Elections in the Islamic Iran

In their first and most important referendum, more than 98 percent of Iranian people said yes to the new ruling system: the Islamic republic. The phrase Islamic Republic was used by the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran Imam Khomeini (May his soul rest in peace) to describe both the Islamic and popular nature of the rule. He introduced the Islamic Republic as a system based on public votes. Actually the term republic means the acceptance of people’s right in electing the type of political system. No doubt people’s opinion was not the criterion merely at the primary stages of the system’s establishment but the Islamic Republic is based on people’s permanent presence and supervision over officials. Now the enthusiastic presence of people in more than 30 elections during the past 33 years has proved time and again that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s system has always enjoyed widespread popular support.

Emphasis on the Islamism beside republicanism gives meaning to the main foundation of the religious popular system in Iran. Actually it is the Islamism which makes the Islamic Republic different from the western democracies. Islam shapes the content and the main nature of the system and the Islamic laws and tenets are considered the main foundation of its laws and policies. In the religious popular system, people determine their own fate within the framework of progressive divine injunctions and legitimate laws. In this case, republic is shaped in civil institutes like groups, as well as social, economic, cultural and political organs; while Islamism is stipulated and interpreted by jurisprudents and thinkers of seminaries and the leader is the preserver of the republic and Islamic nature of the system. In the Islamic Republic, God’s will is the source of legitimacy and the people’s will is the source of accepting the system. In such a system, Islamic and republic not only are not contradictory but also benefit from each other.

In the religious popular system people’s will enjoys a lofty position and this leads to the survival and continuation of the system. In such a holy system people make decision, elect and administrate the country’s affairs by their representatives but this will and election are placed in the light of divine guidance. As a matter of fact they elect through religious insight and within the framework of Islamic lofty injunctions. It is evident that once the people’s will is backed by ideological and religious stronghold, it will never secure the interests of capitalists and deceitful politicians. No one has the right to rule over people unless he has the minimal Islamic criteria and accepted by people. Regarding the importance of people’s vote, the leader of the Islamic revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says, “In Islam, piety and justice form the main base of legitimacy, but this legitimacy has no competence without people’s vote. Therefore in Islam, the people’s vote is of a special significance.”? These words refer to the fundamental importance of people’s vote in a religious system. The leader believes that in the light of the Islamic Republic system, people are the axis of decision-making and the framework of decision-making for both people and officials are the Islamic injunctions and Shari’a. The leader also says, “Popularism in the Islamic Republic system is the main characteristic; that is, people’s vote is the main factor in the firm construction of the Islamic Republic system. People’s vote is determinant. In the Islamic Republic system, movement is made within the framework of God’s religion and people’s will is the absolute determinant.”?

All political systems which are based on people's will have paid attention to the people’s role and presence and define certain mechanisms to materialize people’s participation. The religious popular system has provided proper solutions for applying the public will. A glance at the nature of the Islamic laws, regulations and injunctions indicates that this great religion has always tried to encourage popular presence in political, economic, cultural, social and scientific fields and considers it so important that even some apparently individual acts of worship have got a socio-political hue. Among the mechanisms employed in the religious popular system to prepare the ground for public participation, mention can be made of the acts of rituals like Friday and congregational prayers, Hajj pilgrimage, enjoining the good and forbidding the evil acts, inviting people to supervise the officials’ performance and active presence in defense and economic domains.

Stressing the importance of people’s participation and their vital role in political and social fields, the Islamic republic of Iran’s Constitution considers election and referring to people’s votes as the main type of public participation in the country’s fate. It is this logic and legal basis that has made it possible to hold more than thirty elections over the past thirty three years. This is an unmatched even among the most democratic governments of the world let alone the infamous western liberal democracy whose ominous outcome is manifestly seen in family, society and policy.

In the Islamic Iran, participation in elections and voting is considered not a mere legal right but an act of worship and a divine obligation. Perhaps one can say that the popular participation in elections is considered a certain kind of socio-political jihad through which people elect the most qualified persons for the country’s affairs, strengthen the national and religious bases of the system; and struggle against enemies. This very issue has provoked the enemies who have always attempted to decolour people’s participation in the elections and hinder their presence.

It is to be noted that the in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the mere presence of people in elections is not sufficient. What ensures the Islamic system as a basic strategy is the presence of the majority to hold a conscious election. For this reason, Ayatollah Khamenei says, “Everybody should try to have maximal participation in the true sense of the word." According to the leader, the formation of the religious popular system as the source of the Iranian nation’s stability is indebted to people’s ideological, rational and emotional relationship with the country’s developments and this is impossible except through a widespread participation of people in elections.

Apart from the enthusiastic presence of people in elections, another factor which is of a great importance is the election of the most qualified candidates. Although the initial and minimal qualification of candidates is confirmed by the Constitution's Guardian Council, it is evident that people should elect the most competent of them. The most qualified is the person who has earnestly and seriously determined to eradicate poverty and corruption, to establish justice. He is always preoccupied and concerned about the country's progress and economic development on the basis of the Islamic-Iranian model and does not ignore the poor and deprived people.

March 2nd will be another example of the glorious elections to choose the deputies of the Islamic Consultative Assembly. Certainly the Iranian people, as in the past, will fervently take part in the election and in addition to stabilizing religious popular system they will nullify the enemies' plots and negative propaganda.

