Speech [Monarchial regime the source of all corruptions; glad tidings of victory]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

From what some have said, it seems that a number of gentlemen had come to see me when I was not here, and that they kicked up a fuss somewhat, believing that this must be someone's doing. «1»

However, this had not been the case. My present state of health does not permit me to remain here for any length of time, and because of this, a place on the city's outskirts has been found for me where I will be able to rest. I came today because I heard that some gentlemen were going to come here to visit me and I wanted to be here to receive them. «2»

I am not used to formalities such as having someone act as mediator, a curtain, between myself and another person for example. This is contrary to the civility taught in Islam. Health permitting, I am at the service of all the honorable gentlemen; but there comes a time when one's strength is taken from one. Fortunately you are all young but (God willing) should you reach old age then you will realize that an old person does not enjoy the same state of health as do young people. I have now reached the final stages of my life but I pray that I, along with you all, will be able to serve Islam; that we can serve the Muslims and our homeland.

Iran is now in a distressed state. It suffers a kind of distress which it has probably never experienced before throughout its entire history. If you take a look at history, you will see that there have been revolutions and other such things in the past, but they were not such that malevolent troops savagely attacked the people on one front, whilst on the other, the people gave their lives and the lives of their children and stood up in resistance. Iran's present state is such that wherever one looks one sees signs of a revolution taking place- an Iranian revolution; that is. According to what they tell me, it is as if everyone, everywhere in Iran, is now a party to some kind of divine plan: everyone, from infants who have just learned how to talk, to adults, both young and old; from boys and girls to women and elderly ladies and gentlemen. Mankind does not have the power needed to awaken people in this way, whereby members of all social classes and age groups have such unity of purpose. This is something extraordinary, as if it were divinely inspired. It is the will of God, the Blessed and Exalted, that the Iranian nation should stand up in resistance (which, God willing, is indeed what they will do) by means of this movement that they have embarked upon and this unity of expression that they hold.

As for this degeneration that has come about in Iran, this is something for which the imperialist regime holds full responsibility. Throughout history, from the birth of the Iranian monarchy to the present day, whatever depravity prevailed was brought about by the imperialist regime. This has always been the case, but it has taken different forms depending on the exigency of the time. Each period has demanded a certain approach. The period through which I have lived, but through which I believe none of you honorable gentlemen have, is a period which has been haunted by Rida Khan. During this period the British stage-managed a coup d'etat and brought Rida Khan forward imposing him upon the Iranian people as their ruler. «3»

He was the one appointed to accomplish the aims of his masters, but in order to succeed in this, he realized that it meant having to silence and crush those sectors of society comprising the intellectuals, the `ulama' and the religiously devout. «4» At the same time, his ability to net any profits also depended upon him taking this course of action, so he set to it, pouring any profits netted into his masters' pockets. God only knows what miseries we suffered during the time of that father of his (the Shah), and the miseries we are all suffering now during the reign of this son: a son befitting of such a father. There can be no doubt that he is Rida Khan's son; that is to say, whatever undesirable qualities were to be found in the father, are also to be found in him, with the added quality of him being a hypocrite. Rida Khan was a tyrant, who constantly bullied the people, and the nation at that time did nothing to resist him- or rather they did very little. Of course there was some resistance at that time, but it was minimal and unlike that which we are now witnessing today. But at least Rida Khan did not falsely adhere to Islam and the Qur'an and the true ordinances of Islam; at least he did not play the hypocrite. «5»

He was a spearhead who attacked and retreated. At least this much can be said for him, that although he battered the people with the bayonet, he did not kill on the same scale as this one (he Shah) does. Rida Shah was responsible for a massacre in Gauhar Shad Mosque, a massacre which was carried out by a group of wicked people; but this gentleman «6» has been responsible for several massacres in the past, and God forbid, should he be granted a respite by God, the Blessed, the Exalted, then he will be responsible for more massacres in the future.

