Persian Independent’s Exclusive Interview with Ahmadinejad: With Less Than 40% Turnout the Election is Turned Into a Referendum Against Iran

In an exclusive interview with Independent Persian, former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad whose candidacy was rejected by Iran’s Guardian Council, said that the presidential election is symbol of the nation’s will. It is not about dropping a piece of paper in a box and leave.

He said: “There are times that we have a legal obligation, and times when we really wish to make positive and progressive things happen on the ground. For the country to progress and develop, people need to express their will freely.

He added: “Free will would transform everything. No obstacle can withstand the collective will of a nation. Elections are the vehicle of this will which should continue to perpetuate.”

He added: “We hoped and still hope that there will be a day when both in Iran and in the world at large a common decisive will would permeate the governance of countries so we would see a better situation from what we witness today.”

He referred to his recent tweet comparing the June 18, 2021 election to a popular referendum and the need for a new referendum to decide the structure of governance in Iran.

He said: “I do not routinely expect elections to turn into referendums, but authorities themselves called it a referendum and asked people to participate in the election under the banner that each vote would be a renewal of covenant with the Islamic Republic. It was, therefore, they themselves who turned the election into a referendum.”

He added: “Almost 100% of Iranians took part in the first referendum, and 98.9% of the votes were positive (endorsing the Islamic Republic). Now it (public participation) is reduced to 48%. If you count void ballots – as some do – this percentage goes down to less than 40%.

“The people are the same people. The Iranian nation has, over the course of history, stayed true to itself and safe-guarded their culture and values. These are the same people who in defense of their country against the enemy in 1978,79 and 80, sent their children over mines and did not lose a meter of their land.

“I think, those who are the cause of this situation should be held to account. They should put aside their superior attitude and answer the people. The first step would be to reflect and see what they have done to have made this great and ancient nation to withdraw and to look at them from the margent. I hope for this to happen.”

In reply to the chief editor of the Independent Persian who asked him if he had been persecuted for his critical stance against the governance, Ahmadinejad said: “I think if you enter into the realm of reform, you must be ready to face the consequences. We have been under increasing pressure over these years. My best friends were under pressure. At this moment a considerable number of my colleagues are facing heavy sentences that may be implemented at any moment.”

He added: “The heaviest propaganda in the history of Iranian politics have been aimed against us. We planned a visit to “Orumieh” (capital city of the north-eastern province of Rezaiieh) at the invitation of their citizens. A curfew was announced, so many individuals were abducted during the night and so many were threatened. We are under such pressure on a daily basis, but as I said, if we want reform to happen, we should overcome these (obstacles) come what may.

“As I said in my last week’s interview, best to give my life to the revolution and its values, to the “Imam Mahdi” (last Shiite Imam said to be in occultation), social reforms and serving the great Iranian nation.”

Referring to his meeting with General Nejat (A commander of the Revolutionary Guard Corps) prior to the rejection of his candidacy, Ahmadinejad said: “I have already talked about it extensively. The essence of his views was that ‘don’t do anything to put us in a position where we have to counter revolutionary and Hezbollahi forces.”

Ahmadinejad stressed that the reason behind the rejection of his candidacy is clear, but that the Guardian Council had not yet offered any explanations.

As for the unity of Iranian governance, he said: “We had been in this situation before where all three arms of the government (Executive, Judiciary and Legislative) were from the same political faction, but no positive results came out of it.

“Success is in having a clear manifesto, strong management, observing requirements of a logical and wise governance and the support of all the people, otherwise factions themselves have thousands of problems and rivalries among themselves.

He said that as an observer over the past forty years, he can testify that none of the political factions has offered a cohesive and effective manifesto for the management of the country.

On his plans for reforms in the country’s governance, he said: “I have categorized current problems into three levels: Ideals (goals), (governing) structures and conducts.

