Three steps back
Experts discuss the political crisis in Iran
From left: Ali Akbar Mahdi, Valentine M.
Moghadam, Hossein Qazian, Dariush Sajjadi, Hooshang Amirahmadi
By Jahanshah Javid
May 1, 2000
The Iranian
The conservative assault against reformists in recent weeks was a hot
topic at a conference in Washington, DC, this past weekend. Here are interviews
and comments from some of the participants at the Center for Iranian Research
and Analysis' (CIRA) 18th annual
conference (April 28-29).
In RealAudio
format
Ali Akbar Mahdi, sociologist, Ohio Wesleyan University:
In Persian
* How will
the students react to the assault against reform?
* Will
pressure force the student movement underground?
* Is the conservative
assault a hasty reaction or well-planned?
* What will President
Khatami do?
* Will the next
Majlis be able to carry out reform?
* Did
the reformist press go too far in attacking the conservatives?
* What's
the role of former president Rafsanjani in all this?
* Will pro-reform
ayatollahs in Qom support Khatami?
In English
Valentine M. Moghadam, sociologist, Illinois State University
* Iran's
political future: Three possible scenarios
Dariush Sajjadi, political analyst for reformist newspapers in Iran
In Persian
* What made
the conservatives take action against reformists?
* Characteristics
and weaknesses of the reform movement.
Hossein Qazian, researcher and reformist journalist in Iran
In Persian
* Spread
of Islamic reformist thought
* Outside
influences on Iran's civil society
Hooshang Amirahmadi, president, American Iranian Council
In Persian
* How
will the Americans react?
* How
will recent events affect Iranian foreign policy?
