IranIranAn Islamic RepublicAn Islamic Republic

Ancient History• Persia; part of different empires• 4th century conquered by Alexander the Great

– Left structure in place

• Monarchy through 6th century– Hereditary military leaders

• Islam spreads rapidly from 632 to 650 CE• Through 11th century ruled by caliph

– Poli and religious figure)– Caliphate defeated by Mongols in 13th century

• Dynastic rule from 16th to 20th century

Modern History• Constitutional Revolution 1906

– Constitutional monarchy with legis body– 1925 Reza Khan becomes Shah (king)

• Modernizes: education, rail, conscription• Represses: press, Majlis, political activists jailed

– 1941 Reza Khan ousted by SU/UK; son Reza Pahlavi becomes Shah

Modern History

• White Revolution 1963– Counter to “red” communists

• Land reform: govt bought from absentee owners, sold cheaply to farmers– Encouragement of agricultural entrepreneurship

• Women’s rights expanded– Suffrage– Restricting polygamy– Labor rights

Criticisms of White Revolution• Clergy opposed to reforms

– Suffrage for women; govt taking away power of religious leaders

– Charasmatic Khomeini exiled; began to promote idea of theocracy

• Landlords– Unhappy abt redistribution of land; govt defending

laborers• Shah becomes more authoritarian

– Freedoms restricted– Wealth from oil kept by Shah

• Reforms led to growth of intelligentsia, urban working class, independent farmers– No feelings of loyalty to Shah; loyal to clerics– Frustration with corruption

• Oil prices decrease ~10% in late 1970s• Consumer prices rise about 20%

– Inflation, erosion of middle class• Revolution of rising expectations

– standard of living improves, setback occurs, people revolt

• US pressures Shah to loosen restrictions on civil society– Easing of restrictions allows people to feel free

enough to join revolt

Iranian Revolution

• Reaction against modernization and repression by shah

• Fundamentalists encouraged by US, UK• Khomeini still in exile

– Teachings promote overthrow of secular govt

• Shah attempts to discredit Khomeini, but this only strengthens his supporters

Iranian Revolution

• 1978– Unarmed demonstrators killed in Tehran– Oil workers strike– Shah declares martial law– 2 million ppl participate in anti-regime

protests• rallies are organized and led by clerics

– Shah flees to Egypt in Feb 1979– Khomeini returns from exile

• Shah replaced by provisional govt• Khomeini returns to Iran in1979– Used charismatic power to gain control

(Supreme leader) and implement a theocratic regime

– Suppresses all opposition

• 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War– Iran: Attempt to spread Shiism– Iraq: Seize territory

• Widespread destruction• War ends w/o victor

– Khomeini dies

Basically...

• Shi’a clerics took dominant position in politics and nearly all aspects of Iranian life

• After fall of Pahlavi dynasty, urban upper class of prominent merchants, industrialists, and professionals, favored by the former monarch, lost standing and influence to the senior clergy and their supporters

• Urban working class, who allied with clergy, enjoyed enhanced status and economic mobility

Country Facts• Slightly larger than Alaska• 10% arable land• Mostly desert and mountains• Ethnic groups: 51% Persian• Religion: 89% Shi’a Muslim• Languages: Farsi/Persian dialects 58%• Literacy: 79%

Economy

• Per capita income: $11, 200• Unemployment rate: 14.6%• Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas,

coal– Primary industry: petroleum, petrochemicals

• Exports: $78.7 bil (China, Japan, India)• Imports: $58.9 (UAE, China, Germany)• GDP: 863.5 billion

Electorate

• Total population: 76 million• Universal suffrage when over 18 yrs• 50% of voters are under 30 yrs old• Voter turn out has decreased since 1997

due to disillusionment with elections

Majlis• Unicameral• 290 members, single member districts• Elected by popular vote every 4 yrs• Introduce/pass laws

– All bill must by approved by Gaurdian Council

• Summon/impeach ministers or president• 2000: Reformist majority• 2004: Reformists banned

Majlis

• Members have to be Muslims but Constitution allows 5 members to represent Christians (3), Jews (1), and Zoroastrians (1)

President

• Second-highest ranking official• Head of government• In reality, powers are circumscribed by

clerics and Conservatives in Iran’s power structure and the authority of the Supreme Leader

• Candidates are vetted by Guardian Council

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

• Elected in 2005• Reelected

(disputed) in 2009• Conservative• Former mayor of

Tehran• First president since

1981 who is not a cleric

Assembly of Experts

• 86 members, directly elected every 8 years

• Appoint/remove Supreme Leader• Exercises broad constitutional

interpretation, along with Supreme Leader and Guardian Council

• Dominated by Conservatives 

Guardian Council• 12 male clerics

– 6 appointed by Supreme Leader, 6 nominated by judiciary and approved by Majles

– Reviews bills passed by the Majlis to ensure compliance with Sharia law (can veto)

