Mehdi Karroubi in a meeting with the members of the Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution organisation (reformist) discussed the day’s events.

In this meeting Karroubi strongly criticised the rude language used by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in one of his latest speeches addressing the US president and said that this kind of behaviour is an insult to Iranians’ ancient civilisation. Karroubi said: “Unfortunately the language used by Ahmadinejad was not appropriate for a [so-called] president! It is interesting that they call these behaviours and actions that make more enemies, wisdom and policy!” Go to original article.

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Free Iran:  Based on the quotes below from the Economist, does this mean that the Green movement is now being held back by Mousavi & even Karroubi – people who want to work within the confides of the Islamic’s republic’s repressive, bankrupt and failed constitution – and people who believe that Khomeini was somehow a democrat and a humanitarian?  Up to now, one could have given these gentlemen the benefit of the doubt – despite their history and in the belief that the enemy of my enemy is my friend.  But going forward, such reasoning and deference to these gentlemen becomes increasingly more difficult.

Given these difficulties and as this site has repeatedly argued in the past, for the Iranian people to become free, the US needs to help cut off the regime’s oil income. Without its oil income, the regime will be nothing but a paper tiger. The US needs to start with unilateral sanctions against the insurance and shipping companies that help the regime sell Iran’s oil. It’s the oil income, stupid! (For those that may not be aware, “It’s the oil income, stupid!” is a play on Bill Clinton’s 1992 comment that “It’s the economy, stupid.”  I don’t mean disrespect to anyone.)

From the Economist:

…Mr Bakiyev made two decisive mistakes. First, he had almost all the country’s opposition leaders arrested by the morning of April 7th, which left the protesting crowds without any sense of direction or moderating influence. The leaders were almost all released later in the day but by then it was too late. Second, he miscalculated by using brutal force to hang on to power, which ultimately made it impossible for him to stay. The police were also clearly outnumbered by protesters.  Free Iran:  Not sure about either arguments and especially the second one.  The regime in Tehran is a lot more competent about using force than the government of  Kyrgyzstan.

…But the abrupt change in Kyrgyzstan is also being closely watched in the rest of Central Asia. This was the second time that as few as 5,000 demonstrators succeeded in overthrowing an unwanted government in Kyrgyzstan—an example that the no-less authoritarian neighbours fear could be emulated elsewhere. For the Kyrgyz people, though, it is an opportunity to get things right the second time around.

Sahamnews, the website of reformist cleric Mehdi Karrubi’s Etemad Melli party, reports that Mohammad Davari, the jailed chief editor of the website, has been subjected to torture intended to force him to publicly cast doubt on Karrubi’s claims about the rape of postelection prisoners.

Sahamnews says Davari, who has been in jail for seven months, is in very poor physical and psychological condition. The website reports that he’s been allowed to meet with his mother briefly in jail only three times since his arrest.

The website claims the pressure on Davari to make a false statement and question Karrubi is “a new scenario by the ruling establishment” against the opposition leader.

After the postelection crackdown last summer, in which many opposition protesters were jailed, Karrubi said he had received reports from several detainees, including young men, who said they were sexually abused or raped in prison.

The report angered hard-liners, some of whom called for Karrubi’s prosecution for libeling the Islamic establishment.

Go to Radio Free Europe.

By Ladane Nasseri

March 31 (Bloomberg) — Iran’s opposition movement lacks the resolve and mass support needed to overthrow the country’s clerical regime, said Abolhassan Bani-Sadr, the Islamic republic’s first president.

In 1979, when Bani-Sadr helped lead the revolution that overthrew the Shah, “the young generation was determined to get rid of the monarchy,” the former president said in an interview at his home in Versailles, France. “Today’s opposition supporters are hesitant and confused as to what they are fighting for,” he said. “They are caught between what they desire and what they think is attainable.”

…Grassroots, Organic

The movement resembles the victorious rebels of 1979 in that “it is grassroots, organic and not controlled by any organization,” said Bani-Sadr, 77, who helped draft Iran’s constitution after the revolution and held the presidency from 1980 to 1981, when he fled the country after losing a power struggle with revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

A key difference, though, is that it “hasn’t taken over all the cities and within cities some of the social classes have not joined,” Bani-Sadr said, citing the limited participation of the working class as an example.

Demonstrations since the election have mostly taken place in the capital, Tehran, and other major cities, while large parts of the country stayed calm.

Another problem for the opposition is that the demands of its supporters have come to exceed what the movement’s leaders are capable of delivering, Bani-Sadr said.

Incapable of Reform

Karrubi and Mousavi have stopped short of calling for the end of clerical rule. Bani-Sadr said the current system is incapable of democratic change, and religion should be separated from politics.

“If the regime was capable of being reformed, I would not be in exile, former President Mohammad Khatami would have succeeded during his time in office of bringing about a more open society, and this electoral fraud would not have taken place,” he said.

Further international sanctions aimed at curbing Iran’s nuclear program may backfire, especially if they hurt the economy, Bani-Sadr said. The U.S. has led calls for a fourth round of sanctions this year after Iran said it started enriching uranium to the level required to

The regime “benefits from a state of crisis,” and any sanctions should instead target the funds of officials abroad, and the sale of military equipment and technology that can be used to repress the opposition, Bani-Sadr said.

Go to Bloomberg.

2009 presidential candidate and opposition leader Mahdi Karroubi issued a video message on the occasion of the new Iranian year Nowrouz in which he has openly criticised the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the policy of exclusion practiced by authorities.

Following video messages by other opposition leaders Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Zahra Rahnavard, Mahdi Karroubi released a short video message in which he condemned the authorities’ policy of exclusion.

