A one-day conference was held at Durham University, north-east England, comparing Iranian democracy with the Western system. Professor Anoush Ehteshami welcomed the delegates and participants to the latest in a Ferdowsi Lecture Series jointly presented by the Cultural Centre of Iran (UK) and Durham’s Centre for Iranian Studies. Professor Charles Melville from Cambridge University examined the right to rule and power in Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh. Shahnameh relates the mythical and historical past of Persia from the creation of the world up until the advent of Islam in the 7th century. Professor Mohammad Rasekh from Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran examined the nature of Islamic Republicanism in Iran since the 1979 revolution gave birth to a new constitution. He outlined the basic structure and principals of Iran’s constitution, including the importance of leadership. The elements of republicanism, he said, eliminate any kind of despotism, while administrating the country’s affairs by public votes. Visiting professor at the Centre for the Study of Democracy at the University of Westminster in London Ali Paya examined the compatibility of various models of liberal democracy with similarly diverse models of religious democracy.
IRANIAN DEMOCRACY AKIN TO WESTERN SYSTEM
A one-day conference was held at Durham University, north-east England, comparing Iranian democracy with the Western system.
