Politician censures barring MPs from next year’s election

An Iranian politician and journalist has harshly criticized the recent move by the Guardian Council to bar a few lawmakers from filing for candidacy in the next year’s parliamentarian elections.

Masih Mohajeri, the editor in chief of the Tehran-based Jomhouri Eslam Newspaper, wrote in an article that disqualification targeted the members of the parliament who hold critical views in order to “silence” any dissent prior to the upcoming elections due in March 2024.

“Take a look at the disqualification of those candidates who are currently in the 11th Parliament but criticize the government’s performance and those involved in the current government. This is the strangest kind of law enforcement,” Mohajeri wrote.

According to the initial results of the vetting process by the Guardian Council, eight members of Iran’s parliament, have been disqualified from running for reelection next year. Among them there are some MPs who have been critical of a Chastity and Hijab bill.

“This method means forcing the people to remain silent on the rulers’ actions; a force that even includes the representatives of the parliament, that is, those who have the right to monitor the actions of the rulers according to the Constitution,” Mohajeri further noted.

The Iranian politician stated that the move is “illegal”, explaining that in the Islamic Republic of Iran’s system, many articles of the Constitution emphasize on freedom of speech and words, gatherings, and expression of opinion.

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