ASSEMBLY OF EXPERTS CONFIRMS LEADERSHIP OF KHAMENEH’I
TEHRAN 5 Sept. (ips) As expected, the 86-members Assembly of Experts confirmed Wednesday Ayatollah Ali Khameneh’i in his position as the supreme ruler of the Islamic Republic, saying his "wise leadership in the past 12 years has helped Iran reinforce stability within the country".
In a communiqué issued at the end of its sixth session that had started Monday behind closed doors, the Assembly, the regime’s only body empowered constitutionally to make or break the leader, or the Valy Faqih (the supreme shepherd of the nation) said that leadership of Ayatollah Khameneh’i has been "the guarantor of putting behind the difficult periods or crises".
Among the other "blessings" which the Iranian nation has
"uniquely benefited from", the Experts Assembly has referred to the
"supreme leadership of a wise leader" (that of Mr. Khameneh’i), the
monitoring power of the (ultra-conservative) constitutional watchdog Guardian
Council, and the arbitrating body (the conservative-dominated) Expediency
Council (whose extent of power has recently been exceeding that of the people's
representatives at the parliament in Iran), IRNA further noted.
The experts, while confirming the "religious democratic nature" of the Islamic Republic of Iran, warned against "amalgamation" of "religious democracy" -- an euphemism coined by President Hojjatoleslam Mohammad Khatami—with the "corrupt Western democracy".
"It (the Experts Assembly) has all the same warned not to assume that the religious democracy meant in Iran is a amalgamated version of the western and the Islamic school. Religious democracy in Iran is quite a genuine phenomenon, understanding which requires having a deep Islamic insight", the official news agency of Iran explained in a dispatch, carrying the Assembly’s final statement.
But Mr. Parviz Dastmalchi, a noted expert on the political system of the Islamic Republic say the present Iranian regime is based on apartheid, where some 60.000 to 100.000 handpicked clergymen rule over a nation of more than 65 millions souls, considered as second and third class citizens.
Members of the Assembly are elected by popular vote for eight years and must be vet by the Council of Guardians, itself controlled by the leader.
The last election for this Assembly was held in 1998.
Officially, the experts holds formal meetings twice a year to study matters related to the actions and of the leader and review his undertakings, but the only thing they have so far done is the confirm the leadership, to whom they are tributaries.
"Every thing in the present Iranian political system in like a circle, where the Council of Guardians approves the candidates for the Experts Assembly – as well as for any other elections – who in turn elect the leader, who, according to the Constitution, has extra-constitutional powers and also names the members of the Council of Guardians", explains the Berlin-based Mr. Dastmalchi.
"Establishing the Islamic Republic and the Constitutional framework of the Islamic government as well as Guardianship of Supreme Jurisprudent, Velayat-e-Faqih, were the wish of Umma, or the Nation of Muslims in the past 1400 years since the advent of Islam. The assembly hoped that the world Muslims would enjoy the blessings of the Islamic Republic, which has set a pattern for the Islamic government", the Experts said in their final, seven points statement.
The experts stressed on "the need to obey the leadership of the supreme jurisprudent", meaning the lamed Khameneh’i by referring to the "superiority of the chosen type of leadership in Iran compared to those prevailing anywhere else in the world".
On the democratic nature of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the declaration stresses on the need to safeguard free political dialogue in Iran. "The people's role in shaping their own social and political ate in the framework of the Islamic teachings and codes is dully endorsed in the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran," reads the assembly's announcement in a part.
The assembly has also considered full observation of the rules of justice and abiding by the rules of piety--measures that will ensure the endurance of the Islamic system.
The Assembly also underlined the "need" to promote Islamic propagation to neutralise the cultural inroad of the West, emphasised on the "religious democratic nature" of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the need to "stick" to the rules of Islamic justice and piety, IRNA quoted the declaration as indicating.
"The late Imam Khomeini attracted the attention of large masses in Iran and abroad by propagating for justice and piety and sticking to and emphasizing on their full observation... including the need to safeguard the interests of the economically weak social classes," the declaration further elaborates, asking the Iranian politicians to follow suit, as the current leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, too, has often emphasized.
However, the Experts kept silent on the "bundle closure" of more than 60 independent and reform-seeking publications, the imprisonment of a dozen of influential journalists and the clampdown on Islamist-nationalists and the recent Taleban-copied harsh measures imposed on the society, all on orders from the "wise leader" and carried out by the Islamic justice.
The declaration finally stresses the need for the whole nation, particularly the political authorities, to harmonize all their deeds and words, with Imam Ali's conduct "in this year that is dubbed after hat exalted Islamic leader's name."
The need to achieve Iran's deserved status, keeping in mind the abundant access of the country to young, expert forces in all fields, as well as rich natural resources of various types are mentioned and the current weak status of Iran in many fields is, therefore, regretted, according to IRNA.
On international political issues, the Experts termed as "blessed" the ongoing international conference on Racism which is held in Durban, South Africa, denouncing all types of racism, "including, and particularly, Zionism" according to the communiqué.
United States and Israel walked out of the UN-sponsored meeting, protesting the identification of Zionism with racism and the 15-members European Union also warned that it might leave the conference if the motion is withheld.
The Assembly also expressed its "full support" for the Palestinian cause, the liberation movement of that deprived Palestinian nation and the "the brave uprising of the Palestinians against the global arrogance, led by the US imperialism."
The declaration ends with a congratulation addressed to President Khatami on the occasion of the beginning of his second term as president. ENDS EXPERTS ASSEMBLY 5901