While he has ruined our youth, leading them into corruption, at the same time whenever he gets the chance to speak, like two or three days ago when he spoke in the Majlis, he rants on about how the ordinances of Islam must be protected and so forth. «7»

But don't you see you foolish man, it was you who only recently changed the official calendar of Iran, discarding the calendar which was based upon the history of Islam- a history which testifies to a nation's glorious past- and replacing it with a calendar based upon another form of history; until you were delivered a blow in the mouth that is, after which you dispensed with the newly-decreed calendar. «8» Freedom! The man continuously talks of freedom! «9»

With regard to the Rastakhiz Party, you have repeatedly stated in speeches that everyone is to join it, and that if anyone, through malicious intent, does not join it then you will come down hard on him, beat him and so on; or if not this, then you will provide him with a passport with which to leave the country, for you will have him kicked out. «10» Freedom! Where in this country can freedom be said to exist? Do people enjoy freedom of the pen? Do people enjoy freedom of speech? What kind of freedom do they enjoy that he keeps on ranting about people's freedom? Do they have freedom to observe the ordinances of Islam- the true religion of Islam and its ordinances? What on earth gives you the right to talk of Islam? What qualifies you to continuously rant on about the true religion of Islam. Indeed, you are the one who is causing its destruction.

This is the situation with which we are all now faced. Our youth in Iran are suffering at the hands of this corrupt regime; they are shedding their blood and losing their lives. Only a few days ago, a large number of our youth were killed in Kermanshah, «11»

and so too in Kurdistan; and they say the same has also been the case in other parts of the Kurdistan province. And you saw for yourselves what they did a few days ago in Tehran; what they did in Tabriz; what they did in Mashhad. The towns, in which they have conducted wholesale massacres and have gone on the rampage, are too many to enumerate. «12» And now he is clinging on to power via military rule. «13» If the military, if this God-forsaken America, were to withdraw their protection of him for ten days, these royal guards of his would devour him. There would be no need for you, the people to do it. If America were to withdraw its support of him, those Royal Court attendants, the very ones who now guard him in the court, would put an end to him. His life is in no way secure. «14»

Believe me, you and I are more at ease than he. He is now knee deep in trouble. He has caused misery for the people, but now he is the one who is in such a sorry state that he cannot distinguish between day and night. He probably cannot sleep. Now whenever he speaks he trembles. He can't put four words together coherently. «15»

This is the state in which he now finds himself, but at the end of the day, God willing, he will be in a worse state; and as for the Hereafter, things will be even worse still for him.

So much for the present situation in Iran. However, both we here and others who are presently abroad, we are all duty-bound. It is not a question of us having left Iran and therefore having no obligation towards it. We all have an obligation to fulfill- that is to say that reason, the conscience and religious law all tell us that we have a responsibility to meet. Wherever we may be, it is our duty to help this sacred movement of Iran both collectively and individually; both alone and as a member of a group. It is not good enough to say that although they are shedding blood on the battlefield, we are abroad and cannot therefore be with them. No- we too must engage in combat abroad. We too must all fulfill this obligation to the best of our ability- each person, however much or to whatever extent he is able- by speaking out, by writing, by demonstrating.

We now have a religious duty to perform for the nation of Iran. We are now under a religious obligation to help its people. We are indebted to them, for they are making sacrifices for the sake of Islam and the nation. We too are a part of the nation; we too belong to the nation of Iran. So they have in fact made sacrifices for our sakes, shedding their blood and suffering imprisonment. Just consider how many of our `ulama' are now in prison; how many of our `ulama', our intellectuals, our doctors, our engineers, our students, our merchants, people from all sectors of society, are currently in prison. A number have been killed and a number are prisoners. These self-sacrifices have all been made for the sake of the nation, for the sake of Islam; and we who are Muslims and who are the fellow countrymen of those who have made sacrifices, we who belong to this nation, have a religious duty towards these people. We must do what our religion demands of us. I as a theology student[ talaba ], fulfill my religious duty by writing, holding discourses like the one I am now holding with you, and by making statements and speeches. You, as students, regardless of your subject of study, must also fulfill the religious obligation you have towards these people of Iran- people who have been crushed under the boots of this regime. I pray that the Lord may crush them, and so He shall, God willing. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us all to show our concern for this nation and to do whatever we can for them. Obviously, there is a limit to what we can do, but we are to carry out our religious duty and to serve this nation and its people to the best of our ability.

