Larijani criticizes Guardian Council, IRIB (Iran's Parliament Speaker)

[IndianaGreen]

Source: Press TV

Larijani criticizes Guardian Council, IRIB

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 02:11:50 GMT

Iran's Parliament (Majlis) Speaker Ali Larijani suggests that some of the members in the Guardian Council have sided with a certain candidate in the June 12 presidential election.

Speaking live on the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) Channel 2 on Saturday, the speaker said that "a majority of people are of the opinion that the actual election results are different than what was officially announced."

"The opinion of this majority should be respected and a line should be drawn between them and rioters and miscreants," he was quoted as saying by Khabaronline -- a website affiliated with him.

<snip>

Larijani, however, believes that the Iranian people have lost their trust in the country's legal system. "Although the Guardian Council is made up of religious individuals I wish certain members would not side with a certain presidential candidate."

"The Guardian Council should use every possible means to build trust and convince the protesters that their complaints will be thoroughly looked into," the parliament speaker added.

Larijani who, was formerly in charge of IRIB, criticized the organization, saying that "the IRIB should not act in a way that provokes people."

The authorities should provide an atmosphere in which people feel free to express their opinion, he concluded.

Read more: http://www.presstv.ir/classic/detail.aspx?id=98645§...

---

This story is posted in the official English language Iranian government website, which makes the story more remarkable. There is a split within the ruling class.

On edit:

IRIB is the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting.

[Adsos Letter]

1. I think I have gotten somewhat of a grasp of background

after watching the two al Jazeera documentaries on the 79 revolution and its aftermath. It is the lack of understanding of the internal stresses and fractures within the Iranian powerbase (mainly the mullahs, the military, and the Basij) that make this whole thing so unpredictable to an outsider.

If this continues very long, and divisions occur/surface within the military, this whole thing could take an even more violent course, would be my guess.

[EFerrari]

3. The real leadership doesn't seem to have a good grip

on how much they have insulted and lost the people. Not all the people because Tehran isn't the whole country. But, they seem to be out of touch with how much this debacle pissed off the people most likely to get international support for their grievances.

[Adsos Letter]

4. Perhaps so. I just wonder what the hidden, internal dynamics of the situation are.

The Basij are one thing, but where does the military stand in all this? That could prove the determining factor, especially if the instability and violence continue long.

[EFerrari]

5. There seems to be a power struggle among the mullahs, for one thing.

And that leaks down into their political actors, as we have seen among these candidates.

I have no clue about the military. The Supreme Leader is their chief. And his position has been undermined, maybe fatally. It's hard to see how even a crackdown would put this all back together.

[Selatius]

7. A crackdown would only stall the inevitable. This regime has shattered its veneer of legitimacy.

From now on, Iranians will complain not just about how repressive the regime is but also how fraudulent it really is. Imagine where the US would be if most people felt that the 2000 election was blatantly rigged. The US government in its current form could still be in power today, but most people would not vote anymore and would simply wait for the day it came tumbling down.

[IndianaGreen]

13. Clearly there is a split within the religious leadership

Robert Fisk, still reporting from Tehran, says that Ahmadinejad and Ali Khamenei are terrified of a velvet revolution, like the ones that brought down authoritarian regimes in Eastern Europe at the end of the Cold War.

More about Fisk here: http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/...

[drm604]

2. Very Interesting. K&R n/t

[IndianaGreen]

6. Iran's parliament speaker criticizes election authority (CNN)

Well, CNN finally caught on to the significance of this story, and the fact it was published by a government owned website.

Iran's parliament speaker criticizes election authority

TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iran's influential parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani implied Saturday that the election authority sided with a certain candidate as thousands of defiant anti-government protesters once again swept into the streets of the capital.

<snip>

"Although the Guardian Council is made up of religious individuals, I wish certain members would not side with a certain presidential candidate," Larijani told the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) on Saturday, without naming whom he meant.

The comments were reported on government-funded Press TV and on another news Web site, Khabaronline, Sunday.

Followers of opposition leader Mir Hossein Moussavi have alleged that the council, which approves all candidates running for office and verifies election results, declared hard-line incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the winner of the elections despite indications of ballot fraud.

Larijani's statement was in direct contrast to that of Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, who considers the possibility of ballot irregularities in the presidential elections as almost nonexistant.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/06/21/iran.election...

[Turborama]

8. Iran's parliament speaker criticizes election authority

Source: CNN International

Iran's influential parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani implied Saturday that the election authority sided with a certain candidate as thousands of defiant anti-government protesters once again swept into the streets of the capital.

A stream of videos posted on social networking Web sites depicted tense scenes and chaos -- sounds of gunshots, images of helicopters whirring overhead and wounded men and women being carried away.

The extent of deaths or injuries remained unclear. The Ministry of Culture on Saturday banned international media from reporting on the demonstrations unless they had received permission from Iranian authorities.

Sources at one Tehran hospital confirmed 19 deaths in seven days of post-election protests.

"Although the Guardian Council is made up of religious individuals, I wish certain members would not side with a certain presidential candidate," Larijani told the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) on Saturday, without naming whom he meant.

Read more: http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/06/21/iran.elec...

[SkyDaddy7]

9. I hate to say this...

But unless the Iranian people are in this for the long haul it does not appear there are as big as cracks in this regime as first thought...I hope I am very very wrong!!!

[dipsydoodle]

10. For comparison - the Belgrade protests,

for similar reasons of suspected election fraud, went on for about 35 days continuous. Same time every day with up to 1/4 million each day. They finally fizzled out. Maybe these ones have a long way to go yet.

[ohio2007]

11. For another comparison , the Hariri assassination in Lebanon was a spark but the people there had

full access to the breaking news story.
"The Cedar Revolution" followed up shortly after that day in mid march so it's all about the catalyst that leads to an event.

[grannie4peace]

12. please wear green today