10 minutes agoFive Reasons to Concern Iran
Periskopi(8 years ago)
(8 years ago)On January 1, 2018, a policeman was killed in Iran. That happened in Najaphabad, downtown. Several other cities have been scenes of new protests, and in some cases police stations and barracks have been attacked. Iran has experienced next street protests, against expensive living, unemployment, corruption of people [...]
On January 1, 2018, a policeman was killed in Iran. That happened in Najaphabad, downtown. Several other cities have been scenes of new protests, and in some cases police stations and barracks have been attacked.
Iran has witnessed the next street protests, against expensive living, unemployment, corruption of powerful people, and absolute innovation against institutions and mulahs.
The dead are many. Although the number of protesters is still quite limited (especially in the capital, Tehran), it is not clear whether the Islamic Republic is sinking into a devastating crisis. That will be understood these days. Meanwhile, we can discern five reasons for concern.
What Iranians Want
The first is that Iranians do not see their living conditions improved, despite international sanctions being cancelled thanks to the nuclear agreement signed with major powers by President Hasan Rohan.
The second is that continuing the high unemployment rate and inflation make the capillaries of already unbearable corruption spreading.
The third is that social discontent has been added to a desire for freedom, which has spread throughout the country since the 1990s.
The fourth is that Iranians would prefer that money from the sale of natural resources be invested to improve their standard of living, rather than support the Syrian regime and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The fifth reason for this potential crisis is that Iranian power is deeply divided between pragmatists and reformers, who support President Rohan and different conservative currents, who fear losing their economic privileges. Between these two sides the battle is getting worse, even by the fact that the Supreme Leader is sick and the struggle for the successor is almost open.
The country lives in a dialogue battle, where conservatives have thought to benefit from the first protests to challenge Rohan. On December 30, 2017, it became clear that they had thus opened Pandora's box, and Rohan responded by proposing to grant more freedom to those who criticise politicians and by displaying high determination in the face of acts of violence.
The conservatives have not yet spoken their final word. Regardless of how the situation will develop in the coming days, it is clear that there is an increasingly complex political life in Iran, and less and less capable of channeling down a theocracy, now despised and surrounded.
