Ex-president's daughter opposes religious rule, supports nukes for Iran

Some of Iran's Reformist politicians have recently called for a secular government; a notion that is in sharp contrast with the religious governing system that has been ruling in Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

The most recent case is Faezeh Hashemi, a former Reformist lawmaker and daughter of a former Iranian president, who was recently released from prison in Tehran after serving part of her sentence for supporting the 2022 protests. In a YouTube interview this week, she said, "I am against religious government," and asserted her belief that "Iran needs to have nuclear bombs."

The Reformist movement, which emerged in Iran at the turn of the century, simply aspired for more respect for the rule of law, more democracy and less dogmatic rigidity, but it was considered to be part of the Islamic Republic.

Faezeh Hashemi, the outspoken daughter of former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, was a leading member of Iran's fifth parliament [1996-2001). She was popular for her ideas about women's social liberties at the time and later. She was also the publisher of the daily newspaper Zan [Woman], which was banned by the Islamic government in 1999.

Most of the issues she discussed in the interview turned out to be controversial. According to Rouydad24 website, which is a relatively moderate source, only she could have been expected to express such views.

Hashemi remarked that "The stage for the latest presidential election was orchestrated to guarantee Pezeshkian's victory." She added that, "Khamenei and Pezeshkian have reached an agreement to address some of Iran's fundamental issues."

Recommending major changes, she commented, "I believe the Iranian political system should change its doctrine about domestic political issues and some foreign policy matters about the region."

However, in a statement somewhat at odds with her reformist views on domestic politics, Hashemi declared, "I believe in possessing a nuclear bomb. While the world has embraced nuclear deterrence, why should we deprive ourselves of it?"

On a key foreign policy issue, she said: "We have to maintain relations with the United States and that will be made possible only through opening our embassies in each other's countries."

Explaining her political leanings, she said, "Like my father, I am a conservative who wants reforms." She also claimed that her father's death during an afternoon swim in January 2017, while under the watch of several IRGC officers, "was not due to natural causes." Additionally, she remarked, "I have heard that former President Raisi's family suspects his death in a 2024 helicopter crash was suspicious."

In a highly controversial statement that contradicts Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's narrative about enemies conspiring against the Islamic Republic, Faezeh Hashemi declared, "I absolutely do not believe in enemies!" She also expressed her opposition to the imposition of religion and compulsory hijab on women, stating, "I wear hijab myself, but I support women who choose not to."

In another significant development last week, prominent reformist commentator Abbas Abdi questioned the commitment of Islamic Republic officials to the concept of a religious government. Writing in Etemad newspaper, he stated, "Republics are founded on the people's vote. What happens if the people say they no longer want a religious government?

Criticizing the ideas of Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, the ideological architect and patron of ultraconservative groups like the Paydari Party, which advocate for an Islamic government over an Islamic Republic, Abbas Abdi wrote: "In Iran’s current system of governance, if a significant portion of the population openly opposes a religious government, the country’s religious leader would be compelled to confront them and impose the religious government and its laws by force."