Lords of the Blog » Iran

The Middle East

Lord Soley — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 20:52:10 +0000

There are some deeply worrying reports coming from the Palestine/Israel talks in the US. Simon Tisdall writing in the Guardian today (Tuesday 5th October) suggests the talks are likely to end in failure.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/oct/04/israel-palestine-peace-collapse

It is getting hard to see how we can maintain even a semblance of peace in the region especially as other Arab states are now arming against Iran. The dangers of a nuclear threat are real.

Absent without leave

Lord Soley — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 23:02:39 +0000

July was a particularly heavy month for me so I have been absent from the blog. I will now try and make up for lost time during August – it might enable some of my more industriuos colleagues to take a well earned rest!

Throughout this time I have been watching the increasingly authoritarian regime in Iran struggling to justify its abuse of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani – the woman who was sentenced to death by stoning. The regime seems to have accepted that stoning was barbaric but they are still considering a death sentence for adultery! What age are they living in?!

Amnesty International is continuing its campaign on her behalf and the greater the pressure from the rest of the world the better. Many people in Iran do want the rule of law and democracy but this wretched regime then lurches back into mindless dictatorial brutality. Sad to see the seat of a once great civilisation reduced to killing women for having sex outside marriage.

Home education and Iran

Lord Soley — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 22:07:34 +0000

I have spent some time reading the comments on the post concerning home education. I still have some more background reading to do but it has been useful. I think that some of the comments are unnecessarily aggressive and do not add to the argument. Hotly disputed issues like this need cool heads. I will consider taking part in the debate and I will also consider coming to a meeting as suggested by some of the posts.

I also worry about some of the comments on my Iran post. What is happening in Iran is part of the challenge of the 21^st century. It is about democracies with the rule of law and more authoritarian societies. There is a danger in a number of western countries where a significant minority of people seem to equate countries which have the rule of law and democratic processes with the authoritarian regimes. Anyone who thinks there is equivalence should try living in a dictatorship – it is a very sobering experience. That is why we should be clear about giving moral support to the opposition in Iran.

Iran the Green Revolution

Lord Soley — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:21:03 +0000

There seems to be growing external and internal support for the green revolution in Iran. This is the latest site I have found promoting the internal resistance.

http://www.li.com/

Thoughts for the year

Lord Norton — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 16:33:36 +0000

Both Houses of Parliament are among the busiest legislative chambers in the world. 2008 has been a busy one for the House of Lords, though no more than usual. Some of it activities have attracted media attention – as over the defeat of the proposal for detention without charge for 42 days – but they are very much the exception. Most of the work of the House comprises detailed scrutiny of bills – as well as scrutiny of government’s actions and proposals – with most of the amendments to bills being achieved by agreement and not by division. Much concerns detail which is not likely to attract much attention outside Westminster. As a result, many people have little knowledge of the House, though that lack of attention does have some benefits. It means there can be a constructive dialogue, ministers knowing that any concessions they make will not be emblazoned in the next day’s press as government u-turns.

What is in store for us in 2009? As I previously mentioned, the legislative load is not a large one, at least not on the face of it, though we will be busy with some omnibus bills. What will be more to the fore, I suspect, will be the issues on which we will doubtless be having a range of ministerial statements. Given the economic and international situations, Treasury minister Lord Myners and Foreign Office minister Lord Malloch-Brown will be busy at the dispatch box. We have the benefit that both are well qualified in their respective fields. Given the membership of the House, the questioning will be informed. It is a depressing thought, though, that in addition to the economic crisis, there remain various critical situations in different parts of the globe. The danger is that as one dominates the headlines, the others tend to decline in public consciousness. When the House resumes, we will doubtless have statements on the situation in the Middle East as well as in Afghanistan. Other troublespots include Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of Congo (on which we had a debate shortly before the Christmas recess), Iran, and Burma. There is also the strained relationship between Pakistan and India. Regrettably, the list is not exhaustive.

Though we get little attention, I hope our discussion of such situations will nonetheless contribute to ensuring that none of the issues fades from the political agenda. We are a scrutinising chamber. I hope very much that we remain a vigilant one.

Second chambers

Lord Norton — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 17:07:45 +0000

Second chambers are remarkable for a number of reasons. Most countries don’t have one, though they are common in federal states and Western nations. Though a minority taste, and often controversial, they can serve useful purposes and a number of developing countries and new democracies have established, or are considering establishing, them. The proposal for a second chamber has had a favourable reception, for example, in the Iraqi Parliament. Next month, I am taking part in a seminar with some members of the Iraqi Constitutional Review Committee to examine the creation of a second chamber.

Indonesia is an emerging democracy that established a second chamber in 2004. Various members of the chamber attended the Workshop of Parliamentary Scholars and Parliamentarians at the weekend: they were keen to learn from experience elsewhere. One interesting feature that they highlighted was that the second chamber was not clearly identified in their constitution, even though it had been brought into existence. I was able to point out that in this respect they were not unique. There are various nations, as well as the European Union, that are unicameral according to their constitutions yet have a body that has all the characteristics of a second chamber. They include Botswana (the House of Chiefs) and Iran (the Guardian Council). Conversely, there are some nations where the constitution provides that the legislature is bicameral but where they have not got round to establishing the second chamber. Reading constitutions will not therefore provide a completely accurate guide to the number of second chambers that exist.

In the UK, the House of Lords may prove an issue of some contention but at least it does constitute a clearly designated second chamber.