Topic: 2025 – Authoritarianism and Democracy
Country: Iran
Delegate Name: Simon Beljak
Since 1979, the Islamic Republic has been freed from the shackles of the Western practice of being burdened by a nation’s people through “democracy”. The Western idea of democracy is a bastardisation of a religion’s place in governance. Iran believes that an Islamic democracy is just as sufficient, if not more efficient. Oftentimes, the term “authoritarianism” has been used to describe this approach to governance, but this is far from the truth. The vote in Iran has a rich history that goes back to the Islamic Revolution of 1979, where the people of Iran overthrew the imperialist Shah and established an Islamic Republic on the basis of the religion’s democracy. The people of Iran now find popular sovereignty within their Mosques and government as they show up to vote every year.
Over the course of this committee, the Islamic Republic of Iran looks for its fellow delegates to understand the bias that their viewpoints may contain. Additionally, the delegation of Iran would wish this committee to keep an open mind while considering the many valid forms of government. It is often the case that nations, such as Iran,find themselves excluded from the conversation about what it means to be a free society; this is hypocritical and furthermore, undemocratic. For too long has the West sought to discredit several republics and characterize them as regimes. As of 2023, somewhere between 88-68 nations are considered autocracies (According to the “Democracy Index” from Our World in Data). Iran sees this as an issue–an issue stemming from a corrupt definition established by the rich and powerful, “Western democracies”, that have dominated the world for centuries. It is the viewpoint of Iran that while Western democracies provide opportunities for the uneducated to overthrow power as often as they please, Eastern forms of governance provide stability and safety to their people; especially those who have cultural and/or religious unity. Lest this committee forget that the people of Iran have full popular authority over all parliamentary and presidential offices.
The delegation of Iran has multiple fixes for these issues. One possible fix could be a new definition of democracy. As previously mentioned, democracy–as it is currently defined–has been closed off to developing countries. This often leads to a cycle of authoritarianism, with Western superpowers claiming to assist nations in growing democracies in their nation; in reality, this guidance is nothing short of erasing a nation’s culture and sovereignty. In order to prevent this from happening in the future, the threshold for being considered a democracy should be lowered. If nations that struggle to fully abide by Western values are punished for not eradicating their cultural heritage, then what does that mean for this body if this practice is allowed to serve as a president?
Another proposition: sovereignty. How can a nation be democratic if it is under the fist of the West? This has been seen previously in nations like Iran, where strong Western countries have dominated politics and suppressed the people. Likely, the people were able to rise up against the corruption of the West and take back their nation, but the same cannot be said for all nations. In order to prevent foreign interference in governments across the world, the Iranian delegation sees the only logical next step as a step towards the protection of the sovereign right to govern, free from the oppression of other nations. As dictated by the UN Charter, a nation has a responsibility to protect itself and its people from foreign threats. Therefore, it would be favorable for this committee to ordain new guidelines for the protection of national sovereignty from foreign meddling and further create a sustainable understanding between the nations of the world and their peoples, no matter their perceived form of government.
Sources
Middle East Institute. (n.d.). The Authoritarian Resurgence: Iran Abroad. Middle East Institute. Retrieved November 21, 2025, from https://www.mei.edu/publications/authoritarian-resurgence-iran-abroad
Tabatabai, Ariane. (n. d.). Iran’s Authoritarian Playbook the Tactics, Doctrine, and Objectives behind Iran’s Influence Operations. Retrieved November 21, 2025, from
https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Irans_Authoritarian_Playbook.pdf
Nations, U. (n.d.). About the Responsibility to Protect. United Nations. Retrieved November 21, 2025, from
https://www.un.org/en/genocide-prevention/responsibility-protect/about
Herre, Bastian. Dec. 2021. “The ‘Regimes of the World’ Data: How Do Researchers Measure Democracy?” Our World in Data. Dec. 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2025, from
https://ourworldindata.org/regimes-of-the-world-data
Economist Intelligence Unit. (n. d.). “Democracy Index.” Our World in Data. Retrieved November 21, 2025, from https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/democracy-index-eiu?mapSelect=~HRV
