Factions and Political Pluralism (draft #1)

            At first glance the political factions in Iran seem very similar to the United States. For the most part they have a biofactional policy between the conservatives and the radicals, also known as  liberals. Like the United States these two groups are in constant battle with each other. One group wants the country to keep old traditions and beliefs and the other loves to embrace change. Although, the amount of power that the group who is dominant is given is the huge difference between these two countries. The Liberals had an upper hand in government control, until Ayatollah Khomeini, the leader of the Islamic public, sided with conservatives after 1992 elections. As a result, the conservatives took complete control of the government.    

Western influence had been instilled in the Iranians for half a century, and Khomeini’s goal was to recapture Iran as a Muslim country. To achieve Khomeini’s goal, what he had to do was destroy this western value system. Most of the conservatives were in the older generation and the major supporters were the ministries and their religious leaders. The main point was to revert back to older, post revolutionary days. This means that a lot of things we consider to be a part of the modern day society were discouraged. Cultural freedom was so feared that censorship was a huge part of this transition. Unlike the liberals who believe Education and the arts was a major part of society the conservatives thought the opposite. There are two groups of conservatives so beliefs do vary but most put an emphasis on religious dedication and war participation instead of education.

When the minister was replaced by Ali Larijani in the summer of 1992, attacks on the intellectual community started increasing. A lot of authors were arrested and newspaper and publishing houses were closed. On a television program called Huvayyat, intellectuals were even portrayed as foreign spies. Khomeini even gave a speech targeting what universities teach. He demanded that they have more of an Islamic emphasis on the curriculum. The liberal’s response to all of this was very defensive, but because they do not really have a say in the government, they were limited to news paper and magazine responses. It is unclear how long the conservative power will be so dominant. Although the ongoing battle between the liberals and conservatives is likely to continue for generations to come.