Controversial Days of the Ninth Parliament

The ninth term of the Islamic Consultative Assembly began its work on June 7, 2012, under circumstances where the majority of the legislative body was held by various factions of conservatives. Alongside a small faction of reformists, a conservative group known as the Voice of the Nation Front was present in the parliament, with prominent figure Ali Motahari, a representative known for his many controversial speeches and statements since then. The ninth parliament and its representatives have witnessed and experienced tumultuous and eventful days since June 7, 2012. One of the first high-profile events in the parliament in 2012 was a speech by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the then-President of Iran, in the parliament and the broadcast of a recording of a conversation attributed to Saeed Mortazavi, the then-head of the Social Security Organization, and Fazel Larijani, the brother of the heads of the legislative and judicial branches. This recording was aired during the impeachment of the then-Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare on February 4, 2013. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accused Fazel Larijani of abusing his connections for economic activities by airing this tape. However, the President's remarks did not go unanswered by the Speaker of the Parliament. Ali Larijani responded to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, saying, 'It was good that you aired this film so that the people could better understand your character.' Morteza Kazemian, a journalist and political analyst in Paris, describes what happened on February 4, 2013, in the parliament as a significant event, adding, 'This incident especially indicated the peak of Ahmadinejad's adventurism or status-seeking, and that after the rift between the then-President and the central power, Mr. Ahmadinejad was somehow sidelining other power factions.' Kazemian adds, 'Showing the film of the brother of the two heads of the legislative and judicial branches, which was evaluated by Ali Larijani as a mafia-like action, indicated how much the Ahmadinejad-Mashai faction felt autonomous within the political structure of the Islamic Republic.' The verbal clash on February 4, 2013, which was broadcast simultaneously on the radio, elicited multiple reactions from political factions. In this context, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, stated in a speech that this issue 'upset both the people and the elites. The head of the branch, based on an unproven accusation, accused the two other branches in court. This was a bad act. It was inappropriate. Such actions are against Sharia, law, and ethics and violate the fundamental rights of the people. I currently advise. The essence of this impeachment in the parliament was also wrong. Impeachment should be beneficial. A few months before the end of the government's term, impeaching a minister, especially for a reason that does not pertain to that minister, what does that mean?' Morteza Kazemian believes that the leader's strong reaction, although criticizing both sides, specifically targeted Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and evaluated his behavior as contrary to Sharia, law, and ethics, and even as a violation of people's rights, which may have been one of the strongest criticisms and confrontations of the leader of the Islamic Republic with a President in Iran. Ali Keshtegar, a political activist residing in Paris, also states, 'Mr. Khamenei called both sides to reconcile or not to make their dispute public because he did not want the parliament to clash with the President, who had supported him during the 2009 coup.' With Hassan Rouhani's victory in the election on June 14, 2013, and the beginning of his presidency, it was thought that there would be a relatively smooth path ahead for the new President of Iran. However, contrary to this assumption, according to news sources, the number of yellow cards issued by parliament members to the ministers of Hassan Rouhani's government has reached 16. So far, the ministers of Industry, Mine and Trade, Sports and Youth, Culture and Islamic Guidance, Interior, Education, Communications and Information Technology, Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare, and Research, Science and Technology have received yellow cards from the parliament. Previously, the parliament had impeached and dismissed Reza Faraji Dana, the Minister of Research, Science and Technology, last August. Additionally, prior to that, at the beginning of Hassan Rouhani's government, the parliament did not vote for Mohammad Ali Najafi, Masoud Soltani Far, and Jafar Mili Monfared, the candidates proposed for the ministries of Education, Sports and Youth, and Research, Science and Technology. Alongside these yellow cards or negative votes from representatives to the ministers of the government, it is also necessary to mention the questions posed by the representatives of the legislative branch to these ministers. This situation has led to criticism from Hassan Rouhani and his government members. Ali Keshtegar states in this regard, 'The parliament is not in harmony with Mr. Rouhani and his government's views and continues its confrontations relying on the support of the leader.' He cites the parliament's behavior towards Hassan Rouhani's nominees for the Ministry of Science as an example, adding, 'The parliament acted in a way that Mr. Rouhani had to propose four candidates. In the end, it became clear that the Ministry of Science's efforts against illegal scholarships and those who did not deserve them but were awarded scholarships during Ahmadinejad's government faced opposition from Mr. Khamenei. The parliament knew this and confronted the proposed ministers.' This political activist continues his remarks about the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, saying, 'This ministry, despite all its conservatism, even in its relatively more open approach to music and culture compared to Ahmadinejad's era, is not supported by Mr. Khamenei. In this regard, we see that the parliament has repeatedly clashed with this ministry.' Another example mentioned by Ali Keshtegar is the parliament's confrontation with Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Minister of Foreign Affairs. He points out, 'Despite the fact that the nuclear negotiations were supported by Mr. Khamenei and they had to reach an agreement considering Iran's economic situation, they tried to act in a way that Zarif and Rouhani's government could not consider this as a success.' In Keshtegar's opinion, this conflict continues unless the composition of the next parliament changes. Among other events related to the ninth parliament, its approach to the nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 countries was noteworthy. Previously, with the beginning of nuclear negotiations, parliament members had repeatedly criticized the performance of Iran's nuclear negotiating team. Meanwhile, despite the government's opposition, parliament members approved the details of a bill obligating the government to preserve nuclear achievements on October 11, 2014. According to this bill, if sanctions against Iran were intensified in the U.S. Congress, the Geneva agreement would be annulled, and Iran's nuclear activities would resume. Nevertheless, the bill for implementing the nuclear agreement was approved on October 13 with 161 votes in favor. Morteza Kazemian states regarding this matter, 'When in October, the JCPOA was approved in a 20-minute session and in a way, the most important bill of the ninth parliament and perhaps one of the historical bills in the Islamic Republic and even in the history of Iran was approved in less than 20 minutes, it became increasingly clear how much the parliament in the Islamic Republic has acquired a nominal and ceremonial status, and especially how much the ninth parliament has deviated from the parliamentary functions in Iran.' The ninth parliament has also witnessed other significant events since its inception. For instance, on June 17, 2013, just three days after the presidential election, news of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's summons to court due to a complaint from the parliament was published, while he was still considered the official president for two more months. According to the Mehr News Agency, one of the complainants was the Speaker of the Parliament. Based on this report, the complaints against the President included failing to timely form the Ministry of Sports and Youth, violations in the Ministry of Oil, repeated violations in implementing the budget law based on reports from the Court of Audit, refusal to communicate some of the parliament's legislative approvals, and the method of merging ministries, among others, which were submitted to the parliament's Article 90 Commission. Meanwhile, other significant events in the parliament included the reading of the report on the investigation of social security in the public session, agreeing to form the Management and Planning Organization, and also investigating the Justice Shares, approving a bill to increase the birth rate and prevent the decline of Iran's population growth, and transferring the capital of Iran.