Plan for candidate review is a victory for Iran reformists

TEHRAN, Iran -- After weeks of chaos over the disqualification of thousands of parliamentary candidates, Iran's supreme leader agreed to a formula Wednesday that is expected to reinstate most of those barred -- handing reformists a victory in their election battle with hard-line Islamic clerics.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's order that a reformist-led ministry review the disqualifications made by the Guardian Council marked a compromise effort to resolve the standoff over the Feb. 20 vote, Iran's worst political crisis in years.

Government spokesman Abdollah Ramezanzadeh told reporters after a Cabinet meeting that the Intelligence Ministry will do the review.

Reza Yousefian, a reformist lawmaker who is among those banned from the ballot, said the review will have nothing to do with the Guardian Council. But he said figures close to the 12-cleric Guardian Council had suggested the body should have the final say.

"The government agreed to hold the elections and the leaders decided the Intelligence Ministry will review the disqualifications and that its decision will not be overruled," Yousefian added.

That is significant because the Guardian Council, a nonelected body that rules this Islamic nation in tandem with the government, has so far resisted all compromise efforts.

Reformists -- including President Mohammad Khatami -- had threatened to either boycott or refuse to hold a vote they said would be undemocratic because nearly a third of the candidates, all of them reformists, were stricken from the ballots.

It was the second time in a month that Khamenei ordered a review of the disqualification of thousands of lawmakers, 80 of whom were sitting members of parliament.

On Tuesday, Khamenei was reported to have rejected a request by Khatami to postpone the elections.

Reformists called Wednesday's development a major victory.

They campaigned for weeks with sit-down protests that preceded the resignation of 125 members of the 290-seat parliament on Monday.

As the country's supreme leader, Khamenei has the final say on all matters. His intervention became inevitable with reformists and hard- liners deadlocked.

Ramezanzadeh, the government spokesman, said Khamenei agreed to the Intelligence Ministry review during a meeting with Khatami on Tuesday.

"We hope to achieve a final result as soon as possible that would allow us to hold an election with a huge turnout," Ramezanzadeh said.

His announcement Wednesday was the first in days that suggested the elections might go ahead as planned.

On Tuesday, scores of reformist lawmakers called for postponing the vote. Also, Iran's provincial governors said in a statement posted on the Interior Ministry's Web site that they would not hold the elections -- suggesting hard-liners would have to use the military to stage the polls.

The Guardian Council, which is appointed by Khamenei, has disqualified more than 2,400 reformist lawmakers and politicians from the elections.

Khamenei's order met mixed reaction from the reform camp.

"A large number are expected to be reinstated," pro-reform Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said.

The Islamic Iran Participation Front, the country's largest reform party, said Monday that it would boycott the vote. "We may reconsider our decision if the bulk of disqualifications are reversed and there will be a relatively free election," Saeed Shariati, a party leader, said Wednesday. "Everything now depends on the final list," he said.

Issa Saharkhiz, a disqualified reformist candidate, called Khamenei's decision a major victory for reformers.

"The order means the arbitrary disqualifications by the Guardian Council have been overruled by Khamenei because they are not acceptable," Saharkhiz said.

But Yousefian said Khamenei effectively sided with hard-liners because reformers, if reinstated, won't have enough time to campaign.

"The maximum objective behind the disqualifications was to totally liquidate reformers and the minimum aim was to deny reformers a majority in the next parliament," Yousefian said.

"Through Khamenei's intervention, hard-liners have now achieved their minimum objective. Not all disqualified reformers will be reinstated and no sufficient time is left for reformers to launch a campaign," he said.

Khamenei reiterated there would be no postponement of the vote.

He also accused the United States, without naming it, of interfering in the elections.

"All the efforts of enemy and its intelligence and propaganda apparatus today is focused on damaging the elections. They don't want elections to be held," Khamenei said, "Enemies are encouraging certain executive officials to resign and refuse to fulfill their legal duties."

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