– Decide who competes in elections (can bar candidates)

• Controlled by Conservatives– Reformists have tried to reduce vetting power

unsuccessfully– Council banned all but 6 candidates out of 1000 in

the 2005 elections, Supreme Leader added 2 more• All female candidates were blocked

Cabinet/Council of Ministers

• Chosen by president• Approved/impeached by parliament• Supreme Leader has influence over

process• Cabinet is chaired by president or first

vice-president

Supreme Leader• Imam of the entire community –most powerful political figure• Constitutional powers:

– Faqih: leading Islamic jurist to interpret religious texts and sharia law

– Links 3 branches of government together, maymediate among them

– Determines the interests of Islam– Can eliminate pres candidates, dismiss pres, command armed

forces, declare war/peace, appoint/remove major administrators and judges, nominate 6 members of Guardian Council, confirms the election results

• Chosen by Assembly of Experts• Tension between Supreme Leader and President

Ayatollah Khamenei

• President from 1981-1989

• Supreme Leader since 1989

• Confidant of Khomeini

Expediency Council• Referee over disputes between the

Guardian Council and the Majlis• Supreme Leader appoints its members

– prominent political, religious, social figures

• 2005: granted supervisory powers over all branched over govt, Supreme Leader delegated his power

• Chaired by former President Rafsanjani, who was defeated by Amadinejad

Jurist’s Guardianship• Velayat-e faqih

– Principle instituted by Khomeini– Overarching authority of:

• Supreme Leader• Guardian Council• Assembly of Experts• Expediency Council

– Authority based on ability to follow religious teachings and commitment to protect rights of people

Judiciary• Until early 1900s controlled by clergy• Then secularized• After Revolution, Supreme Court revoked

all laws that were deemed un-Islamic• Defines legal policy• Nominated 6 lay members of Guardian

Council• Head of judiciary is appointed by

Supreme Leader

Judiciary cont

• Shari’a law: Islamic law• Qanun: no sacred basis; can not

contradict Shari’a law• Judicial review does not exist other than

review by Expediency Council, Assembly of Experts, and Guardian Council

Armed Forces

• Revolutionary Guard and regular forces– Under joint general command– All commanders are appointed by Supreme

Leader; report only to Supreme Leader

• Revolutionary Guard has powerful presence in other institutions and controls volunteer militas in every town

• 8th largest military in the world

Bureaucracy

• Huge, dominated by clergy• Plagued by clientelism, corruption,

mismanagement, patronage• Size doubled since 1979

Position Theocratic Democratic Supreme Leader ultimate interpreter of sharia;

appointed for life

Guardian Council six members appt by Supreme Leader

six members selected by the Majles, indirect democratic tie

Assembly of Experts Interpreter of Sharia law Directly elected Expediency Council Appointed by Supreme

Leader; most members are clerics

Not all members are clerics

Majlis Must not pass laws that contradict Sharia law/Koran

Direclt elected, pass quanun (non-religious laws)

Judiciary Held to Sharia law; subject to judgment of Supreme Leader and Guardian Council

Tiered structure

Protests• Despite guarantees of liberties in 1979

Constitution, govt has regularly:– Suppressed newspapers, labor unions, private orgs, poli

parties– Executed political reformers or caused them to

fleeBanned demonstrations and public meetings

• Recent protests following 2009 election of Ahmadinejad:– Calls for the election to be annulled– Dispersed with thousands of Revolutionary Guards and

Basij– Disputed death toll– Use of social media to commuicate w/in Iran and w/

outside world

Ideological differences• Conservatives

– clerics; those arguing for stricter societal rules; support market-oriented policies; greater authority for Supreme Leader

• Pragmatists– more accommodating on social issues; suprt

economic liberalization/privatization

• Radicals– support increased state control of economy to

ensure greater social justice

Shi’a Islam• Shi’a: supported Mohammed's son-in-law (Ali)

– Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan• Sunni: supported Mohammed’s father-in-law

– Sunni majority• Twelver (hidden) Imam

– prophet successors to Muhammad– 12th disappeared, believed to be alive, will return w/ Jesus

• Shari’a law– Based on Koran, Sunnah (deeds, sayings of Muhammad)– Northern Nigeria

Oil/Petropolitics

• Under Pahlavi, Iran transformed to rentier state:– state derives substantial portion of revenue from “rent”

payments made by foreign countries/institutions– rentier economy: heavily supported by state expenditure– govt relies less on tax revenue

• Abt 50% of the economy is subject to central planning• Cleavage between elites w/ close ties to oil $ and elites

w/ close ties to clergy• Instability of oil prices• Due to massive wealth generated by oil, Iran shifts

away from agriculture

Mass Media

• Many privately owned newspapers and magazines

• Government has forced pro-Reform media outlets to shut down

• Highly educated elite• Radio and TV, govt run: Islamic Republic

of Iran Broadcasting