Issue not Between Constitutional Monarchy and Republic: Parviz Varjavand

One of late Dr. Parviz Varjavand's best penned essays on the issue of constitutional monarchy and Republic in Iran:

[...]Unfortunately, Iran today is at the very starting point that it was 150 years ago in its constitutional movement. Today’s Iran desires an open society, due process of law and the comprehensive rule of law which would provide all citizens the right to determine their own future. The nation longs for a Parliament that seats their true representatives who have been directly elected by them. Today, a 12-man appointed group (Guardians Council) gives itself the right to deny people their right to choose their own representatives. The Council presents some names to the public who are forced to choose ‘representatives’ from amongst them. With this arrangement, one can easily say that they the rulers not interested in elections in the true sense of the word or in people determining their own future through their representatives.

We have the same problem in electing a president. In fact in all the elections that have taken place in Iran, the rulers have closed the door for the participation of legitimately popular individuals. So the most important issue for Iran today is not about republicanism or monarchy. We are only at the start of a process that began 150 years ago and which produced a constitution in the early years of the 20th century. In practice, the movement was not allowed to continue its natural path. So it is natural for the Iranian nation today to be passing the monarchial stage and pursuing republican goals.
Members of the First Majlis (October 7, 1906 — June 23, 1908).

It is very doubtful that we shall return to the model that we already once had. This is so because one of the characteristics of a republic is that it provides for a greater circulation of power among those who desire to be involved in running the country. We must have a system that allows all qualified individuals to examine social issues within the context of 2 or more political parties and let’s them compete to choose a winner to rise to power. The minority shall not be denied its right to criticize.And this is not something that we have today.

One can even argue that today we are actually worse off than we were 150 years ago. Even in those constitutional days and under those half proper governments, everybody had the opportunity to participate in government and reach senior and important political positions. So as we celebrate the centenary of the constitutional movement, the desires and dreams of the Iranian nation are the same ones that they had 150 years ago, and it was hoped and believed that the 1979 revolution would provide them. Unfortunately, today we have lost much of what we had gained during this long struggle. Government is in the hands of a specific and monopolistic group and the principle of choosing the best for running the nation has been completely pushed aside. Today we witness that our Sunni compatriots that comprise some 15 million individuals are treated like 2nd or 3rd class citizens. We witness how the best faces of this land are driven out and disperse around the world, where they provide their services and knowledge. Those that remain are set aside by the powerful. Government is in the hands of a small few who are blocking the progress of the majority. So the dreams of the Iranian nation today are really the same ones that existed 150 years ago.

Women of Constitutional monarchy...No hejab and no tent covering them.(Source)