Freeing Green Movement leaders is losing value as trump card for Tehran
While the Iranian political establishment could once have energized the disheartened public via the release of the detained Green Movement leaders, such a step is no longer likely to have the same impact it once would have had.
In February 2011, Iranian opposition figures Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi — leaders of the Green Movement protests that followed the disputed 2009 presidential election — were placed under house arrest. Now, for the first time, there is serious talk about their potential release. There are also reports that former Reformist President Mohammad Khatami (1997-2005) will soon meet with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
These reports come as Iran is grappling with increased foreign pressures on the one hand and sporadic domestic protests over the worsening economy on the other. Although the reports are being quickly rejected from various quarters, those in favor of lifting the house arrests as well as lifting restrictions on Khatami — including being banned from appearing in media — say these potential measures could unify the country.
Mousavi and Karroubi were detained in February 2011 following their request to hold a public gathering in support of the uprising in Egypt. The political establishment interpreted their request as an attempt at instigating “sedition.” Subsequently, security forces confined both men to their homes without any trial ever being held. Four years later, in February 2015, Iran’s judiciary also tightened restrictions on Khatami, banning all media outlets from mentioning his name or publishing his images due to his support for Mousavi and Karroubi.
Many figures, including several notable members of the establishment, have opposed these moves. At the top of this list is Ali Motahari, an outspoken lawmaker who has on numerous occasions criticized the house arrests and other restrictions, calling them “illegal.” President Hassan Rouhani is another such critic. In the run-up to the 2017 presidential election, Rouhani told his supporters in the northwestern city of Tabriz that if he secured enough votes, he would try to end Mousavi and Karroubi’s house arrests. This had been among the primary demands of Rouhani’s supporters even during his first presidential campaign back in June 2013, with such calls being issued during student gatherings or in speeches by members of parliament.
