Tell us more about the standard of living in your country.
I can assure you that the standard in Iran is different from the one in Bulgaria. In recent years the average expectation of life rose (over 70). The trust in a better life also. About 90% of the Iranians are covered by insurance companies, state or private. In Bulgaria after the changes in the field of economy the social strata are sharply differentiated. The difference between rich and poor in Iran is also conspicuous owing to the reforms.

If this can be a criterion, at the home of any Iranian family you can find everything from the white machinery and in the fridge there is diverse food for at least a week. When you go visiting you will be offered a plate of fruit, and the various meals which are prepared for three persons, for example, will be at least for thirty for variety and to show the goodwill of the hosts.

Maybe this is indicative of the good economic state of the Iranians but we are trying to raise the standard of living and bridge the gap between the social strata.

The aim of the revolution was to attain justice for everyone and this was a revolution of the poor and not of the rich. We are still working on reducing the number of the poor in future and raising the standard of life.

What are the basic values established in Iran after the changes, especially in the government of the country?
The information disseminated about Iran is not completely trustworthy, some facts are greatly exaggerated. We defend our Constitution, the structure of the state machine. The Iranian people is of ancient culture and history, we have many messages to the world and humankind. Our civilization originated 3000 years BC. Unfortunately, in many places Iran is presented as a backward country with poor conditions of life.

We made the revolution aiming to create a structure of government in which justice is inscribed. As in the developed countries in the world, the countries of Europe, we have principles, which we try to defend. Our model is a liberal-democratic form of government. The freedom we aspire to corresponds to the level of our culture. The work of all reformists in Iran comes down to maximum observation of the Constitution. Democracy, the rule of the people is envisaged in it. Act No 6 reads that freedom is a basic right. Act No 56 provides that the supreme power is God and He himself gives people authority to govern. Therefore, no one can repeal this authority. Act No 9 specifies that the freedom and sovereignty of the country cannot be threatened and freedom shall not be used as a weapon and vice versa – exert pressure on the people through it.

The President, parliamentarians and the supreme spiritual leader are elected by the people. In the last 26 years we had elections at least once a year. The election of the spiritual leader is almost like the election of the US president. It is done by indirect voting, the voters have an electoral card. The people elects our parliament so that it, in turn, elects the spiritual leader.

The main problem of the reformists at present is the acts of the Constitution are enforced incorrectly and at places they are freely departed from. Our goal is to make a full and accurate picture of these laws and provide opportunities for their enforcement. The power of the ruling and the methods for this are to abide by the Constitution and for the people to have power over the ruling force. If we achieve this goal, our spiritual leader will have the powers set forth in Act 110 of the Constitution. It reads that he is responsible before the law, like any ordinary citizen. Second after him comes the president of the country, and he is elected directly by the vote of the people. The president is obliged to observe the Constitution and is in charge of the executive power. He is responsible before the spiritual leader, parliament and the ordinary citizens.

Another important feature of our democracy is that the parliamentarians are elected by the people and they can propose a vote of non-confidence for the president. In the Constitution it is written that the people is entitled to impose its will on the policy of the state and express its opinion. There is a special act to this effect. The people has the right to manifest its dissent by lawful demonstrations or public protests. It can give its opinion on the governing through the MPs. Every MP is responsible before the whole nation and is entitled to give his opinion freely on all aspects of politics. No one has the right to exert pressure on him for voiced views or standpoints, although the category of people who do not apply the Constitution correctly have tried to suppress some parliamentarians. Thus, for example, during my previous mandate I appeared before the judge 13 times for words I had said, I maintained my thesis and was exculpated every time.

We have a committee in parliament called the Ninetieth Committee, called after the act of the Constitution which enables the people to express their dissatisfaction with the ruling – from the supreme spiritual leader to the lowest in the administration. Complaints can be lodged in this committee and its task is to consider them.

We had a law that read that if public servants use force and deprive the population of its constitutional rights, they may be removed. During my previous mandate I entered a bill as a supplement of this law, giving greater powers to the courts to follow these processes. The bill was passed with majority. It was also voted that all statesmen from the whole system of government would be responsible under this law. It envisages violators to be banned from government positions and prison term of up to 5 years.

I believe that the delay in the reforms is owing to the threats which are addressed to our country from outside factors. These are all the threats of the imperialists after the revolution, the embargo imposed by the USA, and the war that went on for eight years not at our will. At the moment, since we are still working on the reforms, the threats coming from the USA suppress and not stimulate the processes of change. A large part of our efforts are invested in fighting these threats and this takes up our potential and slows down the reforms. But I believe that the basic right of every country will be observed, the preservation of its sovereignty. Regretfully, it is alleged that we are against peace in the Middle East, that we seek war, that we do not respect human rights, do not respect the role of women in society, we make attempts to make nuclear weapons. All these accusations are absolutely untrue and hinder our development.

I will stress that present-day Iran is much more developed and my words are not affected by my feeling of patriotism. I insist that all who are interested come and see these changes and I promise them they will be pleasantly surprised.

Juliana Tomova