countries when it comes to press freedom. There is widespread state control of the press, arrests and threats against reporters and netizens, plus the harassment of the families of journalists working abroad — most notably those of BBC Persian. With the elections just a few weeks away, Kaleme [fa] reports that editors are being called to the Interior Ministry for briefings on red lines that cannot be crossed. The Ministry justified the restrictions as necessary to protect national security. The representative of the ministry made it clear that no breach of the restrictions will be tolerated.

May Day in Iran

The Vahed Bus Union marks May Day

Iran Labor Report provides a rundown of May Day activities in Iran, from marches in Kurdistan, to strikes, to pastries and trinkets at bust stations. A petition with 30,000 signatures protesting the low minimum wage was delivered to Parliament. The current minimum wage is 487,000 tumans (less than $400) per month, more than one million tumans below the poverty level for a household of four.

In Kurdistan, workers marked May Day with gatherings and marches, chanting, “Bread, housing, freedom.”

On April 30, director of the Middle East Section of Human Rights Watch Sarah Leah Whitson stated, “Iranian workers are on the front lines of the struggle to demand such basic rights as freedom of assembly and association. They are often the first victims of government crackdowns that aim to silence criticism.”

According to the head of Iran’s Workers’ House, between May 2011 and May 2012, over 100,000 workers lost their jobs. Women continue to suffer from unequal protections and pay. More information is available in a statement from the International Campaign to Support the Rights of Iranian Workers.

Political Prisoners Transferred to Solitary

Iran Today [fa] reports that political prisoners in Iran’s Evin prison refused to meet with their families last week to call attention to the transfer of ten political prisoners to solitary confinement.

@persianbanoo 1:20pm via Web tweets: The 10 political prisoners who were moved to solitary April 28 are on hunger strike protesting incarceration in solitary #Iran #Iranelection

Mining Iran’s Nature Preserves

Radio Zamaneh reports that twenty-five organizations defending the environment issued a statement against the decision of the government to to issue permits for mining in protected areas. The organizations state that the permits are against the law because they impinge on protected natural areas.

The statement asks why the environmental agency did not speak out against the mining permits. The head of the agency stated that when the parliament passed the law they did not ask for guidance from the environmental agency.

A number of MPs have protested the permits, stating that the permits would lead to a natural disaster. Ten percent of Iran is now protected. One MP stated that natural areas should remain protected and that no mining should take place there.

Internet Under Seige

On May 1, the Basij acknowledged for the first time that a number of their sites had come under a cyber attack. ITIran [fa] reports that Iran is cracking down on virtual private networks and other methods for circumventing internet filtering. Radio Free Europe’s Persian Letters reports:

“As there are cyberattacks against us, the Basij’s cyberarmy — which includes university instructors and students as well as clerics — is attacking websites of the enemy,” Fazli said, according to a quote in the “Iran” daily.

On May 5, IranIT reported that access to Virtual Private Networks and other proxy services that help circumvent the internet were no longer working. Throttling down access to the internet seems to be the primary issue. Some people inside Iran report that they can’t even open emails. Global Voices reports of the reaction from Iran’s blogosphere.

Registration for Presidential Candidates Begins

With elections just a few days away, registration for candidates has begun. No big surprises. Former president Rafsanjani has stated he won’t run without a green light from the Supreme Leader. Tehran’s current mayor Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf was among the early registrants. He is supported by a number of senior clerics.

We’re rooting for Zahra, whose story we read in the graphic novel Zahra’s Paradise. She has launched her campaign here: http://vote4zahra.org/.

Dogs Confiscated

As we reported last week, the morals police have launched an anti-dog-walking operation detaining dogs seen in public with their owners.  Mohammad Zarghami at Radio Farda reports that the dogs have been confiscated, kicked, and thrown into large sacks, and brought to the notorious Kahrizak area in the suburb of Tehran. The owners are left without news of their pets and without even a receipt. This photo, posted by the Mazandaran Animal Shelter shows food and water prepared by a group of volunteers for the detained pets.

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The International Electoral Education Council (IEEC) is currently focusing on upcoming elections in several countries, including the June 14 elections in Iran. One of the programs being undertaken by the IEEC is the study of Iran’s Out of Country Voting (OCV) process. They have created documents to assist individuals and organizations interested in informal electoral observation at polling stations outside of Iran.

The Handbook for Iran and a Methodology and Checklist for observation prepared by the IEEC in both English and Persian.

In late May, the IEEC will set up an informational call to assist organizations and individuals who wish to observe Iran’s out of country electoral process.

The IEEC (www.ieecouncil.org) is an international network of academic institutions that works to support and advance free and fair electoral processes around the world. It engages in a wide range of electoral program activities including research, experiential learning, technical assistance, and electoral studies. Among IEEC participating universities are Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Italy, Eszterházy Károly College, Hungary, University of Brasilia, Brazil, Tribunal Superior Eleitoral, Brazil, Instituto Federal Electoral, Mexico, Nepal Election Commission, Nepal, and Georgetown University, United States.

Contact  the IEEC for more information:  info@ieecouncil.org

Attachments:
OCV Handbook – FARSI  
OCV_Election_Study_Methodology_and_Checklist_FARSI
OCV Handbook – ENGLISH
OCV_Election_Study_Methodology_and_Checklist_ENGLISH

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The cost of currency combined with crippling sanctions is hurting all sectors of Iran’s society from business owners to pharmaceutical manufacturers to the population at large. Iron sellers went on strike, a food for oil deal with Shell was blocked, and children are going malnourished. Iran’s workers suffer from unpaid wages and poor safety regulations. The subsidy for medication is being slashed, and whole generations are coming to age in Iran without access to emplyment (meaningful or otherwise). Never fear! The morals police are on the job and have identified the true source of Iran’s woes: women in “bad hijab” and their cute little dogs. With their plan to crackdown, help is finally on the way.

May Day, May Day

A new campaign calling itself the International Campaign to Support the Rights of Iranian Workers has called on “those who believe in social justice and who want the freedom of imprisoned workers  to become the voice of Iranian workers between the 21st of April to the 1st of May”

In a statement, the campaign outlines the state of the working class of Iran. It draws attention to low wages and long delays in salary payments, which threaten the very survival of families. Poor oversight and lack of safety regulations contribute to five fatal accidents per day, with no safety net for the families of these uninsured workers.

Independent unions are now forbidden in Iran and many activists find themselves imprisoned and harassed for advocating for their rights and drawing attention to the dire situation of workers and their families.

The campaign also focuses on child labor, the abuse of Afghan workers, and gender discrimination in factories.

Despite the fact that Iran is a signatory to a number of international agreements protecting the rights of workers, in practice the protections do not exist.

