Iranian Alert -- October 20, 2003 -- IRAN LIVE THREAD PING LIST

The US media almost entirely ignores news regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran. As Tony Snow of the Fox News Network has put it, “this is probably the most under-reported news story of the year.” But most American’s are unaware that the Islamic Republic of Iran is NOT supported by the masses of Iranians today. Modern Iranians are among the most pro-American in the Middle East.

There is a popular revolt against the Iranian regime brewing in Iran today. Starting June 10th of this year, Iranians have begun taking to the streets to express their desire for a regime change. Most want to replace the regime with a secular democracy. Many even want the US to over throw their government.

The regime is working hard to keep the news about the protest movement in Iran from being reported. Unfortunately, the regime has successfully prohibited western news reporters from covering the demonstrations. The voices of discontent within Iran are sometime murdered, more often imprisoned. Still the people continue to take to the streets to demonstrate against the regime.

In support of this revolt, Iranians in America have been broadcasting news stories by satellite into Iran. This 21st century news link has greatly encouraged these protests. The regime has been attempting to jam the signals, and locate the satellite dishes. Still the people violate the law and listen to these broadcasts. Iranians also use the Internet and the regime attempts to block their access to news against the regime. In spite of this, many Iranians inside of Iran read these posts daily to keep informed of the events in their own country.

This daily thread contains nearly all of the English news reports on Iran. It is thorough. If you follow this thread you will witness, I believe, the transformation of a nation. This daily thread provides a central place where those interested in the events in Iran can find the best news and commentary. The news stories and commentary will from time to time include material from the regime itself. But if you read the post you will discover for yourself, the real story of what is occurring in Iran and its effects on the war on terror.

I am not of Iranian heritage. I am an American committed to supporting the efforts of those in Iran seeking to replace their government with a secular democracy. I am in contact with leaders of the Iranian community here in the United States and in Iran itself.

If you read the daily posts you will gain a better understanding of the US war on terrorism, the Middle East and why we need to support a change of regime in Iran. Feel free to ask your questions and post news stories you discover in the weeks to come.

If all goes well Iran will be free soon and I am convinced become a major ally in the war on terrorism. The regime will fall. Iran will be free. It is just a matter of time.

PS I have a daily ping list and a breaking news ping list. If you would like to receive alerts to these stories please let me know which list you would like to join.

Iran hints at stopping uranium enrichment
-- Detail Story

hipakistan.com
10.20.2003

TEHRAN: Iran's President Mohammad Khatami indicated on Sunday Tehran may halt uranium enrichment, which some Western governments say could be used to make atomic bombs, if it is allowed to keep its civilian atomic energy programme.

Asked by reporters if Iran was prepared to stop enriching uranium as the United States and several European countries have demanded, Mr Khatami said: "We will do whatever is necessary to solve the problems and in return we're expecting our rights to be preserved which is (the right) to have nuclear technology."

It was the first indication from a top Iranian official that Iran could mothball uranium enrichment facilities which it began building in 1985.

Iranian officials had previously insisted they had every right to continue enriching uranium to use in nuclear reactors.

Iranian officials have said the foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany will visit Tehran this week to discuss a proposal to resolve Iran's nuclear standoff before a looming October 31 UN deadline for Tehran to prove it has no atomic arms ambitions.

Asked if Iran was prepared to accept those conditions, including halting uranium enrichment, Mr Khatami said: "We will do what is expedient for society and the nation. We have done our best for talks and exchanging views and we hope it will produce a result."

Mr Khatami said on Friday his country had no plans to build nuclear weapons and predicted that it would reach an agreement on its nuclear programme with the UN atomic watchdog.

http://www.hipakistan.com/en/detail.php?newsId=en42328&F_catID=&f_type=source

Iran's Berlin Wall is Scarf of Women

IranScope
19th of October, 2003

Nobel Peace Prize went to an Iranian woman this year. On one hand, President Khatami of Iran says Nobel Peace Prize is not that important and on the other hand, his colleagues are speaking that he deserved the Nobel Prize. I would like to ask Mr. Khatami a simple question. Does the woman, who has won the prize, have the right not to wear a scarf on her head in Iran, the same way Mr. Khatami is free to wear mollah's robe as he wishes?

