On the eve of the thirteenth presidential election in Iran, while twenty-four years have passed since the beginning of reforms without any positive achievements, we are witnessing various reactions from this faction of the government. The leaders and prominent figures of the reformist movement, who have lost their interests and positions in the Islamic Republic government, have come together under the title of the reformist faction to bridge the gap between the people and the government. In fact, the reformists have reduced the people and their demands to a tool to achieve their desired goal and have appeared as brokers, taking advantage of both the government to deceive the people, and the people to gain popularity and legitimacy for their own faction, while remaining silent and accommodating towards the government in order to indirectly push the government to show minimal consideration for the people.

“Today, with the passing of twenty-four years since the birth of this movement, the reformists, who once again see themselves in a dangerous and unstable position, have resorted to different tactics and methods in order to revive the popularity they had gained through deception and manipulation among the people. This political faction, under the banner of the Islamic Republic, has become divided on the issue of participating or not participating in the presidential elections. “

The first group, by boycotting the elections, are trying to show their opposition to the integrity of the Islamic Republic government and their solidarity with the people. The second group, either by announcing their candidacy and not participating in the voting, or simply supporting this approach, are trying to show their support for the people and also giving a green light to the government, and they are standing in the middle ground. However, the third group of reformists are still defenders of the elections; either they announce their candidacy or simply play the role of advocate. In this regard, there is no significant difference with the principlists.

The second and third groups were also active in the eleventh round of the Islamic Consultative Assembly elections.

The first group, due to the widespread and ruthless massacre of people during the November 98 protests and the shooting down of the Ukrainian passenger plane, and then the suppression of protesters against the downing of the mentioned plane, which sparked widespread anger, is responsible for:
– Narrating designated parts of the people’s pain in the media
– Establishing close communication with the families of the victims, former political and ideological prisoners, and even publicly displaying it in most cases
– Consoling, calming, and burning the potential for protest that is hidden in the angry, damaged, and costly segment
– Gaining the trust of the people to use for their own benefit in future and necessary situations. It is clear that the interests of the reformists are in line with the survival of the Islamic Republic and the exploitation of the people as a tool to participate in the revolution. So the idea that this group has deviated from reforms is nothing more than a delusion. In fact, the reformists

Those who are in this group have mixed human rights and politics to the benefit of their affiliated faction in their activities over the years; human rights have given them credibility and caused their policies to be hidden and the gap between the people and this political faction to be reduced. In introducing these individuals, misleading and false titles such as “human rights activist”, “civil activist”, “women’s rights activist” and the like have been replaced with “reformist political activist”, causing the audience to be misled and delayed in understanding the true nature of their activities and policies. At times, their imprisonment and conviction due to internal political conflicts have been used as evidence to prove their false closeness to the people and their distance from the government.

One of the tactics used by reformists during the 96 elections, in which Ibrahim Raisi from the conservative faction and Hassan Rouhani from the reformist faction were rivals, was to highlight Raisi’s crimes in past decades and downplay Rouhani’s analysis and understanding by focusing on his beard style. The reformists, by concealing and remaining silent about Rouhani’s crimes, portrayed him as a popular figure with well-groomed, colorful beards and a smile on his face, while introducing Raisi as a conservative, violent and harsh individual.

The “principle of perceptual comparison” has been implemented here.

This principle has been discussed in psychology and is related to both things that are mentioned together.

The origin of perceptual comparison states that when two things are presented to us in order and one after the other, if they have a significant difference, we tend to perceive this difference to be greater than it actually is. In other words, we compare and judge everything based on our previous experiences.

In reality, the reformists, through their influential media both inside and outside of Iran, have put the people in a situation where they will inevitably compare these two rivals using insufficient information. By imposing selective information on the people, they portrayed Raisi as more dangerous compared to Rouhani and portrayed Rouhani as more benevolent compared to Raisi, in order to scare the people into voting for Rouhani and prevent Raisi’s supporters from bringing him to the presidency. While in truth, neither their past nor their performance has any difference. As José Saramago says in his book Blindness, “Fear blinds us, fear keeps us blind” and “The blind eye transfers blindness to the seeing eye.” From inside and outside of prison, they attacked the ballot boxes to increase voter turnout and ultimately succeeded in deceiving the people and dragging them to the ballot boxes.