Medical Crisis in Prisons

In her monthly report on human rights in Iran, Shirin Ebadi draws attention to protests about the lack of medical care in Iran’s prisons, noting that a number of those imprisoned are now on hunger strikes to bring attention to poor conditions. Mehdi Khazali, for one, has been on a hunger strike for more than a month now and is in dire health.

HRANA’s (Human Rights News Activists) April 2013  report [fa] reports further on the poor health conditions of political prisoners. The report from the group details chronic health conditions including cancer and kidney failure and the woeful lack of care for those imprisoned.

The High Cost of Getting Sick

Iran Today [fa] reports that parliamentarian Rasoul Khazri  who is a member of the health committee, criticized continued cuts to Iran’s health subsidies.  In a statement, he said that medical care and health was not being treated as an urgent priority by the government. He noted that 50% of the materials need to make drugs domestically had to be imported. Sanctions and the high cost of foreign currency has led to higher prices in the marketplace. Paying for needed medicine has become a burden for many in Iran.

Oil for Food

Some of you might remember the oil for food deal made in the mid-90s with Iraq. This was to ensure a stable food supply despite crippling sanctions. Iran now finds itself in a similar situation. Because of sanctions, Iran is owed money for its oil by Shell and others.  Recently the UK blocked a Royal Dutch Shell plan to pay its 2.3 billion dollar debt with food and/or pharmaceuticals.

Iran’s central bank can no longer subsidize the purchase of foreign currency, which means many businesses are forced to by euros and dollars on the open market at a much higher rate.

Children Go Hungry

Radio Zamaneh [fa] reports that the head of the Association of Pediatricians, Gholam Reza Khatami, says that in the poorer areas of Iran, six percent of children are malnourished. The lack of nutrition manifests itself in the stunted growth of the children.

Workless in Iran

Mehr News Service reports that Iran’s Central Office of Statistics says that three million young people (up to age 30) are without jobs, while unconfirmed reports put the number at five million.

A whole generation has been unable to gain access to the employment market. Even more alarming is that recent high school and college graduates are finding that nothing has changed for them either. No opportunities are opening up in the country despite relatively high levels of education.

Iron Men

The high cost of euros and dollars combined with increased tax burdens has large and small business owners irate. Last week iron sellers closed up shop in Tehran’s largest market and other locations, staging sit-ins at mosques. The iron sellers want the government to address wild currency fluctuations and reduce their tax burden.

Bad Hijab and Dogs

Think back readers. When was the last time you felt the moral foundations of society begin to crumble around you? Was it when your neighbor walked that cute little dog by your door? Or when you saw a woman show a bit too much hair? Well, you’ll be happy to know that Iran’s morals police are on the job.

The head of the morals police force sees a correlation among women in “bad hijab,” dog-walking, and moral security, Iran Today reports. He stated, “We have a new plan to control women in bad hijab who flaunt their style and fashion in the streets.” There will be crackdowns on dog walking.

This may sound ridiculous, but it does have real world consequences. Women are fined, arrested, and harassed. Some dog owners have had their pets confiscated and killed. Pets in need of treatment are often left sick because of bans on transporting dogs.

Persian speakers can watch to a 2007 video which presents the hardships of Iran’s dog owners on our Persian site.

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Arseh Sevom – Over the years, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Basij have become increasingly active in the political sphere, interfering with the operation of free and fair elections with increasing prevalence. Under the guise of protecting the revolution, they have subverted electoral law with impunity. With each election, their meddling has become more brazen and less furtive. Despite a mandate to operate outside of politics and a dressing down from the Islamic Republic’s founder, Ayatollah Khomeini, the armed forces of Iran — in particular the IRGC and Basij — now make up a parallel government that works to control and subvert the democratic process. In the article, Mohammad Reza Sardari presents an overview of the growing influence of Iran’s armed forces. This article is translated from Persian. The original can be found here: http://www.arsehsevom.net/fa/archives/1798.

by Mohammad Reza Sardari

The intervention of armed forces in the election process of the Islamic Republic of Iran can be traced back to its early days in the 1980s, materializing after the establishment of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), an armed organization parallel to the regular army with the mission of guarding the Islamic Revolution. In 2007 the Basij-e Mostaz’afin (literally “Mobilization of the Oppressed”), established in 1979 as a paramilitary force, came under the supervision of the IRGC. Both are directly controlled by the Supreme Leader. Unlike the regular army, both the IRGC and Basij have always interfered in elections despite the fact that there is no law giving them authority to do so.  The only role for any armed force is to provide security, which is the responsibility of the police. Furthermore, rules and regulations, as well as recommendations made by Ayatollah Khomeini, clearly prevent military forces from interfering in elections and in politics, banning membership in political parties and campaigning.

Prohibitions Against Military Intervention in Elections

According to election laws, police and military forces, armed or not, are prohibited from any interference in arranging and supervising elections (article 24 of Presidential Election Law and article 16 of Parliamentary Election Law).

Military forces do not have the right to participate in any electoral process: from campaigning to vote counting to macro-level processes such as the management of elections. Furthermore, military forces and intelligence officials are prohibited from serving as representatives of candidates at polling stations stations. Additionally, according to article 40 of the Armed Forces Penal Code, any participation, intervention, or activity of armed forces officials at rallies, in political disputes, or campaigning is forbidden, punished by from six months to three years of imprisonment.

Article 49 of the Disciplinary Bylaws of the Armed Forces mentions the following prohibitions:

• Using resources of the IRGC in favor of or against political parties, groups, assemblies, or presidential candidates
• Arranging any meeting, assembly, or speech in favor of or against any political party, group, or presidential candidate
• Inviting officials and members of political groups or electoral candidates to the centers of the IRGC
• Campaigning in favor of or against political parties, groups, assemblies, or electoral candidates; distributing, installing, or removing announcements, photos, or posters of candidates and parties; and distributing cassette tapes, CDs, or other materials by either the IRGC or Basij
• Intervening in elections by participating in observatory activities or membership in supervisory or executive bodies, without making arrangements and obtaining permits from the organization
• Interfering in the activities of polling stations and imposing personal judgments on their affairs
• Creating chaos, disturbing speeches, misusing rank or position in order to threaten parties and candidates, or encouraging people in favor of or against any party or candidate
• Making any comment in favor of or against candidates by members of IRGC or Basij who are responsible for protecting polling boxes
• Collecting signatures or letters in favor of or against political parties, groups, or candidates
• Installing photos, banners, posters, or announcements of political parties, groups, or candidates in IRGC and Basij centers or on their vehicles
• Interfering in the political activities of parties or candidates, plans, or campaigns, including participation at conferences, public, and private meetings, taking part in activities of electoral campaigns, promoting political parties or candidates in their publications.

