Print
See related documents
Report | Doc. 11968 | 23 June 2009
The situation in Iran
Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy
Summary
Since 13 June 2009, Iran has been the scene of the biggest popular upheaval since the 1979 revolution. Massive protests following the announcement of the results of the presidential election which was held on 12 June, calls for annulment of the vote by the opposition supporters and the reaction of the authorities, who have used violence against peaceful demonstrators, detained hundreds of them and imposed severe restrictions on the freedom of expression, raise the utmost concern about possible future developments.
Whereas an independent and credible investigation should clarify all concerns about irregularities and the contested results, the principal concern at present is the human rights situation in Iran and the use of force and violence against peaceful demonstrations.
The only way to find a peaceful and sustainable solution to the present situation in Iran, as well as stability and peace in the region, is through democracy, respect of human rights and the rule of law. The Assembly stands ready to engage in a meaningful dialogue with the Parliament of Iran and the democratic forces in Iran as well as the civil society.
A. Draft resolution
(open)1. The Parliamentary Assembly is deeply concerned about
the situation in Iran following the announcement of the results
of the presidential election held on 12 June 2009, according to
which the incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won 66% of the
votes cast.
2. Numerous alleged irregularities during the vote evoked by
the three defeated presidential candidates, as well as 646 complaints
of misconduct lodged with the Council of Guardians, raise justified
concerns as regards the fairness of the electoral process as established
by Iranian law. In particular, reported cases of opposition monitors
being refused access to polling stations and a large number of mobile
ballot boxes not subject to monitors' control are in clear contradiction
with basic electoral standards.
3. Non-violent protests and massive peaceful demonstrations in
favour of the main opposition candidate, Mr Hossein Mousavi, which
have been taking place in Iran since 13 June 2009, constitute a
legitimate political action inscribed in the democratic principle
of freedom of expression. Use of violence against peaceful demonstrators
is a serious infringement of human rights and the basic principles
of democracy.
4. The Assembly deplores the recent actions of the state police
and the Basij, which resulted in the death of at least 18 people,
according to the official sources, and many more according to the
independent sources, as well as numerous other casualties.
5. Similarly, the Assembly regrets the excessive use of force
and brutality of the police, as well as the fact that over 400 demonstrators
have been placed in detention.
6. Moreover, the official statements made, and repressive measures
taken by the Iranian authorities in reaction to the massive demonstrations
give rise to utmost concern about future possible developments.
In particular, the detention of a number of politicians, their families
and journalists, including five members of the family of Mr Rafsanjani
and Mr Ebrahim Yazdi, a former foreign minister and a leader of
the Freedom Movement of Iran, the closure of the opposition newspapers,
the blockage of websites and mobile phone services and the restrictions
imposed on domestic and foreign journalists, illustrate the Government's
intention to suppress the opposition and to avoid any form of political
dialogue as it has succeeded in doing for 30 years now.
7. The Council of Europe and its Assembly, as a leading parliamentary
European Organisation standing for human rights, democracy and the
rule of law, cannot remain silent in the face of such lack of respect
for universal values and of the serious threat of further violence,
potentially leading to dramatic consequences.
8. The situation in Iran has been a matter of concern for the
Assembly for a long time, in particular, the Iranian nuclear issue,
which has been the subject of several debates and resulted in Resolutions 1436 (2005) and 1567
(2007) on Iran's nuclear programme: the need for an international
response. Another report is under preparation in the Political Affairs
Committee.
9. Furthermore, Iran’s destabilising role in the region, including
its support for terrorist activities, provocative statements on
and refusal to recognise Israel and the denial of the Holocaust,
has been condemned on the occasion of numerous debates on the situation
in the Middle East.
10. The Assembly firmly believes that the only way to find a peaceful
and sustainable solution to the present situation in Iran, as well
as stability and peace in the region, is through democracy, respect
for human rights and the rule of law.
