Iran

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Iran

Constitution Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad First Vice President Parviz Davoodi Assembly of Experts Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani Majlis of Iran (Parliament) Ali Larijani Guardian Council Ahmad Jannati Expediency Council Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani Judicial system of Iran Mahmoud Shahroudi Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili City and Village Councils Military of Iran Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar Ministry of Intelligence and Security Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejehei Ministry of Petroleum of Iran Gholam Hossein Nozari National Iranian Oil Company Agriculture of Iran Mohammad Reza Eskandari Central Bank of Iran Tahmasb Mazaheri Elections Recent: Experts (2006), Local (2006) Legislative (2008) Provinces (ostānhā) Counties (shahrestānhā) Political parties Foreign relations

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The Guardian Council of the Constitution^[1] (Persian: شورای نگهبان قانون اساسی) is the upper chamber within the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. The politics and government of Iran takes place in the framework of a Republic with an Islamic ideology The Constitution of the Islamic Republic The post of Supreme Leader ( Persian: رهبر انقلاب Rahbare Enqelab, lit (fa علی حسینی خامنه‌ای born 17 July 1939 also known as Ali Khamenei, is an Iranian Azeri politician and cleric The President of Iran is the highest elected official in the Islamic Republic of Iran, second only to the Supreme Leader. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (محمود احمدی‌نژاد; born October 28, 1956) is the sixth and current President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Vice President of Iran is defined by article 124 of the Iranian constitution, as anyone appointed by the President to lead an organization related to the Presidential Parviz Davoodi (پرويز داوودي Parviz Dâvudi) (born 1952 in Tehran) is the current First Vice President of Iran (since September 11 The Assembly of Experts (also Assembly of Experts of the Leadership) of Iran ( Persian: مجلس خبرگان رهبری Majles-e-Khobregan or Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani ( Persian:اکبر هاشمی رفسنجانی Akbar Hāshemī Rafsanjānī) Hashemi Bahramani The Majlis of Iran ( Persian: مجلس شورای اسلامی lit Ali Ardashir Larijani (علی اردشیر لاریجانی born 1958 is an Iranian philosopher politician and the chairman/speaker of the Iranian parliament. Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati Massah ( born 1926 in Esfahan) is an Iranian Ayatollah and political figure. The Expediency Discernment Council of the System ( is an administrative assembly appointed by the Supreme Leader and was created upon the revision to the Constitution Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani ( Persian:اکبر هاشمی رفسنجانی Akbar Hāshemī Rafsanjānī) Hashemi Bahramani A nationwide judicial system in Iran was first implemented and established by Ali Akbar Davar and some of his contemporaries such as Abdolhossein Teymourtash under Reza Ayatollah Seyyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi (آیت‌الله سید محمود هاشمی شاهرودی (Born 1948 in Najaf, Iraq) is an Iranian Supreme National Security Council (شورای عالی امنیت ملی is the National Security Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the current secretary of Saeed Jalili, also spelled as Said Jalilee, Said Jalili and Saiid Jalili ( born 1965 in Mashhad) is an Iranian politician and the City and Village Councils (full title is Provincial City District and Village Councils are local councils which are elected by public vote in all cities and villages throughout The Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran (نيروهای مسلح جمهوری اسلامی ايران include the IRIA (ارتش جمهوری اسلامی Mostafa Mohammad Najjar ( is the defense minister of Iran. At 49 he is a veteran of the Revolutionary Guards since the establishment of the body in 1980 where he The Ministry of Intelligence and National Security ( Persian: وزارت اطلاعات و امنیت کشور Vezarat-e Ettela'at va Amniat-e Keshvar) is the Hojjatol-Islam Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejeie (born in the Isfahan province circa 1956) is the current head of the Ministry of Intelligence in Iran The Iranian constitution prohibits the granting of petroleum rights on a concessionary basis or direct equity stake Gholam Hossein Nozari is the present Minister of Petroleum (or Oil Minister) of Iran. The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC under the direction of the Ministry of Petroleum of Iran, is an Oil and Natural gas producer and distributor headquartered Roughly one-third of Iran 's total surface area is suited for farmland but because of poor soil and lack of adequate water distribution in many areas most of it is not under cultivation Mohammad Reza Eskandari is the Minister of Agriculture of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran (بانک مرکزی جمهوری اسلامی ايران Bank Markazi Jomhouri Islami Iran) is the Central bank Iran elects on national level a Head of government (the president) a Legislature (the Majlis) and an " Assembly of Experts " (which The Iranian Assembly of Experts election of 2006 was held on December 15, 2006. The Iranian City and Village Councils election of 2006 took place on December 15, 2006. Legislative elections for Majlis of Iran were held on 14 March 2008, with a second round held on 25 April 2008. Iran is subdivided into thirty provinces ( Persian: استان ostān, plural استان‌ها ostānhā) each governed from a local center The provinces of Iran further subdivided into counties called shahrestan ( Persian: شهرستان shahrestān) an area inside an ostan List of political parties in Iran Political parties in Iran gives information on the political parties in Iran. Foreign relations of Iran refers to inter-governmental connections between Iran and other countries Information on politics by country is available for every Country, including both De jure and De facto independent An upper house is one of two chambers of a Bicameral Legislature, the other chamber being the Lower house. The Constitution of the Islamic Republic For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. ^[2]