Would President Khatami stop forcing scarf on Iranian women?

It is close to the end of the second term of President Khatami in Iran and he has pretended to be working for reforms in Iran and not only political prisoners are still in Evin prison or on the gallows, in the bigger prison, Iran itself, people have to self-censor themselves when talking about the atrocities of IRI (Islamic Republic of Iran), whether writing in the Iranian press or speaking to the foreign press abroad.

And the most obvious discrimination in Iran is against the women, which is in front of the eyes of any visitor, where anyone can see the Iranian women are forced to wear a veil or a scarf to walk on the streets. The Iranian women had won the right of what to wear almost a century ago and IRI has turned back the wheel of history for 24 years, forcing them to wear veils and scarves again.

This fascist practice has become so "normalized" that even the peace prize winner who did not wear the scarf when outside Iran, said that it is the law in Iran and this is why she wears it when in Iran, and stopped short of saying it is a fascist law, because the judgment by the people is curtailed in Iran to discard this and other similar laws, thus IRI *legally* stones, amputates and does other cruelties against the Iranian people.

Once Ronald Reagan challenged President Gorbachev of Soviet Union to bring down the Berlin Wall. Iran's Berlin Wall is the scarf of Women. I would like to challenge President Khatami to stop forcing scarf on Iranian women. This is the most obvious symbol of IRI Islamist coercion interfering in every aspect of private life of the Iranian people. The second degree citizen status of women is ritualized by the forced scarf symbol and is continued by murdering Iranian women for self-defense.

Of course if any woman wants to wear a veil or a scarf out of choice, that is their right and is not what I am discussing here. The same way that people could have built many walls in Berlin. But the point here is the *forcing* of veil and scarf on the women who otherwise have no desire to wear such clothing.

Sam Ghandchi, Publisher/Editor
IRANSCOPE
http://www.iranscope.com

http://www.ghandchi.com/277-Scarf.htm

Iran Invites 3 European FMs to Discuss Nuclear Issue

VOA News

Iran has invited the foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany to Tehran to help settle an international dispute over its nuclear program.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said Sunday Iran hopes for a "constructive dialogue" with the three ministers. He did not announce a date for the visit.

Mr. Asefi says Iran has been in talks with the three countries since they sent a letter offering possible technical assistance in return for Iranian cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The IAEA has set an October 31st deadline for Iran to prove it is not trying to obtain nuclear weapons.

An IAEA team has been in Tehran since Saturday to negotiate Iran's signing of an additional protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The protocol would allow for broader, unannounced searches of Iran's nuclear facilities.

The United States accuses Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear program is only for generating electric power.

The IAEA is also calling on Iran to stop enriching uranium, which can be used to build nuclear weapons. Iran has so far not agreed to that demand.

If Iran does not comply with the requests, the agency could refer the issue to the U.N. Security Council, which could impose sanctions.

http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=98E68E49-D124-4651-923952EC3635CDE5

PRAETORIANS PREPARE TO PLAY OVERT POLITICAL ROLE.

Hard-liners already hold the best hand in Iran's political poker game. Now they are poised to pull a wild card from their sleeves. Conservative figures in the government and the leading conservative political factions are advocating the candidacy of Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) personnel for parliamentary office. The IRGC ground forces deputy commander in charge of cultural affairs, Brigadier General Alireza Azimi-Jahed, said on 3 October that having IRGC members in the parliament would help Iran, ILNA reported. He added that they could be candidates only after their resignations from the IRGC are accepted. Azimi-Jahed said, "if elected they would not try to establish a military attitude in the parliament."