11. The Assembly notes that the election of Mr Barak Obama as
President of the United States and his statements demonstrating
his readiness to launch an enhanced dialogue with the Iranian authorities
have opened up a new window of opportunity for confidence building
and for enabling the Iranian people to take the place it deserves
in the international community.
12. The Assembly stands ready to contribute to efforts aimed at
building confidence and promoting democratic values by engaging
in a dialogue with the Iranian Parliament and the democratic forces
in Iran as well as the Iranian civil society.
13. The Assembly urges the Iranian authorities to:
13.1. refrain from using force and
violence against peaceful demonstrators;
13.2. release the more than 400 people detained during the peaceful
demonstrations of the last few days;
13.3. release the more than 170 politicians and their families,
and the journalists detained following the demonstrations;
13.4. lift the restrictive measures imposed on freedom of expression
and in particular;
13.4.1. stop closing
opposition media;
13.4.2. stop disrupting internet and mobile services;
13.4.3. stop sanctioning and expelling foreign journalists and
allow them, as well as domestic journalists, to report freely on
the situation;
13.5. allow an independent and credible investigation into the
alleged irregularities in the election process;
13.6. initiate a meaningful dialogue in the internal political
process;
13.7. respond in a positive way to the new approach of the United
States administration and establish a dialogue with the international
community with a view to mutual confidence building;
14. The Assembly calls on all sides of the Iranian politics to
refrain from any form of violence to achieve political goals and
to privilege dialogue;
15. The Assembly calls on Council of Europe member and observer
states to:
15.1. intensify contacts
with the Iranian authorities with a view to conveying the concerns
of the international community;
15.2. establish an enhanced political dialogue;
16. The Assembly calls on the Iranian Parliament to contribute
to regional stability and to engage in a meaningful dialogue with
the international community.
17. The Assembly resolves to:
17.1. step
up its contacts with the Iranian Parliament and the democratic forces
in Iran as well as the Iranian civil society.
17.2. follow closely how the situation in Iran develops.
B. Explanatory memorandum by Mr Lindblad, rapporteur
(open)1. Introduction
1. Since 13 June 2009, Iran has been the scene of the
biggest popular upheaval since the 1979 revolution. Massive protests
following the announcement of the results of the presidential election
which was held on 12 June, the contesting of the results of the
vote, calls for annulment of the vote by the opposition supporters and
the reaction of the authorities, who have used violence against
peaceful demonstrators and imposed severe restrictions on the freedom
of expression, raise the utmost concern about possible future developments.
2. Numerous allegations of irregularities during the vote reported
by the three defeated presidential candidates raise obvious concerns
about the fairness of the electoral process. Even if the electoral
law, the basis of which the presidential election was conducted,
does not meet Council of Europe standards, the rules, once established
by the Iranian Guardian Council, should be observed. An independent
and credible investigation should clarify all concerns about irregularities
and the contested results.
3. That said, at present, the principal concern is the human
rights situation in Iran and the use of force and violence by the
Iranian authorities against peaceful demonstrations. The clashes,
which have already resulted in at least 18 deaths, according to
the official information and many more according to independent
sources, as well as numerous casualties and over 400 detentions,
may lead to unpredictable and tragic consequences which could spiral
out of control.
4. Peaceful demonstrations are an acceptable expression of public
opinion and constitute a political act compatible with a political
system aspiring to democracy. They are inscribed in the basic principles
of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly.
5. Iran is an important member of the international community
and a key player for regional stability. Regrettably, over recent
years, it has been playing a destabilising role in the region, supporting
terrorist actions and pursuing its nuclear programme. The international
community has a legitimate interest in the situation in Iran.
6. The election of President Barak Obama in the United States
and the new approach of the United States administration to possible
dialogue and co-operation with the Iranian authorities have opened
up a window of opportunity for the future. It would be regrettable
if this opportunity were to be wasted. The international community
should not spare any effort to support the prospects for the establishing
of a climate of confidence necessary for launching new relations.