The Iranian constitution calls for the council to have twelve members: six Islamic jurists, "conscious of the present needs and the issues of the day to be selected" by the supreme leader, and six jurists, "specializing in different areas of law, to be elected by the Majlis from among the Muslim jurists nominated by the Head of the Judicial Power,"^[3] (who, in turn, is also appointed by the supreme leader). The post of Supreme Leader ( Persian: رهبر انقلاب Rahbare Enqelab, lit The Majlis of Iran ( Persian: مجلس شورای اسلامی lit A nationwide judicial system in Iran was first implemented and established by Ali Akbar Davar and some of his contemporaries such as Abdolhossein Teymourtash under Reza The post of Supreme Leader ( Persian: رهبر انقلاب Rahbare Enqelab, lit ^[4][5]

The council has considerable power. It is charged with interpreting the Constitution, ^[6] supervising elections of, and approving of candidates to, the Assembly of Experts, the President and the Majlis (Parliament),^[7] and "ensuring . The Constitution of the Islamic Republic The Assembly of Experts (also Assembly of Experts of the Leadership) of Iran ( Persian: مجلس خبرگان رهبری Majles-e-Khobregan or The President of Iran is the highest elected official in the Islamic Republic of Iran, second only to the Supreme Leader. The Majlis of Iran ( Persian: مجلس شورای اسلامی lit . . the compatibility of the legislation passed by the Islamic Consultative Assembly [i. e. Majlis] . . . with the criteria of Islam and the Constitution", i. e. deciding whether to veto laws passed by the parliament. ^[8]

Contents 1 Legislative functions 2 Judicial authority 3 Electoral authority 4 Members 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

Legislative functions

The Guardian Council does not introduce bills. Bills are introduced in the Majlis; but any bill passed by the Majlis must be reviewed and approved by the Guardian Council,^[9][10] The Majlis has no legal status without the Guardian Council. The Majlis of Iran ( Persian: مجلس شورای اسلامی lit Majlis (also spelled Majalis or Mejlis, Arabic مجلس is an Arabic term meaning "a place of sitting" used to describe various types of formal ^[11]

The Guardian Council holds veto power over all legislation approved by the Majlis. It can nullify a law based on two accounts: being against Islamic laws,^[12] or being against the constitution. The Constitution of the Islamic Republic While all the members vote on the laws being compatible with the constitution, only the six clerics vote on them being compatible with Islam.

