Iran
nuclear energy
basically it keeps making nuclear weapons even tho the US and the UN tell it not to
patronage and the resurgance party
both pahlavi shahs bolstered their own presonal wealth by seizing other people's property and establishing the pahlavi foundation that was a patronage system that controlled large companies that fed the pocketbooks of the shah and his supporters in 1975 the shah announced the formation of the resurgance party and declared iran to be a one party state with him as its head
political participation
despite the fact that guarantees for civil liberties and rights were written into the 1979 constiuttion, the islamic republic from the beginning closed down newspapers, labor unions, private organiations, and political parties due process principles were ignrored as many and were imprisoned without trials. political reforms were executed, and others fled the country. the regime also banned demonstrations and public meetings -the republic's actions against public demonstrations did not curtail them, particularly on college campuses -most remarkably, the days of protests that followed the presidential election of 2009 demonstrate the iranian capacity to react strongly to repressive government
the assembly of religious experts
given the responsibility along with the supreme leader and the guardian council of broad constitutional interpretation
the founding of the islamic republic
in 1979 a national referendum was held and the iranian people officially voted out the monarchy and established the Islamic republic in its place -a constitution was drawn up late in the year by the *assembly of religious experts* a 73 man assembly of clerics directly elected by the people. the consitutiton gave broad authority to khomeini and the clergy, although prime minister mehdi bazargan strongly objected -once the consitution was endorsed, the shia leaders launched the *cultural revolution* with goals that were similar to Mao zedong's goals: to purify the contry from not only the shah's regime but also from secular values and behaviors, particularly those with western origins-->intellectuals are replaced with those who support the new regime, the government supresses all opposition including most groups from the civil society, and many were exectued in the name of "revolutoinary justice"
what are the 2 most powerful policymaking institutions in iran
majles and the guardian council, with the expediency council refereeing disputes between the two
the safavids
1501-1722 -modern iran traces its shiite identity to the safavid empire -still tolerated the small numbers of sunnis, jews, christians, etc -->they shared with other muslim rulers a special regard for PEOPLE OF THE BOOK--monotheistic people who subjected their lives to holy books similar to the qur'an -serious economic constraints (didn't have access to silk road or sea ports, little arable land)-->hampered their ability to rule because they didn't have money for a large bureaucracy or a standing army-->had to rely largely on local rulers to keep order and collect taxes -geographic features fragmented the empire and as a result of both political and economic factors, the monarchy became separated from society and lost a great deal of its power by 1722
the qajars
1794-1925 -afgahn tribesmen invaded and took over the safavid empire--iran was in a disarray for more than half a century, until the land was finally conquered by this turkish group, the qajars --retained shiism as the official state religion *the qajar rule marked an important political change: whereas the safavids claimed to be descendants of the 12 imams, the qajars obviously could not tie their legitimacy to that link so the shia clerical leaders claimed to be the main interpreters of islam and the separation between government and religion widened significantly* -by the end of the 1800s the shah had led the country into serious debt and and many iranians were upset by his lavish lifestyle--> these problems encourages the CONSTITUTIONAL REVOLUTION OF 1905-1909 (began with business owners and bankers demonstrating against the qajars' move to hand over their customs collections to europeans, attempting to settle their debts)--therefore in 1906 the merchants and local industrialists, affect by british liberalism, demanded a written constitution from the shah--the british, who had many business interests in iran, encouraged the shah to concede, partitucularly since iran did not have an army to effectively put down an insurreciton
the pahlavis
1925-1979 the COSSACK BRIGADE, the only force that resembled a real army, was one of the few areas of strength, so its leader, colonel reza khan carried out a successful cup of the government in 1921, declaring himself shah and establishing the pahlavi dynasty -majles lost its power, and authoritarian rule was resstablished (ruled with absolute authority and then passed that down to his son) -had to confront *tudeh* which was a communist party, and the *national front* which drew support from middle class and emphasized iranian nationalism. the leader of this party, *muhammed mosaddeq* eventually was elected prime minister and grew in power so that the shah had to flee the country in 1953--however, the US and England overthrow him during the cold war and install a pro western leader -economically, iran was transformed into a *rentier state* (heavily supported by state expentidure, while the state recieves rent from other countries--renting out oil fields to foreign countries) under the pahlavis because of the increasing amount of income coming from oil -eventually iran becomes a one product economy because it was so dependent upon oil to keep the government afloat -shah adopted *import substitution industrialization* (like mexico)
the islamic revolution and the republic
1979-present -irans revolution is unique in that it was almost completely religious in nature -resulted in the establishment of a theocracy -the shahs behavior disturbed iranians largely because from many people's point of view, he overstepped the bounds of the political culture in 3 ways: -percieved as being totalitarian (set up patron clientelism but didn't use input from interest groups so true corporatism did not develop) -secularized iran too fast -his ties to the west and the US offended iranian nationalists 0the shah created a divide in the political culture, with one side supporting moernization in the sense of estbalishing closer ties to the west, and the other side staunchly defending traditional ways in particular shiism the charisma of the leader of the revolution, ayatollah khomeini, helped, because he defended islamic fundamenalism and articulated resentments toward the elite and the US (depicted US as the great satan and it resonated with many frustrated iranians) gave a new meaning to the term *jurists guardianship* (originally gave the senior clergy broad authority over the unfortunate people) he transformed itto mean that the clergy has authority over the entire shia community