In a clear reference to the leader’s recent remarks, he said that the “ship of the regime” had been turned into a “boat” in which few were able to identify with. [Khamenei had stated he does not want anyone to disembark from the “ship of the regime” unless they insist on getting off.]

It should be noted that the video message was posted just hours before the televised address of Ali Khamenei on the occasion of the New Year.

Karroubi named a number of radical supporters of the Supreme Leader and his “president” Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as people who were currently on this “boat of the regime,” among them the head of the Guardians council Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, Janati, and the current illegitimate president Mahmoud Ahmadineajd.

Karroubi reassured everyone that he was still devoted to Islam and the Islamic republic, but not to in a regime that belonged to the “tastes of a small group” in the country.  Free Iran:  For those that criticize Karroubi for saying that he believes in the Islamic republic, my humble opinion is to think the enemy of my enemy is my friend – at least for now.  Without uniting with the reformists, it’s impossible for those of us in the outside that believe in a secular, democratic republic to do anything about what’s going on in Iran.  Venting and talking is not enough or blogging for that matter.  The sincerity of the reformists about creating a more open and pluralistic society is a bridge we need to cross at a later  date.  For now, the main object should be to weaken the hardliners.

The former speaker of parliament also pointed out the murderous post-election clampdowns of the government and the stifling of freedom of speech by measures such as the imprisonment of journalists and independent media. Go to original article.

It’s the Economy, Stupid

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FT:  Iran’s regime contains but fails to eliminate the opposition NAJMEH BOZORGMEHRIN writes:

Iran’s regime seems to have learnt how to curb street protests. By carrying out death sentences upon some opposition supporters and enforcing draconian security measures before any expected rally, the authorities have prevented their critics from taking to the streets in large numbers since the Shia festival of Ashoura in December.

The opposition Green Movement became adept at using official occasions for demonstrations. But no important protests took place during Tuesday’s festival before Iranian new year. The opposition did not succeed in holding large rallies on the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution last month.

Instead, the Green Movement’s leaders have changed course, publicly urging followers to stop mass demonstrations, to avoid bloodshed and to win support of other social groups, notably lower-income people.

Now the opposition waits to see how lower-income people will react to the government’s plan to cut subsidies that hold down prices of basic goods. That could jeopardise many jobs and raise inflation from about 30 per cent to about 50 per cent. “The opposition is trying to make people refocus their attacks on the government, to force Ayatollah Khamenei either to remove Mr Ahmadi-Nejad or accept political reforms,” said the former official.

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the former president who threw his weight behind reformists during the election, tries to mediate. He recently hinted Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s government could be sacrificed to ensure the Islamic Republic’s survival.

But there is no sign Ayatollah Khamenei is willing to consider any compromise with the opposition.

Also see:  Irish Times:  Hard line seems to have tamed Iran’s Green movement

Instead, the Green Movement’s leaders have changed course, publicly urging followers to stop mass demonstrations, to avoid bloodshed and to win support of other social groups, notably lower-income people.

The opposition has dropped its tactic of confrontation.

BY CARRYING out death sentences on some opposition supporters and enforcing draconian security measures before any expected rally, the Iranian authorities have prevented their critics from taking to the streets in large numbers since the Shia festival of Ashoura in December.

The opposition Green Movement became adept at using official occasions for demonstrations. But no important protests took place during this Tuesday’s festival before Iranian new year. Nor did the opposition succeed in holding large rallies on the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution last month.

Free Iran:  Although the Green leaders seem to be focusing a bit more on the economy, it’s still way too little. (I wrote a brief piece on Feb 2 titled It’s the economy, stupid, emphasizing why Mr. Mousavi needs to focus much more on the economic issues.)  It’s the opinion of this humble blogger that every speech that they give has to address the people’s pocketbook issues – every single speech.  The Green leaders have to make the case as to why they and only they could offer a brighter economic future for the people.  Keep it simple.  Keep it short.  Emphasis pocketbook issues.

Although the following comments don’t contain any pocketbook issues, Mr. Karroubi makes some excellent points about the role of the media.

Karroubi: Why no criticisms of BBC when it was “assisting the Revolution?”

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Zamaaneh:  Karroubi challenges hardliner accusations against opposition

Mehdi Karroubi criticized Islamic Republic for attributing any form of opposition to foreign conspiracies adding that Iran’s last monarch used the same argument against the opposition forces of the time that later established the Islamic Republic.

Addressing hardliner accusations, the reform leader asks: “Why is it that the justifications of the Shah (Iran’s last monarch) for his actions were wrong but the very logic and content of his words coming form you, is to be considered right?”

Speaking to the members of the reformist group, Islamic Iran Participation Front, Karroubi asked why were there no criticisms against BBC when it was “assisting the Revolution?”

The Secretary-General of the National Trust Party reminded his detractors that Ayatollah Khomeini, the late founder of the Islamic Republic, took advantage of all news agencies and media in his political struggles against the monarchy and no one in the Islamic Republic would accuse him of having foreign ties.

Karoubi:  Iran is a despotic republic

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Reuters:  Iran is a despotic republic, opposition leader says

Iranian opposition leader Mehdi Karoubi, defying government warnings, said the Islamic republic was “plagued with despotism,” in remarks published ahead of a national celebration that could trigger more protests.  “Unfortunately the current republic is plagued with despotism and elections have become meaningless,” Karoubi, a moderate cleric and former parliament speaker, said in comments to a group of students carried on his website on Tuesday.  “This government has not been formed upon the people’s votes, and the result has been social unrest.”