The IRGC’s statutes prohibit its members from participating in political and partisan affairs. According to article 47 of the same statute:

“The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps politically and ideologically follow the commands of the Guardianship of the Jurist (Velayat-e Faqih). This foundation is autonomous from all political parties and groups and should never act as a political party or organization.” 

In addition, according to article 1 of the Armed Forces Penal Code, approved in 2003, the following individuals should be considered military forces:

• General staff of Iranian Armed Forces and affiliated organizations
• The staff of the Iranian military and affiliated organizations
• The staff of the IRGC, affiliated organizations, and Basij
• Iranian Ministry of Defense and affiliated organizations and staff
• The staff of Iranian organizations subject to armed forces laws
• Those currently in military service
• Those who study in educational centers of armed forces both domestic and abroad, or who study in educational centers of the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics
• Temporary members of the armed forces who are, according to the law, considered members of the forces during their service period

Although these rules and regulations are brief, they provide more than enough substantiation for the prohibition against military forces interfering in elections.

Meddling of Basij and IRGC in Elections

In spite of all the rules and regulations, many politicians have noted the interference of members of the Basij and IRGC in elections. The founder of the Islamic state, Ayatollah Khomeini, himself made just such an accusation. In a speech in honor of Imam Reza’s birthday, Khomeini stated:

“Members of the Revolutionary Guard Corps are not allowed to participate in political affairs or support groups or parties. What goes on in the parliament or elections is not your business. I have been informed that some members of the IRGC still interfere in the process. Elections are being held elsewhere and it does not have anything to do with the members of the IRGC. Members of IRGC are not allowed to interfere, members of the military are not allowed to interfere…”. (ref. to Ahang-e Rah website, Seyed Mohammad Mousavi KHooeiniha)

Khomeini’s speech concerned parliamentary elections and clearly shows that interference in political affairs was so intense even then that he was forced to react. This speech was made during the restrictive political atmosphere during the 1980s when the Iran-Iraq war was overshadowing all other concerns.

Even so, the habit of interference could not be broken and the following decade witnessed the widespread interference of military forces in elections. In the second round of the fifth parliamentary elections, the Kargozaran (Construction Party) — currently led by Mohammad-Ali Najafi — which has been affiliated with former President  Rafsanjani, was labeled “liberal” by its opponents. In a command, Mohsen Rezaei, the IRGC Chief Commander at the time, stated:

“We should participate in the second round and cast our votes to avoid having liberals in the parliament making trouble for the nation and country.” (Kayhan, 17 April 1996)

Ironically, in 2009, Rezaei ran for president, finding himself on the receiving end of political interference.  He initially objected to the results of the elections, but eventually retracted those objections. He intends to run for this year’s election as well. It was his statement in 1996 that marked the start of the IRGC’s overt and organized participation in elections.

From Covert to Overt

The IRGC’s role in elections had been more discreet during Khatami’s first term. During the second term, the IRGC and Basij entered the election scene in a new and organized manner with a project the called called “the insight plan” (Tarh-e Basirat). The groups planned organized trainings for their members, obliging them to collect at least ten votes from families and relatives. Political-ideological activities were organized through a plan called “Political Guides of the IRGC” (Hadian-e Siasi-e Sepah). On Election Day, the IRGC had covert control of vote counting and computer sites, even observers from the Ministry of Interior were not allowed to be present in vote counting stations.

After that the interference of military forces entered a new stage: using members of the Basij as observers of the Guardian Council. In spite of obvious disagreement from the Ministry of Interior, the Guardian Council established observation offices in all provinces and mobilized its members from the Basij forces to serve the dual purposes of conducting local investigations on candidates in order to assess their conformity with the Council’s criteria, and being present at poll stations (more than ten members were present in some polling stations).

After the election, a number of parliamentarians warned against the interference of the IRGC in elections. One such figure was Behzad Nabavi, deputy speaker of the parliament, who revealed the role of the Saralah Military Camp and Intelligence Office of the IRGC in past elections.

Interfering with Impunity

The IRGC’s role was becoming more and more apparent in the elections. During the ninth presidential elections (2005) resulting in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s victory, the military forces had a widespread presence, marking the first elections explicity engineered by the IRGC.

The IRGC had a candidate (Ahmadinejad) and a strategy for that election, providing all the logistics. The observation body of the Ministry of Interior prepared a detailed and unpublished report on the interference of the IRGC in the election. Former speaker of the parliament Mehdi Karroubi and former Interior Minister Mostafa Moein were among those who brought attention to the direct role of the IRGC in elections. In his press conference on the Saturday afternoon following the election, Mehdi Karroubi said:

“I believe the election was invalid after the interference of a number of IRGC and Basij members and ask the Supreme Leader to appoint a body to investigate the issue…I felt that a number of IRGC and Basij members were engaged in activities just a couple of days before the election, but the activities were mostly focused on another candidate. I warned against the possibility that, in spite of Imam Khomeini’s words, armed forces do interfere in elections and cause events like those we see in some other countries.”

Mostafa Moein wrote a statement saying that in the final days of the election “an absolute will” for “victory of a specific candidate” became apparent and “prepared the ground for interference by military organizations…” His spokeswoman Elaheh Koulaei read the statement at a meeting of the Islamic Iran Participation Front (Jebheye Mosharekate Irane Eslaami) and said that “a military and paramilitary process” had affected the results of the election. At that time, Khatami’s administration was the monitoring body and was organizing its last election.

Militarizing the Electoral Process

The sixth parliamentary election, held under the administration of Ahmadinejad, was a fully militarized election. The former Basij Chief of Staff, Commander Afshar, was the head of the National Election Taskforce (Elections Control Room) at the time of the elections. The election marked a competition between supporters of the government and the current bunch running the parliament today: a purely military competition.

However, the tenth presidential election (2009) witnessed the highest level of engineering by the IRGC, causing a number of analysts to argue that it was an election coup. The Supreme Leader planned to reappoint Ahmadinejad for a second term so the IRGC entered the election scene in full force.

This strategy was designed to mitigate the risk of reformists taking office, knowing they enjoy a majority among the electorate. Later, Commander Moshfegh, head of Saralah Military Camp, confessed the direct role of the IRGC in the election.

Subverting the Democratic Process

A report published by Mir Hossein Mousavi’s camp provides a number of examples of interference by the IRGC and Basij during the election. It documents the Supreme Leader’s role in enabling IRGC support of Ahmadinejad.

