The Majlis had been working its way methodically through the controversial bill article-by-article when Speaker Ali Larijani intervened last week.
Larijani said changes made thus far in the first 26 articles of the bill would impact later articles. So he pulled the bill from the floor and sent it back to the Social Committee to review again. After some debate, the Majlis voted to give the committee three full months in which to conduct its review.
While some deputies publicly supported Larijani’s unusual action, others spoke out in strong 
Zohreh Elahian, a deputy from Tehran, complained that Larijani’s action might actually kill the bill since elections are due to be held in 10 1/2 months and all legislation not completed by the time the Majlis adjourns for the elections will die.
Elahian said, “The Majlis may not be able to review the bill again in the months remaining, and this may be exploited by the foreign media to hatch their ominous conspiracies to take advantage of NGOs.”
Elahian, who is one of the sponsors of the legislation, said the “foreign media” have been angry about the bill because it would foil efforts by “seditionists” to use Iranian NGOs to confront the government. “Seditionists” is the regime term for the Green opposition movement.
Under the legislation as drafted, all civil society organizations would require a license to be issued by a new government board to be chaired by the Interior Ministry and comprised of representatives from the Intelligence Ministry, Pasdaran, Basij, Judiciary, Foreign Ministry, police and other state bodies.
NGOs currently operating in Iran would have to seek a license in order to continue in operation.
Larijani moved to suspend action on the bill just days after 10 international rights groups and Iranian Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi jointly assailed the legislation.
Amnesty International and another rights group, Arseh Sevom, have described the bill as “another nail in the coffin of freedom of assembly and association” and the “death of civil society in Iran.”
NGOs are not free to operate in Iran even now. They already require a license from the Interior Ministry, which announced last week that it had just licensed another 3,000 NGOs. The Interior Ministry said the State Welfare Organization, Islamic Propagation Organization and National Youth Organization were also authorized to issue NGO licenses. That licensing procedure is not in the law but was established by a cabinet order issued in 2005 shortly after President Ahmadi-nejad took office.
Many countries require NGOs to register, but do not require them to get a license. In the United States, anyone can form any organization without a license or even registration required. The only restrictions in the United States come when an organization wishes to raise money as a charity under which contributions are tax deductible; that requires a permit from the Internal Revenue Service. But organizations that are not charities and don’t seek special tax status are under no state control.
The 10 groups that came out earlier this month in opposition to the legislation are: Amnesty International, Arseh Sevom, Education International (EI), Hivos, Human Rights Watch, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, the Iranian League for the Defense of Human Rights, and the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.
Civil society organizations affected by the law range from human rights, environmental and women’s organizations, through charities and organizations for the disabled, to employers’ and professional associations. Political parties, trade unions and the Bar Association are regulated in Iran by other laws.
Ebadi said, “Despite the fact that Article 26 of the Iranian Constitution permits the formation of associations, we have already seen how the heavy hand of the authorities has cracked down on NGOs engaged in human rights work and capacity building. For example, the office of the Center for Human Rights Defenders, which I co-founded, was shut down illegally, with impunity, in 2008 and remains closed. Now the authorities are seeking to ensure that no organization exists which can challenge their view of society in any way – including by prohibiting scrutiny of the conduct, and misconduct, of government officials.”
Among the articles of the draft bill already passed is Article 6, which provides for the formation of a Supreme Committee Supervising NGO Activities, which will include representatives from the Intelligence Ministry, the police, the Basij, the Pasdaran and others, but will have only one member representing NGO interests. The committee will be empowered to issue and revoke registration permits for all NGOs, and have ultimate authority over their boards of directors.
Article 12(d) was also passed. The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran says this requires that demonstrations must be “non-political” and will only be permitted if authorized by the Supreme Committee.
Another article that would have provided for government assistance to NGOs was not approved.
The critical organizations and Ebadi expressed particular concern about two notes to Article 12 that have been approved by the Majlis. These prohibit all contact with international organizations without prior permission, including membership in international organizations, participating in training sessions or meetings abroad, signing contracts or memoranda of understanding and receiving funds or other aid from international organizations.
The critics argue that the draft bill runs counter to both Articles 26 and 27 of the Iranian Constitution and violate the internationally recognized rights to freedom of association and peaceful assembly set out in Articles 21 and 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
In a statement, the 10 organizations said, “Through this law, the Iranian authorities are seeking to isolate Iranian activists from the world at a time when they and the rest of the world are reaching out to each other. Civil society is not a threat, but a resource. Iranians do not want to be muzzled in this way, but rather wish to reach out to the global community and to share their experiences with others, in the hope that the world will become a better place for us all.”