Iran reading notes

Iran reading notes (134-150) 

 

The state/nation 

  • Islamic Republic of Iran-established by popular referendum after the Revolution of 1979 

  • Multination state: 

  • majority Persian descent (61%), speak Farsi and are Shia Muslim 

  • second largest are Azeris of Turkic descent who are also Shia (16%, well integrated into Iran’s society).  

  • Ethnicity/religion are the major cleavages: 

  • Third-largest ethnic group, the Kurds, are the most problematic-Iranian Kurds speak the same language/practice same religion (Sunni Islam) as the Iraqi Kurds. Recent independence referendum (2017) unsettling for Iran; already put down rebellions in ‘46 and ‘79. 

Legitimacy 

  • Traditional religious legitimacy!! 

  • Legal system based on Sharia (Islamic law) 

  • Supreme leader as well as judges must be high-ranking cleric 

  • Supreme leader appoints Friday prayer leader for the capital cities to maintain consistent message 

  • Ayatollah Khomeini had charismatic legitimacy-leader of revolution in ‘79, followers devoted to him and his belief in velayat-e faqih (clerical rue) 

  • Used this to institutionalize his philosophy into the new system of government 

  • Supreme leader Khamenei issued “the second phase of the revolution” in February of 2019 (40th anniversary) – using this, he reinforced his legitimacy  

  • Rational-legal legitimacy is also important 

  • Voters approved a referendum in ‘79 to establish the Islamic Republic of Iran-later approved a referendum adopting the current constitution 

  • Voters can select the president, the Majlis (legislature), and the members of the Assembly of Experts, 

  • The Guardian Council is given the job of vetting them before their names can be placed on the ballot. 

  • Elections have been held consistently in Iran at intervals as set by the constitution 

 

 

Regime 

  • Iran is a theocracy-authoritarian rule based on sharia law (Islamic law)- treats women differently than men, undermining rule of law 

  • All candidates for elections must be vetted by the Guardian Council, thus denying voters a real choice. 

  • Neither judicial nor the press are independent 

  • No effective check on the power of the supreme leader 

Economic system 

  • Mixed economy, long tradition of bazar (marketplace)-dwarfed by state-run enterprises. 

  • Wide variety of ways to control the economy, from direct ownership to sectors controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps 

  • Bonyads-public welfare organizations controlled DIRECTLY by the Supreme leaders 

  • Rentier state-National Iraninan Oil company supplies 60% of government revenues through exports of oil/gas 

Political culture + Socialization\ 

  • Strongly nationalistic, pride in belonging to an ancient civilization 

  • Strong theme of martyrdom-drawn primarily from the tentes of Shia Islam: Shia dispute the successor of Mohammad, they believe it should have been Ali (cousin), he was assassinated, becoming the first martyr.  

  • Iranian gov. Emphasized reverence for martyrs by claiming all soldiers killed in Iran-Iraq war were martyrs  

  • Provided special benefits for their families from bonyads (like the Martyrs foundation) 

  • Agents of socialization: 

  • Family  

  • Mosques 

  • Schools  

  • (state-run) media 

  • Supreme leader appoints all leaders of friday prayers/head of radio/television to control the government’s message and maintain public support for the regime 

  • Vigorous censorship of the Internet, books, and movies to limit dissent 

Constitution 

  • Approved by referendum in 1979 

  • Designed by the Ayatollah Khomeini to enshrin his view of jurist guardianship or clerical rule 

  • Originally had president + prime minister, Khomeini amended the document in 1989 to remove role of PM-strengthened role of Expediency Council 

  • Allows for direct election by the voters for the president, the Majils, and the assembly of Experts to ensure gov. is a republic 

  • Guardian council is composed of Islamic clerics and lawyers who ensure that all public policed are acceptable to the leader 

Levels of government 

  • Unitary state-all sovereignty centralized in the national government 

  • Voters had opportunity to vote in city and village elections for council members in 1999, local elections were listed in the constitution but was not until the reform period under President Khatami (20 yrs later) that they were instituted 

  • Local elections are charged with selecting a mayor and managing the municipality 

Leader/leadership council 

  • Chapter 8 of the Iranian constitution established the position of the leader separate from the executive branch-supreme leader is the most powerful figure in political system. 

