اندیشمند بزرگترین احساسش عشق است و هر عملش با خرد

Monday, September 16, 2024

Iranian Revolution and Islamic Regime

Much has been said and written about the Iranian revolution, which has been going on for four and a half decades. The Islamic Republic under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini came out of this revolution, and it has ruled and mismanaged all the country's institutions until today. People of Iran, the majority of whom voted for the Islamic Republic, are now so annoyed by this regime that they wish for its destruction every second. But there is no other alternative to replace this disgraced regime. 

Iran 1979: the Islamic revolution that ...

During the time of the Shah, an organization called SAVAK was launched to protect the imperial regime, whose taeget was mainly Leftist and Nationalist forces. Since the Shah had been chosen by the Allies to rule Iran, from the beginning of his rule, i.e. after the end of the Second World War and by the recommendation of victors of the war, he had created the SAVAK organization in order to control the opposition, specifically the Left and the Nationalists. At the end of WWII, all three Allied leaders namely Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin, were more interested in the continuation of the monarchy and considered it a traditional form in Iran. It should be noted that the reason for Reza Shah's exile from his rule was his allegiance to the Nazi regime. In order to facilitate Germans’ attack on Soviet Union, Reza Shah constructed a railway line from the south to the north of Iran. Therefore, in a conference in Tehran, Allies decided to exile Reza Shah and replace him with his son Mohammad Reza. Hence, from the beginning, Shah of Iran had no choice but to follow the orders of the West, first of England and then of the United States.

Western governments, especially the United States and England, gained a lot from Iran, especially oil, which was called “black gold”. Western governments backed the Shah continuously and fiercely, and they created SAVAK in order to prevent any free thought and the possibility of any opposition. As soon as this organization weakened during  the months before the revolution, the revolutionary forces arose. For the west, as long as the Shah was useful, they supported him, and as soon as his expiration date  became evident, they began supporting Khomeini. This policy is true for all the leaders who prefer the benefits of the West to their own country’s, and there are so many of such leaders.

As we witnessed in the year 1979, the West came to the conclusion that the Shah no longer was beneficial to them, they became determined to overthrow him. But during his reign, they not only supported him, but were also very active in pushing back his opposing forces. At the beginning of his reign, the Shah fought against three forces, which with the help of the West completely destroyed the first two, and subjugated the third group. These three opposing groups were Nationalist and Leftist forces, and mullahs.

The National Front, which was founded in 1949 under the leadership of Mohammad Mossadegh, Hossein Fatemi and Karim Sanjabi, was very popular. In March 1952, under prime minister Mossadegh, the Shah decided to travel outside of Iran, and invited Mossadegh to the palace to say goodbye. After leaving the palace, according to the previous plan, some thugs and mobs led by Shaban Jafari gathered around the palace to kill Mossadegh. Since Mossadegh left the palace from the back door, the mobs attacked his house, making him escape to his son’s place. A classified document that was released recently pertains to a letter from the White House to American ambassador in Tehran, ordering him to prevent the Shah from traveling abroad, because they knew that the Shah was planning to flee out of fear. By keeping the Shah in Iran, America was able to plan overthrow of Mossadegh. With careful planning, they used mobs and mullahs to take to the streets against Mossadegh. By creating riots and chaos in the capital, Mossadegh was sent to prison, Fatemi was hanged, and the Shah took full power. From this time onwards, he exercised absolute power, and the army, police and all government organizations came under the control of the Shah.

Another force that was very strong and worked against the Shah's regime was the Tudeh party. This party was founded in 1941 by Ehsan Tabari and his associates, and with the end of Mossadegh's political activities, this party was also dismantled, and its leaders were arrested. During Mossadegh's time, the Tudeh party was very popular, as the largest leftist organization in Iran. With the detailed planning done by the Shah with the help of CIA, he completely destroyed this party. After the revolution, although the Tudeh party regained its footing, it never reached the greatness of that time, and due to its strong dependence on the Soviet Union, which is evident from Kasrai's memoirs, it never achieved that former greatness. Among the Leftist parties that were active again after the revolution, in addition to the Tudeh Party, People's Fadai Guerrillas were very popular.

A group of mullahs and religious people also opposed the Shah, the most prolific of whom were Khomeini, Shariatmadari and Taleghani. Because the root of Islam is based on wealth, aggression, hypocrisy, and wickedness, one cannot expect a humanitarian outcome from this ideology as a political force. In this regard, although we meet thinkers like Taleghani, this religion never knows how to bring justice and equality to a society. The clear example are two countries under the ruling of religious people in Iran and in Afghanistan.

The three opposition forces mentioned, that is, national, left and religious forces, were always trying to change the Iranian regime in their favor. The goal of the national forces was a constitutional monarchy. The goal of the left forces, which were supportive of the Soviet government and were subject to it, was a socialist government. The mullahs were trying to make the reactionary laws of Islam, such as hijab and congregational prayers and mosques mandatory in Iran. Of course, their main goal was more power and influence, otherwise the Shah himself believed in Islam. Obviously, before the revolution they did not even dream of today's power. Sometimes they criticized the government on the pulpit, and maybe ironically the regime, but as soon as the Shah approached them, they bowed down before him and thanked him in their sermons.

