Rouhani Calls for Referendum on Important Issues

Hassan Rouhani, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, called for a referendum on "important economic, social, political, and cultural issues," referencing one of the principles of the Islamic Republic's constitution. According to the IRNA news agency, Mr. Rouhani stated during a speech in Tehran on Sunday, January 14, that "once a year, once every ten years, now that it has been 36 years, this constitution and this principle of the constitution have not been implemented and acted upon." He added that "the constitution tells us that in important economic, social, political, and cultural issues, instead of having laws approved in the parliament, legal articles or direct programs should be put to the public vote and referendum." The President emphasized, "Once, we should directly ask the people about a very important issue that may also be contentious; of course, it is okay for there to be disagreements, as opinions are not always the same; once, we should ask about that important issue that matters to all of us and impacts our lives." Article 59 of the Islamic Republic's constitution states that "in very important economic, political, social, and cultural issues, the legislative power may be exercised through a referendum and direct reference to the people's votes," which this request "must be approved by two-thirds of the total representatives of the parliament." However, Article 110 of the same constitution states that issuing a "referendum command" is among the "duties and powers" of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic. Previously, in 1989, changes to the Islamic Republic's constitution were put to a referendum, during which the powers of the Supreme Leader were expanded and the phrase "Guardianship of the Jurist" was changed to "Absolute Guardianship of the Jurist." The establishment of the Expediency Discernment Council and the elimination of the Prime Minister's position were other significant changes to the constitution. Rouhani: Corruption is Rooted Everywhere. In another part of his speech on Sunday, the President stated that "a body cannot engage in economic work and not pay taxes," adding, "Whenever we say a certain body should pay taxes, a fuss is created." Hassan Rouhani, speaking at the first Iran Economic Conference held at the Summit Hall, stated that "corruption is rooted everywhere." He added that "this government will inform the people about any issue it knows is in the interests of the people without fear of anyone or any institution and will present the necessary bill to the parliament." Mr. Rouhani also stated that "the economy in the country does not progress with monopoly" and reiterated: "If an issue is monopolized by a specific group, corruption will arise even if it is Salman and Abu Dharr." The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran had previously made similar statements in December, which many observers interpreted as directed at the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, although the IRGC's commander stated that this was not the case. Hassan Rouhani also said that "the economy must be freed from monopoly and rent" and added: "All government agencies must transparently state their economic activities. This means that all people should be informed simultaneously about statistics, figures, and economic plans, because there are no cousins here." He stated that "if transparency is created and rent is eliminated, we can also combat the corruption that is rooted everywhere," emphasizing: "How can our economic movement accelerate with corruption?" Rouhani: The country cannot grow in isolation; our ideals are not connected to centrifuges. According to Fars News Agency, Hassan Rouhani continued his remarks at the first Iran Economic Conference, stating: "Our political experience tells us that a country cannot have continuous growth in isolation; this does not mean that we abandon our principles and ideals. Does anyone negotiate based on principles and ideals? Some live in delusions; today's world is about interests." Rouhani said: "Threats, opportunities, and common interests are the basis of foreign policy discussions, and principles and ideals are not discussed in foreign policy unless we first negotiated our ideals and principles in the Geneva agreement. Did we take our principles to negotiate?" The President of Iran clarified: "All negotiations are such that they aim to connect the desires of the other party with our desires; our ideals are not connected to centrifuges but to our hearts and will; if we show more transparency from our side and stop certain enrichment that we do not need, does that mean we have abandoned our ideals?" He added: "In the Geneva agreement, we managed to bypass some sanctions such as those on automobiles, petrochemicals, insurance, and shipping, and we were able to free some of our blocked assets." The issue of the number of centrifuges is one of the major points of contention in the nuclear negotiations between the powers and Iran; Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, has previously stated that Iran needs 190,000 "SWU" of enrichment. In this context, the government and the parliamentary commission reached an agreement on withdrawing from the development fund.