Iran

[Shahab3]

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.iranmania.com/news/050804a.asp">http://www.iranmania.com/news/050804a.asp</a><!-- m -->

Iran's president says democracy only way to secure Islamic republic

TEHRAN, Aug 4 (AFP) - Iran's reformist President Mohammad Khatami, increasingly isolated following the ouster of his allies from parliament, launched a fresh attack on his hardline rivals Wednesday by urging them to respect democratic values.

"The more laws and regulations are overlooked, the more the country will be prone to aggression by the enemy," the president was quoted as saying by the state news agency IRNA.

The prevention of an "enemy" attack "can only be materialised through free elections, freedom of expression, being open to criticism, law abidance by the authorities and respecting the citizen's and human rights," he said.

"Power cannot be achieved without reliance upon public opinion," added the embattled president, speaking during a constitution conference in the northwestern city of Tabriz.

Khatami, whose second and final term in office ends in June 2005, has become increasingly frustrated in his bid to deliver "Islamic democracy" to Iran due to opposition from his more powerful hardline rivals.
...