Iranians began voting today after an unusual campaign season wound down
Thursday, one that was defined by a field of candidates who all emphasized
moderate platforms aimed at reforming the system and yet was also marred by
extraordinary violence.
There were 12 bombings in the days before Iran's presidential election, killing more than 10 people and wounding dozens more. A campaign office was set on fire, seriously injuring at least one volunteer.
People were beaten while campaigning and posters were torn down, and on Thursday, a day before voters went to the polls, the departing president warned of a dirty tricks campaign aimed at undermining the race.
President Mohammad Khatami said in a letter quoted by the official news media, "It seems there is an organized movement to hurt the glorious process of the elections."
Without identifying who was behind that movement, Mr. Khatami said in the letter that he was referring to the "disruption of gatherings, beatings, illegal pamphlets and spreading lies to ruin candidates' reputations regardless of political inclination."
Iranians are accustomed to their share of political violence, with clashes between riot police and demonstrators a nearly routine part of this country's discourse. But the explosions, which have taken place across the country, have raised concerns that political extremists have escalated their tactics.
Some of the conservatives, who control the all-powerful religious arms of the government, have accused the United States of sending in proxy "mercenaries" to suppress voter turnout and embarrass the Islamic-based government.
But a rising chorus of reformers have blamed extremist conservative forces for the violence. Polls show that the conservative-backed candidates are not expected to do well in the elections today, and that they may not even make it into a runoff election, if one is required.
"We have never had security issues in the country before the elections," said Saeed Laylaz, a political analyst and journalist who has written for several reformist newspapers. "We must see who is losing the game in the last minute. It seems that somebody does not like what will happen on Friday."
Leaving little doubt who he suspected was responsible, he added, "The conservatives have lost the game." The bombings have also underscored the tensions that rest just beneath the surface here, where anxiety and fear exist side by side with the images of a democratic election process. Protesters were beaten by baton-wielding riot police on Thursday for chanting antigovernment slogans while seated in a public park. A witness said the protesters had been chanting about freedom when the riot police roared up on motorcycles and on foot and charged the crowd. The witness was a security guard at a shop across the street - who looked out the door to see what
was happening and was also beaten. "The police came and beat people
indiscriminately," said the man, who did not give his name for fear of reprisal.
There are seven candidates in the race for president - an eighth withdrew Wednesday - and the front-runner is considered to be Ali Akhbar
Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former two-term president who has run as a moderate
pragmatist.
Dr. Mostafa Moin, a reform candidate who was initially barred from the race by religious conservatives, has surged and may have moved into second place, political commentators say. None of the candidates are expected to draw more than 50 percent of the vote, the amount needed to win outright, so the contest is expected to be decided in a runoff scheduled for the following week. Supporters of Dr. Moin say the violence around the country increased as their candidate's prospects improved.
"It is all politically motivated," said Issa Saharkhiz, an adviser to Dr. Moin, in an
interview at his campaign headquarters. "The situation changed when the polls
showed Dr. Moin in second place, and that the conservatives will not go to the
second round."
Many reform-minded voters, those who turned out in record numbers to elect Mr. Khatami in 1997 and again in 2001, had been expected to boycott this election, opening a door for conservative candidates. But late in the race, Dr. Moin's candidacy suddenly became credible, and his opponents began to fear that those who had been considering a boycott would instead come out to vote. The theory among some of Dr. Moin's supporters is that the explosions were aimed at keeping those voters home.
Dr. Moin's campaign was further unnerved on Thursday by a fire it said had been set in a campaign office in the small town of Hormoz, near the Persian Gulf, seriously
injuring a volunteer. Saeed Shariati, a reporter with the newspaper Iqbal, which
supports Dr. Moin, said he had confirmed reports that party officials had said
they were sure it was arson.
The interior minister, Abdolvahed Mousavi Lari, said in a news conference on Wednesday that the bombings were not all directly linked and that only the first blasts, in Ahvaz, near the Iraqi border, were carried out by a "professional terrorist group" that had contact with people overseas. He said there had been some arrests made in that case and that more were expected. He did not give any more details.
As for the rest of the explosions, he said, investigators have concluded there was a
political element involved - though he did not say who was responsible.