A crackdown on the opposition was expected on Tuesday when Iranians hold celebrations a few days before the country’s New Year which starts on March 21.  Police chiefs have strongly warned the opposition against using the occasion to organize fresh protests and, in an attempt at deterrence, have said that anyone arrested on that day will be held until the end of the Iranian new year holidays.  Most of those detained after the election have since been released, though more than 80 have received jail sentences of up to 15 years. Two people who were put on trial after the election have been executed.

AFP: Iran’s Karroubi says regime plagued with despotism

A day after his apartment block was besieged by hardliners calling for his prosecution, defiant Iranian opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi lashed out at the government, saying it was “plagued with despotism”, his website reported on Tuesday.  The cleric, who continues to question the legitimacy of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s re-election, said it was still difficult for him to understand how the hardliner won the poll last year given his government’s track record.  “Unfortunately, the (Islamic) republic has been plagued with despotism and elections have become meaningless. It has become only a term,” Karroubi told a group of visitors from central province of Isfahan, according to his website Samannews.  “How can one believe that a president with so many objections against him such as inflation, unemployment… gets more votes than he got in his first election?”  Ahmadinejad has been accused of stoking inflation with a populist economic policy that has involved pumping large sums of money into the economy.Karroubi’s remarks came two days after hardliners reportedly gathered outside his Tehran home, calling for him to be put to death.

Mousavi: ‘Patience and Endurance’

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LA Times:  Opposition leader Mousavi calls upcoming year one of ‘patience and endurance’

Iranian opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi declared the upcoming Persian calendar year one of “patience and endurance” for the opposition movement in an attempt to lift the sagging spirits of his supporters and prepare them for a long-term contest against the Islamic Republic’s hard-line rulers.

“The next calendar year is the year of patience and endurance for us,” he said, referring to the March 21 start of the Persian new year, or Nowruz.

Below are some more of his remarks, delivered to the leaders of the Islamic Iran Participation Front:

On Iran’s foreign policy

We want to regulate our foreign relations based on national interests, instead of winning so many enemies and leaving not a single friend with every speech. We should not be so adventuristic. Independence is a benediction the Islamic revolution bestowed upon us and we should not lose it. We have some problems with the U.S. and Europe, but we should set our relations based on our national interests, security, safeguarding territorial integrity and national development and growth. Our foreign policy should not be adventurist, nor should it create tensions. We don’t have reliable friends to count on in difficult conditions.

On foreign connections to the opposition movement

Opponents of the Green Movement are expressing trumped-up charges against the movement leaders in order to link them to foreigners, but people do not accept these accusations. We should not remain passive in the face of these baseless accusations and immoralities, and we have to preserve our equilibrium at any moment and against all the pressures. We should do our own job and we should not care for other countries’ reaction. … The fact is that in the past couple of years, intellectuals and people have been oppressed for their alleged ties to foreigners. … What we should do is to give a lie to accusations of foreign connections.

On Iran hard-liners’ conspiracy theories

We have received information according to which our opponents have fabricated a legend about the election and its ensuing events and they have apparently believed it. They have defined a role for everyone and every party and impose these roles on them. They have painted a wrong picture of the Green Movement and people. They intend to take advantage of this image and legend to win over the grand ayatollahs and religious scholars. Such unfounded analyses are backed by the government.

On aims of the opposition

Our movement is aimed at reviving a compassionate Islam and the Constitution. We have to show the roots of the Green Movement. This movement is rooted in the Constitutional Movement. It has no enmity with Islam and is born out of people’s religious convictions and anti-tyranny spirit. Our Constitution rooted in the blood of thousands of martyrs. People have endorsed this national covenant and all its principles have to be implemented.

On strategies for the opposition

If the movement intends to race ahead, it has to spread among people. We have to explain to people that the only option to alleviate economic pressure, reduce soaring divorce and resolve many other problems is to return to the Constitution.

On street protests

Unfortunately, we have seen the contrary in the past nine months and people have born the brunt of extreme street violence. If people’s demands and rights are taken into account, there would be no justification for them to protest in the streets or chant virulent slogans. People seek to regain their rights, but they have faced violent crackdown from government forces. The June 15, 2009, rally set a precedent and we should insist on its repetition. We should not let it be forgotten. Numerous articles have to be written about that demonstration in order to push the identity of the Green Movement into bold relief.

On reaching out to different classes

Under the present circumstances, we should not limit our interactions to the elite and we should reach out to other influential groups, including teachers and laborers. We have to explain the ongoing conditions to them in order to win more hearts and minds. We have to have our voice heard by all classes.

On reaching out to the pious

Another point is to take into account people’s religious inclinations. The government has embarked on negative propaganda against us in order to make the society believe that we have changed our religious views. We have to convince people these are merely lies and accusations. We have to strengthen our bonds with the grand ayatollahs and the clergy in a bid to thwart their legend.

On civil liberties

I believe that prison is no longer effective against the Green Movement. During the past eight or nine months, I always prayed for the release of prisoners and the lifting of press bans. But nothing happened. People would not have turned to foreign media had our domestic media not faced so many restrictions. Were the regime wise, it would not resort to military campaigning in the streets. The solution lies in legal freedoms.

People would have left the streets had the papers not been muzzled and restrictions not imposed. The government, the parliament and other pillars of the regime would have been stronger had these freedoms been guaranteed. The point is that such freedoms cause restrictions for power holders, but they benefit the regime. It’s sorrowful to see the judiciary receive its orders from the Intelligence Ministry and the Revolutionary Guard about arrests, releases and verdicts.

