IRANIAN HARD-LINERS WIN BIG IN RIGGED ELECTION
And so do the various terror groups
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/
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Hard-liners took control of Iran's legislature in parliamentary elections Friday after hundreds of reformist candidates were disqualified and liberals called on Iranians to boycott the vote. Hard-liners even padlocked shut the capital's last major pro-reform newspapers the day before the election. The ruling theocracy had barred more than 2,400 candidates who sought greater political and social openness - effectively sending the 290-seat parliament back under the wing of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the powerful clerical ranks he commands. All the parliament seats were up for election, but few people bothered to vote.
At least 46 million people were eligible to vote. Reformers have always banked on support from Iran's youth. But the young voters stayed away in huge numbers. The silencing of the two dailies - Yas-e-nou and Sharq - on Thursday was part of relentless pressure on media critical of the Islamic establishment. But it carried an added blow just before the elections, which is why most reformist politicians and supporters of change decided to boycott them. Judiciary agents also searched and closed an election monitoring office of the main reformist party, the Islamic Participation Front, said a member of the group, speaking on condition of anonymity. The group's headquarters continued to operate. Many liberals saw the closures as a show of force and confidence by conservatives despite widespread accusations they have hijacked the vote. The powerful judiciary - controlled by Khamenei - closed the two newspapers after they published portions of a statement from pro-reform lawmakers that attacked the supreme leader and said freedom was being "trampled in the name of Islam."
All this was obviously a pre-emptive strike in anticipation of a low voter turnout and a hint of strong-arm tactics to come. Banning papers is essential for those who plan to commit a parliamentary coup. The Paris-based group Reporters Without Borders demanded the immediate reopening of the papers and condemned the "censorship measures" to "silence the reformist press." Yas-e-nou and Sharq were among the few survivors after a hard-line backlash against the liberal press that began in the late 1990s. Dozens of newspapers and publications have been shut and editors and journalists jailed. The few liberal papers that remain do not have the circulation and influence of Yas-e-nou and Sharq. Yas-e-nou was considered the voice of the pro-reform Islamic Participation Front, whose leaders include Mohammad Reza Khatami, the deputy speaker of the outgoing parliament who was disqualified from the elections. He is the younger brother of President Mohammad Khatami.
Can there be any doubt that political freedom in Iran is dead? It is very sad to see a great nation like Iran continue to be ruled be hard-line religious fanatics. If Iran adopted a truly democratic political system and a free market economy, it would become one of the most prosperous nations on earth. And terrorist groups would not be able to take root there. At this time, Iran is the main home for various terrorist groups in the entire middle east. The war against terror can never be won until various bases of terror are dismantled. How much longer can the United States stand by and allow nations like Iran and Syria to export their terrorism worldwide? The answer is that we cannot tolerate it much longer. If we don’t conquer Iran and Syria soon, we will see a huge escalation in global terror. And some of these acts will be at least as bad as 9/11. I know war is never popular among Americans, but either we get the job done and do it right or we will live with terror atrocities for 10 or 15 years to come. And in the end we will lose the terror war. We must go the final mile or horrible consequences will be the result.
At least 46 million people were eligible to vote. Reformers have always banked on support from Iran's youth. But the young voters stayed away in huge numbers. The silencing of the two dailies - Yas-e-nou and Sharq - on Thursday was part of relentless pressure on media critical of the Islamic establishment. But it carried an added blow just before the elections, which is why most reformist politicians and supporters of change decided to boycott them. Judiciary agents also searched and closed an election monitoring office of the main reformist party, the Islamic Participation Front, said a member of the group, speaking on condition of anonymity. The group's headquarters continued to operate. Many liberals saw the closures as a show of force and confidence by conservatives despite widespread accusations they have hijacked the vote. The powerful judiciary - controlled by Khamenei - closed the two newspapers after they published portions of a statement from pro-reform lawmakers that attacked the supreme leader and said freedom was being "trampled in the name of Islam."
All this was obviously a pre-emptive strike in anticipation of a low voter turnout and a hint of strong-arm tactics to come. Banning papers is essential for those who plan to commit a parliamentary coup. The Paris-based group Reporters Without Borders demanded the immediate reopening of the papers and condemned the "censorship measures" to "silence the reformist press." Yas-e-nou and Sharq were among the few survivors after a hard-line backlash against the liberal press that began in the late 1990s. Dozens of newspapers and publications have been shut and editors and journalists jailed. The few liberal papers that remain do not have the circulation and influence of Yas-e-nou and Sharq. Yas-e-nou was considered the voice of the pro-reform Islamic Participation Front, whose leaders include Mohammad Reza Khatami, the deputy speaker of the outgoing parliament who was disqualified from the elections. He is the younger brother of President Mohammad Khatami.
Can there be any doubt that political freedom in Iran is dead? It is very sad to see a great nation like Iran continue to be ruled be hard-line religious fanatics. If Iran adopted a truly democratic political system and a free market economy, it would become one of the most prosperous nations on earth. And terrorist groups would not be able to take root there. At this time, Iran is the main home for various terrorist groups in the entire middle east. The war against terror can never be won until various bases of terror are dismantled. How much longer can the United States stand by and allow nations like Iran and Syria to export their terrorism worldwide? The answer is that we cannot tolerate it much longer. If we don’t conquer Iran and Syria soon, we will see a huge escalation in global terror. And some of these acts will be at least as bad as 9/11. I know war is never popular among Americans, but either we get the job done and do it right or we will live with terror atrocities for 10 or 15 years to come. And in the end we will lose the terror war. We must go the final mile or horrible consequences will be the result.