Guardian Council Spokesman: Presumption of Innocence Does Not Apply in Candidate Qualification

The spokesman for the Guardian Council of the Islamic Republic referred to the council as the 'first and last judge' in reviewing the qualifications of election candidates and stated that the presumption of innocence does not apply in the process of assessing candidates' qualifications. Nejatollah Ebrahimiann, the spokesman for the Guardian Council, said in an interview with the state news agency IRNA on Tuesday, January 8, that the council's work in reviewing qualifications is to ascertain eligibility. According to Mr. Ebrahimiann, 'each' member of the Guardian Council must conclude that a candidate is 'qualified.' The Guardian Council, during the fourth parliamentary elections and after changes to Iran's election law, declared its supervisory role in elections as 'discretionary' and has rejected the qualifications of several candidates in each election cycle due to not meeting the criteria. The spokesman continued, stating: 'Essentially, the presumption of innocence does not apply and is not effective in such a review process.' He advised officials not to delve too deeply into this matter, adding: 'The legal and jurisprudential discussion regarding the position of the presumption of innocence should be left to a jurisprudential and academic forum, and official authorities should not get too involved... In any case, the presumption of innocence is not effective here.' This comes despite Article 37 of the Iranian Constitution stating, 'The presumption is innocence, and no one shall be considered guilty by law unless their crime is proven in a competent court.' The spokesman for the Guardian Council commented on this principle, saying: 'Some of the conditions that the electoral or constitutional law has set for candidates do not have a criminal nature so that they can be subject to a criminal judge's ruling.' He added: 'For example... we can never prosecute someone for not believing in Islam or not believing in the Constitution of the Islamic Republic.' Mr. Ebrahimiann emphasized: 'There is no choice but to rely on the first and last judge, namely the Guardian Council. The Guardian Council must ascertain their belief in Islam and the Constitution, and we cannot wait for a court ruling.' In recent years, some members of the Guardian Council have also stated that the presumption of innocence does not apply in reviewing candidates' qualifications. For instance, Abbas Kabi, a member of the Guardian Council, stated in 2007: 'The Guardian Council is not a court that issues judicial rulings against someone and declares their guilt or innocence to say that the presumption is innocence.' Previously, Ahmad Jannati, the Secretary of the Guardian Council, had stated that citing the presumption of innocence in confirming qualifications has 'no legal backing.' The spokesman also mentioned that mere objection and criticism cannot serve as grounds for disqualifying others. He added that the events of 2009 were 'not merely civil protests.' Mr. Ebrahimiann referred to the protests against the 2009 election results as a 'red line' for granting positions to individuals in the Islamic Republic, stating that even the 'repentance' of the 2009 protesters is not sufficient for 'major trusts' like parliamentary representation.