IranTightens Rules For Presidential Candidates

This news updete by www.zeenews.com


Tehran: Iran's Parliament on Sunday tightened the rules for people wishing to run for President, setting age limits and strict educational criteria in a bid to deter frivolous candidacies.

The move comes ahead of a presidential election set for June 12 next year, when incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is expected to seek a second four-year term.

As in the old law, the amended version did not mention women. In 2005, none of the 89 women out of the 1,000 people who registered as prospective candidates was allowed to run.

Only seven men were allowed to compete for the post in 2005, when Ahmadinejad won.

Under the amendment to the electoral law, candidates must be aged between 40 and 75 and hold the equivalent of a master's degree from a university or seminary. The old law did not set age limits or the need for a diploma.

Applicants must be Iranian citizens, loyal to the Islamic republic and be Shiite Muslims, the law says.

Ahmadinejad criticised

Iranian newspapers are reporting that 60 economists criticised President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over his economic policies.

In a letter published today, the economists complain that the government's "tension-making interaction with outside world" has deprived Iran from foreign investments.

The economists also criticise Ahmadinejad for Iran's 30 per cent inflation rate.

The letter is the third one from economists to Ahmadinejad. The president never formally answered the others in 2006 and 2007.

Some say Ahmadinejad's efforts to inject liquidity into the economy to create jobs led to higher inflation.

About 80 per cent of Iran's foreign revenue comes from oil exports amid a fall in oil prices due to a worsening global economy.


Via news
.