According to Article 29 of the election law, armed forces personnel must leave the military at least two months before registering as candidates. They must discontinue all activities related to their previous profession. A conservative legislator from Tehran, Gholam Ali Haddad-Adel, said on 12 October that there is nothing wrong with military personnel serving in the parliament, ILNA reported. He noted that many of these people have served in various professional areas and now they want to bring their expertise to the legislature. Haddad-Adel conceded the likelihood of such candidates receiving right-wing support and added, "This is natural and it is not a crime for a current of thinking to support military men." Alluding to the reformists, Haddad-Adel said that some of them are much more militaristic than the armed forces personnel who would run for office. This would not be the first time that former military and security personnel stand for public office in Iran; they have done so in every election since 1979. What is significant now is that such a large number of such individuals are to run, and that this is reportedly part of an organized political plan. Reformists worry about the hostility expressed toward them previously by some IRGC and Basij leaders.

IRGC spokesman Commander Masud Jazayeri denies that that the Guards Corps has made specific recommendations to its personnel about participating in the election, "Iran" reported on 15 October. Jazayeri said that all government organizations, including the military, are prohibited from any action for or against a specific candidate. Another IRGC official, Commander Fathollah Jafari, added that the Guards Corps command announced formally before the last election that it would not support specific candidates or groups and it intends to do the same thing this time. "The Guards Corps is always trying to have a lively and purposeful presence in all the areas of social life," Jazayeri said according to "Iran." "The election is not an exception to that rule. However, there is a big difference between this kind of participation and interfering in the decisions of the voters and their elected representatives."

There have been many unsubstantiated claims that IRGC personnel voted overwhelmingly for the dark horse and reformist candidate, Hojatoleslam Mohammad Khatami, in the May 1997 presidential election. How will they vote in the parliamentary election? Will they vote for their comrades in arms, or do they bear an animosity toward the military leadership that would preclude such support? What about the general public: will appeals to patriotism and revolutionary values attract public support? (Bill Samii)

Source: RFE/RL Iran Report Vol. 6, No. 42, 20 October 2003

REFORMIST PARTY HOLDS ANNUAL CONGRESS AMID QUESTIONS ABOUT COALITION'S FUTURE.

Iran's main reformist political group has just completed its annual two-day congress, but questions about the reformists' role in the February 2004 parliamentary election remain unanswered. Meanwhile, President Hojatoleslam Mohammad Khatami is encouraging the unenthusiastic reformists to participate in the election. The Islamic Iran Participation Party's (IIPP) fifth annual congress began on 16 October, and items on the agenda include domestic and foreign affairs, the upcoming parliamentary election, the economy, the performance of the party, and its activities in the coming year, ISNA reported. Participating in the congress are 147 provincial representatives, 113 central party officials, and 100 none-voting observers, including a vice president, cabinet ministers, and national-religious activists. Officials from the Islamic Iran Solidarity Party and the Executives of Construction Party were also guests at the congress.

IIPP Secretary-General Mohammad Reza Khatami, who is the deputy speaker of parliament and the president's younger brother, reportedly made some daring observations in his opening speech on 16 October. According to Mehrdad Serjooie's article in "Iran News" on 19 October, Khatami "openly question[ed] the powers of the Supreme Leader." He also said, according to dpa on 16 October, that fundamentalist interpretations of Islam by some of those in government are driving people away from religion and the Islamic system. "This will not only increase the trend towards secularism, especially among the youth, but also lead to more influence from abroad for overthrowing the system."

A milder version of the speech was provided by IRNA. Mohammad Reza Khatami said that Iran's constitution is adequate and does not need to be changed. The problem, according to Khatami, is not the absence of laws but the absence of the rule of law. He added that the constitution is implemented in an ambiguous manner, and the connection between responsibilities and accountability is missing. "Yas-i No" reported on 15 October that the rest of the sessions would be held behind closed doors. IIPP official Hussein Mahmudzadeh shed light on the course of these sessions, however, explaining that it is still not clear if the party will participate in the election. Many would like to leave some room to maneuver on the issue.