Indeed, besides this religious obligation, we too belong to this nation and we can see how all of our national resources are being given over to America and its comrades. If Muhammad Rida (Shah) were not to give our oil away so generously, then it would not dry up so soon; our reserves would not be exhausted within such a short space of time. But they have put our oil up for sale and are letting it go for a song. They are taking the lot, pocketing whatever there is- the British on the one hand «16» and other parties on the other. As for the Americans, they are worse than any of them. «17» The Russians too are involved. «18» They have all borne down on this nation and have joined hands in order to keep this good-for-nothing in power so that they can carry on with their plunder. «19»

 

You all saw how the Chinese Premier, the leader of one billion people, came to Iran to discuss the Chinese people, Communism and the nation of Iran! This villain came to Iran and met with someone who is responsible for several wholesale massacres. He flew over our dead by helicopter. They couldn't drive him through the streets because people would have raised an uproar; all hell would have been let loose. The villain was aware of all this, it is not as if he was oblivious to it; and what a large body of escorts accompanied him. They flew him over our dead and took him there (to the palace) where he and the Shah shook hands and continued with their program of talks together in the most cheerful of spirits. He, this person, and others like him are deluding the people. «20»

At the same time, we saw how such a vast number of the Iranian people were killed on Khordad 15, and how afterwards in the Russian press, the Soviet Union expressed its support for the Iranian regime saying that those killed had been a bunch of reactionists or what have you, who had intended to do this and that. And now the Russians express their support for him (the Shah) again as they did then. As for America, well, its position goes without saying.

They (the imperialists) want to take all of our national resources for themselves. And just what is this sorry nation to do once its oil has gone and its assets have been destroyed? God only knows what it is to do. This gentleman (the Shah) says that we must derive energy from the sun! You want to derive energy from the sun when you can't even light a kerosene lamp? What on earth are you talking about? You only say these things to fool the people. This whole scenario is being set up by them to enable the imperialists to keep this reprobate in power.

Within the country too, whoever says that he (the Shah) must remain or that it is better that he remains, does so because he is a traitor, for everyone within the country has seen what this person is doing, what he has done to the people, what he has done with our resources, what he has done with our wealth. God knows what vast amounts of the nation's wealth have been appropriated by members of this family, whereby abroad they now own villas and real estate and so on and so forth. These have all been paid for by the nation's wealth.

Indeed, I was around when Rida Khan came to power: a mere soldier suddenly appeared on the scene and things led to the stage where now each of his descendants has become billionaires. «21»

This money belongs to the nation. These family members have shares in every company; they own a part of every established company in Iran. «22» And as for oil, the Shah is just giving it to the imperialists ad libitum, retaining a small share which he then gives to them in exchange for ironware «23» - something which is of no use to us at all. Yes, these guns are of no use to us but they are to him, for he can use them to beat and kill the people. Our nation can do without such things. A certain amount of the nation's wealth also goes into the pockets of both the Shah himself and the members of his family, who then spend it on propaganda abroad- heaven knows how much they actually spend in this way. It is said that a budget of one hundred million dollars is spent abroad on propaganda for the regime- and what is propagated?- that it is vital to Iran that this man stays; that if he were to go then Iran would become a communist state. «24»

But why on earth should Iran become communist? The nation of Iran is a Muslim nation. The rallying cry of the Iranian people is Islam; the people call for religion. Why should they become communist if the Shah were to go? This continued propaganda campaign of theirs however, is to no avail. It is now said that the regime has recently arranged for a group of people to shout out communist slogans in the university when it reopens, in order for the people to believe that it is now the communists who pose a threat to the regime! But this is not the case at all. These people are members of SAVAK and not communists. The imperialists' aim to keep him in power even if it means having to resort to every trick in the book; and this is because he serves them better than anyone else could.

