Rouhani’s opponents take aim at concerts
The continuing controversies surrounding the holding of concerts in Iran appear to have less to do with Islam and more to do with the country’s upcoming presidential vote.
Repeated concert cancellations over the past year have turned into a real headache for moderate President Hassan Rouhani, who in his 2013 election campaign pledged that he would address cultural issues.
In August, Mashhad’s ultra-conservative Friday prayer leader, Ahmad Alamolhoda, defied the Rouhani administration as he prevented singers from performing in the holy city. Amid strong opposition from the hard-liners, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati folded and stated, “Considering the existence of the [8th Shiite] Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, the holding of concerts has some opponents, including the dear representative of the supreme leader to [the province of] Khorasan Razavi. We respect his opinion, and despite the fact that the concerts posed no problem, we are dissuaded from holding concerts there.”
