Ali Motahari's Reaction to the Justice Minister's Statements on Lifting House Arrest

A few days after Mostafa Pourmohammadi, Iran's Minister of Justice, stated that the issue of lifting house arrest from the leaders of the 2009 protests is not a legal-judicial matter but rather a political and security issue, Ali Motahari, a representative from Tehran in the Parliament, criticized these remarks. In an open letter published on Sunday, September 15, Motahari described the classifications made by Pourmohammadi regarding the issue of house arrest as a 'dangerous innovation' and referred to the scope he considered for the National Security Council's powers as an 'expansion of authority' that 'prepares the ground for despotism.' In his letter, Motahari even addressed Pourmohammadi, stating that 'the answers you provided to media managers and students regarding the issue of house arrest and the media ban on certain figures indicate that you have had to justify it due to the wrong decisions of others on one hand and your job position on the other, and you yourself are not convinced.' 'Dangerous Innovation' Mostafa Pourmohammadi, on Wednesday, September 11, clarified regarding the issue of lifting house arrest from the leaders of the 2009 protests that 'this political and security decision occurred after a social struggle; therefore, we cannot explain and clarify the issue of house arrest with legal-judicial principles. House arrest pertains to a political and security discussion.' Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, two candidates who protested the results of the 2009 presidential election in Iran, along with Zahra Rahnavard, Mousavi's wife, have been under house arrest since March 2010. In response to this part of Pourmohammadi's statements, Motahari wrote in his letter: 'Dividing punishments without criteria into two categories: political-security and legal-judicial, where the first category is determined by a few council members without trial and defense of the accused, and the second category is determined through trial and a judge's ruling, is a dangerous innovation and has bad consequences, including distancing the country from democracy, in addition to being contrary to Articles 32 to 37 of the Constitution regarding the rights of the accused and criminals.' Decision-Making for Lifting House Arrest, 'Beyond the Decision' of the Three Powers Pourmohammadi, in another part of his statements on Wednesday, mentioned that the decision to lift house arrest is 'beyond the decision' of the three branches of government, stating that 'this discussion is raised and pursued in the National Security Council.' He added that 'the National Security Council consists of the heads of the three branches along with representatives of the leadership and military and security institutions, and the decision made is also security and political.' Now, Ali Motahari in his open letter regarding this discussion writes that 'in my opinion, the National Security Council cannot perform the duties of the judiciary regarding the issue of house arrest, nor can it replace the Parliament regarding the JCPOA.' He adds: 'The expansion of the National Security Council's powers beyond Article 176 of the Constitution prepares the ground for despotism. In any case, I thank you for having a new perspective on the two issues of house arrest and media bans at the media level, which will be a step towards resolving these two issues.' The Issue of Calm in Society The Iranian Minister of Justice, in his continued remarks regarding the issue of house arrest, stated that 'since this decision is political and security-related and was made following chaos and sedition in the country, undoubtedly, to resolve it, the country needs calm.' Pourmohammadi emphasized: 'In any case, know that house arrest is the result of turmoil and chaos; therefore, the solution to the house arrest issue is calm and tranquility.' Ali Motahari, in his letter on Sunday, specified that the justification of the 'political and security' nature of the house arrest issue 'may be correct for the first few months of house arrest when society was somewhat chaotic,' but 'the discussion is about the continuation of house arrest for more than four years, during which society has been calm and the excitement of that period has subsided. Undoubtedly, the issue of house arrest during this time has been a legal and judicial matter.' The 'Political and Security' Nature of the JCPOA The Iranian Minister of Justice also mentioned on Wednesday regarding the nuclear agreement and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) that 'in the government's opinion, the JCPOA is a political agreement and a political discussion.' He added that 'from the government's perspective, this issue is not legal and does not need to be referred to the Parliament, although 201 members of Parliament have written a letter requesting the referral of this agreement to the Parliament. From our viewpoint, this discussion, like house arrest, is political and security-related and is beyond the decision of the branches; therefore, it should be discussed in the National Security Council.' Ali Motahari also reacted to this part of Pourmohammadi's statements, writing that 'it is surprising to those who have a dual logic and a double standard here. On one hand, they say the National Security Council cannot perform the work of a branch and replace the Parliament in reviewing the JCPOA, and on the other hand, they say the National Security Council can perform the judiciary's work regarding house arrest and replace this branch!' He concluded by emphasizing that 'in my opinion, the National Security Council cannot perform the judiciary's work regarding house arrest, nor can it replace the Parliament regarding the JCPOA.'