IRNA: Mohammad Khatami Did Not Accept Resignations of Government Officials - 2004-01-27

IRNA: Mohammad Khatami Did Not Accept Resignations of Government Officials - 2004-01-27. The Islamic Republic News Agency reports that the President of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, did not accept the resignations of several senior officials in his government. These officials resigned in protest against the disqualification of thousands of candidates for the country's upcoming general elections. According to the IRNA report, which is part of the state media in Iran, Mr. Khatami responded to a recent letter from several high-ranking government officials and requested that they remain in their positions. In his response, Mohammad Khatami promised to insist on the necessity of holding free and fair elections in Iran. Mr. Khatami also complained in this letter that the Islamic Republic Radio and Television (known as 'IRIB') censored his comments regarding the importance of reconsidering the disqualification of parliamentary candidates. About three weeks ago, the Guardian Council of the Islamic Republic, which is dominated by conservative and unelected members of the hardline faction of the government, disqualified over 4,000 electoral candidates for the upcoming general elections next month. At least 80 members of the current Islamic Consultative Assembly are among those disqualified. Following widespread protests and threats from several government members and governors across the country to resign from their positions, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Khamenei, asked the Guardian Council to reconsider its decisions, but the Guardian Council has not yet reinstated the qualifications of several hundred of the disqualified candidates. Additionally, on Sunday, the Guardian Council vetoed legal amendments approved by the Islamic Consultative Assembly, which aimed to weaken this body's control over the electoral process in Iran, declaring these amendments void.