7. The Assembly, as a leading pan-European Organisation standing
for human rights, democracy and the rule of law, cannot remain silent
when the most basic democratic values and human rights are violated irrespective
of the place in the world where this occurs. The potential for dramatic
consequences in the present situation puts even greater responsibility
on the international community and obliges it to make every effort which
might contribute to the solution of the problem.
8. The present report, which is prepared under urgent procedure,
is the first attempt to identify the Assembly’s possible contribution
to the peaceful solution of the situation in Iran in the aftermath
of the presidential election. As it is my deep conviction that the
best way to achieve stability and security is through democracy,
respect for human rights and the rule of law, I also propose to
increase the involvement of the Assembly in the promotion of these
values by dialogue at the parliamentary level.
2. Chronology of events
9. The electoral campaign leading to the presidential
election, scheduled on 12 June 2009, with unprecedented television
debates between the candidates and rallies attended by thousands
of people, was animated and emotional. The Iranian society is politically
active and the turnout in the elections is usually high.
10. Four candidates who were admitted to compete in the 2009 election
included the incumbent President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad; Mr Hossein
Mousavi, a former Prime Minister who stayed out of politics for
several years and returned to stand as a moderate reformist; Mr
Mohsen Rezai, a former head of the Revolutionary Guards, who is
now critical about President Ahmadinejad’s foreign policy and handling
of the nuclear issue, and a reformist, Mr Mehdi Karroubi, a former
Speaker of parliament.
11. The turn-out on the day of the election was 85% of over 46
million eligible voters. Long queues were reported at polling stations,
and voting was extended by at least four hours.
12. Soon after the closure of the polls, the two leading candidates,
Mir Hossein Mousavi and the incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, claimed
victory. Mr Mousavi said that he was the “definite winner” and alleged
that there had been widespread irregularities.
13. On 13 June, the Interior Ministry announced that Mr Ahmadinejad
had won with 62,6% of the vote, against 33,8% for Mr Mousavi. Mr
Rezai obtained 1,7% of the vote cast and Mr Karroubi 0,9%. All three opposition
candidates contested the election and called for it to be annulled
and re-run. More than 600 objections have been filed complaining
about the poll.
14. Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, described the
outcome as a real celebration, urged the opposition to accept the
result and called for calm. Mr Ahmadinejad called the vote “free
and healthy” in a live address to the nation.
15. In Teheran, crowds of people gathered in the streets in support
of defeated candidates. They protested about the fairness of the
election and called for a re-run of the vote. Clashes with the state
police took place on several occasions.
16. In parallel, Mr Ahmadinejad's supporters descended in the
streets waving flags and hooting car horns.
17. On 14 June, the Supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced
that he had asked the Guardian Council - the country's supreme legislative
body - to investigate the allegations of vote-rigging.
18. Meanwhile demonstrations continued with several violent confrontations
between the security forces and protesting demonstrators. In contrast,
tens of thousands of people attended a rally elsewhere in the capital to
celebrate the re-election of Mr Ahmadinejad.
19. According to the reformist political groups in Iran, as many
as 100 people - including the brother of the former president, Mohammad
Khatami - were arrested during the night.
20. The Iranian authorities jammed the BBC’s Persian language
broadcasts.
21. On 15 June, the opposition leader, Mir Hossein Mousavi, appeared
in public for the first time since the election, at a mass rally
in Tehran, which gathered hundreds of thousands of people. Violence
broke out at the end of the rally when the demonstrators were attacked
by the police.
22. The same day, the Guardian Council confirmed that it had received
complaints from Mr Mousavi and Mr Rezai and committed itself to
issue a ruling within 10 days.
23. The United States President, Barack Obama and United Nations
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern about the situation
in Iran.
24. On 16 June, the Guardian Council announced that it was ready
to recount votes in areas where results were contested. Earlier,
the Council ruled that the results were only "provisional". However
the Council said it would not annul the election.
25. Iranian state radio announced that seven people were killed
during the opposition demonstration on the previous evening. Opposition
rallies continued.
26. There were reports of the unrest spreading to other cities,
including Mashhad, Isfahan and Shiraz.
