Parliament's Confidence Vote Session for Rouhani's Proposed Government Held

The session to review the confidence vote for 17 proposed ministers of the 12th cabinet of the Islamic Republic, led by Hassan Rouhani, was held in the Islamic Consultative Assembly on the morning of August 15. The agenda for this session did not conclude on that day and was postponed to Wednesday, August 16. Notably, no name was mentioned for the Minister of Science in the proposed list. After Hassan Rouhani defended his proposed ministers, the parliament began discussing the overall government and the statements of supporters and opponents. Among the introduced ministers, eight new faces were seen: Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, Masoud Karbasian, Mohammad Bat'hai, Alireza Avaei, Amir Hatami, Mohammad Shariatmadari, Abbas Salehi, and Habibollah Bi-Taraf. The International Campaign for Human Rights reported on what it called the "tainted records" of the proposed Minister of Communications and Information Technology, stating that Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi had "responsibilities regarding surveillance and eavesdropping" and had "interrogated some former political prisoners." Mohammad Ali Pourmokhtar, one of three representatives who spoke against the proposed Minister of Communications, explicitly referred to Azari Jahromi's intelligence background, stating: "Mr. Jahromi, due to his limited experience, will be a yes-man and will lack independent judgment... Do not turn the Ministry of Communications into a second Ministry of Intelligence." In his speech in parliament, Hassan Rouhani also spoke about Alireza Avaei, the proposed Minister of Justice for the 12th government, praising his "moderation." This is while Alireza Avaei was in charge of the Tehran judiciary during the protests against the results of the 2009 presidential election and, along with over 30 other officials of the Islamic Republic, was placed on a list by the European Union for involvement in human rights violations, illegal detention, disregard for prisoners' rights, and the increase in executions in October 2011. Rouhani further stated that he intended to introduce three women ministers in his cabinet and had specified their positions, but ultimately this did not happen. When asked about the reason for not introducing a female minister, Rouhani said: "Why it did not happen remains for later." He also expressed his support for keeping the virtual space open and the necessity of preventing individual preferences from overriding the decisions of the Ministry of Culture and Guidance. Warnings to the U.S. regarding the JCPOA, eradicating absolute poverty, and the issue of introducing women for ministerial positions were other topics mentioned by the Iranian president. Rouhani rejected the issues raised about how his proposed ministers were chosen, stating: "The president was not influenced by any faction, party, or organization in introducing 17 ministers." He also denied that the list of ministers was discussed with the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, but added: "I usually consult with him on all matters, and he kindly points out what is in the country's interest." Previously, Ali Motahari, the deputy speaker, and Mahmoud Sadeghi and Gholamreza Heydari, two members of the Hope faction in parliament, criticized what was described as the "coordination" of the complete list of the 12th government with the Supreme Leader. Following this, the office of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei acknowledged that he intervenes in the selection of the ministers of foreign affairs, defense, and intelligence, and has "sensitivities" regarding the selection of the ministers of science, education, and culture and Islamic guidance. Rouhani's criticism of interference in the Ministry of Guidance's work has become a contentious issue in recent months, as some representatives of the Supreme Leader and clerics have opposed the decisions of Rouhani's government regarding the holding of concerts. Rouhani stated on Tuesday regarding the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance: "We should not allow individual preferences to dominate in our country." He added: "If someone has a personal preference, it is respected for them. We must implement the law. If the Ministry of Guidance has no duty, it is the parliament's responsibility to take that duty from Guidance and assign it to someone else, so it becomes clear that we have no duty." He continued: "However, when this is the duty of the Ministry of Guidance and the government, the government oversees books and films, and the government supervises the implementation of artistic matters in the country; no one else has the right to supervise, and if there are such interventions, it is better for the parliament to assign these matters to the same interveners and clarify that we have no duty to carry out." The uproar over the cancellation of concerts by security and law enforcement agencies in various parts of the country, especially in Khorasan Razavi province, has been a media topic for months, and although it prompted reactions from officials in Rouhani's government, ultimately, according to Ali Jannati, the former Minister of Guidance, this ministry refrained from holding concerts in Mashhad. Ahmad Alamolhoda, the representative of the Supreme Leader in Khorasan Razavi, not only told concert supporters in Mashhad that they should leave the city, but shortly after announced his opposition to holding concerts "across the country." Supporting the opening of the virtual space, Rouhani stated: "You cannot lock the virtual space. A lock that people willingly open cannot be closed again. A lock that the president has opened may be closed by someone else, causing trouble, so we must use the virtual space correctly; however, if we are not careful and do not take the necessary precautions, if we do not observe principles and laws, it can have the opposite result." Rouhani's government and officials of the judiciary have differing views on filtering Telegram and other social networks like Instagram and are engaged in this issue. Before the 12th presidential election, Rouhani had stated that those who, according to him, had repeatedly pressured the government to filter social networks were now leading the use of virtual space during the elections. Despite Rouhani's emphasis on opening the virtual space in his speech on Tuesday, he defended the background of his proposed Minister for Communications, a person who, according to the International Campaign for Human Rights, had responsibilities "in the field of surveillance and interrogating some former political prisoners." In defending Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, Rouhani described him as "nurtured in the post-revolutionary space," adding: "My acquaintance with him was in the Supreme Council of Cyberspace; he participated, spoke, and debated, and I became fully aware of his command of communications and cyberspace in a diverse meeting, and his thoughts regarding cyberspace are better." Warning to America: "The excuses and breaches of promises by America" The Iranian president, in part of his speech, criticized what he called "the excuses and breaches of promises by America" regarding the nuclear agreement, stating that Iran has adhered to all its international commitments and will continue to do so, but at the same time warned that if America's policies continue, "Iran will return in a very short time, not in weeks and months, but in hours and days, to a much more advanced situation than at the beginning of the negotiations." Other issues raised in the confidence vote session: Eshaq Jahangiri, the first vice president of Iran, after the representatives of supporters and opponents of the government's generalities and programs, defended the performance of the 11th government, stating: "After four years, if the country's situation is examined from any aspect, it is commendable and can be presented internationally." He stated that the issue of Iranophobia no longer exists, adding: "The situation where someone could not have a bank account due to being Iranian no longer exists. We reached an important agreement. We exited Chapter Seven and are no longer recognized as a disruptor of world peace." These remarks were made amid criticism from several countries in the region and the West regarding Iran's interference in the internal affairs of some Middle Eastern countries like Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. Tehran has rejected these criticisms. Mohammad Reza Aref, the head of the so-called "Hope faction," also defended the proposed government, stating: "For the government to be able to implement its programs well, it needs cooperation and understanding. Of course, there were better choices in selecting government members, but the importance of hearing a single voice from the government is very high." He considered "non-interference of the government in the personal and private affairs of people, access to facilities for all, and creating empathy among all Iranian ethnicities and cultures" as some of the "good and important programs" presented to the parliament. Previously, Behrouz Namati, the spokesperson for the parliament's presiding board, had stated that it is expected that "the review of the qualifications of the proposed ministers of the 12th cabinet will take three or four days." Mr. Namati stated that the reviews would be conducted in three working sessions in the parliament's open session.