democracy & iran

Iran embodies 21st-century world politics: a geriatric, Islamic, post-revolutionary, nuclear state amidst a youthful, idea-hungry, proto-democratic, networked society. Iranians - from Tehran to Los Angeles via Berlin - rethink their country’s identity and future on openDemocracy.
Thursday 5th January

Iran in the straits?

David Madden, 5 January 2012
How are recent events in Iran to be interpreted? History has a lot to teach us, argues David Madden
Thursday 22nd December

2011, Iranians and dictators

Nasrin Alavi, 22 December 2011
The selfless struggle of many brave Iranians against tyranny bestows a legitimacy that their rulers cannot match, says Nasrin Alavi.
Wednesday 2nd November

The middle east and war over Iran

Tarek Osman, 2 November 2011
The Arab world is remaking itself. But even as its states cope with multiple domestic challenges they also face a choice over how to respond to a prospective American and Israeli attack on Iran, says Tarek Osman.
Tuesday 1st November

Iran, the Arab revolts, and Syria

Sadegh Zibakalam, 1 November 2011
The Iranian leadership and official media portray the Arab spring as a “great Islamic awakening” targeted at the west and Israel. The turmoil in Syria explodes this narrative, says Sadegh Zibakalam.
Thursday 20th October

A war on Iran: the delusive logic

Paul Rogers, 20 October 2011
The arguments for and against an armed attack on Iran by the United States - or Israel - are sharpening. The increasing tension that surrounds the issue could itself precipitate a conflict that would be far lengthier than its advocates believe.
Thursday 13th October

Iran and America: components of crisis

Paul Rogers, 13 October 2011
Washington's charge that high-level Iranian cadres were planning an attack in the United States signals the real possibility of dangerous confrontation between old adversaries.
Thursday 6th October

Tehran: glimpses of freedom

R Tousi, 6 October 2011
Iranians in 2009 led the kind of street-protest that was in 2011 to inspire their Arab neighbours. Now, repression rules in Tehran. But in the textures of everyday life as much as in political or cultural currents the gulf between people and regime is evident, finds R Tousi.
Monday 20th June

Iran, fire amid ashes

Nasrin Alavi, 20 June 2011
The persecution and resistance of Iranian campaigners for democracy are part of an enduring experience that is personal and familial as well as national, says Nasrin Alavi.
Friday 27th May

Iran: an elite at war

Nasrin Alavi, 27 May 2011
A bitter dispute among Iran’s political leaders involves issues of theology, economic policy, foreign affairs, and even accusations of occultism. But at its heart is the regime’s fear of the people, says Nasrin Alavi.
Saturday 16th April

Iran's green movement: life, death, rebirth

Nazenin Ansari, 16 April 2011
The movement sparked by Iran's fraudulent election of 2009 is history. The potential exists now for a bolder and clearer opposition to emerge, says Nazenin Ansari.
Friday 18th February

Iran's resilient rebellion

Nasrin Alavi, 18 February 2011
Tehran’s ruling elite proclaims Iran’s revolutionary experience as the inspiration for the Arab insurrections, yet seeks to crush demonstrators at home. Iran’s citizens can see through the lies, says Nasrin Alavi.
Tuesday 8th February

Egypt, and the post-Islamist middle east

Asef Bayat, 8 February 2011
The portrayal of Egypt’s uprising in terms of its potential capture by Islamists is doubly misleading, says Asef Bayat: for this misses both the true character of the people’s movement and the transformation of the Arab world’s religious politics.
Tuesday 7th December

Iran: the double-edged world

Nasrin Alavi, 7 December 2010
A bitter contest over the future of Iran is taking place amid censorship, intimidation, exhaustion and - not least - the degradation of language. It is a difficult moment that raises essential issues of responsibility, says Nasrin Alavi.
Monday 15th November

Civil Resistance and the New Global Ferment: read on

15 November 2010
Tuesday 19th October

Iran's women: a movement in transition

Sanam Vakil, 19 October 2010
The women’s movement for gender equality in Iran has for thirty years been at the heart of wider political struggles in the Islamic Republic. Sanam Vakil tracks three major phases in its development and identifies the ingredients of a fourth.
Thursday 16th September

Iran: surface truths, inner lives

R Tousi, 16 September 2010
There is calm and normality to be found in everyday urban Iran. But a series of conversations reveals a more fluid picture, finds R Tousi in Tehran.
Monday 13th September

Iran, sanctions and war: fuel of crisis

Rasool Nafisi, 13 September 2010
The international sanctions on Iran reinforce conservative rule. The threat of a military attack by the United States or Israel offers no aid to democratic advance. The result is a standoff on the edge of escalation, says Rasool Nafisi.
Monday 6th September

Iran: a political calculus

Omid Memarian, 6 September 2010
Iran’s hardline leadership is skilled at using external threats to its own advantage. By learning the lesson the United States could aid Iran's people and strengthen its democracy, says Omid Memarian.
Friday 11th June

Iran in darkness and light

Nasrin Alavi, 11 June 2010
The Iranian citizens who poured onto the streets to protest the result of the presidential election of 12 June 2009 have been brutally pushed back. But under the surface the discontent simmers, says Nasrin Alavi.
Wednesday 2nd June

Brazil-Turkey and Iran: a new global balance

Mariano Aguirre, 2 June 2010
The tripartite nuclear-fuel agreement signed in Tehran is a watershed in the emerging configuration of a multipolar world, says Mariano Aguirre of the Norwegian Peacebuilding Centre.
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