A little more than a week before the IIPP congress, in the evening of 8 October, leaders of the reformist 2nd of Khordad political factions met with President Khatami and parliament speaker Hojatoleslam Mehdi Karrubi to discuss the parliamentary election, IRNA reported on 9 October. Khatami said that a suitable atmosphere would ensure a massive public turnout, and he emphasized acting within a constitutional framework. Karrubi reportedly echoed Khatami's comments. All the meeting participants stressed the need for intra-factional unity. This was the second such meeting; the first took place on 2 October (see "RFE/RL Iran Report," 6 October 2003).

Second of Khordad groups went into the earlier meeting with a sense of despair about the upcoming election, the "Sharq" newspaper reported on 4 October. Some of the more radical reformist groups, such as the Mujahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization, even advocated a boycott of the election. Yet President Khatami and Karrubi emphasized the importance of public participation, according to "Sharq." The performance of both the legislative and executive branches was criticized, and the need for their coordination and unity was stressed. Parliamentarian Jamileh Kadivar was at the meeting, and she said that the 2nd of Khordad groups expressed concern about restrictions on public choice in the election. The reformists' lack of success in getting laws amended also is worrisome to the country's top elected officials. Khatami and Karrubi met on 9 October with members of the Guardians' Council, Fars News Agency and state television reported. The meeting was convened on Khatami's invitation and reportedly was intended to address some of the differences between the elected executive and legislative branches of government and the unelected guardians -- namely, the establishment of provincial election-supervision offices, supervisory boards, and the fate of the twin bills. The bills were introduced in September 2002 and were intended to reduce the power of the Guardians' Council in elections and to strengthen presidential powers.

When asked about the outcome of the meeting, Karrubi was noncommittal, saying that there was a lot to discuss, such as the annual budget, the fourth development plan, the February parliamentary election, and other future elections. He said that differences should be reduced and "we should all move forward within the framework of the constitution and the aspirations of the imam." This latter series of meetings -- those of the reformists with Khatami and Karrubi, and that of the Guardians' Council with Khatami and Karrubi -- is indicative of the weak position in which the reformists find themselves only four months before the election. According to a report in "Entekhab" on 13 October, the absence of the Executives of Construction Party and of the student movement at these meetings raises questions about their role in the election. (Bill Samii)

Source: RFE/RL Iran Report Vol. 6, No. 42, 20 October 2003

TOUGH POLITICAL COMPETITION IN MAZANDARAN.

Ahmad Vaseqinejad, secretary of the reformist Solidarity Party in Mazandaran Province, said on 30 September that the reformists could win 50-60 percent of the 290 seats in the February parliamentary election, ISNA reported. He said that parties and political groups will not be as relevant in this election as they were in the 2000 parliamentary election. The public has become frustrated with the reformist parties, he said, and he warned, "what happened in the local council elections [February 2003, when there was low voter turnout] could also happen in the parliamentary elections." Mohammad-Ali Minafar, secretary-general of the conservative Islamic Coalition Association in Mazandaran Province, said in the 29 September "Farhang-i Ashti" daily that the conservatives could win up to 150 seats (51 percent) in the upcoming parliamentary election.

Minafar said that the public is unhappy with the reformists because they did not fulfill their electoral slogans. He also predicted that some reformists would not win approval as candidates. (Bill Samii)

Source: RFE/RL Iran Report Vol. 6, No. 42, 20 October 2003

EXECUTIVE BRANCH, REFORMISTS CONCERNED ABOUT PARALLEL INTELLIGENCE ORGANIZATIONS.

Agencies working in parallel to the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) must cease their activities, government spokesman Abdullah Ramezanzadeh said during his weekly press conference on 13 October, IRNA reported. The MOIS expressed its concern about the creation of institutions that interfere with its activities during the most recent cabinet session, Ramezanzadeh added. President Mohammad Khatami said in an August speech to MOIS personnel that the establishment of any parallel intelligence organizations is unconstitutional and harmful to the state, and reformist parliamentarians complained about such agencies in July (see "RFE/RL Iran Report," 15 September 2003). Reacting to such complaints, President Khatami referred the issue to the Committee for the Implementation and Supervision of the constitution. Hojatoleslam Hashem Hashemzadeh-Harisi, who serves on this committee, said in the 7 October issue of "Iran" that the committee has opened its file on this matter and initial investigations on the existence of these bodies have been conducted.