post khomeini
1989-present until khomeinis death, the clerics consolidated and built their power. their success was cemented by several important factors that brought them popular support: -world petroleum prices rebounded, so iran's economy improved. the government became able to support social programs like medicial clinics -iraq invaded iran in 1980 and so the people rallied around the government in response to this threat -the charisma of khomeini remained strong, and the power of his presence inspird faith in the government khomeni's succesor, ali khamenei did not have the same magnetic personality, the oil prices fell, and so people began to criticize the authoirtarian rule of the clerics and to advocate a more democratic government in many ways, the conflict between theocratic and democratic values has played itself out during the presedencies of mohammad khatami 1997-2005 and mahmoud ahmadinejad 2005-present: -khatami was a reformist who wanted to end the bad relations between iran and the west (the US) -ahmadinejad is a conservative who has antagonized western countries although he has not isolated himself from them. he asserted theocratic values and appealed to iranian nationalism
the revolution begins
2 things brought the revolution to explode: -oil prices decreased while the consumer prices increased in Iran--according to the theory of *revolution of rising expectations* revolutions are most likely to occur when people are doing better than they were, but some type of setback happens -the united states put pressure on the shah to loosen his restraints on the opposition-->when he does, this his opponents voice their frustrations and start supporting the revolution--eventually the shah flees in 1979
women and the political system
20th century iran is an exception because women had access to education-->this has led them to expect better job opportunities and more political rights than they had been granted -however, today more than half of all college students are women and they are well represented as doctors and government employees -"*equality with a difference*" meaning that divorce and custody laws now follow islamic standards that favor males. women must wear scarves and long coats in public and they cannot leave the country without the consent of male relatives. women are allowed education and entrance to at least some occupations and they consittude about 1/3 of the workforce.
the military
after the revolution of 1979 khomeini established the *revolutionary guards* an elite military force whose commanders are appointed by the supreme leader there is also a regular army, and the revolutionary guard was created as a parallel force with its own budgets, weapons, and uniforms, to safeguard the republic from any subterfuge within the military
foreign affairs
ahmadinejad claimed the holocaust was a myth and wanted Israel to be wiped away he wants to defend iran against the rest of the world, particularly the west, reinforcing the historically perception of an isolated country
policymaking factions
conservative v. reformist statists v. free marketers--cuts across conservative and reform and has taken different meanings over the years. basically, *statists* believe that the government should take an active role in controlling the economy--redistributing land and wealth, eliminating unemployment, financing social welfare programs, and playing price ceilings on consumer goods. (think cardenas in mexico, russia's 5 year plans, and china's socialist market economy). on the other ahnd *free marketers* want to remove price controls, lower business taxes, encourage private enterprise, and balance the budget. they envision the same principles that guide the US but they envision it working within the context of the theocratic/democratic state
the judiciary
headed by a chief justice that must have an understanding of sharia, so by necessity he must be a cleric beneath the chief justice is the supreme court, the highest court of appeals in the land *remember that the supreme leader and the guardian council have the final say regarding interpretation of the law the two types of law are: -sharia--islamic law, meant to embody a vision of a community in which all muslims are brothers and sisters and subscribe to the same moral values -qanun--no sacred basis, but a body of statutes made by legislative bodies judicial review does not exist in iran
the importance of qom
its a desert city about 60 miles south of tehran that roots the legitimacy of the modern iranian theocracy it was from qom that khomeini began to denounce the shah and it was there that he set up his government after returning from exile in france. it is a city of seminaries, and the scholars that inhabit them help to define the very foundation of iranian society
economic issues
khomeini stated that "economics is for donkeys" disdaining the importance of economics for policymakers and affirming the superiority of religious rather than secular leaders even conservatives today don't deny the importance of economic policy decisions but the factions don't agree on whether or not secularists should be allowed to make policy the main issue is the instability of the oil price
the expediency council
may originate its own legislation main purpose is to settle disputes between the majles and the guardian council collectively they are the most powerful men iniran -the executive: the president is the highest official representing democratic principles in Iran and he functions as the head of government while the supreme leader serves as head of state -the president and the cabinet: directly elected every 4 years and can only have 2 terms. must be a pious shiite. powers include: devising the budget, supervising economic matters, proposing legislation to the majles, executing policies, signing of treaties, laws and agreements, chairing the national security council, selecting vice presidents and cabinet ministers, appointing provincial governors, town mayors, and ambassadors -the bureaucracy--president heads a huge bureaucracy that has expanded over the years to provide jobs for college and high school graduates. the clergy dominates the bureaucracy just as it controls the presidency -semipublic institutions--theoretically autonomous but they are directed by clerics appointed by the supreme leader