The report stated:

“Flyers of Ansar-e Hezbollah were distributed among military forces and personnel of the IRGC and Basij. According to these flyers, Commander Pakpour reported the  opinion of the representative of the Supreme Leader in the IRGC, Hojatoleslam Saidi, about the upcoming presidential elections. Saeidi responded: ‘The clear choice of the Supreme Leader is to reappoint President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Commanders of IRGC are obligated to make their personnel, especially those on conscription, understand the guidelines presented by the Supreme Leader.’”

These statements not only violated the laws on military interference in elections, but also paved the way for the IRGC and Basij to obstruct the elections in a variety of ways. This included using the resources of the IRGC and police for Ahmadinejad’s campaign, arranging meetings and conferences for him, and smearing Mir Hossein Mousavi as a threat to the country. All were clear violations of electoral laws.

Fears of Velvet Revolution

Analyses made by the IRGC resulted in claims of foreign intervention in the campaigns of Ahmadinejad opponents Mousavi and Karoubi. According to them, the candidates were being influenced to bring about a “soft” or “velvet” revolution. (Reference to Mr. Saidi’s speech, cited in Weekly Political Analysis, Political Deputy of the IRGC).

The daily newsletter published by the Office of the Supreme Leader in the IRGC combined news from newspapers such as Kayhan, Javan, and Iran to support Ahmadinejad and accuse his opponents of giving assistance to groups and parties that do not believe in the regime.

Violations During the 2009 Presidential Elections

Among violations of the law committed by the police, IRGC and Basij, are the following:

• Ripping down advertisements of Ahmadinejad’s competitors, attacking their staff, threatening them and disrupting their plans, collecting birth certificates of those who served their military service in a number of military camps, distributing handbooks and guidelines in favor of Ahmadinejad and against Mousavi.
• Making extensive arrangements and mobilizing tens of thousands plainclothes members of the Basij in Ahmadinejad’s campaigns in Tehran Musalla and sometimes even paying the members for their services.
• Illegal actions of police, plainclothes forces, IRGC, and Basij on Election Day, including campaigning for Ahmadinejad at polling stations, forcing voters to vote for Ahmadinejad, intimidation at many stations and villages, casting votes on behalf of others by members of Basij, showing membership cards by members of Basij in order to avoid having their ids stamped [which is how voting is controlled], interference in operations of polling stations.
• Illegal actions by the police, plainclothes forces, IRGC, and Basij included attacking Mousavi’s campaign staff in Qeitarieh, arresting the members of the campaign, and attacking the headquarters of Mousavi’s camp in order to destroy evidence of election violations.

No One Can Stop After Just One Taste of Power

The intervention of military forces didn’t end with their success during the 2009 election. Activities continued during the ninth parliamentary election despite the fact that many opposition figures were already disqualified from even running.

Given the tensions between Ahmadinejad and Khamenei during this election, the IRGC tried not to allow the administration to affect the results. Many commanders of the IRGC hand-picked candidates, doing their best to eliminate any competition.

In Rasht, for example, the former Governor General of Gilan Province, ran for the election and was disqualified. Such examples could be seen in many cities, showing the dominance of the IRGC on the elections.

The MP Ali Motahari was one of the few who openly spoke out against the meddling, invoking the anger of the IRGC which threatened him with a lawsuit if he persisted in speaking out.

Justifying a Military Role in Elections and Governance

Major General Jafari, commander of the IRGC, argued that the Corps is not simply military, claiming that the IRGC is more a security-political organization that should not be limited to military defense of the Islamic Revolution. Justifying the role of the Basij in the 2009 elections, he stated:

“The section of the Basij that does not serve military purposes should not be considered as a branch of the armed forces. This section is allowed to participate in political affairs in order to protect the Islamic Revolution. This section can even take part in presidential elections.”

Hojatoleslam Saidi, the representative of the Supreme Leader in the IRGC, also emphasized the role of IRGC in elections, arguing that the Corps is not indifferent in presidential elections. He stated that the IRGC should engineer elections in order to prevent those who have troubles with the Supreme Leader from taking office. He once said:

“The IRGC has a polling box and should determine criteria. We want a president who follows the commands of the Supreme Leader. Our criteria are adherence to the values of the revolution, loyalty to the Supreme Leader, and expert management skills.”

He added that members of city councils, village councils and parliament all need to be in line with orders of the Supreme Leader. He clearly stated:

“Our votes in parliament, city councils, and village councils are celestial only when elected candidates are followers of the Supreme Leader.”

Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, the commander of Basij, also argued that elected candidates should conform to the Supreme Leader’s orders. According to him, it is responsibility of the Basij to determine the criteria for what makes a good candidate rather:

“The Basij’s approach in the next elections should be to provide insight for people to enable them to choose the best candidate…”

Major General Firouzabadi, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, is yet another military figure who advocates for interference in elections. In the last presidential election, his statements supporting Ahmadinejad and comments on setting age criteria for candidates are a matter of public record.

In addition, many other IRGC and Basij commanders at local and district levels have made similar statements.

Organization and Mobilization of the IRGC 

General Jafari was right to say that the IRGC is more than a military organization. It is also a political, economic, security, and cultural institution. The trace of such categories can also be seen in IRGC’s structure.

The Corps is an institution parallel to the government that interferes not only in elections, but also in all other state affairs, despite the fact that this contradicts the ideology and expressed concerns of the founder of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Khomeini. The IRGC was born in his era and continued developing after him until becoming a de facto parallel government. It now wields even more executive power than the government.

In reality, the IRGC plays a special protective role for the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader. The late Ayatollah Montazeri once said that since the very beginning Ayatollah Khamenei believed that “the IRGC should be like a ring on the fingers of the Islamic Republic Party.” (Reference to the Islamic Republic Party which was established in the early days of the 1979 revolution and later dissolved in the mid 80s.)

But how does the IRGC engineer and influence elections? They act based on the country’s political situation, candidate participation, and the type of the elections. Given the diversity and geographical dispersal of candidates, activities of the Corps are not centralized in parliamentary elections. The basic principle is to have a parliament with a majority of MPs who are unquestioning followers of the Supreme Leader.

Let the Right One In

The IRGC’s activities can be classified into two categories:

The first category is its security and intelligence activities and identification of the candidates in cooperation with the Guardian Council and Ministry of Intelligence. Although the IRGC’s role is covert, final decisions are usually made in operation rooms similar to those we see in a war situation. If there is no serious competitor for their desired candidates and no cost of [politically] eliminating an opposing candidate, the appointed candidate is in fact a member of parliament before the elections even take place.

However, if the constituency contains several candidates, the Corps goes to the second phase of its operation and uses its members, including members of the Basij, to select the candidate most in line with the position of the Supreme Leader. They use methods such as buying or directing votes. These methods require trainings which have already been offered to the members through general camps.

