TEHRAN, Iran- President Mohammad Khatami marked the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution on Saturday by accusing his hardline opponents of harming Iran's image abroad and trying to block Iranians' hopes of freedom and democracy.
The reformist Khatami hit out after months of silence in the face of a conservative campaign which has resulted in the jailing of many of his allies.
"Rigid-mindedness is a main threat to the revolution and the Islamic republic," he told a crowd of tens of thousands gathered in a Tehran square to celebrate the 22nd anniversary of the revolution that toppled the pro-Western Shah.
"Those who claim a monopoly on Islam and the revolution, those with narrow and dark views, are setting themselves against the people," the president said.
"They are putting (religious) values against the wishes of people, religion against freedom and disregarding the rights of people," he added. "They seek to suppress views that are not in agreement with their own narrow and dark views.
His speech came a day after several hundred people, mainly youngsters, held an anti-government demonstration in Tehran to call for greater freedom of speech.
A police official said security forces had arrested 50 protesters during the rally, but denied witnesses' reports that some demonstrators had been injured in clashes with Islamic militiamen.
Khatami said his opponents' attitude "portrays an ugly image of our populist government before the international community and disappoints our people.
"Let us have faith in our people and acknowledge their central role in running their political affairs. Let us pave the way for them to express their views in a free and safe atmosphere," he said.
Iran's judiciary, run by conservatives, has closed more than 30 pro-reform newspapers in the past year, accusing them of trying to undermine the Islamic system.
The campaign has pushed Khatami and his reform programme to the sidelines, leaving many young people, a driving force behind his 1997 landslide election, disenchanted.
05:36 02-10-01
Copyright 2001 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.