27. The number of people detained since the beginning of the demonstrations
increased to over 100. Among them were prominent journalist and
academic Ahmad Zeidabadi and a close aid of ex-President Mohammad Khatami,
Mohammad Ali Abtahi.
28. There were reports of demonstrations at Tehran university
and about 120 university lecturers resigned.
29. The authorities announced tough new restrictions on foreign
media, requiring journalists to obtain explicit permission before
covering any story. Journalists were also banned from attending
or reporting on any unauthorised demonstration.
30. On 19 June, Ayatollah Khamenei criticised Western governments
for their reaction to the re-election of President Ahmadinejad.
He accused the West of trying to foment unrest in the country. He
called on protesters to stop and said their political leaders would
be blamed for any violence.
31. In Washington, President Barack Obama said the United States
should not interfere in the situation in Iran, but repeated his
concern about the scenes of violence.
32. On 20 June, a massive demonstration took place in the centre
of Teheran. Police forces were used against the demonstrators. According
to the official information, 10 people were killed and many more
injured. Over 400 people were arrested during the demonstration,
including 5 members of the family of Mr Rafsanjani.
33. On 21 and 22 June, demonstrations continued.
3. Matters of concern
34. As I have already stated, the electoral law in Iran
does not meet Council of Europe standards. All candidates must receive
the approval of the Guardian Council and of the Supreme Leader;
there are no clear and fair rules for the electoral campaign; state
media openly support the incumbent president and the principle of
freedom of expression is not observed.
35. But even in these difficult conditions, it is possible for
an opposition candidate to beat an incumbent president as was the
case in 1997, when a reformist moderate, Mr Mohammad Khatami, won
with 70% of the votes, beating the conservative ruling elite.
36. This victory was repeated in the parliamentary elections in
2000, when liberals and supportors of Mr Khatami won control of
parliament from conservatives.
37. The concerns about the fairness of the electoral process were
present even before the date of the vote. In his letter to Iran’s
Supreme Leader of 11 June 2009, Mr Mousavi evoked a number of alleged
irregularities such as withdrawing badges from opposition monitors
and giving them confusing instructions as to access to the polling
stations.
38. The concerns were increased immediately after the first announcement
of the partial results, only four hours after the closure of the
polls. The way the results were announced, in blocks of millions
of votes and in percentages rather than province by province as
in the previous elections, seemed to be most unusual. Furthermore,
as the blocks of votes came in, the percentages for each candidate
changed very little, which suggested that Mr Ahmadinejad received
equally good results in rural and urban areas. Conversely, it meant that
the three defeated candidates lost even in their home regions and
provinces. These results were unusually inconsistent with typical
variations between different regions and cities, and overturned
all precedents in previous elections.
39. Very soon after, numerous other reports on irregularities
were evoked: allegedly there was a shortage of ballot papers and
millions of people had been denied the right to vote. The opposition
monitors were not allowed proper access to polling stations: many
of them were issued with invalid ID cards, or they were simply refused
entry. The number of mobile polling stations largely exceeded the
number planned, the ballot boxes were transported from one place
to another by agents of the Interior Ministry and the monitors had
no control over them.
40. Much of the mobile phone text messaging system, which the
opposition had been hoping to use to send back reports from their
monitors at polling stations and election counts, was not working.
41. The vote counts that were released on 15 June, showed an improbable
switch in voters’ preferences in certain areas since 2005. For example,
Mehdi Karoubi polled 5% in Lorestan despite having won 55% there four
years ago. Furthermore, in some provinces like Khoresan or Mazenderan,
the number of people who voted, exceeded the number of eligible
voters in these provinces.
42. That said, I would like to underline that caution is necessary
when assessing the situation: one cannot ignore the genuine popularity
of President Ahmadinejad and the possibility that he really won
the election. An independent poll, conducted in May, by the US organisation
Terror Free Tomorrow, found that 34% of voters would vote in favour
of Mr Ahmadinejad, 14% in favour of Mr Moussavi, and 27% were still
undecided.
