1979 Iranian constitutional referendum
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Do you approve the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran ? | |||||||||||||||||||
Results | |||||||||||||||||||
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A constitutional referendum was held in
The referendum was held by the
A day before the referendum, when the mourning of Ashura was practiced, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini said those who will not vote tomorrow, will help Americans and desecrate Shohada (Martyrs).[5]
Alongside Islamic Republican Party, the communist Tudeh Party of Iran urged people to vote yes, expressing its support for "Imam's line";[6] while Freedom Movement of Iran requested a yes vote on the grounds that the alternative was an anarchy.[5]
Others, including leftists, secular nationalists and Islamist followers of
Background
In 1907, a supplement to the constitution (fundamental law) was adopted, and some aspects of European constitutional law that were found to be inconsistent with Shia doctrine were accommodated without any attempts to develop Islamic fundamental laws at that time.[8]
In March 1979, the Pahlavi dynasty was overthrown, and an Islamic republic was established following the Iranian Islamic Republic referendum.[9] On April 1, 1979, the 2,500-year-old Persian Empire in Iran came to an end, with Ayatollah Khomeini declaring it as the first day of a "Government of God." He emphasized the need to ratify a new Constitution.
On January 12, 1979, an election for the
The Assembly of Experts continued its deliberations until November 15, 1979, and ultimately, the new Islamic constitution received approval from at least two-thirds of the representatives.[10] In June 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini made minor adjustments to the draft constitution and stipulated that it should be subjected to a referendum.[8]
New constitution
The proposed new constitution would make Iran an Islamic republic, introduce direct elections for the presidency, create a unicameral parliament, and require any constitutional changes to go to a referendum.[11]
The new constitution was codified according to Shia Islam. Therefore, there was an appendix in which verses of Quran and traditions were cited in support of many articles. Among the applied changes was a chapter on leadership replacing a chapter on monarchy. Two chapters about foreign policy and mass media was added. Some articles from the previous constitution were preserved, such as equality before the law (Articles 19–20); guarantees of the security of life, property, honor, and domicile (Articles 22, 39); freedom of opinion and choice of profession (Articles 23, 28); the rights to due process (Articles 32–36) and to the privacy of communications (Article 25); and a requirement for public deliberations of the Majlis under normal circumstances (Article 69), as well as parliamentary procedure and definition of the rights and responsibilities of the ministers of the Majlis (Articles. 70, 74, 88–90).[8]
Party policies
Position | Organizations | Ref |
---|---|---|
Yes
| ||
Islamic Republican Party | [5] | |
Freedom Movement | [12] | |
Tudeh Party | [6] | |
Boycott
|
National Front |
[13] |
National Democratic Front | ||
Muslim People's Republic Party | [14] | |
People's Mojahedin Organization
|
[5] | |
People's Fedai (Majority) | [5] | |
People's Fedai (Minority) | [5] | |
People's Fedai Guerrillas | [5] | |
Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan | [15] | |
Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan | [15] |
Results
Choice | Votes | % |
---|---|---|
For | 15,680,329 | 99.5 |
Against | 78,516 | 0.5 |
Invalid/blank votes | 111 | – |
Total | 15,758,956 | 100 |
Registered voters | ~22,000,000 | |
Source: Nohlen et al.[3] |
References
- ISBN 978-1-134-29488-6.
- ISBN 978-1-85743-132-2.
- ^ ISBN 0-19-924958-X.
- ISBN 9780813349947.
- ^ ISBN 9781850430773
- ^ ISBN 9781434982926
- ISBN 978-0521528917.
- ^ a b c Arjomand, Amir. "CONSTITUTION OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC". iranicaonline.
- ISBN 9780549835035.
- ^ JSTOR 4326018.
- ^ Iran, 3 December 1979: Constitution Direct Democracy (in German)
- ISBN 978-0-521-48498-5.
- ISBN 9780190468965
- ISBN 9781134077601.
- ^ OCLC 61425259.