Pakistani scholars here Friday welcoming upcoming presidential election in Iran said that democracy is flourishing in Iran without any difficulty. Talking to IRNA separately they viewed that process of election in Iran is very much a democratic one.
The Chairman of Mass Communications Department of Allama Iqbal Open University, Dr. Syed Abdul Siraj is of the view that democracy in Iran is very impressive, compared to the democracies obseved in other parts of the Muslim world.
He opined that the rule of law and social equality are the two main factors that make Iran a truly democratic state.
“The elections in Iran have always taken place on time”, Dr. Syed Abdul Siraj said. “Iran is a strong progressive state”, he added.
Expressing his views on Pakistan-Iran relations he said that Iran has always supported Pakistan in difficult times. “Our friendship is based on historical, religious and cultural grounds”, he said.
“I believe that Iran will forget the mistakes of Pakistani dictators and will continue to strengthen the bilateral ties”, opined Dr. Syed Abdul Siraj.
Mahmood-ul-Hassan Butt, assistant professor of international relations in, Quaid-e-Azam University, too, told IRNA that democracy in Iran has become a precedent for the Muslim countries.
“Iranian democracy is different form the western democracy but it has been supported by the Iranian nation”, he stated.
Mahmood-ul-Hassan Butt added that the Iranian people have given the power to choose the Presidential candidates to their elders.
He said that the candidates in Iran are free to conduct their election campaigns within the parameters of the Constitution.
“There was some tension in the Pak-Iran relations in the past but that doesn’t mean our relations were not friendly; there could be tension even between two brothers”, viewed Mahmood-ul-Hassan Butt.
He added that Iran is a major country of the region and the Afghanistan’s problems cannot be solved without the help of Iran.
Butt said there are some security problems at Pak-Iran border but there is no major issue between Iran and Pakistan. “The relations of Pakistan and Iran will even flourish to a greater extent in the future”, he hoped.
He asked the leadership of both the countries to take more concrete steps to strengthen Pakistan-Iran relations in economic and trade fields.