"And now we have to see whether the existence of bodies of this kind contravenes the constitution or not," he added. Another committee has been created to investigate the activities of the Tehran Justice Department and the Tehran prosecutor-general, and ISNA reported on 3 October that the MOIS has provided the committee with a list of the parallel intelligence agencies. Parliamentarian Mohsen Armin, a member of this committee, told ISNA that although the MOIS has information on the parallel organizations it declined to turn it all over to the committee, "because of certain considerations." Armin did not enter into specifics.

An 8 October editorial in "Sharq," a neo-reformist daily, notes that this is the first time Iranian reformists are defending the centralization of the country's intelligence activities. This change began with the 1999 uncovering of alleged rogue agents in the MOIS who had killed a number of dissidents the previous year. This, in turn, led to the dismissal of many MOIS employees, especially those identified with Intelligence and Security Minister Ali Akbar Fallahian-Khuzestani (1989-1997). Since then, the MOIS reportedly has tried to stay out of the political fray, but this policy has not been without cost. MOIS chief Hojatoleslam Ali Yunesi said on 7 October, according to "Sharq," "We are the most unjustly treated institution in this country, but we shall pay the price of our independence. We even remain silent when they blame us for the crimes of others."

Another editorial, this one in the 14 October issue of the reformist daily "Yas-i No," noted that the just distribution of power in a democratic system is incompatible with the existence of unconnected and parallel institutions acting autonomously. Iran, however, has had to contend with parallelism in security and intelligence matters for several years. The current existence of parallel intelligence organizations leads to frustration and to weakness in the ruling system, according to the editorial. (Bill Samii)

Source: RFE/RL Iran Report Vol. 6, No. 42, 20 October 2003

Comment. MOIS head Ali Yunesi is afraid of predecessor Ali Akbar Fallahian, whose middle name nowadays should be read as "Rafsanjani akbar" i.e. RICO Rafsanjani is great.

2003-10-20
Middle East Online

Iran theologians blast Ebadi's Nobel Prize win

TEHRAN - A group of clerics and theology students from Iran's clerical centre of Qom have hit out at the Nobel Peace Prize win of women's rights lawyer Shirin Ebadi saying it was part of a Western conspiracy against Islam.

In a statement carried by the hardline Jomhuri Eslami newspaper, the group from Qom's main seminary said: "The decision by the Western oppressive societies to award the prize to Ebadi was done in order to ridicule Islam."

The paper did not say how many people signed the statement, which also lamented that a "serious revolutionary confrontation with the tribe of infidels" had not yet taken place.

As for the "infidels", it voiced hope for their "tongues to be cut from their mouths and the poisonous pens broken in their hearts".

Keeping up its stiff criticism of Ebadi, the paper also quoted Mousa Qorbani - a prominent conservative MP - as comparing the Nobel laureate to British author Salman Rushdie, who was sentenced to death by Iran's revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini for writing "The Satanic Verses".

"Awarding the Nobel Prize to Ebadi is like rewarding Salmam Rushdie, the Zionist regime and US leaders," he was quoted as saying.

Ebadi was given the prize on October 10 for her efforts to promote democracy and human rights, especially in her campaign to change Iran's laws governing women and children.

Her reform efforts and her defence of political dissidents have earned her the loathing of powerful hardliners here.

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=7451

France Spurns Reliance on Force

October 20, 2003
BBC News
BBCi

French Foreign Minister, Dominique de Villepin, has issued a strong warning against unilateral action and the use of force in solving international crises.

Mr de Villepin - delivering the BBC's annual Dimbleby lecture - said security could only be achieved through means that also promoted justice and stability.

