mom person
07-09-2009, 06:03 AM
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/KG10Ak02.html
Middle East
Jul 10, 2009
A leaner, meaner Iranian regime
By Mahan Abedin
Briefly, it looked like 1978-1979 all over again. The riots that engulfed Tehran - and to a much lesser extent a few other major cities - were ostensibly a protest at what the demonstrators (and their purported political leaders) considered to be "rigged" elections. They were quickly suppressed or fizzled out because they were directionless and failed to articulate any coherent or realizable aims.
While the election results were indeed surprising and raised eyebrows everywhere - not least in the inner sanctums of the Islamic Republic - allegations of massive fraud are to this point unproven. While some tinkering may have occurred, fraud on the scale that is being alleged by two of the opposition candidates would have elicited a considerably greater amount of protest and resistance from within the system.
While many seasoned Iran observers - including the country's best-placed journalists - were predicting a close race that would be won by Mir Hossein Mousavi, this author cautioned before the elections that it is entirely possible that incumbent Mahmud Ahmadinejad could win again, and not necessarily by a narrow margin (A bigger struggle lies ahead, Asia Times Online, June 13, 2009).
But the current issues are no longer about an allegedly rigged election. The focus once again is about the type and extent of reforms needed to tailor Iran's institutions and politics for the 21st century.
The election outcome - and the resultant riots and the violence used to suppress the rioters - have produced an unequivocal victory for the ideological Islamic right. For the first time in the 30-year history of the Islamic Republic of Iran, one faction is completely dominant and the other factions are in complete disarray. This is uncharted territory and a great deal of planning, positioning and manipulation are needed to steer the right course, especially in the next four years.
much more at link:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/KG10Ak02.html
Middle East
Jul 10, 2009
A leaner, meaner Iranian regime
By Mahan Abedin
Briefly, it looked like 1978-1979 all over again. The riots that engulfed Tehran - and to a much lesser extent a few other major cities - were ostensibly a protest at what the demonstrators (and their purported political leaders) considered to be "rigged" elections. They were quickly suppressed or fizzled out because they were directionless and failed to articulate any coherent or realizable aims.
While the election results were indeed surprising and raised eyebrows everywhere - not least in the inner sanctums of the Islamic Republic - allegations of massive fraud are to this point unproven. While some tinkering may have occurred, fraud on the scale that is being alleged by two of the opposition candidates would have elicited a considerably greater amount of protest and resistance from within the system.
While many seasoned Iran observers - including the country's best-placed journalists - were predicting a close race that would be won by Mir Hossein Mousavi, this author cautioned before the elections that it is entirely possible that incumbent Mahmud Ahmadinejad could win again, and not necessarily by a narrow margin (A bigger struggle lies ahead, Asia Times Online, June 13, 2009).
But the current issues are no longer about an allegedly rigged election. The focus once again is about the type and extent of reforms needed to tailor Iran's institutions and politics for the 21st century.
The election outcome - and the resultant riots and the violence used to suppress the rioters - have produced an unequivocal victory for the ideological Islamic right. For the first time in the 30-year history of the Islamic Republic of Iran, one faction is completely dominant and the other factions are in complete disarray. This is uncharted territory and a great deal of planning, positioning and manipulation are needed to steer the right course, especially in the next four years.
much more at link:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/KG10Ak02.html