The End
Source: IRIB World Service

In their first and most important referendum, more than 98 percent of Iranian people said yes to the new ruling system: the Islamic republic. The phrase Islamic Republic was used by the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran Imam Khomeini (May his soul rest in peace) to describe both the Islamic and popular nature of the rule. He introduced the Islamic Republic as a system based on public votes. Actually the term republic means the acceptance of people’s right in electing the type of political system. No doubt people’s opinion was not the criterion merely at the primary stages of the system’s establishment but the Islamic Republic is based on people’s permanent presence and supervision over officials. Now the enthusiastic presence of people in more than 30 elections during the past 33 years has proved time and again that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s system has always enjoyed widespread popular support. Emphasis on the Islamism beside republicanism gives meaning to the main foundation of the religious popular system in Iran. Actually it is the Islamism which makes the Islamic Republic different from the western democracies. Islam shapes the content and the main nature of the system and the Islamic laws and tenets are considered the main foundation of its laws and policies. In the religious popular system, people determine their own fate within the framework of progressive divine injunctions and legitimate laws. In this case, republic is shaped in civil institutes like groups, as well as social, economic, cultural and political organs; while Islamism is stipulated and interpreted by jurisprudents and thinkers of seminaries and the leader is the preserver of the republic and Islamic nature of the system. In the Islamic Republic, God’s will is the source of legitimacy and the people’s will is the source of accepting the system. In such a system, Islamic and republic not only are not contradictory but also benefit from each other. In the religious popular system people’s will enjoys a lofty position and this leads to the survival and continuation of the system. In such a holy system people make decision, elect and administrate the country’s affairs by their representatives but this will and election are placed in the light of divine guidance. As a matter of fact they elect through religious insight and within the framework of Islamic lofty injunctions. It is evident that once the people’s will is backed by ideological and religious stronghold, it will never secure the interests of capitalists and deceitful politicians. No one has the right to rule over people unless he has the minimal Islamic criteria and accepted by people. Regarding the importance of people’s vote, the leader of the Islamic revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says, “In Islam, piety and justice form the main base of legitimacy, but this legitimacy has no competence without people’s vote. Therefore in Islam, the people’s vote is of a special significance.”? These words refer to the fundamental importance of people’s vote in a religious system. The leader believes that in the light of the Islamic Republic system, people are the axis of decision-making and the framework of decision-making for both people and officials are the Islamic injunctions and Shari’a. The leader also says, “Popularism in the Islamic Republic system is the main characteristic; that is, people’s vote is the main factor in the firm construction of the Islamic Republic system. People’s vote is determinant. In the Islamic Republic system, movement is made within the framework of God’s religion and people’s will is the absolute determinant.”? All political systems which are based on people's will have paid attention to the people’s role and presence and define certain mechanisms to materialize people’s participation. The religious popular system has provided proper solutions for applying the public will. A glance at the nature of the Islamic laws, regulations and injunctions indicates that this great religion has always tried to encourage popular presence in political, economic, cultural, social and scientific fields and considers it so important that even some apparently individual acts of worship have got a socio-political hue. Among the mechanisms employed in the religious popular system to prepare the ground for public participation, mention can be made of the acts of rituals like Friday and congregational prayers, Hajj pilgrimage, enjoining the good and forbidding the evil acts, inviting people to supervise the officials’ performance and active presence in defense and economic domains. Stressing the importance of people’s participation and their vital role in political and social fields, the Islamic republic of Iran’s Constitution considers election and referring to people’s votes as the main type of public participation in the country’s fate. It is this logic and legal basis that has made it possible to hold more than thirty elections over the past thirty three years. This is an unmatched even among the most democratic governments of the world let alone the infamous western liberal democracy whose ominous outcome is manifestly seen in family, society and policy. In the Islamic Iran, participation in elections and voting is considered not a mere legal right but an act of worship and a divine obligation. Perhaps one can say that the popular participation in elections is considered a certain kind of socio-political jihad through which people elect the most qualified persons for the country’s affairs, strengthen the national and religious bases of the system; and struggle against enemies. This very issue has provoked the enemies who have always attempted to decolour people’s participation in the elections and hinder their presence. It is to be noted that the in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the mere presence of people in elections is not sufficient. What ensures the Islamic system as a basic strategy is the presence of the majority to hold a conscious election. For this reason, Ayatollah Khamenei says, “Everybody should try to have maximal participation in the true sense of the word." According to the leader, the formation of the religious popular system as the source of the Iranian nation’s stability is indebted to people’s ideological, rational and emotional relationship with the country’s developments and this is impossible except through a widespread participation of people in elections. Apart from the enthusiastic presence of people in elections, another factor which is of a great importance is the election of the most qualified candidates. Although the initial and minimal qualification of candidates is confirmed by the Constitution's Guardian Council, it is evident that people should elect the most competent of them. The most qualified is the person who has earnestly and seriously determined to eradicate poverty and corruption, to establish justice. He is always preoccupied and concerned about the country's progress and economic development on the basis of the Islamic-Iranian model and does not ignore the poor and deprived people. March 2nd will be another example of the glorious elections to choose the deputies of the Islamic Consultative Assembly. Certainly the Iranian people, as in the past, will fervently take part in the election and in addition to stabilizing religious popular system they will nullify the enemies' plots and negative propaganda. The End Source: IRIB World Service