constitution of 1906
modeled after western ones, included democratic features like: direct elections separation of powers laws made by an elected legislature popular sovereignty a bill of rights guaranteeing citizens equality before the law, protections for those accused of crimes, and freedom of expression -sparked debate about separation of religion from the government (the trend that the qajars themselves had initiated)-->retained monarchy, but created a strong legislature to balance executive power, called the majles (seats were guaranteed to people of the book) -shiism was declared the official state religion, and only shiites could hold cabinet positions -also created a guardian council of clerics that had the power to veto any legislation passed by the majles -these political reforms did nothing for the economic problems -world events of the early 1900s led to iran's division into 3 parts, with one piece for themselves, but another piece occupied by Russia and another by Britain during WWI-->by 1921 Iran was in political and economic disarray with quarreling factions polarizing the majles into an ineffective ruling body--*the country was ready for a strong leader to deliver them from complete chaos*
population policy
one major initiative of the government in recent years has been to bring down the overall birth rate in iran the population surged after the revolution of 1979 when iranians were encouraged to have large families-->unemployment rates increased as too many young people sought the same jobs the government reversed its policy and began discouraging large families--this new emphasis occured at the same time that greater educational and professional opportunities opened to women, so the fertility rate declined, especially in urban areas government seems to have reversered teh population crisis
the guardian council
represents theocratic principles 12 male clerics bills passed by the majles are reviewed by the guardian council to ensure that they conform to sharia has the power to decide who can run in elections
the eras of political and economic change
safavids 1501-1722 the qajars 1794-1925 the pahlavis 1925-1979 the islamic revolution and republic 1979-present
the supreme leader
seen as the imam of the whole community and he represents the pinnacle of theocratic principles of the state first and foremost he is *faqih* or the leading islamic jurist to interpret the meaning of religious documents and sharia--he links the 3 branches together and is charged with "determining the interests of islam" powers: -elimination of presidential candidates -dismissal of the president -command of the armed forces -declaration of war and peace -appointment and removal of major administrators and judges -nomination of 6 members of the guardian council -appointment of many non governmental directors, suhc as the national radio-television network and semi-public foundations
white revolution
under the pahlavis, iran became a highly centralized state since they controlled banks, media, oil, local governemnts, and the legislature the white revolution was meant to counter communist influence by focusing on land reform, with the goverment buying land from large owners and selling it to small farmers at affordable prices securalized iran further by extending voting rights to women, restricting polygamy, and allowing women to work outside the home
the legislature (the majles)
unicameral directly elected by the people powers: -enacting or changing laws (with approval of the GC) -interpreting legislation, as long as they do not contradict the judicial authorities -appoint 6 of the 12 members of the GC, chosen from a list drawn by the chief judge -investigating the cabinet ministers and public complaints against the executive and judiciary -removing cabinet members, but not the president -approving the budget, cabinet appointments, treaties, and loans
jurists guardianship
-supreme leader -guardian council -assembly of religious experts -expediency council none of these fit into one of the 3 branches of the government--they all have broad executive, legislative, and judicial powers that allow them to supersede all other positions and bodies, abiding by khomeini's principle of jurists guardianship in that they have all encompassing authority over the whole community based on their ability to understand the sharia and their commitment to champion the rights of the people
linkage institutions
*political parties*: government didn't allow them until khatamis election in 1997, since then multiple parties have forced, with most of them organized around personalities and not issues. current parties are highly usntable and very likely to change in the near future. the party system reflects FACTIONALISM. since parties are fluid and weak they are not vehicles for discussing policymaking alternatives *elections*: elections to the majles and the presidency are winner take all (no proportional is used). -majles elections of 2004 and 2008--guardian council banned thousands of candidates from running, mainly from reformist parties -presidential election of 2005--guardian council banned thousands and leaves 7 -presidential election of 2009--ahmadinejad surprsingly won by a ton, causing much upset to his opposers-->legitimacy of the government is shaken *interest groups*--since parties are illdefined, its difficult to draw the line between parties and interest groups. few interest groups have formed for business because private businesses have been crowded out since the revolution of 1979 when many were taken over by the government. *mass media*--its a criminal offense to speak against the government, although some of these restrictions have been lifted. radio and TV are government run, but many newspapers and magazines are privately owned
political culture characteristics
