Power and Change in Iran Politics of Contention and Conciliation [Hardcover]

This volume provides an unparalleled and timely look at political, social, economic, and ideological dynamics in contemporary Iran. Through chapters on social welfare and privatization, university education, the role and authority of the Supreme Leader, the rule of law, the evolving electoral system, and the intense debate over human rights within and outside the regime, the contributors offer a comprehensive overview of Iranian politics. Their case studies reveal a society whose multiple vectors of contestation, negotiation, and competition are creating possibilities for transformation that are yet to be realized but whose outcome will affect the Islamic Republic, the region, and relations with the United States.

Note on Transliteration

Introduction: Politics of Contention and Conciliation in Irans Semi-Autocracy
Daniel Brumberg and Farideh Farhi

PART I. The Contested Terrain
1. Economic Privatization, Factional Politics, and Regime Transformation
Payam Mohseni
2. Social Welfare Policies and the Dynamics of Elite and Popular Contention
Kevan Harris
3. Education as Public Good or Private Resource: Accommodation and Demobilization in Irans University System.
Shervin Malekzadeh

PART II. Institutional Evolution
4. The Office of the Supreme Leader: Epicenter of a Theocracy
Mehrzad Boroujerdi and Kourosh Rahimkhani
5. Electoral Politics, Power, and Prospects for Reform
Yasmin Alem

PART III. Political and Ideological Challenges
6. The Rule of Law and Conflict in the Reform Era
Mehrangiz Kar and Azadeh Pourzand
7. The Green Movement and Political Change in Iran
Fatemeh Haghighatjoo
8. This Government Is Neither Islamic nor a Republic : Responses to the 2009 Post-Election Crackdown
Shadi Mokhtari

Epilogue
Daniel Brumberg and Farideh Farhi

Selected Bibliography
Contributors
Index