The Iranian way

The Jakarta Post   |  Tue, 06/23/2009 11:27 AM  |  Opinion

It appears political developments in post-election Iran have nearly reached the extent of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, historically the country’s most tumultuous internal period. The number of deaths and arrests have reportedly continued to rise since the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,  endorsed the June 12 election results, effectively backing the reinstatement of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to govern the oil-rich country for another four years.

So explosive and unexpected was the response of the protesters against the election outcome that perhaps the Iranian government should reconsider its repressive approach toward all those who resist their control. Can the Iranian ruling elites, including Ayatollah Khamenei and Ahmadinejad, resist the ever-growing groundswell of protests? How should the Iranian government respond to those opposition movements?

There is no one global solution to resolving political problems and disputes, and this goes for the Islamic republic as well. It is the Iranian elites — and the people — who know best what approach will bring about an end to the protests and election disputes.

Iran could perhaps learn a lesson or two from certain nations who have endured similar uprisings in the past.

The first lesson could perhaps come from Indonesia. Having only entered the  global democratic community a decade ago, Indonesia was lucky, in one sense, that the transfer of power in May 1998 did not collapse into all out civil war. While the riots that ensued nationwide led to the deaths of more than 1,000 people, Soeharto was eventually willing to resign amid pressure, particularly after the then Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI) refused to comply with a shoot-on-sight order against student protesters reportedly issued by the president. Indonesia has since then been moving toward democratization.

A second lesson could be found in the 1989 Tiananmen protests in China. Even though the Chinese government managed to crush the resistance movements, reportedly killing more 2,500 people across the nation and remaining powerful today, freedom of expression and speech remains a seriously curtailed right in the world’s most populated nation. Iran cannot completely reject all global trends and progressions, such as the shift toward democracy the world over. Otherwise, Iran will fall into backwardness, isolated from international development and relations.

Again, there is no one-size-fits-all formula for political problems. But at least Iran could choose an appropriate example from the many worldwide, modify it to their own traditions and values, and apply it for its own good. Otherwise, it may have to undergo a breakdown in society on the scale experienced by so many other nations in the past.

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