On NGOs

Special conditions are prevailing against the country. You know well that governments must welcome the activities of parties and associations in order to find solutions to problems based on collective wisdom. NGOs and political parties liaise people with governments. A symbol of progress and development is freedom of action for political parties and NGOs.

The case against threatening Iran

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Politico:  The case against threatening Iran

(By BRUCE RIEDEL & MICHAEL O’HANLON)  In fact, we don’t even favor keeping force on the table. You don’t threaten a war you know is a bad idea. Doing so puts pressure on Obama to strike if and when diplomatic and economic approaches fail to rein in Iran’s program.  In addition, even if the charge is unfair, Obama’s critics at home could accuse him of weakness, increasing the pressure on him to consider an attack. America’s credibility might also be weakened, since Washington would be seen as having its bluff called. Future scenarios in which the United States might wish to credibly threaten an attack against an adversary, perhaps even Iran, would then be harder to handle.

Khamenei bid $10bn for ready-made nuclear bomb

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Iran attempted to buy a nuclear bomb from Pakistan as early as 1987, a leading Middle East analyst has told Haaretz.  Documents obtained by Simon Henderson, a research fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and a former journalist, offer crucial evidence that Iran’s nuclear program is not wholly for civilian purposes as it claims – but aimed at developing an atomic bomb.  Henderson told Haaretz he has acquired material written by the scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan – popularly known as the father of Pakistan’s bomb program – while under house arrest between 2005 and 2009.  But according to Henderson, Pakistan omitted to pass to its Western allies a sensitive report detailing visits to Pakistan in the late 80s by two Iranian officials, who Khan said offered $10 billion in exchange ready-made atomic bombs.

The report, obtained by Henderson, reveals that in 1987 or 1988 Admiral Ali Shamkhani, a former senior commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and minister of defense from 1997 until 2005, arrived in Pakistan with an entourage of officials.  Shamkhani offered to buy the nuclear devices on the spot and came prepared to take them home with him, Khan said.

As well as casting doubt on Iran’s claims about the purpose of its nuclear research, Henderson’s material could shed light on the thinking of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.   Khamenei is believed initially to have opposed plans to acquire a bomb ? only to become convinced of its necessity in the early 1980s during a bloody war with Iraq, in which Saddam Hussein unleashed chemical weapons on Iranian troops.  Shamkhani, who now heads the Center for Strategic Research in Tehran and has been touted as a candidate for the presidency, is thought to be a close confidant of the Supreme Leader. His role at the center of Iran’s attempts to gain a bomb may point to Khamenei’s personal role in an Iranian bomb program.

Source:  Haaretz:

‘Thugs’ vandalised Karroubi’s apartment

AFP:  ‘Thugs’ vandalised apartment of Iran’s Karroubi The wife of Iranian opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi claimed on Monday that a group of “thugs” paid by “corrupt” government officials had vandalised the apartment block where the family lives in Tehran.  “About 50 people, including four or five women gathered in front of our building with the support of intelligence and police forces and shouted slogans against” opposition leaders, Karroubi’s website, Sahamnews, quoted his wife Fatemeh Karroubi as saying.  “They vandalised the building. These are thugs who are on a payroll,” she added.  News reports Monday said that a group of hardliners had on Sunday besieged the Tehran home of Karroubi, shouting death slogans and calling for him to be put on trial.  The Fars news agency Monday identified the small but vocal crowd which gathered outside the apartment block as “students and families of martyrs” of the Iran-Iraq war.

Pictures carried by the pro-government Borna news agency showed the building defaced with red colouring while slogans pronouncing “Death to Karroubi” were scribbled on the walls.   The building had also been plastered with death slogans against main opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi and former president Mohammad Khatami.  “We want the judiciary to put the leaders of sedition on trial as soon as possible,” Fars quoted the protesters as saying. They also denounced Karroubi as a “hypocrite” — the term used by Iranian officials for the enemies of state.  Some brandished placards reading, “Karroubi is a Mossad agent” — linking the two-time former parliament speaker to the intelligence service of Iran’s arch foe Israel.  Fatemeh Karroubi in her statement on Sahamnews blamed the authorities for the incident.  “Exploiting and defaming the name of martyrs’ families is an unforgiveable atrocity some corrupt people in the government have resorted to in recent years,” she said.

RFE:  Hard-Liners Protest Against Karrubi, Deface His Building Bornanews has posted pictures of a Sunday protest by a small group of hard-liners in front of the home of reformist cleric and opposition leader Mehdi Karrubi.  The hard-line Fars news agency said those who gathered and shouted “Death to Karrubi” were “students and families of martyrs.” These protests are usually supported and sponsored by the goverment.  The protesters defaced the building where Karrubi lives with red paint and painted slogans denouncing and insulting him. Some of the protesters held banners. One of them accused Karrubi of being a Mossad agent.  Karrubi has come under attack by hard-liners because of his support for postelection protests and his criticism of the Iranian establishment. Karrubi’s allegations of the rape in prison of some of the postelection detainees has particularly infuriated hard-liners, who have said he should be put on trial.  The small group who protested against Karrubi on Sunday reportedly said they want the “leaders of the sedition” — meaning Karrubi and opposition leader Mir Hossein Musavi — to be put on trial as soon as possible.

AFP: Some brandished placards that read “Karroubi is a Mossad agent” — linking the two-time former parliament speaker to the intelligence service of Iran’s archfoe Israel.  A relative of Karroubi confirmed the incident to AFP and said the cleric would soon make a statement.

Watch footage of the event here.