“At the level of ideals, I believe that the ideals of the revolution have been lost. I mean we do not know where we want to go. It seems as if governance that was the means to each ideal has been transformed into goals. We have got to reassess these ideals and reach a national consensus over them. Structures are to realize those ideals. The most important ideal is national sovereignty and the revival of the right to self-determination, freedom and justice.

“Every structure should have its own specifications. What I said goes beyond the two (Constitutional) powers and includes the backbone of the system of decision-making in the country. There should be a balance of authority and responsibility, a certain procedure at all levels and that they should be brief and transparent. This does not exist at the moment. While the country needs a national and comprehensive view of issues, the parliament’s attitude is local and the government’s attitude is regional. The extent of authority should match the level of responsibility.

“On the third category, where we head towards freedom, justice, dignity and progress, naturally attitudes should match ideals. They should be capable of delivering and above all, authorities should be the products of the will of the people.

“Governments have no function but execute the will of the people, but unfortunately in the world and particularly in Iran, structures (governance) have legitimized themselves against the will of people. These reforms are not limited to one or two constitutional arms but it should happen.

“If management, ideals and the appointment of people are not done properly, there will be no progress and nothing will be done.”

Ahmadinejad pointed out to the political, economic and social prospect of Iranians in the coming four years.

He said: “The nation is unified. There is no polarity among them apart from who they vote for. But there is considerable polarity among powerful factions and politicians. The future is bright. I can see that the nation has decided to move forward to the zenith of ideals, but this requires passing a certain path, and I believe they are doing it intelligently.

“Iran is the land of talents, culture, endless wealth and history. After all, we have been a nation for 7,000 years. We have seen hundreds of ups and downs, experienced situations much, much more difficult and complicated than this, but have witnessed that the nation has sailed through them with its unity and belief in historical values.

“I believe today Iranians are moving fast the sign of which is their level of awareness. You can see that the speed and level of solidarity and awareness is unmatched. All this tell us that positive events will happen to the benefit of the nation and their will and the situation will change completely.”

Pointing out to Ebrahim Raisi’s approach towards the countries of the region, Ahmadinejad said: “Two points should be considered. Iranians do not fit into the political categories of reformist or conservative. The Iranian nation is extremely reformist and equally adhere to its historical beliefs. It is for these reasons that the Iranian culture has created a continuous trend in the world.

“There is no alternative but friendship and brotherhood among countries and nations of the region. We should all respect each other’s integrity, avoid interfering in one another’s affairs and avoid attempting dominance in the region. Saddam (Hussein) did it once and we witnessed the consequence of it.”

Ahmadinejad said that his relations with some neighboring countries have faced certain limitations but he really likes them. He said: “I did not expect (them) to immediately reply to my messages although I hoped they would. I am certain that we all want peace in the region, but it requires collective co-operation and help.”

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Ethan Goldrich has told Asharq Al-Awsat that the US does not plan to withdraw its forces from Syria.

The US is committed to “the partnership that we have with the local forces that we work with,” he said.

Here is the full text of the interview.

Question: Mr. Goldrich, thank you so much for taking the time to sit with us today. I know you are leaving your post soon. How do you assess the accomplishments and challenges remaining?

Answer: Thank you very much for the chance to talk with you today. I've been in this position for three years, and so at the end of three years, I can see that there's a lot that we accomplished and a lot that we have left to do. But at the beginning of a time I was here, we had just completed a review of our Syria policy, and we saw that we needed to focus on reducing suffering for the people in Syria. We needed to reduce violence. We needed to hold the regime accountable for things that are done and most importantly, from the US perspective, we needed to keep ISIS from reemerging as a threat to our country and to other countries. At the same time, we also realized that there wouldn't be a solution to the crisis until there was a political process under resolution 2254, so in each of these areas, we've seen both progress and challenges, but of course, on ISIS, we have prevented the reemergence of the threat from northeast Syria, and we've helped deal with people that needed to be repatriated out of the prisons, and we dealt with displaced people in al-Hol to reduce the numbers there. We helped provide for stabilization in those parts of Syria.

