Press views Iran election
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/middle_east/7300505.stm Version 0 of 1. An Iranian woman casts her ballot in Iran's parliamentary election. A selection of regional and other press sources commenting on Iran's election see no great surprises. One Iranian hardline paper says conservative MPs must now keep their promises, while a reformist daily says all is not lost for reformers. An Iraqi title writes that the regime has lost "all credibility" by excluding moderate candidates. Israel's Haaretz says the parliament could make life difficult for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the next presidential vote. IRAN IRAN (Hardline) There was a high turnout, and the result is an undisputable victory for the principle-ists. It proves that the principle-ists' ideas have deep roots among the people. KAYHAN (Hardline; pro-Khamenei) Now that 65% of the people have voted, it is MPs' turn to fulfil their promises and solve people's problems. E'TEMAD-E-MELLI (Reformist) Nearly 40% of reformist candidates have found their way into the Majlis [parliament]... This is significant... It shows that reformist ideals are still alive and cannot be disregarded. KARGOZARAN (Reformist) The way the result was announced worries us... The reformists, who tolerated huge problems and asked people to run even though most of their candidates were disqualified, now have to do whatever they can to protect the result. PAN-ARAB ABD AL-RAHMAN AL-RASHID IN AL-SHARQ AL-AWSAT By excluding even its moderate Islamist partners, the regime has stripped itself of all credibility, unveiling its intention to guarantee full hegemony for the hardliners in Tehran through depriving the moderates even of the few parliamentary seats and the limited powers previously permitted them. (16 March) IRAQ ALI KHLAYF IN AL-ADALAH (Published by Shia organization the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council) Iraq has joined the new world order. It is now trying to force its way towards progress and prosperity. It has the right to build permanent friendship relations and sign long- or short-term agreements with any state that offers support to Iraqi people and respects their will to self-determination. ISRAEL ZVI BAREL IN HAARETZ Ahmadinejad will get the relatively comfortable parliament for which he had hoped... But this parliament will also have to decide to what extent it will make the president's path harder in the run-up to next year's elections. JORDAN DR HAYDAR RASHID IN AL-ARAB AL-YAWM The results were known in advance thanks to early intervention to prevent the reform camp's candidates from running. HAZIM MUBAYDIN IN JORDAN'S AL-RAY The reformists will still have influence as they have mastered the game of coordinating with the moderate trend of the conservatives... The continuity of the conservatives in ruling Iran will only lead to further deterioration of economy and living standards and an increase in internal tensions and international isolation. CHINA YUAN DING ON GUOJI ZAI XIAN WEBSITE The campaign has so far failed to make people feel the excitement of previous elections. Although they did not openly protest, the people's rare silence and passive response showed their dissatisfaction and frustration. <a href="http://www.monitor.bbc.co.uk">BBC Monitoring</a><i> selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux abroad.</i> |