IND:  Those so-called Iran analysts that claim that a democratic Iran and the current regime won’t be that much different in their foreign policy might want to read the following:

Reuters: Iranian opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi warned the legitimacy of clerical rule was waning due to its “repressive measures,” his website said on Saturday. Despite a crackdown that largely quelled the protests following President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election in June, Mousavi has remained defiant, calling the government “a cult that has no respect for Iran’s national interests.” “Millions of Iranians face censorship, obstruction of their freedoms and repressive measures … such measures will distance us from adopting logical solutions,” Mousavi said on his Kalemeh website.”If the issue is not resolved logically, the drop in the system’s legitimacy will be accelerated.”Mousavi said the government was “incompetent” to rule.“The nation that faces an adventurous, war-mongering foreign policy and destructive economic policy … wants changes,” he said.

NYT: Iran’s opposition leader said Saturday that a dictatorial ”cult” was ruling Iran in the name of Islam — his strongest attack to date on the country’s clerical leadership.  ”This is the rule of a cult that has hijacked the concept of Iranianism and nationalism,” Mousavi said in an interview published on his Web site. ”Our people can’t tolerate that (dictatorial) behaviors are promoted in the name of religion.”  ”Allow the Green Movement to invite people to a rally,” Mousavi said. ”How people respond will put an end to all speculation” about its strength, he added.

WP: Iran’s opposition leader says a dictatorial cult is ruling Iran in the name of Islam. The criticism was the strongest yet by Mir Hossein Mousavi. In comments posted on his Web site Saturday, Mousavi says his movement’s strategy is to effect reform by raising the consciousness of the Iranian people. But he acknowledges that the government’s bloodly crackdown has made it impossible for the opposition to publicly engage in political activities. Two days ago, Iran’s supreme leader, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said the opposition has lost its credibility and its right to participate in politics by not accepting the results of June presidential elections.

FT: Iran’s top opposition leader on Saturday accused the regime of “engineering” a rally on the anniversary of the Islamic revolution this month, insisting that the regime continues to lose “legitimacy” if it fails to secure “free elections”. Mir-Hossein Moussavi added that the regime paid to transport people, military and police forces to hold the rally, which marked the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution. “There is no pride in such engineering of rallies, but [it] sounds like the same pre-revolution despotic concept and methods,” Mr Moussavi said on his official website Kaleme.org.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, who has the final say in all state affairs, insisted this week that those – meaning Mr Moussavi and another opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi – who deny “the vote of the majority … have lost the credibility to remain within the framework of the Islamic system” and they got out of “the rescue ship” of the Islamic government.

Mr Moussavi, however, warned that the regime would continue to lose its “legitimacy” if it fails to secure free elections.“Securing free, competitive, non-selective and sound elections is one of the key solutions. If the issue is not resolved, the fall in illegitimacy of the system would speed up,” the opposition leader said.Mr Khamenei’s uncompromising stance shows that he was not ready to make a compromise with the opposition leaders and fulfil their demands which include securing fair elections, release of hundreds of political prisoners, opening up the press and allowing peaceful rallies.

Mr Moussavi has urged the supporters over the past two months to refrain from calling for a secular Iran or the dismissal of the supreme leader, suggesting the Green Movement supporters continue pursuing demands “inside the framework of the system”.He urged the regime to try to pave the ground for “unity” between Iranians from all walks of life.“Should the ruling regime and various political parties be realistic, they must know … that the country’s good future is tied to unity between all people and strata,” Mr Moussavi said.

LA Times: Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi accused the government of wasting public resources in a massive show of force against the opposition in his first public comments since planned protests failed to disrupt the Feb. 11 anniversary celebration of Iran’s 1979 revolution.

But in the lengthy interview published Saturday Mousavi offered few specific suggestions on what the opposition should do next. For now, Mousavi said he and fellow opposition figure Mehdi Karroubi would press for permission to hold their own rally and reach out to more Iranians.

“Increasing the level of people’s awareness is not achieved only in street protests,” he said in an interview published by his Persian-language news website Kaleme.com. “Boosting the level of public awareness is the main strategy of the Green Movement.”

Iran’s disputed June 12 presidential elections and its aftermath continue to dominate the nation’s domestic politics. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, describing the opposition as Western-backed plot to undermine the system, demanded that its leaders bow to his insistence that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was reelected cleanly.

“The post-election sedition was a negation of people’s vote and insult against the Islamic system,” he said Thursday, in a meeting with Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and other clerics. “Certain individuals committed this mortal sin by their refusal to bow to the law.”

Much more from Mousavi’s interview below:

Mousavi struck a moderate tone. He did not explicitly repeat his challenge of the election results, in what could be interpreted as a softening of his position. He also offered conciliatory gestures toward those who don’t support the opposition, acknowledging those Iranians hostile or ambivalent toward his movement’s aims and methods.

“I oppose insulting those who disfavor the slogans of the Green Movement,” he said. “Everyone is not supposed to be of our view. All Iranians, except a group of murderers and machete-wielders, are our brothers and sisters. Even military and police forces are our brothers and we know well they forced to exercise violence.”

But Mousavi harshly condemned the recent actions of Iran’s authorities.

He dissected the mechanics of the Feb. 11 rally widely regarded as a victory for the hardliners. The government, he said,  “spent exorbitant amounts by mobilizing buses and trains across the country” and forced employees of state-run offices to attend the rally in an attempt to “eclipse” the presence of the Green Movement.

“This year’s rally was engineered,” he said in the interview.

“Never have so many military, police and security forces been deployed in the streets on the revolution anniversary,” he said. “The violent and savage treatments in several spots in Tehran were unprecedented.”