The IRGC’s operation is different when it comes to presidential elections. Unlike parliamentary elections, the IRGC’s role is more prominent. Directing votes, sabotaging the activities of competitors, and even engineering the vote counting process are among the methods the IRGC uses. Activities of the “political guides” of the IRGC (whose members mostly consist of clerics) under the supervision of the Supreme Leader’s representative, the establishment of special camps for elections with the excuse of providing training for security, the distribution of flyers among IRGC and Basij members, surveillance of the activities of competitors, and security encounters, if necessary, are methods commonly used by the Corps in presidential elections.

Final words

The presence of the powerful military institution of the Revolutionary Guard Corps and its dominance over the electoral process makes it impossible to conduct a free election. The highest authorities of this gigantic organization have shown in word and deed that even members of village councils should unquestioningly follow the orders of the Supreme Leader. The IRGC has gone even further and interfered in elections of non-governmental organizations such as Iran’s Physicians’ Association. Therefore, it can be concluded that although military forces are clearly prohibited to interfere in elections according to the law, the electoral system is dominated by their interventions, making it impossible to have free elections.

About the author

Sardari studied political science and international law in Iran.

Translated by: Peyman Majidzadeh

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Arseh Sevom — With election season on the horizon, speculation begins about likely candidates while officials create an atmosphere of insecurity with rumors and fear mongering. Civil society actors in Khuzestan are rounded up. The family of a former framer of Iran’s constitution is told that there can be no public gathering for his funeral. Iran’s Education Minister lobbies for segregated university classrooms leaving some asking “What’s next? Divided hallways?” Economic woes are nothing new in Iran with inflation at 31.5%, yet the market is flooded with cheap fruit. This month Iran became the worst economy in the Mideast and the country with the second highest rate of traffic fatalities. So much for the good news folks.

Election and Its Discontents

Who will be the next president of Iran? It’s hard to tell when just four months before his inauguration, candidates remain unannounced. Despite very public run-ins with traditional forces in Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his controversial chief of staff, Rahim Mashaei are not ready to cede their hold on power.

Writing for Tehran Bureau, Gareth Smyth outlines the machinations that could lead to a Mashaei candidacy. The New York Times’s Thomas Erdbrink also looks at what is at stake for Ahmadinejad and the Principlists if they are shut out from power, writing:

“But this time, the jockeying for power is more than politics as usual. If the president and his supporters fail, they will lose any claim to immunity from prosecution and find themselves at the mercy not only of the judiciary but also of the country’s security forces, state television and influential Friday Prayer leaders, all controlled by the traditionalists.”

The official policy seems to be to create an atmosphere of fear and insecurity around the upcoming election season. The Islamic government has created a kind of unsecure space — kind of stressful. Digarban [fa] reports that the commander of the Basij paramilitary forces, Mohammad Reza Naghdi stated that some non-specific enemy of Iran had plans to create chaos during the upcoming elections. He claimed that “the enemy had wide ranging plans to sabotage the… [elections], the media, and our political system…”

Naghdi went as far as to claim that “the enemy” had plans to kill 92 people during the upcoming elections.

Instead of creating a healthy sphere for the elections, the official mouthpieces of the Islamic Republic of Iran have been spreading rumors and creating fear.

A Wave of Arrests in Khuzestan

Radio Zamaneh reports that in the past month at least 160 civil society actors have been arrested throughout Khuzestan. A number of them may have been released on bail already, yet many remain unaccounted for.

No Public Funeral for the First Post-Revolution Interior Minister

Ahmad Sayyed Javadi, who died at the age of 95, was buried in a private ceremony after his family was prevented from holding the funeral in a mosque. During the time of the Shah, he served as a lawyer for Ali Khamenei, the current Supreme Leader, and other prominent dissidents.

The family was warned that they could have no eulogies or discussion at the ceremony.  His daughter was forced to sign a document agreeing to the demands of the government. In an interview with Rooz Online [fa], his brother, Ali Asghar, said of the government, “They are afraid even of funerals and ceremonies for the dead.”

In a letter addressed to the people of Iran, Javadi apologized for his role in bringing about the Islamic Republic. He wrote:

“The path ahead of us was difficult and, at times, we made mistakes. However, at this time, with all my senility and exhaustion, I am confident and hopeful about the victory of democracy and freedom of the people of Iran,‌ more than any other times in history. Democracy is an inevitable destiny for Iran, and I hope that the courageous young Iranians overcome the difficulties in their green path to a bright future, utilizing lessons learnt from past experiences of the previous generations of prodemocracy activists, and through their perseverance in pursuing their goals, their patience and reliance on God.”

Segregation in the Universities

Separate classes for college bound men and women? Kamran Danseshjou, the aptly named Minister of Education, insists that gender segregation at the university level is a good idea. He is quoted in BBC Persian:

“We say we create single-sex university for those who wish to be separated. In a word, we need a university that is in sync with Iran’s Islamic culture.”

Jafar Towfighi former Minister of Science, Research and Technology calls the new policy a “cultural disaster” and insulting.

“The moral atmosphere in the universities is excellent…” he stated.

Many people and organizations have come out against the segregation plan.

Economic Growth Rate at Zero

ILNA [fa] reports on the reaction of the head of Parliament’s Planning and Budget Commission, Gholam Reza Mesbahi, to bad economic news. Mesbahi stated that Iran’s economic growth is now at zero, stating, “It is a shame we didn’t use all of the economic opportunities available to us.”

International sanctions and a misguided government subsidy program have contributed to the bad economy, he added.

Mardomak reports that according to the Center of Iranian Statistics, the rate of inflation over the past month was 31.5%. Food prices are 60% higher than this time last year, giving Iran the dubious distinction of having the worst economy in the Middle East.

Gorgeous Fruit at Low Prices

During the Norooz (new year) holidays, Iran’s markets were flooded with gorgeous mandarins and other fruit at low prices. This was an unexpected and unexplained treat for many Iranians who were used to prohibitive prices.

Unfortunately, as Iran Emrooz [fa] reports, this treat came with a price. Reportedly, the fruit was meant for export to Arab countries. It was rejected when tests showed an unacceptable level of pesticides.

The same thing is reported to have happened in the past with chicken exports.

This has caused many in Iran to start questioning the lack of food quality standards.

Iran is #2!

Out of 190 countries, Iran is #2 when it comes to the highest rate of traffic fatalities. The only country with more is Sierra Leone.

UNICEF reports that the rate of accidents in Iran is twenty times the world average. Each year they leave 28,000 dead and 300,000 injured or disabled.

There was an increase in number of traffic accidents over the New Year holidays: with nearly 32,000 injured during the two week holiday.

Break

The weekly review will be a bit sporadic in the coming weeks due to vacations and other obligations. If you have a story you’d like us to follow, leave a comment or use the form on our site.

