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Khatami Denies Dictatorship Threat
President Mohammad Khatami told his hard-line opponents Sunday that unelected institutions, not an elected president, threaten to bring dictatorship to the country. We thought it was already there, but tell on, sirrah... Khatami was responding to hard-liners who say his proposed presidential powers bill would promote dictatorship and undermine the supreme leader's power. Iran's appointed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has the final say on all state matters. It would promote dictatorship by undermining the power of the divine-right dictator... Got it. That makes sense. Not much sense, but sense... ``A president who is elected by the direct vote of the people and according to the constitution has to respond to the nation, the parliament and the supreme leader, and can't bring dictatorship,'' he said in a speech to parliament broadcast live on state-run Tehran radio. ... trying to speak patiently and to use little words... Khatami's bill, submitted Sept. 24, stipulates that if the president deems a decision from an institution such as the judiciary to be a violation of the constitution, he can issue a warning to the head of that institution. If the official ignores the warning, he or she could be suspended from the civil service for up to one year. The bill is expected to be easily endorsed by the 290-seat parliament, or majlis, but would have to be ratified by the conservative Guardian Council to become a law. No date has been set for the vote in the majlis, but it's widely expected to take place soon. The Guardian Council can be expected to sit on the bill until two weeks after Hell freezes over... Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2002-10-20 |
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