This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/iran-blog/2013/may/17/vote-ahmadinejad-successor-divides-iranians
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Vote for Ahmadinejad's successor divides weary Iranians | Vote for Ahmadinejad's successor divides weary Iranians |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| "He is a man of God. He is a good Muslim. Imam Zaman [the Mahdi] supports him." | "He is a man of God. He is a good Muslim. Imam Zaman [the Mahdi] supports him." |
| In a rundown rural teahouse an hour-and-a-half drive east of Tehran, Ahmad Agha, who looks about 60, takes a puff from a water pipe filled with apple-scented tobacco. The nearby village of Goldareh, from where he commutes to his job in the Iranian capital, is blanketed with apple orchards, which drive much of the area's economy. He has been talking about Iran's outgoing president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. | In a rundown rural teahouse an hour-and-a-half drive east of Tehran, Ahmad Agha, who looks about 60, takes a puff from a water pipe filled with apple-scented tobacco. The nearby village of Goldareh, from where he commutes to his job in the Iranian capital, is blanketed with apple orchards, which drive much of the area's economy. He has been talking about Iran's outgoing president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. |
| Over two elections and eight years in office, Ahmadinejad, widely loathed by the cosmopolitan residents of Iran's major cities, has maintained a strong base of support among its less urban population. What do they think about the forthcoming vote for his successor? | |
| "Ghalibaf is a man of God," Agha says. The Tehran mayor, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who is making his second run for the presidency after falling short in 2005, is perhaps the best known of the conservative "principalist" candidates who profess unwavering fealty to Ayatollah Ali Khamanei and the doctrine of Velaayat-e Faghih by which he rules as supreme leader. | |
| "[Ghalibaf] is a seyyed," Agha continues, a descendant of the family of the prophet Muhammad. "He is also from a small village near Mashhad, so he knows of our kind and our needs." | |
| Mashhad, the capital of Razavi Khorasan province in north-west Iran, is home to the shrine of Imam Reza and the second-largest holy city in the world. The Tehran mayor was born in Torghabeh, a town of about 13,000 people 10 miles from Mashhad. | |
| "He has done a lot of good work in Tehran and he can apply this management style throughout the country," Agha concludes. | |
| Over his cup of tea, Ali, a tired-looking farmer in his 50s, says quietly: "We need someone to take care of this crazy inflation. I have not been able to sell my apples at a decent price. Thanks to Mr Ahmadinejad, we now have no problem with water allocation to our apple orchards, but the price of fertilisers, electricity, and fuel have gone up so much that it's impossible for us to compete with imported fruits." | Over his cup of tea, Ali, a tired-looking farmer in his 50s, says quietly: "We need someone to take care of this crazy inflation. I have not been able to sell my apples at a decent price. Thanks to Mr Ahmadinejad, we now have no problem with water allocation to our apple orchards, but the price of fertilisers, electricity, and fuel have gone up so much that it's impossible for us to compete with imported fruits." |
| In a bitter tone, he continues that Ghalibaf, the former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Habibollah Asgaroladi, a former commerce minister, "are all a bunch of thieves. They are all in it together. There is no difference between any of them. They could not care less about farmers. If it wasn't for the subsidy payments, I don't know what I would have done. I think we should wait until we know who is running. I bet there are many people who want to do away with all Ahmadinejad has done for us." | |
| Asghar, the minibus driver who brought a reporter to this teahouse, has been listening quietly. Taking a heavy drag from his water pipe, filled with rich, dark Kashan tobacco, he bursts in to the conversation. "This election is a sham! Just like every other thing that these liars do. | Asghar, the minibus driver who brought a reporter to this teahouse, has been listening quietly. Taking a heavy drag from his water pipe, filled with rich, dark Kashan tobacco, he bursts in to the conversation. "This election is a sham! Just like every other thing that these liars do. |
| "Ali Agha, do you know why fertiliser prices have gone up? Because these guys lie to us. They all do. Ahmadinejad and the whole administration lie. The whole regime lies. This is what you get when a country does not have a caring father. I will not vote in these sham elections. I just pray for the father of the country to come back," he says, referring in coded language to the late shah and his son Reza Pahlavi, whom supporters of imperial restoration view as the just heir to the peacock throne. | |
| "Amen to that, Asghar Agha," says a man quietly from the far corner of the room. | "Amen to that, Asghar Agha," says a man quietly from the far corner of the room. |
| But Seyyed Ghasem, who is a little younger than the others, perhaps in his early 40s, cuts in with a husky voice battered by years of water-pipe smoking. "Dream on," he says, scratching his thick black beard. "The monarchy is dead. All of the hezbollahis [principalists] will vote for Mr Ghalibaf. This has been approved from the top." | But Seyyed Ghasem, who is a little younger than the others, perhaps in his early 40s, cuts in with a husky voice battered by years of water-pipe smoking. "Dream on," he says, scratching his thick black beard. "The monarchy is dead. All of the hezbollahis [principalists] will vote for Mr Ghalibaf. This has been approved from the top." |
| In 2005, Ghalibaf reportedly boasted about wanting to be an Islamic "Reza Khan", the late shah's autocratic father, who spearheaded major socioeconomic reforms. | In 2005, Ghalibaf reportedly boasted about wanting to be an Islamic "Reza Khan", the late shah's autocratic father, who spearheaded major socioeconomic reforms. |