Despite the official show of force and mobilization, he said, Azadi Square, where the rally was held, remained relatively empty. He likened the government’s conduct to that of Shah Mohammad-Reza Pahlavi, the deposed monarch who he said punished government employees who refuse to publicly show support for him.

Still, he also acknowledged that the rally was a defeat for the Green Movement, the opposition movement for which he has served as a figurehead since he ran and lost against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in last year’s disputed elections..

“The Green Movement missed a historic chance because the regime eclipsed its presence,” he said. “However, it was much more harmful to the regime than the movement because covering up the reality will never result in [the movement’s] elimination. I’m sure that this massive crackdown will deepen and broaden the movement.”

But beyond that, Mousavi offered little concrete guidance or tactical suggestions for an opposition movement that faces dark days ahead. This week, the head of the Tehran Revolutionary Guard announced plans to double the number of bases for the armed pro-government Basiji militia in the capital, especially in the northern and western districts that are considered hotbeds of opposition.

instead reiterating his reformist political faction’s longstanding grievances against the Islamic Republic’s dominant hardliners.

“Following up on such issues as freedom, human rights, anti-discrimination campaign, tolerance of opposition and fight on corruption do not constitute any offense,” he said. “And any opposition to these rightful demands indicates dictatorship and distortion of the Islamic revolution.”

He added, “In case these demands are not met, the ongoing fall in the legitimacy of the regime will pick up speed.”  — Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

AFP: Opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi Saturday called for the staging of a fresh anti-government rally in Tehran to prove depth of support for his so-called Green Movement among disenchanted Iranians.  “I and Mr (Mehdi) Karroubi think that the Green Movement be allowed to stage a rally… in order to put an end to all speculation,” Mousavi said, referring to Iran’s other main opposition leader.

In an interview on his website Kaleme.com, Mousavi said the February 11 mass rally in Tehran marking the revolution anniversary was not spontaneous.

“I say that this rally was an engineered one,” the former premier turned opposition leader said.

The presence of security forces on that day, he added, was “unprecedented” and the “tough (security) agents were not even tolerating a single person wearing green bands” — the colour sported by his supporters.

“Never have we seen so many military police and security personnel in the streets. The violent and savage confrontation in Sadeqieh Square was unprecedented,” he said referring to a Tehran square where protesters clashed with security forces on February 11.

Mousavi said the way the revolution day rally was organised reminded him of similar events during the era of the shah.

He condemned the use of government resources — large numbers of buses and trains — “to gather people for this rally.”

“There is no pride in holding such an engineered gathering. It is similar to the despotic thinking and the methods used before the (1979) revolution” which led to the toppling of US-backed shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

“You cannot hold an engineered rally and then be happy, saying all is over.”

Insisting that Iran was in a “crisis”, Mousavi said his movement had the backing of several top Iranian clerics.

Mousavi, meanwhile, issued a fresh call for holding a “free and competitive” election and also urged the release of all political prisoners detained in the post-poll crackdown. Mousavi asked for the reopening of his newspaper Kalemeh Sabz (Green Word) and Karroubi’s reformist daily, Etemad Melli. Both publications were shut down by authorities in the aftermath of the election. He also said criticised authorities for “limiting the freedom of people” by “monitoring their letters, text messages, telephone conversations and emails.”

Irannewsnow: Karoubi and I have decided, based on Article 27 of the Constitution, to repeat once again our request for a permit for a march. Our nation wants a progressive foreign policy and not a hostile, unfriendly foreign policy. Our nation wants that, under pretense of privatization, industries are not controlled by government entities and Sepah [Islamic Revolutionary Guards]. Our nation wants that our teachers and labor forces are not beaten or attacked for asking for their rights. Our nation wants that women don’t become subjects of accusations and attacks for wanting their equal rights. Our nation wants that the voices of all are heard from the national media and not only the voices of the few. Our nation does not like to be divided into two: groups: “God’s Party” and “Devil’s Party”. Our nation does not like their letters, text messages and phone conversations to be monitored. Our nation does not like their freedom to be limited, their constitution to be ignored. Our nation does not like their newspapers to be banned. Our nation does not like daily instructions [by the government] of what is allowed to be written about, or talked about. The desires of our nation are also the desires of the Green Movement. These facts should be distributed among the people of our nation by the Green Movement by all possible means. What we are asking for is both Islamic and Constitutionnal. Our requests are not against Shiria laws but they have resulted in shootings, murders and imprisonments. Our requests are not un-nationalistic and are not against the establishment, they are the people’s rights. Pursuing freedom, and human rights, and removing discrimination, and accepting differing view points R not illegal.

Mousavi FB:

Some key points made by Mir Hossein Mousavi in an interview with Kaleme website: l
NOTE: Full English translation of the transcript of Mir Hossein Mousavi’s interview will be available soon

This year’s the February 11th commemoration was influenced by the tenth [presidential] election and what happened after that and the administration tried to neutralize the effects of Green movement presence by massive spending and mobilizing buses and trains [filled with people] from around the country and certain staging. l

Brutal agents could not even tolerate a green shirt on a young demonstrator or a green rosary in the hands of a clergyman. l

Mr. Karoubi and myself in a consultation that we had, thought perhaps reiterate the suggestion we made before once again and that [suggestion] is [for the government] to allow the Green movement to invite people for a rally according to the article 27 of the constitution; how people receive this invitation can put an end to all the rumours. l

I find “engineered” rally a more suitable term for this year’s February 11th rally (referring to the government’s massive spending and staging by the government to bring people from around the country and put them in front of the cameras.) l