-*authoritarianism, but not totalitarianism*--beginning with the safavid empire, the central political leaders did not control all areas of individual's lives (although they claimed to be all powerful). instead that became accustomed to paying attention to local officials and/or to leading their own lives within civil society -*union of political and religious authority*--from the days of the ancient persians, the political and religious leaders were one and the same. however, starting with the rule of the qajars, the two types of authority were separated only to be brought back together by the revolution of 1979. -*shiism and sharia as central components*--since almost 90% of all iranians identify themselves as shiite, citizens are linked to their government. the SHARIA which is islamic law is an important source of legitimacy that the modern government particularly emphasizes -*escape from european colonization*--although the area was heavily impacted by european power moves, imperialism did not have the same direct control of iran that it had on Mexico and Nigeria -*geographic limitations*--a great deal of iran's land space is unusable for agriculture so in modern day the population of iran is unevenly distributed, with most living in cities and in the nrothwest, where the most arable land is located -*the influence of ancient persia*--iran has a distinct culture through the fact that people continued to speak persian rather than arabic after the arabs invaded and they have their own distinctive arts and such too-->this shapes iranian nationalism today -*strong sense of iranian nationalism*--more likely to identify themselves as iranians first and muslims second--their persian roots encourage the perception that Iran is a distinct culture and pride in being iranian is quite pronounced
cleavages
-*religion*--almost 90% are shia, almost 10% are sunni; although the consitution recognizes religious minorities and guarantees their basic rights, many religious minorities have left the sountry. the baha'i faith, a sect of islam, is believed to be unholy by the shiites so their leaders have been executed, imprisoned, etc. the consitution does not mention sunnis, so their rights are often unclear -*ethnicity*--closely tied to religion. many azeris live in the norhtwest close to azerbaijan so there is a fear that they will want to form a larger state by taking territory away from iran. kurds and arabs tend to be sunni, so the religious cleavage is reinforced by ethnicity -*social class*--peasantry and lower middle class are sources of support for the regime, partly because they have benefited from the government's social programs that have provided them with electricity and paved roads. middle and upper class are largely secularized and they tend to be highly critical of the clerics and their control of society. also many middle class people have not done well economically recently so their views of secularism are reinforced by their economic problems, creating more discontent and opposition to the regime -*reformers v. conservatives*--debate of the merits of a theocracy v. a democracy. the conservatives want to keep the regime as it is, under the control of clerics and sharia law. the reformers want to see more secularization and democracy. -*pragmatic conservatives v. radical clerics*--pragmatic conservatives are clergy that favor liberal economic policies that encourage foreign trade, free markets, and direct foreign investment. they argue that private property and economic inequality are protected under islamic law, they want to turn over economic management to liberally-inclined technocrats. radicals are more numerous among younger and more militant clerics, and they call for measures to enhance social justice, especially in terms of providing welfare benefits to Iran's poor. they generally endorse state sponsored wealth redistribution and price controls
civil society
-a major source of unhappiness with the rule of the Pahlavi shahs was the government's incursion into civil society -however, civil society has not been restored under the current regime and this tends to create discontent, especially among the middle class -Tehran spring--under khatami in 1997-2005 which was a period of political iberalization with a loosing of freedom of speech and press and open economy-->these end up being limited by more conservative people in the government -since ahmadinejad became president in 2005 the media has been completely shut down and doesn't tolerate peaceful demonstrations and protests. people with opposing viewpoints are often arrested
the importance of shiism
-from the 7th to the 16th centuries, the geographical region of Iran had little political unity and experienced many invasions, including that of the Arabs who brought Islam to the area-->now there is a religious glue that held the persians together -the brand of islam that distinguishes Iran from its neighbors today--shiism--was established as the state religion in the 16th century by Ismail, the founder of the safavid empire (ismail had already fought a lot with Sunni muslims) -shiite had been the minority sect of islam, but when ismail estbalishd iran as a shiite state in the 16th century, he distinguished it as different from all sunni states around him, a characteristic that still exists today -he gave political legitimacy to the belief that the "hidden imam" would eventually return but until he did the rulers of iran stood in his place as the true heirs of islam
very ancient history to know
-iran had a big rival with greece -alexander the great conquered both and spread the greek culture to his conquered lands--however, he left most of the persian political structure in place -iranian sovereigns were always hereditary military leaders who very much enjoyed the trappings of royalty -the king's authority was supported by a strong military as well as a state-sponsored religion, *zoroastrianism*
legitimacy in the modern state
-pahlavi shas tried to secularize the stat from 1925-1979 -ayatollah khomeini personified the union of political and religious interests from ancient days and undid the secularization --he is known as the "protector of the truth faith" thats how much people like him *the ayatollah khomeini led the REVOLUTION OF 1979, an event that transformed the legitimacy of the state, anchoring it once again in principles of shiism* -the most important document that legitimizes the state today is the CONSTITUTION OF 1979 along with the amendments of 1989 --> these two documents are a complex mix of democracy and theocracy