43. As monitors were excluded from the voting and counting process,
it is difficult for the opposition to come up with evidence of fraud.
At this stage, the only way to clarify the contested results is
to carry out a credible and independent investigation into the electoral
process.
44. Over the last few days, however, a major concern has been
linked to the human rights situation in Iran. The use of excessive
force and violence against peaceful demonstrators, which resulted
in deaths and injuries, massive detention of demonstrators and of
opposition politicians, their families and journalists including Mr Ebrahim
Yazdi, a former foreign minister and a leader of the Freedom movement
of Iran, must put the international community on the alert.
45. The authorities have also imposed a number of restrictive
measures on domestic and foreign journalists and media, and communications,
thus making it impossible for them to report on the real situation.
46. All these developments create the risk of losing control of
the situation which might lead to dramatic consequences.
4. What is at stake?
47. Iran is not a democracy according to universal standards
upheld by the Council of Europe. It combines unelected religious
authorities with subordinate elected civilians. It is designed to
give people the chance to express their preferences which would
provide it with a sort of legitimacy.
48. Thus the constitution stipulates that the people are the source
of power and the country holds phased presidential and parliamentary
elections every four years.
49. As already mentioned, elections in Iran cannot be considered
as democratic according to the Council of Europe standards. Every
candidate must be approved by the Supreme Leader of Iran and accept
revolutionary principles. Also, as regards the electoral campaign,
there are no adequate conditions in Iran for freedom and expression
of the press. The country has been criticised for its lack of respect
for human rights and the rule of law.
50. Those who voted for Mr Mousavi hoped for more personal freedom,
more opportunities and better relations with the international community.
The West hoped that his election would bring about peaceful reforms
in Iran, the establishment of a dialogue on the nuclear issue, and
put an end to the destabilising role of Iran in the Middle East.
51. The rules under Mr Ahmadinejad’s presidency have been illiberal
and authoritarian. They were often vicious in the suppression of
opponents and in their disregard for human rights. Iran has the
highest rate of judicial executions per capita in the world. Women
are deprived of many basic rights. There is widespread corruption
and a high rate of poverty.
52. Supporters of Mr Ahmadinejad have praised him for pushing
forward the nuclear programme and say he has earned more respect
for Iran internationally.
53. But today there is more at stake than the political future
of persons. What is even more more important is the direction in
which the country will go.
54. The government has encouraged the people to vote and to campaign,
thus giving them the illusion of real influence on the political
process in their country, but at one stage it has lost control over
their wish to exert this influence in reality.
55. If the protests are not handled with care and respect for
human rights, the future of the whole regime may be put under question
and the final outcome may be unpredictable. So far, the Iranian
leaders have sought to claim both: legitimacy and monopoly of power.
The time has come to choose between the two.
5. International community
56. The international community should make every effort
to help the Iranian authorities make the right choices in respect
of human rights and democratic values.
57. A clear signal should be sent that the world is watching,
as the US President has stressed in his statement. The use of force
and violence should be condemned unequivocally. Also other repressive
measures taken by the government, including detentions and restrictions
on the freedom of expression and communication should be denounced.
58. At the same time the international community should refrain
from meddling with the domestic politics in Iran.
59. The approach espoused by President Obama aims to keep the
window of opportunity open and does not rule out the possibility
of meaningful dialogue.
6. The Assembly’s contribution
60. The Assembly is well placed to contribute to the
promotion of democratic values, rule of law and respect for human
rights.
61. The Third Council of Europe Summit of Heads of State and Government
has underscored the importance of the inter-cultural dialogue.
62. The Assembly and its Political Affairs Committee has accumulated
an important body of experience in pursuing a dialogue at the parliamentary
level with parliaments in non-member states.
63. The situation in Iran has been followed by the Committee for
a long time now, and a number of resolutions on the Iranian nuclear
issue have been presented for debate in the Assembly. The situation
in Iran has also been discussed in the context of the situation
in the Middle East.
64. The Assembly should declare its readiness to engage in meaningful
dialogue with the Parliament of Iran and Iranian civil society.
