[新聞] Young Iranians raise voices for change
標題:Young Iranians raise voices for change
By Anna Fifield in Tehran
Published: June 11 2009 22:31 | Last updated: June 11 2009 22:31
新聞來源:http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/eb877092-56c6-11de-9a1c-00144feabdc0.html (須有正確連結)
Unimaginable slogans have rung out across the squares of Tehran and other
Iranian cities this week.
“Ahmadi, bye bye,” young people have chanted in huge public demonstrations
against Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, the firebrand president seeking re-election on
Friday, and in favour of the moderate Mir-Hossein Moussavi, his strongest
challenger.
This election campaign has exposed faultlines in Iranian society that are
usually kept under wraps by restrictions imposed on young people, turning
today’s vote into a referendum on Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s controversial
presidency.
Already a divisive figure abroad, partly because of Iran’s nuclear
ambitions, Mr Ahmadi-Nejad has polarised public opinion at home. Hundreds of
thousands of young people are taking to the streets every night to show that
the Iran they want to live in is quite different from the president’s vision
for their country. About 60 per cent of Iranians are under 30.
The election race is being fiercely contested as Mr Ahmadi-Nejad faces a far
stiffer challenge from Mr Moussavi than was predicted just a few weeks ago.
If none of the four candidates takes more than 50 per cent of the vote today,
the top two will go forward to a second round next Friday.
Many of the people who say they will vote for Mr Moussavi, a dour
68-year-old, in fact appear to be voting against Mr Ahmadi-Nejad.
“It’s unreasonable and emotional I know, but I just want to bring down
Ahmadi-Nejad,” says Ali-Reza, a 29-year-old businessman who says his main
concern is Iran’s standing in the world.
“I’m proud of being Iranian and I have strong nationalist ideals, but he
has damaged Iran’s reputation.”
Critics have attacked Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s foreign and economic policies and
complained that his government has tightened restrictions on society, while
those deemed to be most committed to Islamic revolutionary ideals have
prospered.
Popular resentment boiled over this week, with young supporters of Mr
Moussavi calling the president a liar to his face.
“Some people think that Ahmadi-Nejad is trying to change Iran to be the way
he wants it to be, and that way is opposite to what young Iranians want,”
says Azar, a 37-year-old hairdresser.
Mr Ahmadi-Nejad does command some support among the young, but they tend to
be from poorer backgrounds or outside the big cities.
Regardless of the election result, the question now is: what will happen to
all this energy that has been unleashed over the past few weeks?
Some Iran-watchers say it cannot easily be put back in the box. Others,
however, fear that a sudden loosening of restrictions will be followed by a
clampdown as the state reasserts its control.
A defeat for Mr Ahmadi-Nejad – he would be the first incumbent to lose –
could lead to a backlash against reformists. But Mr Moussavi’s fans would
be disappointed if their popular movement failed or was not allowed to
succeed.
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