He stressed that only such policies could defeat terrorism, and he questioned whether the use of force against Iraq had had the desired effects.

Mr de Villepin called on European countries to join forces with the United States and Russia to resolve the crisis over Iran's nuclear programme.

European ties

Calling on Britain to pool its sovereignty with other EU members, he said there could be "no Europe" without a common defence policy.

"Ours must be a political union. Were we to confine Europe to a mere free-trade area we would be betraying the spirit of the founding fathers and failing to seize the opportunity Europe offers to each of us."

Mr de Villepin said the new EU must have its own foreign policy and foreign minister, as well as a common defence policy.

"There can be no Europe without European defence and no European defence without Britain," he said.

Britain and France, he said, shared the same fierce sense of independence, national pride, a refusal to surrender and a faith in justice and freedom.

The two nations had a relationship of "irritation and fascination".

Mr de Villepin said countries could no longer act totally independently.

"No one state is in a position to respond on its own to the challenge of security, economic growth and social development," he said.

In the run-up to the Iraq war Mr de Villepin voiced France's opposition to the US-British stance on Iraq - but since then both sides have made efforts to heal the damaging rift.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3206112.stm

Iran Press Reflects Nuclear Tensions

October 20, 2003
BBC News
BBCi

Iranian papers on both sides of the political spectrum expect the Europeans to play a role in easing the pressure on Tehran over its nuclear programme.

But one conservative daily sees the holding of last week's conference of the reformist Iran Participation Front party during a visit to Tehran by UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohammed ElBaradei as a ploy to raise the temperature.

The Europeans and the IAEA know very well that the bulk of the United States' pressure on Iran is because of Iran's objection to the one-sided hegemony sought by the Americans, and that Iran is not the only country to be harmed by it...

The Europeans now have an exceptional opportunity - by using Iran's positive viewpoints - to adopt rational methods to gain our country's cooperation and to present a new strategy in the face of America's unilateral and bullying ways.

Hamshahri (Conservative)

Bush's failure in his attempt to put on a display of power in Southeast Asia makes it clear that... the Republicans are not only in desperate need of help from their European allies to overcome regional and international crises, but that they will also have to accept as a fact the presence and influence of certain regional powers and to ask them for help too.

This development, especially in relation to Islamic Iran, will leave America no option but to end its enmity against our proud government and nation. Despite the inflexibility of Washington's unilateralist policy based on the idea of a unipolar world, America has no choice but to end its threats and pressures against our country and the region.

Quds (Conservative)

It would be naive if anyone failed to understand the clear fact that holding the (reformist Islamic Iran Participation Front) party congress during the visit to Tehran of (UN nuclear watchdog chief) ElBaradei and delegations of bogeymen from the IAEA was no coincidence.

These are links in a chain aimed at raising the political temperature in the county and lowering the system's threshold for being provoked.

Jomhuri-ye Eslami (Conservative)

Tehran is worried that the Europeans wish to repair their relations with Washington - which were damaged during the war on Iraq - at Iran's expense. At any rate, Europe has the respect of Iran and finds a listening ear in Iran when it voices its own independent stances, not when it behaves in a way that smacks of an effort to outdo Washington in antagonism towards the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Etemaad (Reformist)

It may well be that the impending visit to Tehran of the foreign ministers of three important European countries... is an indication of the Europeans' peace-seeking efforts, and that the signals the Iranians have sent in the past day or two about accepting the Additional Protocol are possibly a suitable response to this step by the EU, which will dramatically reduce the international pressure on Iran.

It may not be farfetched to imagine that the choice of Mrs Ebadi by the Nobel committee was also a step taken by the Europeans towards changing the rules of the game and seizing the initiative from the Americans.

Shargh (reformist)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3207486.stm

MPs Might Impeach Oil Minister Over Link of Iran Firm in Statoil Scandal

October 20, 2003
Payvand
Payvand's Iran News

Iranian MP Nouroddin Pirmoazzen has said that the Majlis (parliament) will impeach Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh if the reported bribery by the Norwegian oil company Statoil to an Iranian firm is proved, IRNA reported from Tehran on Monday quoting the local press.

