Tuesday June 30, 2009

I've Been Thinking:

The Guardian Council in Iran confirmed yesterday that the June 12th elections will stand and that the partial recount and the investigations into all the irregularities did not change the outcome of the election.
None of this should have come as a surprise.

The Guardian Council is one of the two most important councils in Iran. It is composed of 12 people - 6 are appointed by the Supreme Leader, 6 are chosen by the parliament.
Members presented to parliament are nominated by the head of the Judicial, who is also appointed by The Supreme Leader.

The Assembly of Experts is the second most powerful council in Iran.
The Assembly of Experts is a group of 86 people required to meet at least twice a year for at least two days.
The Assembly of Experts appoints The Supreme Leader. In theory, they could also remove The Supreme Leader.

According to Iranian law, in order to be a member of either the Guardian Council or the Assembly of Experts, one must be a religious expert.
Several of the reformists running for position in this past election called for a reformation of the Guardian Council and the Assembly of Experts as part of their political platform.

It was an unacceptable stance.
One of the leaders of the reform is The Ayatollah Rafsanjani and he is the head of one of the councils.
Rafsanjani certainly does not want any limits put on his power.
Rafsanjani is also the leader of another council, the Expediency Council, which makes him the only significant check to both The Supreme Leader and president Ahmadinejad.

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