Question: I want to talk a little bit about the ISIS situation now that the US troops are still there, do you envision a timeline where they will be withdrawn? Because there were some reports in the press that there is a plan from the Biden administration to withdraw.

Answer: Yeah. So right now, our focus is on the mission that we have there to keep ISIS from reemerging. So I know there have been reports, but I want to make clear that we remain committed to the role that we play in that part of Syria, to the partnership that we have with the local forces that we work with, and to the need to prevent that threat from reemerging.

Question: So you can assure people who are saying that you might withdraw, that you are remaining for the time being?

Answer: Yes, and that we remain committed to this mission which needs to continue to be pursued.

Question: You also mentioned the importance of humanitarian aid. The US has been leading on this. Are you satisfied with where you are today on the humanitarian front in Syria?

Answer: We remain committed to the role that we play to provide for humanitarian assistance in Syria. Of the money that was pledged in Brussels, we pledged $593 million just this past spring, and we overall, since the beginning of the conflict, have provided $18 billion both to help the Syrians who are inside of Syria and to help the refugees who are in surrounding countries. And so we remain committed to providing that assistance, and we remain keenly aware that 90% of Syrians are living in poverty right now, and that there's been suffering there. We're doing everything we can to reduce the suffering, but I think where we would really like to be is where there's a larger solution to the whole crisis, so Syrian people someday will be able to provide again for themselves and not need this assistance.

Question: And that's a perfect key to my next question. Solution in Syria. you are aware that the countries in the region are opening up to Assad again, and you also have the EU signaling overture to the Syrian regime and Assad. How do you deal with that?

Answer: For the United States, our policy continues to be that we will not normalize with the regime in Syria until there's been authentic and enduring progress on the goals of resolution 2254, until the human rights of the Syrian people are respected and until they have the civil and human rights that they deserve. We know other countries have engaged with the regime. When those engagements happen, we don't support them, but we remind the countries that are engaged that they should be using their engagements to push forward on the shared international goals under 2254, and that whatever it is that they're doing should be for the sake of improving the situation of the Syrian people.

Question: Let's say that all of the countries decided to talk to Assad, aren’t you worried that the US will be alienated in the process?

Answer: The US will remain true to our own principles and our own policies and our own laws, and the path for the regime in Syria to change its relationship with us is very clear, if they change the behaviors that led to the laws that we have and to the policies that we have, if those behaviors change and the circumstances inside of Syria change, then it's possible to have a different kind of relationship, but that's where it has to start.

Question: My last question to you before you leave, if you have to pick one thing that you need to do in Syria today, what is it that you would like to see happening today?

Answer: So there are a number of things, I think that will always be left and that there are things that we will try to do, to try to make them happen. We want to hold people accountable in Syria for things that have happened. So even today, we observed something called the International Day for victims of enforced disappearances, there are people that are missing, and we're trying to draw attention to the need to account for the missing people. So our step today was to sanction a number of officials who were responsible for enforced disappearances, but we also created something called the independent institution for missing persons, and that helps the families, in the non-political way, get information on what's happened. So I'd like to see some peace for the families of the missing people. I'd like to see the beginning of a political process, there hasn't been a meeting of the constitutional committee in two years, and I think that's because the regime has not been cooperating in political process steps. So we need to change that situation. And I would, of course, like it's important to see the continuation of the things that we were talking about, so keeping ISIS from reemerging and maintaining assistance as necessary in the humanitarian sphere. So all these things, some of them are ongoing, and some of them remain to be achieved. But the Syrian people deserve all aspects of our policy to be fulfilled and for them to be able to return to a normal life.

Persian Independent’s Exclusive Interview with Ahmadinejad: With Less Than 40% Turnout the Election is Turned Into a Referendum Against Iran

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad talks to Camelia Entekhabifard: Those responsible for the present situation should be held to account. They should abandon their superior attitude and answer the people.