Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Rafsanjani Barred From Running for President


Iranian news agency Mehr and the country’s state-run TV are reporting that the Guardian Council has barred Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani from running in the upcoming presidential election.

Rafsanjani is a founding father of Iran’s Islamic revolution and has previously served as president of the Islamic Republic, the speaker of Majlis and the de facto commander-in-chief of armed services during the eight-year war with Iraq. Last year, Supreme Leader Ali Khamanei reappointed him to chair the country’s Expediency Council.

The reasons behind the decision of the Guardian Council are not published yet. But the reports say it was made because of Rafsanjani’s age and health. The late Ayatollah Khomeini, the leader of the Islamic revolution, was actually older at the time of the victory of the revolution than Rafsanjani is today, and he ran the country during the war for another decade. The current supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, is only five years younger than Rafsanjani and has had health issues since being injured in a bomb attack before assuming his current responsibilities in 1989.

The scandalous decision by the Guardian Council would be widely regarded as a political move by the ultraconservative majority of the Council against a pragmatic leader, undermining the legitimacy of the electoral process during the upcoming vote. Ayatollah Khamenei could still override the Council’s decision and allow Rafsanjani to run in the election.

File photo: Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani (Reuters)

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

The regime delegitimises itself in order to legitimise the foreign attack on Iran...

Anonymous said...

long live guardian council
a very wise move
rafsanjani is too old become a president and work everyday 18 hours
mÉSCHAi is a clown and marionette of ahmaDI nejad

now with 8 people, there are a good combinations of liberals , conservativ and independent.

reader said...

Hashimi disqualification may well go in history as the most important factors in the eventual collapse and demise of the IRI. The arrogance of the guardian council unelected members and their self-righteous belief in their own infallibility defies logic. They should have at least allowed people to vote him off. Who do they think the people are? Just a bunch of sheep and flies?

Anonymous said...

The Guardian Council head, Janati is 86 years old. THe "leader" is only 5 years younger than Rafsanjani. If Rafsanjani age and health is so bad, then voters can surely see that, right? disqualifying Rafsanjani is like IR establishment disregards it's own birth certificate!

Anonymous said...

the judges in the us high court are not elected too.
guradian council are jurist, not politiker.
they are not subject of election

Anonymous said...

your attempt to provide an analogy to the US Supreme Court is a total failure....


each and every one of the Justices is nominated by an elected leader (and that leader changes every 4 or 8 years) and then the nomination is either confirmed or denied by vote of 100 elected legislators after public hearings.
the Justices serve for life and can not be dismissed unless they have been tried and convicted of serious crimes.


half of the Guardians are selected by the Leader and may be dismissed at any time at the will of the Leader, and the other half is nominated by someone whom the Leader selects and confirmed by the members of a legislature that has been selected by the Guardians.....



...it's a bullspit system designed to be impervious to the citizens

reader said...

In US, political parties choose their presidential candidates by holding conventions attended by "delegates" and not non-elected judges. All is required of them is to be at least 35 years of age, native-born citizens of the US with at least 14 years residency. There is no requirement to be of a man or woman of faith!

Anonymous said...

Who is liberals? DO you mean Aref? I know him personally he is a very religious man and though I like him (not as a politician but as scientist) but he is not present liberalism in anyway. This election is a joke

Mark Pyruz said...

Rasfanjani becomes the "Alexander Hamilton" of the Iranian Revolution, having like Hamilton amassed a number of high placed enemies. In the American revolution example, Hamilton was actually killed in a duel. In the Iranian case, Rasfanjani becomes a political has-been, still free to count his billion dollars.

It would surprise me if he appealed and it were granted but stranger things have happened.

Mashaei has stated previously that he will observe the law and accept the decision of the GC.

Anonymous said...

Is that why Faith has no place in US politics? or its Supreme Court? Really? read this book on how faith and religious ideas od SC judges influenced their votes.

Anonymous said...

Do you have any evidence for those so called billion dollars? It is easy to say something without proofing

Anonymous said...

The loss of legitimacy domestically does not legalize foreign intervention.

Anonymous said...

Mark if you insist using historical events / personalities in your defense of IRI try: Fuhrer / Waffen SS / Brown shirts / Crystal night / Poliburo etc...

Anonymous said...

oh no? who say that ? you ?

Anonymous said...

Rafsanjani is the past, Iran needs new and younger leadership. My vote is for Qalibaf.

Anonymous said...

mine is for Shirin Ebadi

Anonymous said...

the guardian council is nominsted hlaf by leader , half by parlament

the leader is nominated by parlament and expert council.
the both expert council and parlament are directly elected.
so every iranian politiker is direct or indirect elected by folk

Anonymous said...

jannadi will not be president
president must be young
he has 18 Horus working day , 7 day per week

Anonymous said...

No religion in politics period.