Rouhani Calls for Referendum on Disputed Issues

Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, referred to issues such as the disqualification of candidates in elections and the privacy of citizens, stating that for disputed matters among the institutions of the Islamic Republic, a referendum should be held. According to ISNA news agency, in his speech at the ceremony on February 11, the anniversary of the 1979 Revolution, Rouhani urged all institutions, including the Guardian Council, to 'make the electoral process easier' and allow 'all tastes to participate in elections.' He emphasized that the elections are over and addressed his opponents, saying, 'We must all be together and let the people be at ease.' Rouhani also mentioned, 'Let us not interfere in the privacy of the people and raise our tolerance threshold.' He further stressed, 'The Constitution has removed deadlocks and has great capacity, and if we have a discussion on an issue, we should refer to Article 59 (of the Constitution), which states that we should refer to the people's votes.' The Iranian President said, 'If factions have disagreements, let us bring the ballot box and act according to what the people say.' Rouhani had previously suggested holding a referendum 'on important economic, social, political, and cultural issues.' According to Article 59 of the Iranian Constitution, 'In very important economic, political, social, and cultural matters, the legislative power may be exercised through a referendum and direct reference to the people's votes. The request for a public vote must be approved by two-thirds of the total members of the parliament.' However, some officials of the Islamic Republic believe that the Supreme Leader must grant permission for a referendum. This constitutional article has not been utilized so far, and since the approval of the Islamic Republic's Constitution in 1979, a referendum has only been held once regarding the amendment of this law, ordered by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic. The current Constitution of the Islamic Republic was put to a vote and approved in 1989 after the death of Ayatollah Khomeini and the election of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as the Supreme Leader. The issue of disqualifying election candidates, arresting political activists, censoring the press, military institutions' interference in domestic and foreign policy, and the Supreme Leader's interference in executive affairs have been among the disputed topics between the leader and the presidents of Iran over the past 20 years. Morteza Kazemian, a journalist and political analyst in Paris, commented on Rouhani's statements regarding the referendum to Radio Farda, saying that these remarks have 'an outwardly valuable and important appearance; Mr. Rouhani at least at the level of speech addresses the importance of realizing the majority's demand through a referendum. However, it remains to be seen how serious he is in his capacity as the head of the executive branch in fulfilling the requirements of this referendum and particularly how insistent he is on the issue of the referendum.' In another part of his speech, Rouhani criticized the actions of critical media and Iranian radio and television. He said, 'The state media should not say that we destroyed 25 million pieces of chicken for the health of the people because the health of the people is important to us and instead of thanking the government, they should not say that eggs have turned golden.' Rouhani pointed out, '40 years is enough. Let go of the hatred. How many years of hatred and false words? Let us unite and stand together.' Previously, Rouhani and his government officials have repeatedly criticized what they called the 'black portrayal' by radio and television. Iranian radio and television is run under the supervision of the Supreme Leader. Meanwhile, several officials in Rouhani's government implicitly accuse opponents, including Ayatollah Ahmad Alamolhoda, the Friday prayer leader of Mashhad, of organizing the protests on December 28 in Mashhad. He has denied this accusation. In the protests that began in Mashhad and spread to over 100 cities, slogans were chanted against the leader and other officials of the Islamic Republic, with some protesters calling for a change in the Islamic Republic system. 'Some were also removed from the train of the revolution whom we could have kept on.' Rouhani said in another part of his speech, 'When our revolution triumphed, we were all together. There were many passengers on the train of the revolution; now, naturally, some voluntarily got off, and some we removed from the train of the revolution whom we could have kept on.' He added, 'Today, we must invite everyone again to board the train of success and victory of the revolution.' Morteza Kazemian believes that the expectation from Rouhani is to provide the grounds for this, including freedom of thought, expression, media, and parties, which is noticeably absent and under threat from security and judicial institutions. He adds, 'Also, on another level, it should be seen in what issues he is willing to cooperate with the civil society's demands and pursue the realization of the referendum. These are some ambiguities and serious questions regarding Rouhani's important words. This part of Rouhani's speech also has a plausible appearance at the level of words; however, how serious has the president been in providing the opportunity for various political-social forces to operate? Unfortunately, the security-intelligence subordinates of the executive branch, as well as the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, and even the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, have sometimes acted as tools for threatening critics and dissenters and imposing restrictions on political and professional activities.' According to this journalist and political analyst, 'The threats and arrests of political, student, and labor activists by the Ministry of Intelligence or the censorship order of the recent letter from Mehdi Karroubi by the Ministry of Culture are evidence of this unfortunate situation under the administration of the moderate president, which does not correlate with his statements.' According to ISNA, Rouhani in another part of his speech said, 'All Iranian ethnicities, followers of Shia Islam, Sunni Muslims, and all religions, and anyone who accepts this Constitution is revolutionary.' Just a few months after the victory of the 1979 Revolution, several groups that opposed the Shah's regime had disagreements with the new government, and in the following years, their members were arrested and executed or sentenced to long-term imprisonment. After that, organizations like the Tudeh Party of Iran and the Fedayeen Majority Organization, which supported the government, faced similar fates, with many of their members and leaders arrested and killed under torture or executed in the 1980s. Meanwhile, following the crackdown on non-religious groups, religious movements, including the Freedom Movement, were removed from power, while Abolhassan Banisadr, the first president of Iran, was also ousted in the early months of 1981 by a parliament whose majority was held by supporters of Ayatollah Khomeini. After the elimination of all groups opposing Ayatollah Khomeini, severe disputes arose among Khomeini's supporters, who were divided into the so-called left and right Islamic factions, and this issue continues to this day. In 2009, several reformists and protesters against the presidential election were arrested, and Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard, leaders of the protesters, have been under house arrest since February 2011. Meanwhile, religious minorities in Iran are barred from holding high government positions. Baha'is are also banned from attending university, and since the 1979 Revolution, dozens of Baha'is have been executed and assassinated, and hundreds have been arrested and imprisoned.