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Arseh Sevom — This week the mother of Neda, the young woman whose death was captured on camera during the demonstrations following the 2009 presidential elections, reminds us of international women’s day. (h/t United4Iran). Ban Ki Moon makes a statement for an end to violence against women and children. Iran’s sociologists report on growing sexual freedom in Iran, while 250 female activists complain about the treatment of the daughters of Zahra Rahnavard and Mir Hossein Mousavi. The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran issues a report, which is immediately branded biased by Iran’s media. A new cinema organization is launched, this one state sponsored and with a director who has worked hard to close the independent House of Cinema. A letter to Assad from the Physician’s Association leads to a takeover by the Revolutionary Guards. Another letter from well-respected economists warns of increased instability if the country’s economic problems aren’t addressed. Crime is on the rise, and the former Tehran Prosecutor appears before the court in the defendant’s chair. The death of Hugo Chavez is cause for (another) day of mourning in Iran.

Womens Day Marked by Calls to End Violence Against Women

All over the world, there has been a push to end violence against women and children. In a statement issued earlier this week, Ban Ki Moon stated:

“Women need to live free of fear; girls need to safely enjoy their right to education. These are basic rights…Too many women and girls face intimidation and physical and sexual abuse – often from those who should care for and respect them most – fathers, husbands, brothers, teachers, colleagues and supervisors. We need to change attitudes and behavior. We need to change laws and ensure that they are implemented. Perpetrators should be punished. The shame of violence should lie with the abuser, not the victim.”

The Independent Association of Writers, currently banned in Iran, issued a letter protesting patriarchy and violence against women. [fa]

It’s a Sexual Revolution

The Organization of Iranian Sociologists has released a report interpreting new data on abortion, marriage, and divorce. They report that 30% of all abortions are performed on unmarried women. According the their report, that statistic combined with a rise in the divorce rate and a decrease in the rate of marriage shows that sexual freedom has staked a claim in Iran.

The organization recommends more freedom for young people to choose their own partners.

Iran Emrooz has more [fa].

No Way to Treat a Lady

A public letter signed by 250 women activists [fa] protests the treatment of the three daughters of Mir Hossein Moussavi and Zahra Rahnavard. After the pair were allowed to visit their parents, who have been under house arrest for more than two years now, they were harassed by security forces and threatened to keep quiet about their experiences.

 EA WorldView has a translation of an interview with the three women describing the pressure they are under.

In the interview Narges Mousavi described the ransacking of her house by security forces:

On Monday as I was getting ready to go to work with my son, a car stopped us and several men and a woman stated that they have a search warrant, taking us back to our home. I felt very unsafe. I wanted to scream so people would know what was going on when one of the men pushed me inside the house. I injured my hand and was very distressed by his behaviour. One of them lifted his hand and said: “I will slap you so hard that all your teeth will fall out.” This all took place in front my 4-year-old son…They threatened to kill me in front of my child. When they were searching the house one of the men told me that if it were up to him, he would push me out the window of the building.

HIV/AIDS on the Rise

Iran Emrooz [fa] reports that HIV is on the rise in Iran. Dr. Abbas Sedaghat, head of HIV/AIDS control in the Ministry of Health, reports that 24,000 cases have been registered this year alone. He estimates a total of 90,000 living with AIDS in Iran.

Human Rights Report

The UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Iran, Dr. Ahmad Shaheed, presented a 24-page report on the situation in Iran. The report [en] is rigorously researched and presents a bleak view of the situation for those vulnerable to state harassment.

Dr. Shaheed reports that the government of Iran has commented on the report claiming

“that allegations about legal iniquities are ‘groundless’ since the country’s Constitution guarantees that all Iranian citizens are equal regardless of gender, religion, ethnicity or race. It also suggests that claims of due process violations are ‘fabrications’ since the country’s body of laws forbids mistreatment of detainees and the use of coerced confessions; establishes a legal process to remedy violations; and provides for access to legal counsel.”

Dr. Shaheed holds that the claims are true, but optimistically posits that Iran’s legal system has all the fundamentals required to respect human rights and international agreements.

During his tenure as Special Rapporteur, Dr. Shaheed has not been given a visa to visit Iran. As expected, Iranian state media has responded by calling the report biased.

Close the Envelope Please

Whether it is preventing directors from making films or protesting the decisions of international festivals and awards committees, film has been in the news lately when it comes to the Islamic Republic of Iran. In the past month, Iran held its annual Fajr film festival, this time hosting a conference on Hollywood. The controversial film Argo was awarded best picture at the Oscars, and Jafar Panahi won yet another award.

For Iran’s filmmakers, critics, and actors, the closure of the independent House of Cinema still burns. A group wrote a public letter of complaint against  Near the end of February 2013, the state-sponsored Iranian Cinema Organization, led by  the controversial Javad Shamaqdari who was the Deputy Culture Minister for Cinematic Affairs and a leader of the opposition to the House of Cinema.

Arseh Sevom has more on the Oscars, the House of Cinema, and Jafar Paanahi’s award online in Iran: All’s Not Well in the World of Cinema.

Water Policy Leads to Violence

Protesting against the water policy that has left the region without enough for crops, farmers burned several buses in an agricultural region in Isfahan province. There were a number of non-fatal injuries. The farmers protest that water is being diverted from their region to the province of Yazd. Their crops are suffering and their earlier letters of protest had gone unanswered. Anonymous videos were uploaded to YouTube:

Iran Emrooz [fa] and Global Voices [en] have more information.

Crime is Rising

Crime is on the rise in Iran. Meat, bread, jewelry – Everything is disappearing from the shelves. Armed robberies are now making the news for the first time in years. Many in Iran complain that shoppers buying meat are stalked and robbed by thieves on motorbikes.

An unprecedented armed robbery in a small town in Kermanshah left one dead. Radio Zamaneh [fa] has more.

Here Comes the Judge

Radio Farda [fa] reports that when former Tehran prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi was called to appear in court to answer for the killing of prisoners in Kharizak Detention Center, he demanded to sit with the judge. No doubt feeling that it was his rightful place despite the fact that he was appearing as the defendant.

The proceedings were closed. Fathers of two of the victims were present during the proceedings, and they could be seen in tears during parts of the testimony.

The Physicians Association Under Control

The independence of yet another organization has been challenged by Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards (IRGC). In spite of the objections of Ahmadinejad [fa], the IRGC has taken control of elections in the formerly independent Physician’s association. The IRGC is sensitive because of a September 2011 letter the association wrote to Assad telling him to remember that he is a doctor and that he should not be engaged in killing his people.

