Islamic Republic bans top reformist organizations

Iran’s top reformist parties, Islamic Iran Participation Front and Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution of Iran were shut down by the Islamic Republic’s Article 10 Commission of political parties .

Secretary General of this Commission, Mahmoud Abbaszadeh Meshkini has informed these organizations in writing that the Commission has found them in violation of the Article 16 of the law of political organizations.

According to Article 16, political organizations are prohibited from “slander, libel and spreading of rumours”, “violating national unity”, “efforts to create or exacerbate conflicts between people” and “violation of Islamic Republic's Islamic principles.”

Another member of the Article 10 Commission, Hamidreza Fouladgar announced that following the withdrawal of the permits of these two organizations, the judiciary will have to announce its decision regarding the two political parties.

Secretary General of Mujahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization, Mohammad Salamati told Mehr news agency that the Article 10 Commission is biased in its decision. He added that the action of the Commission is “illegal” and he will soon respond to it appropriately.

Following the protests to the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last June, the government has confronted protesters with fierce violence.

Numerous members of the Islamic Iran Participation Front and Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution are amongst the five thousand people who have been arrested in the past ten months in order to quell the protests.

Recently Mohsen Mirdamadi, Mostafa Tajzadeh and Davoud Soleymani, all executive members of the Participation Front, were sentenced to six years in prison and ten years of ban from political and media activities.

The two reformist organizations both endorsed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s opponent, MirHosein Mousavi in the June presidential election. MirHosein Mousavi has disputed the outcome of the elections and contends that Ahamdinejad’s victory at the poll is suspect.

Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic has supported Ahmadinejad and more recently announced that those who are not accepting of the majority vote “do not deserve to be present in the Islamic Republic framework.”