We have the experience of the Khatami era. President Khatami got many more people out into the streets. The participation was something that had not been seen since 1979. People voted who had not voted since 1979. The result was student repression and closure of newspapers. So a space was opened, which is very important, and allowed the discourse of human rights to actually become a familiar discourse. Then it was closed down, because of course the more room you leave, the more people would want, and then, you know, we have a problem.
The problem is that if people are excited now.... These are very young people who have not lived in the 1980s or don't remember the 1980s. They see Mr. Mousavi as a newcomer. There is a strong emphasis on the fact that Mr. Mousavi was an architect for 20 years and there is talk about what he has built. He was prime minister for seven years. During his tenure, at least 10,000 people were executed. So this is no joke.
My guess is that unless there is an opening, even in the sense of a suspension of some rules and regulations that allow five people into Parliament who are not insiders and who could actually have a frank discussion within the Parliament without fearing for themselves in case of opening.... Because let's be realistic: Mr. Mousavi and Mr. Khatami, ministers of Islamic guidance for twelve years, and there are also Mr. Karroubi and all of these people. Mr. Rezai was the head of the Iranian revolutionary guards at the worst time of the Islamic republic's aggressivity outside of Iran. They are looking at the perspective of opening, thinking that the Iranian people may do to them what they did to the former regime.
Here is our problem. We need new faces. You see within the insiders of the Islamic republic that the younger generation are much more vocal about human rights and more willing to take risks, because they themselves don't feel endangered.
We have an impasse here, I think. This is not my work. My work is human rights, and I'm giving you political analysis. Remember that I am a human rights advocate, so this is what I see.