To Whom It May Concern: We’re Doomed

In a letter to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [fa], 34 economists expressed their concerns about the economic situation in Iran. They discussed the effects of the sanctions, the mismanagement of the economy, and expressed concern for the stability of the nation. The economists noted that urgent action was required to address the looming economic disaster, noting that oil revenues are high yet the funds are being squandered.

Death of Chavez

The death of Hugo Chavez has hit Mahmoud Ahmadinejad quite hard, so a national day of mourning has been called in Iran to commemorate the death. In a letter published on his website [fa], Ahmadinejad expresses his condolences and certainty that Chavez will be resurrected with Jesus. This has been met with criticism and ridicule as are many of Ahmadinejad’s statements.

The cartoonist Maya Neyestani drew Ahmadinejad painting Chavez into a banner for Ashura. You can see it on Rooz Online.

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• Open Letter Against the Closure of the House of Cinema Signed by 2000

Whether it is preventing filmmakers from making films or protesting the decisions of international festivals and awards committees, film has been in the news lately when it comes to the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Envelope Please…

Still from the film Closed Curtain. Director Jafar Panahi looks at a film of the sea.

“In the end, life is but memories. Bitter memories. Sweet Memories. There’s more to life than work…” a character tells Jafar Panahi in the film Closed Curtain. Panahi is under house arrest and forbidden from making films.

In the weeks leading up to the Oscars, Jafar Panahi and Kamboziya Partovi shared a screenplay award for the film Closed Curtain. Critic Eric Kohn calls the film “Less a finished movie than a cry for help…”

Iran lodged a complaint against the selection.

“We believe that the Berlin fest organizers should correct their behavior. Everyone knows that making a film and sending it outside the country needs permission,” stated Javad Shamaqdari, the Deputy Minister for Film and director of the government sponsored, newly launched Iran Cinema Organization.

The star of Closed Curtain Maryam Moghadam and co-director Kamboziya Partovi were in Berlin to accept the award. When they returned to Iran their passports were confiscated and they were banned from foreign travel.

More from Radio Zamaneh [fa] http://radiozamaneh.com/news/iran/2013/02/28/24885 and

The Hoolywood Reporter [en]:http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/iran-bans-closed-curtain-team-424843

Argo Creates Unity

A distaste for the film Argo unites many inside and outside Iran. Many see the film as demonizing Iranians and as setting the stage for a military strike on the country. Others find it historically misleading and degrading. In The Guardian, Saeed Kamali Deghan unpacks the experience of watching the film:

The whole experience is like asking an Iranian who has never been to the US to make a film (let’s say in Cuba) about the Columbine high school massacre. You’ll probably end up watching a film in which all Americans are crazy, have a gun at home and are ready to shoot their classmates…

Iran responded to the Oscars by hosting a conference called “Hollywoodism,” which gave a platform to anti-Hollywood oices at its annual Fajr film festival. The New York Times provides an overview

There is no way of avoiding the Oscars, even in Iran’s closed environment. EAWorld View was quick to note how Michele Obama’s Oscar dress was altered by the tailors at Fars News giving her strapless gown sleeves and lifting the neckline.

In related news, Radio Zamaneh [fa] reports that Javad Shamaqdari claims that last year’s Oscar committee was told to vote for the film A Separation in order to put “a thorn in the eye of the Israelis.” Shamaqdari claims, “I was given the responsibility of selecting the film to go forward to the Oscars. I asked Ahmadinejad for his best advice. He said to me, ‘Go and make Iranian cinema the top internationally.’”

House of Cinema Still Closed

Near the end of February, Iran replaced the independent House of Cinema – which ironically began its life under the protective wing of of the Islamic government — with its own Iranian Cinema Organization. The new organization is led by the controversial Javad Shamaqdari who was the Deputy Culture Minister for Cinematic Affairs and a leader of the charge against the House of Cinema. There are many in the film community who resent the new leadership.

In March 2013, a group of filmmakers, writers, and critics associated with the closed House of Cinema wrote an open letter to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad complaining about the lack of action on the case and singling out the new director of Iran’s Cinema Organization Shamaqdari for criticism.

The group is suffering the double whammy of an economic crisis and the lack of independent representation. In their letter, the group complains that the House of Cinema remains closed. They criticize Shamaqdari for taking the view that the House of Cinema is illegal despite the fact that it had always followed the law and operated in a transparent manner.

The letter was discussed on state television in Iran.

Similar Posts:

• Feb — House of Cinema Protests Ruling Against Panahi
• Sept — IRI Arrests Filmmakers for Alleged Ties to BBC
• JAN — Asghar Farhadi Protests Decision to Dissolve House of Cinema
• Nov-Dec — Filmmaker Jafar Panahi Defends Himself in Court
• Iran: Wrestling with the BBC, the South Pole, and the IOC

A statement from a group of Iranian lawyers — The Iranian Bar Association has experienced many ups and downs since its formation. Its achievement of full independence in 1953—which was made possible through the efforts of lawyers and the then directors of the Bar and by the special consideration of Dr. Mosadegh, on the one hand, and the role of lawyers in defending political prisoners and prisoners of conscience and defending the public’s rights, on the other hand—marked bright and glorious days for the Bar.

The Bar, however, particularly after the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI), has experienced many dark and bitter days too. The so-called purges and purifications during the first decade after the 1979 Revolution, which resulted in the revocation of licenses of many lawyers due to false and unfounded charges, and the arrest and long imprisonment of some of the directors of the Bar, the appointment of a non-elected director for the Bar by the IRI Judiciary, cancellation of the election of the Board of Directors for nearly eighteen years, widespread disqualification of the candidates in the last elections, establishment of a parallel and dependent body of “Center of Legal Advisers of the Judiciary” called article 187, are just some examples of the oppression imposed on lawyers, the legal practice and an accused’s right to a defense in Iran. Nevertheless, what has always made lawyers proud is the fact that none of these events has been able to divest the Bar Association from its de jure independence and that lawyers have safeguarded this precious legacy for more than sixty years.

Now, the core of power in Iran, and, at its top, the IRI Judiciary, which has never tolerated an independent Bar Association and has always pursued increasing restrictions on and the elimination of independent lawyers, has come up with a new plot. The new Bill of “Formal Attorneyship”, which is proposed by the Judiciary and is being examined by the Commission of Government Bills, can be regarded as the most dangerous attack and a coup de grace to legal practice in Iran. The Bill will take the legal practice in Iran back to its status a century ago and will leave neither independence nor the Bar Association. Without an independent legal practice, all Iranian citizens will be deprived of the right to fair trial and one of the main safeguards of public human rights in judicial bodies will be totally wiped out.