The Persian-language newspaper 'Mardomsalari' quoted Pirmoazzen as saying that the Majlis had been shocked over the reports of a wave of top official resignations in Statoil in connection with an alleged bribery of 15 million dollars to an Iranian company, stressing that this has made the MPs to consider summoning Zangeneh to the chamber. "Although sending a delegation from Iran to Norway to collect more data (about Statoil's bribery case) will be fruitful, the oil minister will be called to appear at the Majlis to clarify the details of the issue," he said.

"Mr. Zangeneh will definitely break his silence before the representatives of the people," Pirmoazzen said, addint that the MPs are waiting to hear Zangeneh's explanations on the issue, and that the oil minister will be impeached if the alleged bribery to the Iranian company is proved.

"If the issue is proved, Zangeneh's impeachment will be definite, and the MPs will not hesitate in dealing with that case," he said. "Still, according to what I know about Zangeneh, I am sure that he will leave the Oil Ministry himself if the bribery case is proved,"he maintained.

http://www.payvand.com/news/03/oct/1122.html

Straw says EU Nuclear Mission to Iran Goes Ahead

October 20, 2003
MSNBC News
Reuters

LONDON -- Britain said three European Union foreign ministers were leaving for Tehran on Monday on a last ditch mission to try to resolve a standoff over Iran's nuclear programme.

''Resolving the doubts surrounding Iran's nuclear programme is of grave concern to the European Union and wider international community,'' British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said in a statement.

''I will be travelling to Iran today with my French and German colleagues for talks on the (nuclear) issue at the invitation of the Iranian government,'' he added.

The visit by the three foreign ministers comes before an October 31 deadline set by the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog for Iran to disprove U.S.-led allegations that it may be developing a covert nuclear arms programme.

Diplomats from the three European countries had said up until the last minute that the visit was far from certain.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has also called on Iran to sign up to tougher, no-notice inspections of its nuclear sites. Iran says its nuclear facilities are geared to electricity generation.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters10-20-063129.asp?reg=EUROPE

Iran's reformers undecided over election boycott

Monday, October 20, 2003 - ©2003 IranMania.com
TEHRAN, Oct 20, (AFP) --

Iran's main reformist party said Monday it had not yet decided whether to boycott forthcoming parliamentary elections, but warned it was ready to if it deemed the vote would not be free and fair.

"Election campaigning will continue. But we stress two conditions for our participation in the Majlis elections, that is that they be held in a free and fair manner," said a statement from the Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF).

Iran's next parliamentary elections are scheduled for February 20, 2004. The statement said the party would meet one month before the polls for an extraordinary congress at which it would take a final decision on whether to take part.

The IIPF statement was a clear warning to the Guardians Council, a conservative-controlled constitutional watchdog body which reformers accuse of abusing powers to vet candidates for public office to disqualify many of their supporters.

A recent attempt by the reformist-led parliament to strip the council of its vetting powers appears to have fizzled out.

The IIPF has also been unable to stop a number of its members being targeted by the hardline judiciary.

The party, which is headed by Mohammad Reza Khatami -- brother of reformist President Mohammad Khatami -- last week held a congress to map out its election strategy amid fears that voter apathy could deal the movement a major defeat.

The reformers have controlled parliament since 2000 but, faced with the overwhelming power wielded by hardliners in the judiciary and legislative watchdogs, little of their reform agenda has made it into law.

This has led to widespread disillusion among their key constituencies, women and young people, who stayed away in droves in municipal elections in February leading to an all-time low turnout.

With just a tiny percentage of people bothering to cast their ballots, conservatives -- relying on a committed hardcore support base -- won the day. Many observers see the same happening next year.

http://www.iranmania.com/News/ArticleView/Default.asp?NewsCode=18812&NewsKind=Current%20Affairs

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