From the very beginning our argument has been and still is that we have a country of our own which we want to keep for ourselves. We don't want America to be our guardian. We don't want all of the nation's assets to be taken by America, or for the Soviet Union to take them away. We don't want our gas to be taken by the Soviet Union and our oil to be taken by America. Tell me, is it an open house here where anyone can take whatever he wants!? We don't want it to be like this. We are a nation in our own right, and whether you like it or not, we want to be the ones who benefit from our own land, from our own water, from our own oil and from our own resources, each of which are in bounteous abundance. Yes, we want to benefit from all of these resources and to drive away those thieves who continually eat them up and take them away. We want to drive this regime out too, and to administer our own country ourselves. We are not in need of a guardian. Whether we run the country badly or we run it well, at least we will have done it ourselves. This is the case we argue. Who has the right to say" No, someone else has to come and control your affairs"? What business is it of theirs? Whether we want to administer the country or are in fact able to do so is beside the point; our demand is that you all get out. As for what would happen once these have gone, once we have driven out these parasites and these gluttons for oil- the `superpowers' being both parasites and gluttons for oil, and this Pahlavi family along with all those who have had dealings with this family over the past fifty years, being the parasites who are benefiting from the wealth of our very own country whilst our youngsters are paying the price with their lives- we argue that were we to drive these out, we would then be able to fully administer this rich nation of ours unaided. It is not that our national budget is inadequate; it is that those who partake of it are many! Paying for those public relations officers both at home and abroad to uphold the Shah's regime and for others such as these advisers they bring in from abroad, takes a tremendous amount out of the budget. All of these people have poured into this country for our resources which they are now busy plundering and taking away.

If we foreshorten the arms of these people, which indeed we shall, God willing, and if the nation which has risen up in revolt foreshortens their arms and drives out the main culprits- if we succeed in this, then we will have enough oil and will achieve autonomy. Who asked you or your agents to come and run our country anyway?

What do we want with all of these foreign advisers?! «25» They are all here to keep him and his regime in power and to plunder us. They prop him up so that they can plunder. The regime must also be in favor of them plundering the nation otherwise the imperialists would get rid of him (the Shah) and replace him with someone better. It's not that they are really keen on him, but it is a question of not being able to get rid of him. In any case, they would still have us to contend with no matter who they put in his place. Should they decide to stage a coup and install a military government, then he will have no choice but to kill or to leave. «26»

And in fact that is just how the situation now stands. He either has to pull the trigger and kill the whole nation, or he has to abdicate. Until the time when America leaves us alone, and these `superpowers' take their hands off our country, our movement shall continue and so shall our slogans and activities; and God willing, we shall eventually triumph.

Do not be afraid of these `superpowers', gentlemen. If ever we were to go to war with foreign countries we would lose because they would be in a better position than we; we are nothing, whilst they have everything. But there are times when a nation must speak out; when it has something to say- something which makes sense to the entire world. And now what we have to say is that we are a nation in our own right and we do not want foreigners to be in our country, to be in our home: so they must get out. No one can dispute this argument, and if anyone were to dispute it their challenge would inevitably be short-lived anyway for they would have to take on world opinion, which is something no power can challenge. We have now managed to draw the world's attention towards Iran. Iran is now the centre of everyone's attention. That is to say everyone is busy researching about Iran; they are probing into it. They do so however, for the purpose of making inroads into the country, although it is true some intentions may in fact be honorable whereby research is conducted which asks questions about the nation's make-up, and about what has happened there and why. In time, once everyone has become aware that the people of a nation have risen up to demand what is rightly theirs, and not to demand that which belongs to others, then inevitably they will lend their support to this cause. If you join hands together as you have done so far, pushing differences aside and getting on well with each other, if you remain united, then I give you the glad tidings that, God willing, you will pull it off: you will get rid of this regime and the foreigners and the country will become yours.

