Iranian Human Rights Group: UN Should Pressure for Leadership Change in Iran

An Iranian-American human rights group is urging the United Nations and Western governments to pressure for a change in leadership in Iran. The National Coalition for Democracy condemned the recent parliamentary elections, citing the lowest voter turnout and the mass resignation of reformist candidates. The hardline faction of the Islamic Republic took control of the 290-seat parliament in the February 20 elections, a victory that was not unexpected. Several weeks prior to the elections, Iran's religious leaders disqualified 2,400 candidates, most of whom were reformists. Shortly after the vote, reformist parliament members began resigning following their defeat. Despite having won a majority in the 2000 elections, reformists have faced criticism for their inability to make progress towards democracy in the face of powerful conservatives. The National Coalition for Democracy held a press conference in New York regarding the elections. Nasser Rashidi, the group's director, stated that the elections were not credible. He noted that several months before the election day, many Iranians, primarily students, called for a boycott, believing that the regime was incapable of enacting any reforms. Rashidi mentioned that barely half of the eligible voters participated. He argued that without a change in the hardline religious leader, who has the power to dismiss all elected officials, including the president, free elections are impossible. He added, 'We all believe that no free elections will exist under the rule of the supreme leader as long as they hold absolute power.' The U.S. Senate passed a resolution opposing such elections and called for the establishment of a democratic alternative government. A spokesman for the hardline Guardian Council, composed of conservative clerics and Islamic jurists, stated that the U.S. should recognize the legitimacy of the Islamic Republic and take the first step towards establishing diplomatic relations.