State Structure and Political System of Iran

Iran is a theocratic republic with elements of religious and republican power. The constitution was adopted in 1979, and in 1989 it was amended to strengthen the powers of the president and legalize the creation of a body regulating relations between the Majlis and the Supervisory Council (NS). Check equzhou for political system of Iran.

Administratively, the country is divided into 28 stops (provinces), which are subdivided into 282 shahrestans, which in turn include 742 bakhsh. Ostans – East Azerbaijan (the capital is Tabriz), West Azerbaijan (Urmiye), Ardabil (Ardabil), Isfahan (Isfahan), Elam (Elam), Bushehr (Bushehr), Tehran (Tehran), Chaharmahal and Bakhtiariyya (Shahrekord), Khorasan (Mashhad) ), Khuzestan (Ahvaz), Zanjan (Zenjan), Semnan (Semnan), Sistan and Balochistan (Zahedan), Fars (Shiraz), Qazvin (Qazvin), Qom (Qom), Kurdistan (Senendej), Kerman (Kerman), Kermanshah (Kermanshah), Kukhgiluye and Boerahmad (Yasuj), Golestan (Gorgan), Gilan (Rasht), Lorestan ((Khorramabad), Mazanderan (Sari), Central (Arak), Hormozgan (Bender-Abbas), Hamadan (Hamadan), Yazd (Yazd).

There are 724 cities in the country, in 5 cities the population exceeds 1 million people. Tehran is the largest administrative, cultural, financial and industrial center of the country, Isfahan (1.5 million) is the center of metallurgy and petrochemistry, Tabriz (1.4 million) is the capital of East Azerbaijan and the military-industrial center, Shiraz (over 1 million) – a cultural, historical and industrial center, Mashhad (about 2 million) and Qom (more than 800 thousand) – large Islamic centers.

The main principle that ensures the legitimacy of Islamic power is the principle of “velayate faqih”, on the basis of which the religious leader is the highest state official of the state. According to the Constitution, the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran is the leader of the Islamic revolution – rahbar (leader), who oversees the work of all branches of government and is elected by the Council of Experts. He has a wide range of rights and duties, including the determination of the general policy of the state, the command of the Armed Forces. Rahbar appoints half of the members of the National Assembly, consisting of faqih theologians, the chief of staff of the Armed Forces, the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the head of the state television and radio company. It resolves disputes both between individual branches of government and between the Majlis and the National Assembly, if they cannot be resolved by the State Expediency Assembly. Rahbar agrees to the appointment of a popularly elected president, he also appoints the head of the Supreme Court. In the practice of public administration, the influence of the rahbar is realized through representatives of his office. Check homeagerly for democracy and human rights of Iran.

The highest body of legislative power is the unicameral parliament – the Majlis (Majlese Shoray Eslami) – for 290 seats. The number of seats increases every 10 years depending on the growth of the population (in 1980 – 270 seats). Directly elected for a term of 4 years. To make a decision, a quorum of 2/3 of the total number of deputies is required. The last elections were held in February 2004. The composition of the Majlis reflects the alignment of political forces: reformists have 222 seats, conservatives – 55, independents – 13. According to the Constitution, 4 seats in the Majlis belong to representatives of confessional minorities, each of whom uses the holy book of his religion when pronouncing the deputy oath.

The legislative body, which combines the functions of the upper house and constitutional control, is the National Assembly (Showray Negahban), which consists of 12 members and checks the compliance of laws adopted by the Majlis with Islam and the Constitution. Half of the members of the National Assembly are faqihs appointed by the Rahbar, the rest are elected by the Majlis from among the candidates represented by the head of the judiciary. Members of the National Assembly are elected for 6 years, but after 3 years 1/2 members of each of the two groups are replaced by lot. All draft laws adopted by the Majlis must be considered by the National Assembly within 10 days. The draft law acquires the force of law only after its approval by the National Assembly. The contradictions between the Majlis and the National Assembly led to the fact that in the 1980s. none of the fundamental laws were passed, and the government operated in a legislative vacuum. Since 1989, the Assembly to determine the expediency (Majma-ye tashhis maslahate nezam) has been introduced into the power structure, which makes the final decision in case of disagreement between the Majlis and the National Assembly. Permanent and temporary members of the assembly are appointed by the Rahbar of the country.

At the head of the executive power is the president (rais jomkhur), who heads the government and is the highest official after the rahbar. It is he who, as the head of the country, represents Iran at the official level, especially in relations with foreign countries. Elected for 4 years by direct vote. The last elections took place on June 8, 2001.

The head of the judiciary is appointed by the Rahbar. The judicial system is largely influenced by Sharia. The courts for the clergy are active.

After the death of Khomeini (June 4, 1989), Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was elected leader of the Islamic Revolution (Rahbar).

The head of government and president of Iran is Hojat-Oleslam Mohammad Khatami (since August 26, 1997). The Chairman of the Majlis is Khodjat-ol-eslam Mehdi Karrubi. The Head of the Assembly for Expediency is Ayatollah Ali Akbar Rafsanjani.

The electoral system is proportional, men and women have equal voting rights, the age limit after the revolution was reduced to 16 years. In some election campaigns, it was reduced to 15 years; in the last presidential elections, the age limit of 16 was applied.

Elections of the President and the Majlis are direct, secret and universal. The number of seats in the Majlis is distributed in proportion to the population of cities and provinces (stop). Tehran (37), Khorasan (25), Western Azerbaijan (24), Isfahan (18) have the largest number of seats. The President may be elected for no more than two terms. The problem of the electoral system, which at the same time hinders the progress of democratic reforms in the country, is the control over the selection of candidates. Its implementation in accordance with Art. 3 of the electoral law is entrusted to the National Assembly.