These kinds of engineering gatherings not only bring no pride but also are similar to the same dictatorship mentality and approaches before the [Islamic] revolution. l

The real pride is in people’s spontaneous rallies like the June 15th demonstration and the events after that and not in engineered or perhaps forced rallies by relying on massive spending and [establishing] security and terror atmosphere. l

Interview with Mehdi Karroubi, one of Iran’s opposition Green Movement leaders

Mehdi Karroubi, 73-year-old cleric and politician, has become a leader of the protests against the Iranian regime. A disciple of Khomeini, since the age of 24 he fought at his side against the Shah (and paid with six years in prison) in order to create the Islamic Republic. Since 1979, he has had relevant roles, such as speaker of the Parliament. He challenged Ahmadinejad for the presidency in 2005 and again in 2009. Both times he accused the authorities of fraud during the elections. During the last street protests in Iran on February 11, one of his sons, Ali, was arrested. He was beaten for hours in a mosque by members of the basiji militia and threatened with rape, before being freed at 11 P.M. A selection of questions and answers from the following interview also appeared in Italian on February 22 in the paper edition of “Corriere della Sera” newspaper.

How is your son now?
«Physically, my son Ali is feeling better. In the first days, his condition was terrible. Now we are worried about his mental state. The damage Ali suffered is a small example of all that is happening to the children of this nation. But the regime is already paying for this».

What happened on February 11?
«The repression was violent, no doubt. There was an unprecedented conflict with the population. This time, the regime didn’t want to allow any gathering of protesters (of the Green Movement, ed.) and it used all its strength: it gathered its forces from all the different governmental organs. They arrested our friends and family members, and they threatened the others. But their mobilization and organization didn’t stop us. I knew how it would end, but I went to demonstrate anyway. I will go again if there will be other demonstrations, even if the outcome is worse than the last one. The newspapers wrote that the people prevented the conspirators (this is how the regime defines Karroubi and Mousavi, ed.) from entering the square. I would like to ask those newspapers, which are controlled by the regime and the government: do you think that ordinary people use tear gas? Do you think ordinary people use metal bars and knives? The masters need to know that these days will pass but their sign will remain». See More.

As a way to remove the deceptions presented by the “totalitarians,” Karoubi said that a referendum and free demonstrations should be permitted. He said the government should allow opponents of the administration to hold a gathering in one of Tehran’s squares or a desert so that once and for all, the weight of the various tendencies in the country would be clarified without any pressure or threats.

“Based on the clear rights of the people as provided in article 27 of the constitution, I would like them to issue us the permit to gather in a square in Tehran so we can hold our demonstration so that the majority and minority are clarified. We will take the security of the event ourselves and will guarantee that the march will be held without any destructive slogans: a free march, once for all to clarify the leanings of society for good, without any pressure or threats,” Karoubi’s statement read.

Khatami’s statement on Sunday also said that the February 11 march had been hijacked by a group and criticized the treatment of people, including the continuation of political and media activist detentions.

The former president met with the families of imprisoned journalists and stressed, “protestors participated in this march in a peaceful manner”, adding, “This does not mean all those who cam to the gathering did so in support of a single group. Those who opposed the current policies and actions too came to the square and what they said was that the issue of the revolution and the regime was different from these groups and their policies. But it is unfortunate that we witnessed much insults towards many of them.” Go to Rooz Online.

Source: SahamNews
Date: Monday, February 22, 2010

I deeply appreciate the huge turnout on the rally for the 22nd of Bahman [February 11, the anniversary of the revolution] despite all the security pressure and the restrained political atmosphere. The ceremonies this year were held at a time when all political factions, prominent figures and grand Ayatollahs had invited people to participate in the hopes of moving toward a resolution t the current crisis. Nevertheless, the brutal totalitarian forces are using state-run television, as well as official and unofficial media outlets to hijack the rallies; to present them as a show of their own supporters while unethically ignoring the brutalities and violence that occurred on the sidelines as well as the extreme security measures that were in place that day, thus offering an impression completely opposite to what had actually happened. Those responsible for these brutalities want to use the rallies that would not have been possible without the widespread presence of the supporters of reformists and conservatives alike, to clear their record of [illegal] arrests, tortures, street killings and other crimes. They want to conceal their crimes, violence and cruelty with fallacies and misrepresentations. This year, the police and armed forces had turned the streets of Tehran into a military base during the 22 Bahman rally. They severely attacked and silenced anyone who showed the slightest sign of nonconformity. Interestingly enough, not a single scene showing the presence of all those forces, their assaults with teargas, or their beatings was reflected in the domestic media! It seems like their eyes were covered with a veil of [their] wrongdoings. How else could they think that they have succeeded in erasing the people’s collective memory and totally appropriating this national, religious, and revolutionary ceremony for their own benefit, so they can continue “depriving people of their most essential rights.” This is notwithstanding the fact that were it not for the invitations of various political groups as well as the people’s [acive] participation, the 22 Bahman rallies would have turned out to be an unenthusiastic rally of armed and paramilitary forces. Moreover, they would have had no opportunity for this political exploitation.