| "Ghalibaf is educated. He has a doctorate. He is from the ranks of the Revolutionary Guard … and he has proven to be a good planner and a manager. The only thing that I see as a problem is that he is a pilot." | "Ghalibaf is educated. He has a doctorate. He is from the ranks of the Revolutionary Guard … and he has proven to be a good planner and a manager. The only thing that I see as a problem is that he is a pilot." |
| What is wrong with being a pilot? Ghasem takes a hit off his water pipe and gestures to indicate his frustration with having to state the obvious. "Well, too much power! You have an educated person with a clear, proven military record, someone extremely popular for what he's done for the city of Tehran, supported by the religious community and business community. Being a certified Boeing 747 pilot … what will stop you from wanting it all?" | |
| Several hundred miles to the north east, in Razavi Khorasan, it is a cool night in Kashmer, a city of 80,000, just three hours' drive from Mashhad. Haj Ali is bundled up in an overcoat and jacket en route to a local supermarket to purchase a carton of milk. A rozeh khan, a singer of religious music at Shia services and rites, he has foregone the traditional clerical turban. | |
| "Who listens to us? Our votes simply don't count for much," he says. "During the shah's time, elections were no different. It's the same now. They don't bother with the normal people." | "Who listens to us? Our votes simply don't count for much," he says. "During the shah's time, elections were no different. It's the same now. They don't bother with the normal people." |
| The temperature swings quite widely in the north west this time of year. At midday, Payman, a building contractor, shades his sunburned face with an old-fashioned broad-rimmed hat as he waits for a bus on Imam Khomeini Street. | |
| "Participating in elections is our duty as citizens," he says. "I don't consider myself left or right. I just want someone to come and fix what's broken. None of the young people have jobs. I have three sons, all out of work. They had a shop, but they went bankrupt, so now I have to go back to work at 73 to put food on the table. Someone just needs to fix the broken economy." | "Participating in elections is our duty as citizens," he says. "I don't consider myself left or right. I just want someone to come and fix what's broken. None of the young people have jobs. I have three sons, all out of work. They had a shop, but they went bankrupt, so now I have to go back to work at 73 to put food on the table. Someone just needs to fix the broken economy." |
| Asked whether he thinks that the election will yield that sort of positive change around the country, he shrugs in resignation. "No, not really," he says. Why bother to vote then? | Asked whether he thinks that the election will yield that sort of positive change around the country, he shrugs in resignation. "No, not really," he says. Why bother to vote then? |
| "Well, what should I do? I mean, I guess if I decide that in the end they aren't even speaking on my behalf, I won't vote. Ahmadinejad has really been a disaster for these eight years. The period with [former president Mohammad] Khatami was much better. I pray that Khatami will run, actually. I'll definitely vote for him if he runs. But if the same old guys run, no way," he says. Khatami, the country's most prominent reformist not under house arrest or imprisoned, ultimately did not register to run; he has thrown his support behind Rafsanjani. | "Well, what should I do? I mean, I guess if I decide that in the end they aren't even speaking on my behalf, I won't vote. Ahmadinejad has really been a disaster for these eight years. The period with [former president Mohammad] Khatami was much better. I pray that Khatami will run, actually. I'll definitely vote for him if he runs. But if the same old guys run, no way," he says. Khatami, the country's most prominent reformist not under house arrest or imprisoned, ultimately did not register to run; he has thrown his support behind Rafsanjani. |
| What does Payman think about the charges that the last presidential vote was rigged to ensure Ahmadinejad's re-election? "They're absolutely right," he says. | What does Payman think about the charges that the last presidential vote was rigged to ensure Ahmadinejad's re-election? "They're absolutely right," he says. |
| And what of the presidential prospects of Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, Ahmadinejad's right-hand man? "No one will vote for him. What has Ahmadinejad even done for this country? A sack of rice from Pakistan that used to be 10,000 tomans (£2.30) is now 70,000 tomans! You couldn't pay me enough to vote for any of these people." | And what of the presidential prospects of Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, Ahmadinejad's right-hand man? "No one will vote for him. What has Ahmadinejad even done for this country? A sack of rice from Pakistan that used to be 10,000 tomans (£2.30) is now 70,000 tomans! You couldn't pay me enough to vote for any of these people." |
| Ali, a man with black hair and coarse hands, stands next to his fruit stand. "Who wants to know," he questions me suspiciously upon being asked what his plans are for the elections. | Ali, a man with black hair and coarse hands, stands next to his fruit stand. "Who wants to know," he questions me suspiciously upon being asked what his plans are for the elections. |
| "Elections are just something for you Tehranis to have fun with," he says, "We've got too many problems. People start working here when they're five and they don't stop until they're 85. Every day I'm here, from sunrise to sunset. That's my life. All I can think about is what's going to happen to me today and tomorrow. Do you think I have time to think about those guys?" | "Elections are just something for you Tehranis to have fun with," he says, "We've got too many problems. People start working here when they're five and they don't stop until they're 85. Every day I'm here, from sunrise to sunset. That's my life. All I can think about is what's going to happen to me today and tomorrow. Do you think I have time to think about those guys?" |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. | Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. Enter your email address to subscribe. | Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. Enter your email address to subscribe. |