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Iran's Shamkhani "Candidate Of Equilibrium"
TEHRAN, May 22 (News Agencies) - Iran's defense minister and presidential hopeful, Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani, described himself Tuesday as the "candidate of equilibrium" between the reformist faction of incumbent President Mohammad Khatami and the country's conservatives.
"I am a force for equilibrium," the 45-year-old Shamkjani said during the first press conference in his bid to outpoll Khatami and eight other candidates in the June 8th election.
"I do not see justice in the ideas either of the leftist tendency or of the right, but there are things worth taking from each side, and the people are calling for a synthesis."
"I am in favor of that which is just in what the people want," including "firmness and good management" of the country's affairs, he said, making an unspoken swipe at Khatami for having failed to show this in his four years in office.
While describing the president as his "most sincere friend," Shamkhani nonetheless said it was necessary to "act with concrete measures, not with slogans" and "partisan management."
And the very first point in his 17-plank campaign platform was to call for "political stability" in the country.
This was the first time since the beginning of the presidential campaign last Friday that Shamkhani, whose candidacy came as a surprise, had spoken out against the president.
Commenting on Shamkhani's challenge, political scientist Iraj Rashti said nothing coming from the conservative camp seems to worry Khatami.
"But the campaign by Shamkhani, a young and blunt-spoken man, could rattle Khatami, if he allows himself to be drawn into the firing line of the race that is about to begin."
"Iranian politics is tending toward the center, and excludes all extremists," Rashti said. "Khatami and Shamkhani both fall into this category."
While identifying with the reformist spirit of Khatami, Shamkani refused to criticize steps taken by the conservative-dominated judiciary over the past year to silence most of the reformist press.
There is a need for "responsibility" in the press and for the definition of a "preventative management of liberties" he said, appearing to criticize both journalists and officials.
He also took issue with Khatami and his supporters for failing to "utilize the enthusiasm" of their 1997 victory, in which the president received 70% of the vote.
"Our team wants the country to make use of all of its talents," he said, noting the high rate of unemployment among the young, which he alleged was a factor for insecurity.
"We are going to create five million jobs in four years, for 10 million youth," he claimed.
"We are counting on the votes of those who have had enough of queuing up for buses, who do not want to fight with others in order to live," Shamkani said.
Rejecting being classified as a "professional military man," Shamkani said he joined the armed forces to defend his country against Iraq at the beginning of the 1980s.
"And who has ruled that a cleric can stand for election, while a soldier cannot?" he asked, alluding to Khatami and other past and present candidates.
At the same time, he spoke out firmly against a military government, expressing regret for the fact that 80% of the governments in the Middle East are military.
He also rejected being classified as a conservative.
"I am totally independent," he said, "not belonging to any group."
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