Reformist Politician: Standing with the People will be Rafsanjani’s Legacy

The death of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has sparked extensive discussions about what the Islamic Republic will be like without him. Many people have expressed worry that Iranian politics will gravitate more toward the hardliners, that pressures against the leaders of the Green Movement will worsen, and that their house arrests will drag on.

IranWire asked Ardeshir Amir Arjomand, a senior advisor to Green Movement leader and former presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi and spokesman for the reformist Council for Coordinating the Green Path of Hope, to give his impression of what will happen in the aftermath of Rafsanjani’s sudden death.

He warns that if Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei chooses a hardliner to succeed Rafsanjani as president of the Expediency Council, then all government institutions will come under the sway of hardliners and the political atmosphere will be further radicalized. At the same time, he also points out that Khamenei cannot ignore the response of the Iranian people — and the fact that hundreds of thousands of people went out on the streets to mark his passing and attend his funeral. 

Considering that in recent years Rafsanjani was a supporter of reformists and moderates, many are apprehensive about what an Iran without Rafsanjani will look like. Many believe that these groups will no longer have a reliable and effective supporter. How do you see it?

The passing of Mr. Rafsanjani is a big loss for the Iranian political community, and especially for those who have been trying to open up Iran’s political and social atmosphere. So condolences to all supporters of democracy, supporters of Mr. Hashemi Rafsanjani and to his family are in order.

I believe that what went on today in the streets of Tehran [during Rafsanjani’s funeral] can defeat the authoritarians’ plans to weaken reformists, supporters of change and the Green Movement. This will upset their schemes. There is no doubt that the absence of Mr. Hashemi, who was an important factor in keeping the political balance and in supporting reformists and the Green Movement, is a big loss. But what happened today should put an end to many worries. His presence since 2009 was a boon to people. Today, his death united people in the streets.

Will his death lead to structural changes in Iranian politics? Many believe that Mr. Rafsanjani’s death could change the balance of power to the benefit of the authoritarians and the hardliners. They say it could further radicalize Iranian politics.

Only Mr. Khamenei can make this decision. Mr. Rafsanjani was the president of the Expediency Council and this council plays an important role. It will definitely go that way if Mr. Khamenei appoints someone who supports the hardliners to succeed him. One can say that at present, except for the institution of the presidency, over which Mr. Khamenei cannot have full control, the only institution run by moderates and reform-minded people is the Expediency Council. And if it is trusted to somebody from the opposite side, then all institutions will be under their control. But we must not forget that there is one fact Mr. Khamenei cannot ignore: the outpouring of grief from the Iranian people. This will most certainly affect his decisions.

What about the house arrests? It has been said that Mr. Rafsanjani was the one with enough influence at the top to bargain and intervene to end the incarcerations. How much was this actually dependent on him? Will things change now that Rafsanjani is gone?

Mr. Hashemi was one of the people who from 2009 took a firm position [on house arrests] and never strayed from it. And he was attacked because he remained firm. Twice he was the target of a failed assassination attempt. The first time was early after the revolution by the [terrorist] Furqan Group. The second time was the attempted character assassination by the authoritarians, which also failed — as we witnessed today.

Despite all the slanders against him since 2009, he stood firm. And he did what he could about the house arrests. But Mr. Khamenei has decided. The house arrests will continue —  meaning that nothing out of ordinary is going to happen. But this does not lift the responsibility from the shoulders of others. The president and members of parliament must seek an end the house arrests. If they do their duty, positive results are bound to follow. And today [January 10] people in the streets demonstrated that they still care about these questions, and that they want the house arrests to be lifted.

Some people have looked at comments made by both Khamenei and Rafsanjani and concluded that Rafsanjani’s legacy is that he obeyed the supreme leader. What do you think Mr. Rafsanjani’s legacy will be for Iran?

Anybody’s record is composed of positive and negative points. Nobody would expect Mr. Hashemi’s positions to exactly match ours or the positions of others. Hashemi was Hashemi, but his positions made a difference, good or bad. He stood his ground when things happened and played a positive role. I believe that since 2009, he played a totally positive role and tried to defend the people’s rights.

As it happens, I believe that the true legacy of Mr. Hashemi is that he stood with the people and defended their rights. That is why people bade him farewell with such respect. He stated clearly and explicitly that the legitimacy of the government comes from the people. The legacy of Hashemi is [to show] the necessity of standing with the people and also by acting rationally when governing, reducing tensions and avoiding extremism.

Besides people who mourn Rafsanjani or are worried about Iran’s future, there are those who have expressed joy at his death. They point to instances such as Mr. Hashemi’s role in the executions of the 1980s, the Mykonos terror attack [when four members of the opposition were assassinated in Berlin in 1992] or his silence in the face of the house arrest of Ayatollah Montazeri. Do you believe that Mr. Rafsanjani’s record in the past few years can compensate for his behavior and decisions during the revolution and in the 1980s?

Everybody is entitled to his own analysis. No doubt you can criticize anybody’s record. But some people only point to unpleasant events and do not see the positive. Mr. Hashemi was instrumental in giving balance to the system as a whole and, since 2009, he played an indispensable role. We don’t have anybody like Hashemi who had the courage to stay on his 2009 positions. He has rendered very valuable services during this period.

In my view, what is essential is the high esteem bestowed on him in the end. I believe what we witnessed today in the streets during his funeral was the truth of people’s feelings toward Mr. Hashemi.