Tehran, July 15: Defeated presidential candidate — transformed into opposition leader — Mir-Hossein Mousavi plans to open a new political front after the idea of establishing a party gained momentum in Iranian political circles.
One of his senior aides, Alireza Beheshti, said Tuesday that the party would pave the way for Mousavi to keep up his protests against the results and conduct of the 10th presidential election through a new platform.
“The establishment of this front is on Mir-Hossein Mousavi’s agenda,” he told the semi-official ILNA news agency. “We will soon announce its establishment.”
Mousavi — the last Iranian prime minister — lost the disputed presidential election to the incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on June 12 when weeks of intense campaigning resulted in millions of Iranians casting their ballots.
Among four approved hopefuls, President Ahmadinejad was declared victor with almost two-thirds of the votes.
The official outcome of the election, however, provoked days of street protests with the main defeated rivals Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi — a Reformist candidate — charging that Ahmadinejad’s landslide re-election was the result of widespread fraud. They demanded a re-run of the vote.
The protests triggered violent — and deadly at times — clashes between demonstrators and security forces as well as roundups of those who instigated riots across the country.
Following the tragic loss of life, Mousavi asked his supporters to continue their protests but only through legal channels.
Although Beheshti did not offer details of the proposed front, Mousavi believes it would allow his campaign to “defend the rights and votes” of those citizens who are dissatisfied with the election’s outcome.
The prospects of a Mousavi-run political party have been well-received among politicians from both sides of the isle.
A senior member of the Islamic Coalition Party and a leading Principlist figure, Habibollah Asgaroladi, on Monday endorsed the idea.
“Establishing a party to voice one’s ideas and political perceptions is a wise move,” he said. “Politicians need to come together in a political formation to clarify political actions and to show respect for the collective intellect.”
Mousavi has also been encouraged by allies to set up a party.
Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Hossein Mousavi-Tabrizi, who heads the Association of Researchers and Tutors of the Qom Seminary, said last week that the establishment of a party by Mousavi would be a sensible step.
“Having (political) factions in any country is a prelude to establishing and strengthening democracy,” said the cleric.
Mohammad Salamati, a senior member of a Reformist party, said Mousavi has many supporters “whose organization requires a party”.
Expediency Council member Mehdi Hashemi has also thrown his weight behind the idea of new political parties emerging in Iran.
Hashemi, the brother of Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, added that many of those who voted for Mousavi in the elections are among educated Iranians and the elite and that they can help the defeated candidate in establishing and running his party.
President Ahmadinejad, meanwhile, has asked the opposition to drop the pre-election mentality and put an end to the post-election turmoil.
Ahmadinejad is set to take the oath of office for a second four-year term in early August. Parliament, after its summer recess, will have a formidable task at hand when the president unveils his new Cabinet.
—–Agencies