Two years after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which ended monarchical rule and established religious democracy in Iran, the country’s Parliament, or Majlis, adopted a law aimed at setting the stage for the implementation of the Constitution’s Article 26.
The law defines a “political party, society, association, political organization” as “an organization that has a manifesto and charter and is established by a group of individuals committed to a specific ideology and political thought.”
In the early years following the historic 1979 Revolution, political parties were divided into the right wing and the left wing.
That initial division was merely in the economic sense, amid disagreements between the two sides on how to the run country’s economy and achieve economic growth based on different interpretations of the Constitution’s Article 44, which defines three different sectors of the Iranian economy.
Today, over 240 political parties and associations are authorized to operate. Most can be neatly defined as either Principlist or Reformist, themselves rather broad political demarcations that have lived in the Iranian political terminology since the 1990s.
Other groups and individuals are also active on the country’s political stage as Moderates and Independents.
Principlists
Formerly referred to as the Right or the Right-wing, the Principlists are one of the main two political factions of post-Revolution Iran.
They advocate safeguarding the ideological principles of the Islamic Revolution led by late founder of the Islamic Republic, Imam Khomeini, which say politics and religion are inseparable.
The Principlists support a minimized government role in the economy to the extent mentioned in the Constitution. They view the globalization of economy with skepticism and argue that the Western powers are the main beneficiaries of the liberal international economic system.
In foreign policy, the Principlists put special emphasis on retaining the hard-won independence from foreign countries, expecting the authorities to follow a more rigid approach in harmony with the Revolution’s ideals in handling international affairs.
Reformists
The Reformist camp was born out of the left wing in the late 1990s. The members describe themselves as a front that seeks to execute the constitutional rights of the people and works toward enhancing political freedom.
In their foreign policy approach, the Reformists opt for a promotion of interaction with the international community based on Iran’s national interests.
Some Principlists criticize the Reformists for having liberal economic tendencies.
Moderates
The term “Moderates” emerged in 2013, when the then-candidate and now-president Hassan Rouhani began his election campaign for presidential office.
Although the Moderates project themselves to be neither Principlists nor Reformists, they are widely believed to be leaning toward the left wing.
The Moderates advocate employing diplomacy, using a softer tone on the international stage, and refraining from using harsh rhetoric.
Source: Press TV