  • Power to overrule every other institution 

  • Only two in history: Ayatollah Khomeini and (current) Ayatollah Khamenei  

  • Selected by the directly elected Assembly of Experts 

  • Serve 8-year terms 

  • Body of clerics and religious experts 

  • Power is to select/dismiss the supreme leader 

  • Ayatollah Khamenei “overcame beign a junior cleric by becoming a n institiuion builder”  

  • Majority of current assembly of experts have been, or are, Friday prayer leaders appointed by AK 

  • Many classify Supreme Leader as the HEAD OF STATE 

  • Not a traditional HOS-has not left Iran since becoming the leader 

  • Powers of Supreme leader  

  • Determine overall policies of the Islamic republic of Iran AFTER consultation with the Expediency council 

  • Supervise implementation of general policies and coordinate relationships between the three branches of government 

  • Issue referendums 

  • Commander of armed forces 

  • Declare war, peace, and mobilize forces 

  • Issue appointments, dismissals of ... 

  • Six clerics to the Guardian Council 

  • Chief justice (clerics) 

  • President of mass media (TV and radio) 

  • Friday prayer leaders 

  • Members of expediency Council 

  • Sign appointment of president after election by the people (and vetting of the Guardian Council) 

  • Dismiss president if either convi3cted by Supreme Court or impeached by Majils 

  • Pardon  

  • Control bonyads (informal power-not in constitution) 

The Executive 

  • President of Iran is elected by the people in a two-ballot system 

  • Serve four-year terms, serve two terms consecutively  

  • Select members of the cabinet, then must be approved by the Majils  

  • Signs the bills that are approved by the Majlis, but he cannot veto a bill 

  • Appoints ambassadors, signs treaties, and in general, sees that laws are carried out.  

The legislature 

  • The Islamic consultative assembly (MAJILS!!) is the unicameral legislative body in Iran. 

  • Composed of 285 directly elected members, 5 appointed members representing Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians 

  • All serve four-year terms  

  • 17 women elected to the Majils, highest number ever 

  • Responsibility of giving a vote of confidence on the selection of the cabinet as well as passing legislature initiated by the government and ratifying treaties 

  • Guardian Council is an assembly formed to protect the commands of Islam  

  • Supreme leader appoints six clerics to the body, other six are lawyers selected by the chief justice and approved by the Majlis 

  • All serve 6-year terms 

  • Oversees elections-vet through candidates to make sure they are “loyal to the regime”  

  • Oversee all legislation passed by the Majils to make sure it is compatible with Islamic law  

  • Can veto and return it back to the Majils 

  • The expediency council reviews legislation if Majils refuses to make required changes-appointed by supreme leader for the purpose of advising him on major policy decisions. 

The Judiciary 

  • Most powerful judge in Iran is the chief justice-appointed by the supreme leader for a 5-year term.  

  • Selects the rest of the judges 

  • Legal code is Sharia, or Islamic law 

  • The highest court is the supreme court, lower level civil and criminal courts, along with revolutionary courts to deal with those deemed a threat to the regime.  

  • Also, special courts for JUST clerics 

  • Penalties for crimes are harsh-only second to China in number of executions per year. 

Bureaucracy 

  • Massive in Iran-state controls 60% of the economy 

  • Categorized by cronyism and corruption; “Pay slip-gate” press leak that exposed the exorbitant salaries of top officials, causing massive outrage among citizens 

Military 

  • Parallel structure to its armed forces, traditional forces supplemented by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (designed to help the supreme leader protect the revolutionary ideals of the regime 

  • Accumulated much more power; IRGC owns up to one-third of the Iranian economy, including control over several bonyads + control over the Basij, a paramilitary group used to repress the public protests, and the Guds force (used to deals with international conflict in Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon). 

Leadership + Elite Recruitment 

  • Theocracy-path to political leadership is open to religious leaders 

  • Iranian people, however, have not continued to support clerics for positions in the Majils: percentage has decreased to less than 20% since 2000. 

Elections 

  • Types... 

  • President of Iran, every 4 years, 2 ballot system 

  • Majils, every 4 years, SMD and MMD  

  • Assembly of experts, every 8 years SMD and MMD 

  • Local and village councils, every 4 years, MMD 

  • Referendums, called for by the supreme leader. 

  • First step is to file an application to run for select office with the Guardian office 

  • All seats contested using single member district (SMD) or multi member district election systems (MMD) have different requirements to win the seat.  

  • Iranian parliament approved reduction in vote thresholds for the 2020 election-in SMD the winner must win the most votes and at least 205 (reduced from 25%) of the vote to win the first round OR the candidates must compete in a runoff election