If any law is rejected, it will be passed back to the Majlis for correction. The Majlis of Iran ( Persian: مجلس شورای اسلامی lit If the Majlis and the Council of Guardians cannot decide on a case, it is passed up to the Expediency Council for a decision. The Expediency Discernment Council of the System ( is an administrative assembly appointed by the Supreme Leader and was created upon the revision to the Constitution ^[13]

The Guardian Council is uniquely involved in the legislative process. Chapter 6 of the Constitution explains its interworkings with the Islamic Consultative Assembly. Articles 91-97 all fall in the legislative Chapter 6.

The members of the Guardian Council may reject bills in the Majlis according to Article 96. Majlis (also spelled Majalis or Mejlis, Arabic مجلس is an Arabic term meaning "a place of sitting" used to describe various types of formal

Judicial authority

The Council of Guardians also functions similar to a constitutional court. A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with Constitutional law. The authority to interpret the constitution is vested in the Council;^[14] interpretative decisions require a three-quarters majority of the Council. However, it does not conduct a court hearing where opposing sides are argued.

Electoral authority

All candidates of parliamentary or presidential^[15] elections, as well as candidates for the Assembly of Experts, have to be qualified by the Guardian Council in order to run in the election. The President of Iran is the highest elected official in the Islamic Republic of Iran, second only to the Supreme Leader. The Assembly of Experts (also Assembly of Experts of the Leadership) of Iran ( Persian: مجلس خبرگان رهبری Majles-e-Khobregan or The Council is accorded "supervision of elections". ^[16][17]

The guardian council interprets the term supervision in Article 99 as "approbation supervision" (Persian: نظارت استصوابی)^[18] which implies the right for acceptance or rejection of elections legality and candidates competency. This interpretation is in contrast with the idea of "notification supervision" (Persian: نظارت استطلاعی) which does not imply the mentioned approval right. ^[19] The "evidentiary supervision" (Persian: نظارت استنادی), which requires evidences for acceptance or rejection of elections legality and candidates competency, is another interpretation of mentioned article. ^[20][21]

Members

Its members are composed of Islamic clerics and lawyers. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. ^[22] Six members of the Council are clerics selected by the Supreme Leader, who serves as Iran's Head of State. The post of Supreme Leader ( Persian: رهبر انقلاب Rahbare Enqelab, lit Head of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a Monarchic or Republican Nation-state ^[23] The other six members are lawyers proposed by head of the judicial system of Iran^[24] (selected in turn by the Supreme Leader), and voted in by the Majlis. A nationwide judicial system in Iran was first implemented and established by Ali Akbar Davar and some of his contemporaries such as Abdolhossein Teymourtash under Reza ^[25] Members are selected for six years on a phased basis, so that half the membership changes every three years.

The Supreme Leader has the power to dismiss the religious members of the Guardian Council. ^[26]

Chairman of the council:

• Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, deputized by the lawyer Abbasali Kadkhodai
  

Other cleric members are:

• Sadegh Larijani
• Mohammad Reza Modarresi-Yazdi
• Mohammad Momen
• Gholamreza Rezvani
• Mohammad Yazdi
  

Other lawyer members are:

• Mohammad Reza Alizadeh
• Ebrahim Azizi
• Gholamhossein Elham (spokesman)
• Mohsen Esmaili
• Abbas Ka'bi

See also

• Criticism of the current electoral system
• History of political Islam in Iran

References

External links

• Detailed article on the Guardian Council from Encyclopaedia Iranica
• The official website of the Guardian Council (in Persian)
• Photos of members from official website (in Persian)
• Guardian Council Holds Great Power in Iran Voice of America
• Iran's Silent Coup 12 January 2004

Encyclopædia Iranica is a project whose goal is to create a comprehensive and authoritative English language Encyclopedia about the history culture and Voice of America ( VOA) is the official external radio and Television broadcasting service of the United States federal government.

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