But these four years were accompanied by massacre and suppression of the organized people and civil and political society during the presidency of Rouhani, and the shedding of blood of people in the same streets that witnessed dancing and stomping after the announcement of the results of the 96 elections. Today, reformists justify their propaganda in 96 by making superficial claims, one of which is that due to the fear they had of having Raisi as president, they campaigned for Rouhani! This justification, considering that censorship and selection of information in favor of Rouhani and his cabinet was carried out by these same reformists in every field and from every profession, including journalists, actors, singers, political activists, prisoners, civil activists, etc., and they were aware of all the hidden realities, is completely unacceptable. This is where a part of the book “Blindness” comes to mind: “I had heard that people were going blind, and after I asked myself what would happen if I also went

“Reforming demands with knowledge of the principles and methods mentioned in social psychology, including the principle of cognitive comparison that was previously mentioned, has repeatedly deceived people. Even on the eve of the thirteenth presidential election, with the division of the reformist faction into three factions, as mentioned above, the political atmosphere has become more polarized, inflamed, and exciting, and the election furnace has been heated with various gestures, whether through sanctions, advertising, or confusing the people among a multitude of positions. This is the ultimate goal of the Islamic Republic. Otherwise, not only our votes, but even our lives have no significance to the government.”

The second group attempts to steer the conversation towards gender and bring up deviant issues, in order to divert public opinion from the core opposition and fight against the integrity and sovereignty of the Islamic Republic government towards secondary and marginal issues. It seems as though they believe there is a difference between a female dictator and a male dictator!

Certainly, those who are approved for competence and ultimately appointed as president have proven their practical and intellectual commitment to the principles and ideals of the Islamic Republic. In other words, the positions of the heads of all three branches of government, and even lower positions within each branch (such as judges and representatives in parliament), are appointed, and the position of the head of the executive branch is no exception to this rule. These individuals have played a fundamental role in suppressing and committing crimes before and after coming to power in the Islamic Republic, and have played a role in the oppression and tyranny of the people, and today they are rewarded for their tyranny against the people and in favor of the government. If we see that the other candidates in the twelfth presidential election, with the majority of reformist Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Ebrahim Raisi, Es’haq Jahangiri, Mostafa Hashemi-Taba, and Mostafa Mir-Salim, who have been approved

Even without investigating their background, it can be concluded that these individuals, based on their qualification approval in the 96 presidential election, have been and are loyal to the government and in some way, after years of oppression and injustice in order to preserve the Islamic Republic, deserve rewards from the government and with the seats entrusted to them, there is no doubt in this claim.

Furthermore, the return of Ebrahim Raisi to the presidential election scene with previous planning and letters and requests with thousands of signatures to invite and beg him shows news of conspiracies and secret agreements.

Although there are countless examples available, the writer has refrained from mentioning other details in order to avoid length and excessive elaboration in the text.

So, the debate over the gender of the president or certain individuals who have a long history of committing and supporting multiple crimes against the people, have they transformed and undergone a fundamental change in their thoughts and actions, and is it possible to trust them again or not, these discussions are futile, pointless and harmful to the people, which causes the government to find opportunities to prolong its rule from one decade to another and extend its lifespan.

Although I believe that paying attention to local elections is not irrelevant, as people have declared their serious opposition to the integrity of the Islamic Republic by shedding their blood and cries in the streets over the past years. However, due to (first) the misuse of election boycotts by reformists as a tool to deceive people into pretending to join the people’s side, (second) the tricks used to heat up the election oven and efforts to preserve both the people and the government in the direction of party political interests, and (third) the excessive time and energy spent by the media and the involvement of public minds in this issue by reformists and oppositionists, there was a need for a general review. Otherwise, “Where there is no freedom, if voting could change anything, they wouldn’t allow you to vote.” (From Mark Twain; American writer)

It is evident that the effects of these approaches in relation to post-presidential election do not end and continue to heavily influence the thoughts and actions of the people for years, even after a revolution and change of regime. One of the least damaging consequences of not having free elections in the long run is creating a sense of hopelessness and despair in the possibility of having an impact on their own fate and that of the country, as well as hindering civil methods and activities and reducing people’s trust in the foundation and basis of elections and similar processes for achieving change and realizing their rights.

It is expected of all activists and analysts to engage in enlightenment by staying away from the fiery and emotional atmosphere and to evoke admiration for history, although undoubtedly a difficult and challenging path lies ahead.
“-Tomorrow I will tell them that I am not blind.
-I hope you won’t regret it.
-Tomorrow I will tell them.
He paused and then added, unless I also enter their world at the last moment.” (Excerpt from the book “Blindness”)