The mistake made by the advocates of “political / revolutionary Islam” , which includes the majority of the leftist religious groups ( so called reform camp ), some rightwing extremists and even centrists groups with their student movement associates, is that they thought by creating an atmosphere similar to the beginning of the revolution which resulted in an “ elected president” losing his grip on the administration ( Bani Sadr ), they could return to power through undemocratic means and solidify their grip on our country for another 30 years, for themselves and their children.
For days and weeks , through their agents , they orchestrated civil unrests and riots and as a result, sent hundreds of thousands of Tehranis ( and some other cities ) on the roof of their homes to call the “Religious Leader” of our country a dictator and chant “ death to dictator” from their roofs at night.
But in order to end the presidency of Ahmadinejad , they needed the support of the leader.
Even if they would had succeeded in getting the leader on board with their demands, and if we assume they had the full support of the parliament ( which they do hold majority ) and their attempt to end Ahmadinejad’s second term were successful, such outcome would had hurt “real reforms” in Iran and would have had a very negative effect on our politic.
We are now getting closer to the final quarter of Ahmadinejad’s two terms in office and the so called reform/green movement now includes some rightwing religious figures and even some “ military” cadres along with its traditional leftwing religious groups and personalities.
In these final stages the green leaders are doing the following;
1- It was necessary to repair the leader’s prestige which was questioned by their followers . This is vital to have the leader on board with their demands and to use him to put more pressure on Ahmadinejad. Therefore, in recent months, we are witnessing how some personalities who are against Ahmadinejad and related to the green movement are calling the VF the ultimate judge in political matters ( Rafsanjani, Mohsen Rezaie, Ghalibaf, Larijani, Hadade Adel and etc… to name a few), much to the surprise and dismay of the “secular greens” inside and outside of Iran. ( Another reason why they are cheering for the wrong team and a testament to the Greens opportunistic nature to gain power once again ).
2- Despite many objections to the nomination of Larijani for a second term as the head of the parliament ( since his brother also holds the highest judiciary position in IR which grants the Larijanis too much power) , the Anti-Ahmadinejad movement was able to keep their grip over the parliament with Larijani holding his position for a second term.
3- By criticising the “hejaab” issue in the society, the Anti-Ahmadinejad movement were able to bring the ultra rightwing groups in a collision course with Ahmadinejad. This was also done with the help of the parliament which claimed the administration is directly responsible for the current Hejaab problems in the society since it failed to introduce the “hejaab and monkeraat” bill to the parliament for ratification for the last 5 years. Aside from Ansareh Hezbollah, many hardline Akhounds also joined the bandwagon and attacked Ahmadinejad’s policies in Friday sermons all over the country.
4- Interestingly, the Guardian Council is also criticizing the choice of ministers and aids chosen by Ahmadinejad ( In direct violation of president’s rights under our constitution ) specially in the foreign ministry. The head of this Council recently announced that this council is “aware” and “awake” and will intervene if necessary.
It seems the anti Ahmadinejad movement is gaining support from key power centres within IR.
But the current problem that the oligarchic class is having right now is that Ahmadinejad is not like Bani Sadr who was intimidated and forced to give up his legal position granted to him by peoples vote. Bani Sadr lacked the political savviness and the determination to confront Khomeini and was unable to make radical decisions. As a result, he had to flee the country. But Ahmadinejad on the other hand, is not a type who will flee the country. His defensive manoeuvring are progressively becoming more confrontational and he shows no signs of backing down. This is a problem for the oligarchic class. He even knows when to be quiet, specially when a person like Behzad Nabavi was openly advocating a policy which would put Ahmadinejad in a collision course with the leader. A policy which the anti- Ahmadinejad movement had high hopes for.
The presidency of Ahmadinejad has brought many positive changes in our politics. Aside from eliminating the oligarchic class from administration for 6 years , perhaps his biggest contribution is that through active debates and his pursue of justice , he has made certain personalities and the oligarshic class almost impossible to return to running our republic. This eventually will benefit our people and will allow new and fresh minds to enter our politics. A trend that has started for a few years now.
Aside from whether you support Ahmadinejad or not, undemocratic processes which undermines a (semi ?)democratically elected president is harmful to the political development of a nation. You are justifying an action that could over write peoples votes. While you might claim this is for the good of democracy, the very action itself is purely undemocratic.
