Sieg Heil to Khamenei
No matter who is Iran's president our fate will remain the same

Amir Nasiri
July 26, 2005
iranian.com unedited

On Saturday June 25, 2005 Iranian nation had elected a new president or let say the Basiji's, the murderers and the rapist have elected a puppet and a fascist. Ahmadinejad won 62% of votes, defying predictions of a close race, to defeat another corrupt thug Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. His victory means all the organs of the Iranian state are now in the hands of conservative hardliners. Some 22 million people voted in this run-off poll - a turnout of 60%, down from 63% in the first round a week ago.

In this article I am not going to discuss why the people have elected this man nor am I going to talk about his past or present. However; the reason I am writing this article is to let my fellow Iranians know whoever is Iran's president the fate of the Iranian people will remain unchanged. Since Iran's government or the decision making body is based on an elite group of fanatical, corrupt people led by Khamenei. Thus the presence of a president is irrelevant in Iran's daily decision making. The role of the president in Iran is like the role of the queen of England. It has a symbolic meaning but without a merit.

The December 1979 constitution, and its 1989 amendment defines, the political, economic, and social order of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It declares that Shi'a Islam of the Twelver (Jaafari) sect is Iran's official religion. The country is governed by religious leaders and governing bodies, with sometimes overlapping duties. The head of state is a religious leader, titled the Supreme Leader. The constitution stipulates that this national religious leader is to be chosen from the clerical establishment on the basis of his qualifications and the high esteem in which he is held by Iran's Muslim population.

The exact process involves an Assembly of Experts who has the right to choose the leader. The leader appoints the six religious members of the Council of Guardians (the six lay members--lawyers--are named by the Islamic Consultative Assembly, or Majles); appoints the highest judicial authority, who must be a religious jurist; and is commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The Council of Guardians, in turn, certifies the competence of candidates for the presidency.

The president of the republic is elected by universal suffrage to a four-year term by an absolute majority of votes and supervises the affairs of the executive branch. The president appoints and supervises the Council of Ministers (members of the cabinet), coordinates government decisions, and selects government policies to be placed before the Islamic Assembly, which will never be passed without supreme leaders blessing. The parliament, officially titled the Islamic Consultative Assembly, consists of 290 members elected to a four-year term. The members are elected by direct and secret ballot.

All legislation from the assembly must be reviewed by the Council of Guardians. The Council's six lawyers vote only on questions of the constitutionality of legislation; the religious members consider all bills for both constitutionality and conformity to Islamic principles. In 1988, Ayatollah Khomeini created the Expediency Discernment Council, which resolves legislative issues on which the Parliament and the Council of Guardians fail to reach an agreement. The council later became a part of the amended constitution.

Since 1989, it has been used to advise the Supreme Leader on matters of national policy as well. It is composed of the heads of the three branches of government, the clerical members of the Council of Guardians, and members appointed by the Supreme Leader for three-year terms. Cabinet members and parliament committee chairs also serve as temporary members when issues under their jurisdictions are considered. Judicial authority is constitutionally vested in the Head of the Judiciary Branch, who is appointed by the Supreme Leader for five-year terms.

The Head of the Judiciary Branch appoints a Supreme Court. A Minister of Justice is also appointed by the president from a list of candidates suggested by the Head of the Judiciary, but is only an administrative position. The Judiciary Branch is responsible for supervising the enforcement of all laws and for establishing judicial and legal policies.

The military is charged with defending Iran's borders, while the Revolutionary Guard Corps (a.k.a. Sepah) is charged mainly with maintaining internal security. Iran has 28 provinces, each headed by a governor general. The provinces are further divided into counties, districts, and villages. Thus all the above branches are under watchful eyes of the supreme leader or what I refer to as the Fuehrer.

According to Iran's Constitution, the Supreme Leader is responsible for the delineation and supervision of "the general policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran," which means that he sets the tone and direction of Iran's domestic and foreign policies.

The Supreme Leader also is commander-in-chief of the armed forces and controls the Islamic Republic's intelligence and security operations; he alone can declare war or peace. He has the power to appoint and dismiss the leaders of the judiciary, the state radio and television networks, and the supreme commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He also appoints six of the twelve members of the Council of Guardians, the powerful body that oversees the activities of Parliament and determines which candidates are qualified to run for public office.

Therefore, the election of Ahmadinejad was just a power struggle between Rafsanjani and Khamenei. Mr. Rafsnajani who we all now is one of the most powerful and corrupt people in Iran wanted once again to show his might but this time it meant who will control Iran for the next four years. Khamenei who has the support of conservative faction and the Bazaris didn't want to lose its influence in every steps of policy making. Thus Khamenei backed Ahmadinejad merely for its gain of power over Iran's very fragile political system.

One thing I am sure that this election was not decided by the people of Iran but by a group of bandits and criminals. Iranian people, the majorities of them whom stayed home and ignored the call for election, wanted to show to the leaders of Iran that they do not care who is going to be Iran's next president. Because the Iranian people know by now that whoever is Iran's president nothing will change unless the whole system changes.