After this event, Shah was able to destroy and burn the roots of the left and the nationalists, and he easily subjugated the mullahs with money. One mullah, who was very stubborn and criticized the Shah for personal reasons, and could not easily fall under the yoke of SAVAK, was Ayatollah Khomeini. Although the Shah had been able to completely control the opposing forces, he had made a mistake in this one case and instead of killing him like his other opponents, he threw Khomeini out of the country and banished him. Khomeini continued his anti-Shah rhetoric more forcefully from exile in Iraq. There is still no evidence to prove that American government was trying to keep Ayatollah Khomeini alive as an opposition force that could one day be beneficial. But there is no doubt that as a policy, the US always keeps an opposition force for its operatives in different countries, just in case and as a surrogate. For example, after the Shah left Iran for the last time, American agents visited Khomeini in Paris almost in a daily basis. Of course, after the revolution, the aforementioned parties and organizations started their activities again, but they never reached the greatness of Mossadegh's time.

As it was mentioned earlier, the Shah himself believed in the religion of Islam. Although he burned the roots of all the opposition forces, and for this reason and after the revolution the Left and National forces easily bowed to Khomeini, the Shah supported mullahs in general, and mullahs in return prayed for him and his safe travels. Also, the Shah did not fail to visit the graves of imams and other religious figures. Therefore, the only remaining force that opposed him was a small group of religious dissenters. Of course, he punished some of the mullahs with short-term imprisonments due to their opposition on the pulpit, until they apologized and kissed his hand. Shortly before the revolution, perhaps on the order of the United States, he released all religious prisoners from prison, and put those who served him, prime minister and a group of ministers in jail. After the revolution, a blood thirsty beast such as Khalkhali executed them all. During the Shah’s ruling, religious opponents such as Khomeini, Khomeini, Karroubi, Hashemi Rafsanjani, Khalkhali, Beheshti and other such mullahs, even if they were prisoned at times, they tolerated the Shah's regime, and the Shah was also patient with them and set their rights, to continue to be under his rule.

This may sound new to those who were born in Iran after the revolution that US government fully supported the new Islamic regime in Iran, until the time those so-called “students of the Imam's line” climbed the walls of American embassy, which was actually under the jurisdiction of the United States and not Iran, and took employees as hostages. It was at that time that America became “The Great Satan”, and this Satan pushed Iraq into a war with Iran, to destroy all modern weapons that the shah had bought from the United States. Khomeini eagerly accepted the war to consolidate his power and expand the territory under his command. It goes without saying that Khomeini not only stepped into this trap, but after Saddam asked for peace and even agreed to compensate Iran's losses in that war, this stubborn mullah did not accept it, and after both countries fell into despair, he “drank from the poisoned cup” and accepted ending the war.

Khomeini, like his Islamic successors, and after he was carried to his home on people’s shoulders, made friends with the Leftist and National forces at the beginning, and not only he did not mention an “Islamic jurisdiction”, but also stated many times that he did not plan to govern, but to go to the city of Ghome and become a religious leader. But as soon as he realized that the majority of Iranian people, in addition to foreign governments, supported him and the repressive forces of the military, police, gendarmerie, army, etc. fell under his control and gained power, he became a full-fledged dictator like his predecessors. Of course, Ayatollah Khomeini, like his successors, acted very consciously and viciously, and by his order nothing remained of the opposition movements. Moreover, today, when the majority of Iranian people are suffering from the indifference of this brutal regime, they cannot find any replacement for it, and some people demand the return of the Shah’s regime and Reza Pahlavi. With full knowledge and power, Khomeini and his associates destroyed not only Leftist and Nationalist forces in the 1980s, but also those who might be a danger to the Islamic Republic in the future, during a process that became known as “serial or chain murders”, from the 80s through early 90s. Khomeini died in 1989, but his associates continued assassinating people who had the possibility of opposing the regime and could be a danger.

Today, what worries people in Iran is a collapsed economy that has caused poverty and addiction. Of course, this is not because of the economic sanctions imposed upon Iran by the West, as the Russian economy has also been sanctioned by the United States and its allies, but even though Russia has been involved in a long war for some times, its economy is far more prosperous than Iran's. Especially if we recall the events after the fall of the Soviet Union, when Western countries looted the wealth of Russia under the premiership of Yeltsin, and how this country fell into disarray. Iran could also be self-sufficient despite these sanctions. However, the problem stems from those incompetent managers who cannot manage properly and adequately, since the first condition to an office is believing or pretending to believe in that decadent religion, and following its commands in an office setting. In addition to mismanagement, they destroy the country's wealth by thieving, fraud, corruption, and swindling, adding to poverty and dearth many times. The new president’s agenda is to renew a friendly relationship with the West. Since the only way to have a cordial relationship with the west is submission, it is possible for the country to take the same route as before the revolution. The gesticulation would certainly be welcomed by the West, because of the close proximity of Iran to Russia and China. In that case, Iran's economical condition would be worse than what it is now. On the other hand, since the US government is militarily the strongest country in the world, and economically it is on a decline, the possibility that this government will instigate a new world war is conceivable. In this way, even if regional wars do not extend globally, the possibility of an opening in Iran's affairs seems to be a distant goal, and unfortunately, even if Khamenei disappears tomorrow, it does not seem to be a glimmer of hope for the Iranian people.

The largest movement in Iran in the last four decades was the Women, Life, Freedom movement. This movement, which arose from within Iranian society and led to the loss of countless young people's lives, eventually and gradually became silent partly due to the brutality of the government. Although one of the reasons for this failure was the regime's non-stop bloodlust, lack of a force that could replace this demonic regime caused this rebellion to remain as an uprising and nothing more, and ultimately fail. The only way for Iranian people to overcome this demonic government is to form a national and popular organization or group. An organization that is able to unify all sections of this great country, which is made up of various minorities and nationalities. An organization that does not depend on any foreign government, and apart from the failed figures of the past, such as the royal regime or past political organizations. This organization should be completely independent of any government and political organization, and with the support of all classes and nationalities, and with material, non-religious, and worldly ideals, while leading a great number of Iranian people.

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