There is just one more thing that I would like to say to you Iranian gentlemen who are not in Iran, and that is I sometimes hear of there being some trivial differences, some petty grievances between you- I sometimes heard of such things whilst I was in Iran, and I may well have heard of them here too. If this is the case then I believe something is amiss. «27»

You are all each other's brothers. Why, and over what do we differ? We must all join hands together to destroy he who is the common enemy. If we are going to be at variance among ourselves he will remain comfortably seated on the throne and our energy and efforts will be wasted. This is yet another of the tricks that they (the imperialists) have always had up their sleeves and that is to create divisions between the different segments of society. They create two parties with two different names, sow discord between the two and thus render the people inert; or, for example, they may build someone up to be the centre of attraction and place him in the spotlight, thus causing the people to become preoccupied as they enter into debates with regard to this person. As a result their energies become dissipated whilst the imperialists sit back and take advantage of the situation. You gentlemen who are currently outside the country must be each other's brothers. Resolve your differences. If you have seen a brother doing something which troubles you, then you are to approach him in a brotherly manner and tell him that he has done something to upset you. Let the matter be settled. I pray that God, the Blessed and Exalted, grant you all success. May you complete your studies here having attained honorable results and then return to your homeland. And may the time come when our country's affairs are handled by accomplished, righteous people. And I pray that all of you, all of us, may serve our people, our homeland and Islam. I must also add that my health as it is at present doesn't permit me to come here every day. Even before speaking to you here today I felt a little tired, but having come here I saw there was no alternative but to speak with the gentlemen present. I must apologize for not having been able to come here sooner. However, let me first of all say that from the time that I first became involved in this struggle I never allowed anyone to interfere in my affairs, including those closest to me. I was independent in whatever I did. I did or didn't do things as I saw fit and I acted according to my own reason and discretion. Don't be mistaken in thinking that my coming here must be due to some sort of special relationship between myself and someone else for example, or that there is someone who influences what I do and whose judgment I accept unquestioningly. This is not the case. Don't take offence for example because I may have gone out somewhere for a welcome rest, believing that this must have been something planned in order for me not to welcome and speak to the gentlemen visitors; for me not to be available for them. I am always available for the gentlemen and the door to my home is open to them all. Whichever of them would like to come to my home is welcome to do so. However, as far as my coming here to stay or my traveling here every day is concerned, I am sorry to say that the state of my health just doesn't permit me to do these things. I have to return to where I am staying in order to rest and, God willing, to make myself fit enough to be at the service of all of the gentlemen who wish to see me.

One of the ladies present at the gathering: [With regard to the issue of women's Islamic covering [hijab], this matter has been bothering those sisters who are living over here. That is to say they would truly like to know whether this form of covering is acceptable or not?]

Imam: You mean in the manner that you are now dressed?

The lady: [Yes.]

Imam: There is no objection to this. If it has no ill effect then there is no objection to this form of covering. You must decide for yourselves whether dressing in this manner has any ill effects or not, or whether it causes an affront to your dignity say, or other such concerns. If your form of covering causes an affront to your dignity then you don't need anyone else to tell you whether it is correct or not, for you yourselves should know. But if it does not cause an affront then it fulfils the condition required for a woman's dress to be Islamic: that is all a woman's Islamic covering amounts to and nothing more.

The lady: [Also, in Iran...?]

Imam: The situation in Iran today differs from the situation here (in France). There, in Iran, more ill effects may possibly result, so it is not a case of the Islamic covering worn by women in Iran having to be worn here too. The Islamic covering required for women in Iran and that which conforms to Islamic requirements is to the extent that you are now wearing. Islam does not change according to where it is practiced. However, sometimes external factors are involved which have to be taken into consideration- factors which cause ill effects, moral discrepancies and other such things to arise from the use of a certain kind of covering, and when this is the case, women's Islamic covering must take a different form. However, under different circumstances, this covering can be as simple as it is elsewhere- no, there is no objection to a woman not wearing a chador. «28»