"There Will Be an Explosion"

Iran's self-exiled former Prime Minister Shahpour Bakhtiar talked with TIME Correspondent Sandra Burton in Paris last week about his country's present and future. Among Bakhtiar's views:

On the boycott of last week's election.

It is extremely useful that the democratic groups--the petite bourgeoisie, the liberals, the center-left organizations and some religious leaders--stayed out. It shows that an important part of the intelligentsia and even the clergy do not approve of this system of government. People just realized that it is useless to vote because, absolutely beyond doubt, the results could be known before the election.

On what voters should be offered.

A referendum [should be held] that would allow them to choose between a constitutional monarchy and a republic--not an Islamic republic, but a republic as defined by the present constitution.

On the present government.

The country is disintegrating. It is on the edge of economic catastrophe. It is necessary that the Ayatullah Khomeini open his eyes and see that he has been mistaken, that he has arrived at an impasse. He is blocked on absolutely every route, but he is a man who cannot change his mind, and he has no conception of modern economics and politics. Nothing will change him. If he does change his mind, he will be unable to govern any more. But if he does not, he will not be able to do anything either. He is at an impasse, so I think that, alas, there will be an explosion.

On whether a violent confrontation can be prevented.

It is necessary to wait some months longer to see if Khomeini can be led to understand that he can do nothing.

On who will be Tehran's next leader.

When the country is not as crippled as it is now on the economic and social levels, there will be someone who will move. I don't know who it will be, but there will be someone.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.