We all know that your attendance in 22nd of Bahman rally was not in support for the repressive policies that have taken so many political prisoners but for your love of Iran, the Islamic Revolution, and Imam Khomeini. You good people of Iran did not attend the Islamic Revolutions anniversary rally to swear allegiance to those who beat people. My pious countrymen, You know better than anyone that spilling the blood of the innocent is against your religion and morals. Did Ali (peace be upon him) fill his prisons to strengthen his government? You who have given Martyrs, are not satisfied with concealment of the crimes committed in Kahrizak, Sobhan Complex, and university dormitories and disrespecting the senior religious figures. Your attendance in 22nd of Bahman rally is not a token of support for such villainy. Regardless, those who have done their uttermost to engineer the 22nd of Bahmanrally by utilizing hundreds of buses and trains to bring in support, must explain why the Azadi square was so empty during the speech despite having used so many resources and engaging the police and armed forces. Is it possible to think that intelligent people of Iran would not know the reason behind the presence of tens of thousands of police and armed forces on the streets? Do they think that people have not seen all the pressure being exerted by the police and plain-cloth forces who use daggers, clubs, and pepper sprays on the servants of Iran and Islamic Republic to stop them from joining the crowd. Do they think that people have not noticed their fear and weakness?

Dear nation, your presence in the rallies of the February 11 are beyond analysis, unless it is looked at from the prospective of dichotomy of the two currents organizing against one another. We have two political inclinations in our society. One is an inclination that is afraid of rights to gather in peaceful demonstrations, and rallies according to the Article 27 of the constitution. It is this fear that motivates them to turn Tehran into a military base on the day of national rallies. This stream is the one that only tolerates its own supporters in rallies, and understands the nation as a set of groups who are advocates and supporters of its commands. It sees the rest of the people, even if the rest of the people constitute a majority, as a ‘dirt and dust’. On the other side there is the other inclination which recognizes you regardless of your variety, colorful range of beliefs, and without favoring on one gender, class, culture or race. This is an inclination that calls people not only to attend the rallies in Freedom Sq. but also to sit together around the same table and share their freedom. As such, based on teachings of Imam Khomeini I have two suggestions to take away the veil of ignorance that has blinded the sights of totalitarian currents. My first suggestion is that just like Imam Khomeini had asked: “The government should organize a meeting in Tehran in one of the big squares, and allow us to organize a meeting in the deserts close to Qom.” I want to ask for a permit to organize a rally based on the article 27 of the constitution in one of the squares of Tehran so that we can see the minority and the majority.

We will provide security for the rally ourselves and guarantee that it will be conducted without any slogans directed at the regime. Once and for all, a demonstration free of threats and suppression to show the weight of each group in the society.

But the second suggestion: While the authoritarian factions have turned the 22nd Bahman rally into a referendum to endorse their violent and anti-public policies , I propose a referendum based on the article 59 of the constitution to solve this crisis and end the reign of the guardian council. Interfering with the rule of people in the name of approbation supervision that has even surpassed [their own definition of ] approbation supervision . It is these interventions that inhibit holding a free presidential elections and forming an independent Guardian Council and parliament. In what sort of independent parliament are members forced –out of the fear of guardian council – to sign every statement against people who care for this country? The record of 10th presidential election shows that only a referendum can free us from these difficulties. [Only] in presence of an independent parliament will the principles related to interests of people and their fundamental rights such as freedom of press, fair trial and so on be observed. It is such a parliament, free from the rule of Guardian Council, that will clarify the weight of various political forces in the society not spending millions of dollars in government preparations and forcing a [pro-government ] atmosphere as we saw in 22nd of Bahman.

Go to Khordad 88.

Defying a harsh crackdown on political protesters in Iran, one of the country’s most outspoken opposition leaders on Monday called for a national referendum to gauge the popularity of the government.

The proposal from the leader, Mehdi Karroubi, was publicized on Iranian opposition Web sites after he had met with another opposition figure, Mir Hussein Moussavi, at Mr. Karroubi’s home in Tehran. Both men ran for president in the election last June and contend that the victory of the incumbent, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was a result of pervasive fraud.

It was clear from Mr. Karroubi’s call for a referendum that he did not expect the government to take it seriously. But his ability even to make such a demand and spread the message over the Internet seemed calculated to frustrate the Iranian authorities.

In his statement, Mr. Karroubi wrote that the authorities turned the country into a “military base” on Feb. 11 to propagate what he called the false image that the government enjoyed widespread support. He contended that the progovernment anniversary rally in Tehran’s central square that day was engineered by government propagandists.

“Despite efforts to engineer the rally by bringing in people with hundreds of buses and trains from around the country, the square remained half empty,” he wrote. “Do you think people do not understand the reason for the presence of tens of thousands of military forces on the streets?”

Fatemeh Haghighatjoo, a former member of Parliament who is a visiting scholar at the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, called Mr. Karroubi’s statement a form of psychological pressure on Iran’s top leaders.

“They have been claiming that the rally on Feb. 11 was a referendum and a sign of the government’s popularity,” she said, referring to the progovernment rally. “Now Mr. Karroubi is saying that if that is really true, why don’t you hold a real referendum.”

Go to NY Times.

One of Iran’s top opposition leaders called Monday for a referendum on whether to strip the ruling system of the right to ban political candidates – a powerful tool used to blacklist liberal voices from key campaigns.

Mehdi Karroubi issued a statement addressed to the people of Iran regarding the events of Feb. 11th (the demonstrations to mark the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution). In this statement Karroubi while strongly criticising the use of brutal violence and the domination of security atmosphere on the Feb 11th rally, proposed two resolutions to the current crisis: First; he suggested that based on the Article 27 constitution a permission would be given to the Greens to hold a gathering in one of the squares of Tehran so that once and for all the number of those opposing the government and those supporting it would be clearly known to all. Second; he proposed that according to the constitution a referendum would be held so that it would be clear that whether the appointed body of Guardian Council and its oversight on important affairs including elections is accepted by the society or not.l Go to original article.