***
Reporting committee: Political Affairs Committee
Reference to committee: Reference No. 3579 on 22 June 2009
Draft resolution unanimously adopted by the committee on 23 June 2009
Members of the committee: Mr Göran Lindblad (Chairman), Mr David Wilshire (Vice-Chairman) (alternate: Mr John Austin), Mr Björn Von Sydow (Vice-Chairman), Mrs Kristina Ojuland (Vice-Chairperson), Mrs Fátima Aburto Baselga, Mr Françis Agius, Mr Alexander Babakov (alternate: Mr Sergey Markov), Mr Viorel Badea, Mr Denis Badré, Mr Ryszard Bender, Mr Andris Bērzinš, Mr Pedrag Boškovic, Mr Luc Van den Brande, Mr Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Mr Lorenzo Cesa (alternate: Mr Pietro Marcenaro), Mr Titus Corlătean, Ms Anna Čurdová, Mr Rick Daems, Mr Dumitru Diacov, Ms Josette Durrieu, Mr Frank Fahey, Mr Piero Fassino (alternate: Mr Andrea Rigoni), Mr Per-Kristian Foss, Mr György Frunda, Mr Jean-Charles Gardetto, Mr Marco Gatti, Mr Charles Goerens, Mr Andreas Gross, Mr Michael Hancock, Mr Davit Harutiunyan, Mr Joachim Hörster, Mrs Sinikka Hurskainen, Mr Tadeusz Iwiński, Mr Bakir Izetbegović, Mr Michael Aastrup Jensen, Mr Miloš Jevtić (alternate: Mr Milos Aligrudic), Mr Emmanouil Kefaloyiannis, Mrs Birgen Keleş, Mr Victor Kolesnikov, Mr Konstantion Kosachev (alternate: Mr Alexander Pochinok), Mr Jean-Pierre Kucheida (alternate: Mr Laurent Béteille), Ms Darja Lavtižar-Bebler, Mr René van der Linden, Mr Dariusz Lipiński, Mr Juan Fernando López Aguilar, Mr Younal Loutfi, Mr Gennaro Malgieri, Mr Dick Marty (alternate: Mrs Liliane Maury-Pasquier), Mr Frano Matušić, Mr Dragoljub Mićunović, Mr Jean-Claude Mignon, Ms Nadezhda Mikhailova, Mr Aydin Mirzazada (alternate: Mr Sabir Hajiyev), Ms Lilja Mósesdóttir, Mr Joāo Bosco Mota Amaral, Mrs Olga Nachtmannová, Mr Gebhard Negele, Mrs Miroslava Nemcova, Mr Zsolt Németh, Mr Fritz Neugebauer (alternate: Mr Franz-Eduard Kühnel), Mr Hryhoriy Omelchenko, Mr Theodoros Pangalos (alternate: Mr Konstantinos Vrettos), Mr Ivan Popescu (Mrs Olha Herasym’yuk), Mr Christos Pourgourides, Mr John Prescott, Mr Gabino Puche (alternate: Mr Pedro Agramunt), Mr Amadeu Rossell Tarradellas, Mr Ilir Rusmali, Mr Oliver Sambevski, Mr Ingo Schmitt, Mr Samad Seyidov, Mr Leonid Slutsky, Mr Rainder Steenblock, Mr Zoltán Szabó, Mr Mehmet Tekelioğlu, Mr Han Ten Broeke, Lord Tomlinson, Mr Petré Tsiskarishvili, Mr Mihai Tudose, Mr Ilyas Umakhanov, Mr José Vera Jardim, Mr Luigi Vitali, Mr Wolfgang Wodarg, Ms Gisela Wurm, Mr Emanuelis Zingueris.
Ex-officio: MM. Mátyás Eörsi, Tiny Kox
N.B.: The names of the members who took part in the meeting are printed in bold
Secretariat of the committee: Mrs Nachilo, Mr Chevtchenko, Mrs Sirtori-Milner, Ms Alleon