• “Do not vote for candidates who appeal to flattering the Western countries rather than focusing on the targets and aims of the founder of the Islamic Republic (Ayatollah Khomeini).”
  – Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a speech during a visit to Kurdistan in western Iran, May 18

  In a recent televised speech from the Kurdistan province, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei cautioned voters against supporting candidates who might take a more conciliatory approach toward the Islamic Republic’s relations with Western nations. His speech came a day after conservative candidate Mohsen Rezai stated that he would engage in “constructive and effective interaction with the US administration” if elected. Many Iranian analysts believe the Supreme Leader’s statements signal the regime’s support for incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose opponents – both conservative and reformist – have criticized him for his antagonistic approach toward Europe and the United States over issues like Iran’s nuclear program. The Supreme Leader, however, has refrained from making any official endorsements.

• Protesting university students expressed their frustration and disappointment over the distribution of some food stamps ahead of the upcoming elections.
  – headline on the conservative Tabnak News website, May 18

  Students at Tehran University spoke out against the distribution of food stamps among female students in the university’s dorms, claiming it was a political move by the government to gain votes for Ahmadinejad. This was the second time the government had provided the coupons to the students, with the previous distribution described as a Persian New Year gift from the president. The food stamps add to the growing concern among many Iranians that the president is using state resources in an attempt to buy voters’ support. There are allegations that Ahmadinejad has authorized the distribution of food, such as potatoes, and checks worth the equivalent of USD 50.

• Mehdi Karroubi has written an open letter to the managing director of the IRIB, in it expressing his concern over what he has called the Radio-TV’s biased approach in addressing the presidential elections’ issues and its candidates.
  – headline on the semi-reformist Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA) website, May 19

  Following an erroneous report on a widely-watched Iranian evening news program that Mehdi Karroubi had cancelled his campaign trips due to illness, reformist candidate Karroubi wrote a letter of complaint to the director of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB). Karroubi, calling for an investigation, accused the official media of censuring him and of being biased in its coverage of presidential candidates. Karroubi is not the first candidate to have called into question the IRIB’s neutrality during the election campaign. Fellow reformist Mir-Hossein Mousavi has been highly critical of the national media, and his wife Zahra Rahnavard, during a speech in Tehran on May 19, said that the IRIB should be ashamed of itself. In an indication that government authorities may be responding to ongoing pressure, it was announced that each candidate would receive 45 hours of air time on state TV and radio and that the Supreme Council for Information and Communication Technology would establish a website for each candidate. It remains to be seen whether these measures will be implemented and whether they will contribute toward leveling the playing field among candidates.

• “Any government that comes to work needs to make sure a bill gets passed in the Parliament, granting at least half of the Parliament seats to women.”
  – Zahra Rahnavard, wife of reformist candidate Mir-Hossein Moussavi, in a speech delivered to student of Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, May 19

  Bolstering her husband’s credentials on women’s rights, Zahra Rahnavard continues to campaign actively on behalf of Mir-Hossein Mousavi. A well-known figure in her own right, she is quickly becoming an icon for women in this year’s presidential election. At a speech in Tehran, she called upon the future president to provide more opportunities for women and pave the way for women to take a prominent place in the Iranian parliament. Rahnavard served as an advisor to former president Mohammad Khatami and was the chancellor of the all-women Al-Zahra University. She reportedly resigned from her post in 2006 in protest over government policies. She holds a doctorate in political science from Islamic Azad University and is also known in Iran for her poetry and sculpture.

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Published on May 21, 2009