Iranian Citizen’s Reaction and Abuse of PowerEssay Preview: Iranian Citizen’s Reaction and Abuse of PowerReport this essayBackgroundMahmoud Ahmadinejad together with his family traveled to Tehran when he was less than two years old. His early education; primary and secondary, was attended in Tehran where he attained his diploma and was enrolled for a civil engineering course at Elm-o-Sanaat campus of Science and Technology. He enrolled for a Masters degree at the same campus in 1986 where he was a board member of the Civil Engineering scientific board. During the commencement of the Iraq-Iran war in 1980, Ahmadinejad was quick to rush to the western fronts to engage the enemy as he joined the Basij, a voluntary force of the IRGC (Islamic Revolution Guards Corps) where he served in various units.
April 2003 saw Ahmadinejad’s appointment by the municipal council of the capital Tehran as its mayor. The hard-line Iranian Islamic Developers Coalition controlled the council and in the year 2005, in the month of June, Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was sworn in as the sixth President of Iran (Ansari 22). His landslide victory of over 63 percent in the runoff election precipitated his nomination in the year 2009 to run for a second term.
Citizen’s Reaction and Abuse of PowerThe majority of Iranian citizens who cast their votes for Ahmadinejad were convinced that he would fulfill his promises of improving the conditions and standards of human rights in the Iranian republic that is dominated by Muslim citizens (Hourcade and Silverstein 11). The issues concerning human rights ranged from addressing the torture methods that were in place then, the freeing of political prisoners as well as a look into the freedom of speech, expression and above all the freedom of the press (Kazemzadeh 105). However, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of abuses of power watch group was quick to blast Ahmadinejad’s administration for the escalation of persecutions of religious and ethnic minorities in which it sited the
Citizens for Ahmadinejad’s National Defense Law, in the process of passing a law in May 2009, which further severely restricts the free expression of religious minorities. Ahmadinejad’s government violated these rights by placing the ban on all books and movies as well as religious and ethnic books and films (Akhari 88). The ban on film and television production is due to the Iranian government’s unwillingness to abide by the right of access and freedom to view its citizens’ rights. The government used such state-sanctioned laws as a pretext to extend the ban on religious films and to target religious minorities (Akhari 8). This is why the government has been using state-sanctioned law to silence media, citizens, students and students’ representatives and to intimidate them (Akhari 8, 23). The government also allowed the establishment of a network of independent media for free expression. (Akhari 8, 34)
The right to free speech and religious expression. The constitution protects this right, however, as it is clearly stated: “The government does not discriminate based on opinion, conscience or opinion in public places under any national, religious, political or social code. The right to freedom of expression shall not be violated and no State violates the right to freedom of assembly… The government uses its influence in public administration to strengthen the authority of religious authorities, especially to prohibit the promulgation of religious texts, to prohibit publication of religious writings and for other purposes.”The right of free speech shall be protected under the Constitution which enshrines this right in Section 10 of it (see Annex 3.3 above). Since the right of freedom of expression under that Act is not limited to the individual it has to be protected by other provisions which govern all national laws. Even the freedom to hold any office and participate in political activity in any country does not restrict the right of the individual who takes part in that country to freely express views, opinions and ideas of his or her own choice․However, the government also uses state and human rights law which are applicable both to the individual and within the country (Kazemzadeh 105, 107). This is one reason why, as it turns out, the right to free speech extends to the political sphere. The right to free expression under international law does not include the right to assemble at public places and to discuss social issues including religious and political rights. Under international law, all citizens who believe in the Constitution are free to express themselves only while in public institutions (Akhari 8). Consequently, no state government can deprive individual citizens that have the right to express their views of their own political preference (Akhari 8, 23); only local and religious law is applicable. As such, the right to freedom of expression extends to individuals based in the country (Kazemzadeh 105). Such individuals are not exempt from the provisions of international law which protect freedom of expression (Chirac and Goldschmidt 3). However, when their rights are violated or their dignity seriously impaired, rights of their community are severely limited. In general