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Saturday, 26 February, 2000, 19:16 GMT
Iranian media reviews election results ![]() Iranians in the street have been mulling over the election results Iran - and its media - has woken up to a new reformist parliament amid praise for the democratic system, conservative criticism and questions about the integrity of former President Rafsanjani. Iranian President Mohammad Khatami has hailed a new dawn of freedom and democracy. "The Iranian nation is experiencing a more advanced kind of
democratic rule," Iranian radio quoted him as saying.
The reformist Kayhan newspaper expressed similar sentiments in an editorial published before the final results were released. "The results of the sixth Majlis elections have demonstrated ... that the Islamic Republic of Iran is the most, or one of the most, democratic systems of government in the world," it said. "The outcome of the elections has shown that in this system it is the will of the people which determines the process of the decision making in Iran." Arguments over turnout Kayhan said that the high turnout had demonstrated popular disapproval of the status quo. "The presence of such a huge number of voters on the scene proves that whenever the people feel unhappy with some decisions, or whenever they feel like effecting changes in the decision-making process, all they have to do is make use of the lawful means available to them. "So, the Islamic system provides the necessary means for change within its own polity and through lawful means." Not all Iranian commentators were so enthused by voter activity. A conservative editorial in the newspaper Jomhuri-ye Eslami pointed to a number of distortions in the way the outcome was presented.
"True figures show that the number of voters going to the
polls in the sixth elections was not only not higher than
the figure registered for the fifth Majlis elections, but,
in fact, there has been a reduction," it said, adding that
the Interior Ministry had falsely raised the turnout figure
by 6m.
"The fact is that the sixth Majlis elections were held in a polluted and unhealthy environment," the editorial went on. "The election environment was polluted by the revisionist press who used the weapon of mass misinformation; they were helped by another weapon - rumour-mongering, which was effectively put to use by the revisionist gang. "And the objective was to wreak ambiguity and confusion. They wanted to confuse the electorate's minds about the system's experienced and competent figures - figures who had already proven their worth to the revolution and the people." Powerful force
One conservative figure took a more upbeat attitude and was more accepting of the results.
"The Followers of the Imam and the Leader ... won some 35% of the votes," he said. "They will be a significant force in the new parliament ... We feel that a Muslim is obliged to perform his or her duties, be it in the parliament or elsewhere. "We respect public trust in those who won the race and hope that they manage to resolve people's problems and we will collaborate with them every way we can.
"We will also try to raise constructive criticisms when
necessary."
Former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's near failure to be elected to the Tehran constituency provoked a mixed reaction.
A Fath newspaper report said that Mr Rafsanjani had received
just 0.3% more votes than the candidate who came
behind him, Ali Akbar Rahmani, and that there could have
been vote-rigging in his favour.
Most reformists sought to placate Mr Rafsanjani, however.
"He is a respected figure. However, people's votes should be also respected. "People proved that they want reform by the way they voted. This does not necessarily mean that they negate Rafsanjani. "But they have chosen to criticise Rafsanjani by seeking changes."
BBC Monitoring (http://www.monitor.bbc.co.uk), based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. |
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