AS WORLD COMMUNITY WELCOMED KHATAMI’S RE-ELECTION, BUT THE PRESS IS CAUTIOUS
By Safa Haeri
PARIS 12 June (IPS) As the international community welcomed unanimously the re-election of Hojjatoleslam Mohammad Khatami in the Friday presidential elections, hoping that the his stalemated reforms at home and détente with outside world would continue, the media was more cautious, observing that it remains whether the fundamentalist leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenehe'i would accommodate.
Germany, Islamic Iran’s main trading partner and strongest political supporter in the European Union was the first Western nation to congratulate Mr. Khatami, followed by France, Britain and Italy, the 15 nations four main powers, all hoping that his new landslide victory in the 8 June presidential race would firmly place Iran in the in the new world’s community of nations.
Russia said Mr. Khatami’s re-election translates the overwhelming support of the Iranians for the reforms process and in the United States, a high-ranking officialwelcomed the landslide victory of the moderate, but lamed president, regretting nevertheless that Iran continued to support international terrorism, opposing the Israeli-Arab-Palestinians peace process and seeking to acquire weapons of mass destruction, Washington’s usual preconditions for normalisation with Tehran.
Arab and Muslim states also welcomed the massive vote of confidence Iranians renewed in the incumbent President, with King Fahd of Saudi Arabia hoping that given the massive support of the Iranian people, Mr. Khatami would be able to push ahead implementing reforms --that are denied to Saudi citizens—
"The Iranian people have given (you) their confidence to advance down the path of reform and progress" the Saudi Monarch said in a message to Khatami while
Crown Prince Abdullah expressed hopes that Iranians will enjoy "greater prosperity" under President Khatami’s leadership".
Even Tel-Aviv shared the Saudi leaders wishes, though Foreign Minister Shimon Peres observed that since real powers rested in the hands of the leader and the Islamic regime calls for the total annihilation of Israel and its replacement by the original Palestinian State, the re-election of Mr. Khatami means nothing to Israel.
"There are actually two governments in Iran: One that is elected, and the other that actually governs", noted the Noble Peace Price winner Peres, expressing nevertheless the hope that the elected president will become "the governing power in Iran".
While almost most foreign media stressed that, in the words of Financial Times Guy Dinmore, Khatami has to "steer a course between secularism and religious fundamentalism" and expected a "show down" with the ruling conservatives, the Iranian press put the accent on the "necessity" for the re-elected President to form a "cabinet of his own, independent from outside powers and influence".
"Iranians have handed President Mohammad Khatami the sweeping re-election victory he sought to push ahead with his reform programme. He can now expect a showdown with hardliners, who remain a powerful obstacle to change in spite of another humiliation at the polls", Dinmore wrote, adding:
"The challenge facing the 58-year-old cleric is to assure his rivals within the conservative establishment that his message of freedom and religious democracy will perpetuate Iran's Islamic theocracy, rather than lead to the Soviet-style disintegration they fear he heralds".
"Mr Khatami remains firmly wedded to a strategy of moderation but on the streets of Tehran on Saturday night a confrontation between the two opposing currents dominating Iran's political scene illustrated the difficult path he must tread", he observed.
The conservatives, the influential Financial Times further remarked, insist that the legitimacy of their rule is a divine right and does not stem from the people's mandate. To them, the Islamic Republic of Iran is more about Islam than republicanism. Their dominance within non-elected institutions - the judiciary, powerful religious foundations, Friday prayer leaders and militia such as the Hizbollah - stands in contrast to the relative impotence of Mr Khatami, who has lamented his lack of authority to enforce constitutional guarantees of civil rights.
The Khatami camp expects a backlash, as happened after the reformist landslide in parliamentary elections last year
."As reformists again turned buoyant for Khatami's resounding victory over conservatives, the question is how far this mildly beaming president can push ahead with his reform programs in a society dominated by straight-faced Mullahs who have said "No" to his endeavour", said Peking’s People’s Daily.