The Rahbara is elected by an 86-member Council of Experts. The Council of Experts is elected for 8 years (elections in 1982, 1990, 1998) by direct voting. Khomeini was proclaimed Rahbar for life by the Constitution of 1979.

Prominent presidents, heads of government and other statesmen. In Iran, M. Mosaddeq, the leader of the National Front, who became the country’s premier during the period of the movement for the nationalization of the oil industry (1951–53), is considered the most prominent statesman of the Shah’s period. During the Islamic period, the generally recognized political, state and religious leader, the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran was Ruhollah Khomeini. The initiator of the adoption of the UN resolution on the end of the war with Iraq was the chairman of the Mejlis, Ali Akbar Rafsanjani, who in 1989 was elected president of the country (for two terms) and initiated economic liberalization. Elected in 1997 to the post of President, Mohammad Khatami, called in the West “Iranian Gorbachev”, became the initiator of political liberalization, the author of the concept of “dialogue of civilizations”,

Ostandars (governors-general) are at the head of the stops, appointed by the Ministry of the Interior and approved by the president. The Ministry of Internal Affairs appoints farmandars – governors (heads of shahrestans) and bakhshdars. The executive power of each of the levels is controlled by the councils of the respective administrative units.

The system of municipal authorities is elective. The first elections of local authorities were held in 1999, the last – in February 2003. Elected city councils elect the heads of executive bodies.

After the revolution, all secular parties were gradually banned, until 1988 the only legal party was the Islamic Republic Party (PIR). After its dissolution, political life until 1977 was represented by the two largest groupings of the clergy. These are the Organization of the Fighting Clergy and the Assembly of the Fighting Clergy (or Fighting Ulema), which separated from the Organization in 1988. Members of these groups still make up not only the religious, but also the political elite of the country, holding leading positions in the state. The president and speaker of the Majlis of the 6th convocation are the leaders of the Assembly of the struggling clergy. This organization initiated the creation on the eve of the elections in 2000 to the Majlis of the 6th convocation of the Front on May 23, or 2 Khordad (the day of victory in the election of President M. Khatami), which included 18 parties and organizations that nominated common candidates. The bloc’s political core is the Mosharekat party, formed by the president’s brother Mohammad Reza Khatami, who is currently the deputy speaker of the Majlis. Another major party of the reformist wing is the Sazmane Mujahiddin Engelabe Eslami (Organization of Mujahideen of the Islamic Revolution – OMIR) party.

The Organization of the Struggling Clergy (OCD) belongs to the conservative forces of the political spectrum. The party affiliated with the WDS is the Islamic Coalition Society (Jamiyate motalefe-e eslami). In its work with youth, the organization relies on the Ansare Hezbollah party, whose program is close to extremist organizations. In recent years, Ansare Hezbollah has lost its influence among Iranian students, who are uniting in associations that support the Khatami program, in particular in the branches of the Daftare Tahkime Vahdat party. A significant place in political life is played by the Kargozaran party, created by supporters of economic liberalization in 1997, as well as the liberal Iran Freedom Movement Party.

Iran’s top business organizations are the Iranian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Chambers of Commerce and Industry. In recent years, the Organization of Exporters – Iranian Manufacturers has been actively working. Small craftsmen and merchants are united in asnafs (workshops).

Public organizations and other elements of civil society actually began to be created after 1997. These are mainly associations on a professional basis – organizations of doctors, writers, teachers, etc., the number of women’s organizations is increasing.

Domestic policy is subordinated to the ideological goals of building an Islamic state. The main criterion in the conduct of policy is compliance with Islamic principles. In the early years, many sports were banned, theaters were closed, and strict restrictions were imposed on watching movies, using the Internet, and so on. Sharia punishments were introduced, incl. for non-compliance with the norms of wearing Islamic clothing, Islamic norms of everyday communication, etc. Gradually, these requirements are being relaxed. The reform movement in Iran, led by President Mohammad Khatami, has as its main goal the creation of a democratic society, ensuring freedom of speech and broad civil rights. In recent years, more and more attention has been paid to the women’s issue, to the strengthening of the role of women in the family and society. The regime is quite consistently pursuing a policy of social security for the population. Subsidizing of the most important types of consumer goods continues. To prevent separatist sentiments, a policy of equalizing the economic potential of the regions is being pursued.

The foreign policy concepts of the Islamic regime and practical foreign policy have undergone a significant evolution over a quarter of a century. The concepts of “neither the West, nor the East, but Islam”, “export of the Islamic revolution” were replaced by a policy of openness in foreign policy. Iran actively participates in the work of international and regional organizations. Measures have been established and are being taken to expand economic ties with most countries of the world, especially with the countries of Europe, which are the main foreign trade partners. Iran has the most tense relations with the United States, which blocks the expansion of Iran’s economic ties with the leading countries of the world in order to limit the financial and technical capabilities of the regime to build up its military potential. Iran does not recognize Israel.

The armed forces consist of the regular forces of the army, the IRGC, as well as the forces of the militia (“basij”). The army includes the Ground Forces, Air Force, Air Defense, and Navy. The IRGC includes the Ground Forces, the Air Force, the Navy, and the Qods Special Forces. The total number of armed forces of the army and the IRGC is 815 thousand, incl. Land 670, Air Force 100, Navy 30, Code 15. Approx. 135 thousand make up the Basij forces. The age for conscription into the army is 21 years. The mobilization opportunity of St. 11 million (ages 15-49) (2002).

Diplomatic relations between Iran and the RSFSR have been established since May 20, 1920, and with Iran since 1979.