The Bill of Attorneyship can be examined and criticized in different respects; but, the most controversial changes, which violate the independence of the Bar and have been objected to by Iranian lawyers and attorneys, including the undersigned, are as follows:

• The long-standing and historic title of the “Bar Association” will be replaced with the “Organization of Attorneys” which reflects the determination of the authorities to downgrade the position of the Bar from an independent body to a subordinate governmental organization.
• It has prescribed a dependent body called the “Supervision Commission”, whose members would be appointed by the Head of the Judiciary. Such Commission will be empowered to supervise all crucial affairs of the Bar and attorneys, including the competence of the attorneys and the election of the Board of Directors, confirmation of the elections, suspension and revocation of the licenses of all attorneys, including even the directors of the Bar, appointment of the members of the Examining Committees, among other tasks (arts. 25-30).
• Ownership of the Bar Association’s properties and assets will be conveyed to the said Supervision Commission (art. 122).
• The decisions made by the abovementioned Commission in many cases cannot be challenged in judicial and administrative bodies and shall be deemed final (art 123).
• While, currently, the Attorneys’ Licenses are issued by the President of the Bar Association, under the new Bill Attorney’s Licenses shall be issued with the signature of the Chairperson of the Organization and the Chief Director of the Justice Administration of the Province (art. 42). Similarly, the procedure of taking the professional oath cannot be carried out without the presence of the Chief Director of the Justice Administration, and there is no consequence or complaint procedure for his refusal to attend.
• According to article 48 of the new Bill, which must be regarded as one of its most dangerous articles, “competent bodies” are empowered to suspend or bar attorneys from practicing law. Currently, according to the Law of Independence of Bar Associations, this is the exclusive role of the Disciplinary Court for Attorneys. If this article is adopted, General and Revolutionary Courts will be able to directly suspend and disbar lawyers. Therefore, any lawyer who acts against the desires of the Judiciary may easily be barred from practicing law.
• Finally, the new Bill is prepared without the knowledge or agreement of the Bar Associations and the Bar’s opinions have been disregarded. It is said that it is like a new outfit tailored for the Bar in total disregard of its opinions and they have decided to force the Bar to wear it.

In addition to these shortcomings, the new Bill also runs counter to international instruments and the IRI’s obligations under international law. According to international standards, not only is an individual guaranteed the right to counsel and a defense, but those services should be provided through independent lawyers. The preamble of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers (1990) stresses the necessity of “effective access to legal services provided by an independent legal profession.” Article 24 of the Principles stipulates that:

“Lawyers shall be entitled to form and join self-governing professional associations to represent their interests, promote their continuing education and training and protect their professional integrity. The executive body of the professional associations shall be elected by its members and shall exercise its functions without external interference.”

In addition, the contravention of the right to defense and the prevention of access to independent lawyers will lead to violation of the right to “fair trial” which is stipulated in numerous international instruments including in article 10 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Again, one of the obvious means and safeguards to guarantee the fair trial is the right to access to defense lawyers who shall defend the accused and modify the scale in their favor.

The new Bill is making the Bar association a subsidiary department of the Judiciary and the independence of the legal practice in Iran’s legal system will be wiped out. As a result, lawyers that view their professional lives as controlled by such organizations will not be capable of effectively defending their clients’ rights against the attacks of the State and its actors. Therefore, they will be forced to become silent and collaborate in theatrical trials of political opponents. The new organization, then, will not be able and willing to defend its members, but, instead, will be responsible for suppressing the attorneys that stand against the violation of the rights of the public.

Therefore, although we believe that the current situation is far from ideal in respect to the public’s right to access to justice in Iran, we, the undersigned attorneys, are convinced that the structure and content of the Bill is so authoritative that it will raise the judicial power only on one side of the scales of justice. This will violate all norms and standards of judicial justice required for guaranteeing the public’s rights. Moreover, we believe that the essence of the Bill is designed with the ultimate goal to wipe out the independence of the Bar and to subjugate attorneys. Thus, amendment of one or more articles of the Bill will not change its essence: which is thoroughly against the honor code for attorneys and violates the right to defense. The entity proposed by the Bill and its ultimate goal runs counter to the independence of the legal practice and should be completely cancelled.

Therefore, we the undersigned express our deep concern over the method of preparation, structure, and the framework set up in the Bill and its articles; and, we warn about its fundamental violation of the right to a defense and fair trial in Iran. We believe the IRI Judiciary should withdraw the Bill as soon as possible and respect the international standards regarding independence of the Bar and safeguarding the right to defense and guaranteeing fair trial; accordingly, the IRI government should observe its international obligations and refrain from the confirmation and submission of the Bill to the Parliament due to the Bill’s incompatibility with the public’s fundamental rights. We also urge that in the instance that members of Parliament receive the Bill, that they reject it and do not allow such a disgrace to be added to their legislative records.

We also urge the directors and presidents of the Bar Associations and the Union of the Bar Associations of Iran to safeguard the dignity and position of the Bar by making every effort to prevent the Bill from being adopted and by informing their members and the public about the dangerous consequences of the Bill.

We also urge our colleagues in Iran, as well as law professors and honorable judges to take the importance of the issue into consideration and oppose the Bill through legal and civil means.

We urge the International Bar Association (IBA), Bar Associations in other countries, lawyers’ organizations, and our colleagues around the world to take action in support of their Iranian colleagues and the independence of the legal practice in Iran according to international standards.

Finally, we urge the United Nations and the international human rights community to remind the IRI of its international obligations regarding the independence of lawyers, the right to defense, and fair trial; and warn the IRI about the consequences of the passage of the Bill and its violation of international norms and standards.

Signatories:

Mohammad Olyaeifard

Maryam Baabaaei

Maliheh Behboudi

Mahnaz Paraakand

Giti Pourfaazel

Reza Tavakoli

Mehri Jafari

Kobra Jafari Harandi

Ali Akbar Hosseinzadeh

Mohammad Reza Khoubruye Paak

Maliheh Dadkhah

Behnam Daraeizadeh

Saeid Dehghan

Ali Dehgjani Ashkezari

Gholamhossein Raeisi

Taghi Saeidi Amani

Saaremuddin Sadegh Vaziri

Shadi Sadr

Mohammad Hossein Solhchi

Hossein Sayyadinejad

Shahram Tahi

Masoumeh Tahmasebizadeh

Vahid Ahmad Fakhruddin

Farrokh Foruzan Kermani

Monely Katouzian

Mehrangiz Kaar

Vajihussadat Lejevardi

Amin Mohammadi Rad

Hedayat Matin Daftari

Mohammad Mostafaei

Afrouz Maghzi

Soudeh Mousavi

Nasser Nourbakhsh

Mahnoush Nouralishahi

Mohammad Hossein Nayyeri

There is more from Iran Human Rights Documentation Center here.

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