"More than two decades after the Islamic revolution, more people are growing impatient with strict social restrictions. They turned especially enthusiastic in re-electing, or re-selecting, the mild Khatami, who relishes social freedom as much as the rank and file do", the Daily added.
Noting that Ayatollah Khameneh’i, has the final say in almost every matte, the Chinese newspaper concluded that: "There certainly are tougher days ahead for Khatami, who has indicated his fully awareness of the "grave responsibility" to lead the country and people".
The Paris headquartered International Herald Tribune expressed the same
view, saying that Iran's reformist president, Mohammed Khatami, "re-elected
with a more decisive vote than even his most optimistic supporters had
anticipated, now faces a gruelling second term that both reformers and
conservatives say will likely determine the future of this Islamic
republic".
"No one will play a more important role in determining the path Mr.
Khatami will be allowed to pursue than the country's appointed supreme leader,
Ayatollah Ali Khameneh’i. In Iran's hybrid form of government, the most
powerful institutions in the country - including the judiciary, military and
security forces, the Guardian Council and state-run broadcast media - answer to
Mr. Khamenehe'i", the Trib said
In Paris, the leftis "Liberation" observed that one third of the Iran voters dared to say no to the regime, even though the regime’s number one man Ayatollah Khamenehe'i had demanded that "each vote should be considered as a sign of allegiance to the Islamic Republic".
The influential daily "Le Monde" also played the same tune, observed "after the first warming gallops, the real show starts now for the embattled President, as the conservatives are determined not to consider themselves as defeated.
But in Iran itself, while the conservative-controlled media almost ignored the elections result, reformist publications hailed the "crushing" victory of Mr. Khatami and called on him to "heed" the "vox populi".
Hard-line English language "Kayhan International" on Monday wrote that President Khatami must get the nation's message clear that those who "religiously" participated in the elections, i.e. 21.6 million out of 28.1 million, have `displayed their confidence in Khatami'.
Mostafa Hashemi-Taha, one of the ten candidates in the elections who got the least of the votes and is the editor whose newspaper, "Entekhab" (Choice), is said to be closest to the supreme leader, sees in Mr Khatami's reforms the path to protecting the Islamic system from two extremes.
"One wants Iran like another Afghanistan, closed and run by fanatical groups," he says. "The other wants Iran like Turkey, a secular system empty of religious foundation. We oppose fanatics." Reforms, he believes, must be carried out "with moderation and calm, not overnight". Moves to push Iran towards secularism, he says, would result in a backlash that would establish "a regime worse than Afghanistan's".
He told the official news agency IRNA that the results indicated weakness of those opposing Khatami and that people's trust and interest in rival faction have decreased.
"The magnificent landslide victory of Iranian President Mohammad Khatami in the recently held 8th Presidential elections, indicates that the nation has once again pledged their unflinching support and confidence in Khatami to help him carry out his promises, plans and programs to reform the system, commended the English-language daily "Iran News", published by the pro-Khatami IRNA.
"One of the most noble, lofty and meaningful goals for the nation that requires the President's unflinching dedication is, "striving and endeavoring to create prosperity and liberty for all Iranians", the paper said, urging: "And once the president has decided, there should be "no turning back or offering excuses," it pointed out"
"Not only the election clearly manifests democracy but also a "definite course of action has been set for the future of the country", said Mr. Fereydoon Verdinezhad, IRNA’s manager director
"This proves that this time the Iranians have voted for "irreversible reforms" and demonstrated in plain and simple terms that they support President Mohammad Khatami's policies in all domains and will continue to do so as long as necessary".
"Khatami must therefore "put together an efficient cabinet committed to the cause of reforms in letter and spirit", he said.
"I expect a short honeymoon," said Ata’ollah Mohajerani, one of
Mr. Khatami's senior advisers and a former Islamic Guidance minister who was
forced to resign last year under pressure from Mr. Khameneh’i. "Maybe two
months. Then they'll use different language, but they'll start repeating the
same things they've done before." ENDS POST ELECTIONS PRESS 12601