Speech [Islam's disapproval of the Western-style freedom]

In the Name of God, the compassionate, the Merciful

May this auspicious `Id al-Fitr and all other auspicious `ids be happy and blessed for all Muslims. In the past, our `Id al-Fitr was an" `id of blood" yet a blessed one. For our Kurdish brethren, this year's `id, is also an `id of blood and is blessed. Islam flourished with blood. In the great religions of the past prophets and the very great religion of Islam while they (prophets) have carried the heavenly scriptures in one hand for the guidance of people, there was a weapon in their other hand. Abraham," the Friend of God" (`a), had the scripture in one hand and in the other, he carried a large axe for crushing the idols. Moses, "the Interlocutor" (`a), had the Torah in one hand and his rod in the other; the very rod that utterly ruined the Pharaohs in abjection; the rod that would turn into a serpent; the rod that would swallow the traitors. The Great Prophet of Islam had the Qur'an in one hand and a sword in the other; the sword for crushing the traitors and the Qur'an for guidance. Those who were amenable to guidance had the Qur'an as their guide; those who were not amenable to guidance and were conspirators had the sword over their head.

In both the past `Id al-Fitr, which was an `id of blood, and in the present `Id, which is again an `id of blood, we do not fear blood. Islam is a religion of blood in the view of the corrupt and the religion of guidance to other people. Our saints fearlessly gave their blood and waged bloody wars. The Commander of the Faithful (`a) - that unique being- while having the Nahj al-Balaghah «1» for guidance, he had his sword aimed at those who were conspirators. We gave many a blood and offered many a martyr. Islam gave blood and martyrs. We sacrificed split head crowns such as those of `Ali ibn Abi Talib, `Ali ibn al-Husayn (Imam Sajjad); we sacrificed heads on lances, like those of the Doyen of the Martyrs and those of his companions and his allies. Islam made advancement throughout the ages by means of blood, sword and weapons, and won its spurs.

We do not fear to be sacrificed as martyrs. During last year's `Id al-Fitr and those days, we sacrificed many a martyr as we did on this year's `Id al-Fitr and during the fasting month of Ramadan. There is no fear of giving martyrs. Our saints, too, were martyred, poisoned or murdered. Some of our saints spent time in prison or in exile. Whatever we give for Islam is still not enough; our lives are not worth living when it comes to Islam. Our foes should not even think that our youth fear death or of being martyred. Martyrdom is a legacy that we have inherited from our saints. It is they who consider after-death as mortality who must fear death. What fear should we have when we consider the after-life as superior to this life? It is the traitors who should be scared; the servants of Islam do not have any fear. Our army, our gendarmerie, our police force, our Revolutionary Guards do not have any fear. Our Revolutionary Guards, who were decapitated in Paveh and other such places, attained eternal life.

Whatever we desired to guide those corrupt groups, whatever grace period we gave them to be steered to the right path, whatever grace period we gave them to come to their senses; whatever grace period we gave them to draw their attention to the country's problems; whatever freedom we gave them so that they would use it as a means for the growth of the nation; we gave them the freedom of pen, the freedom of expression, the freedom of congregation, the freedom of parties Are they really truthful in their claims that they work for the nation's interests, and are democrats, and want a democratic government? But if they (really) want a democracy, why do not they let the people decide on their own fate? Why do not they- through their sabotages- let the people to choose their own government? Why do not they let the nation to decide on its own constitution through the hands of its own experts? These are not democrats. They are criminals who want to serve their own masters under the disguise of Democrat Party.

Let our beloved people of Kurdistan be awakened. Let them understand, through the acts of these individuals that they are a treacherous people and they are hypocrites. They claim," We want to work for the nation and for the nation's interests." But when they say that they want to act for the interests of the nation, why do they run to waste the interests of the nation? Why do they murder this nation's youth? Why do they destroy the hospitals? Why do not they let this nation decide on its own fate? If you are (truly) democrats, let a democratic government be installed. But you are not (real) democrats; you are hypocrites. You are dictators who have appeared as democrats; what you say are nothing but empty claims.

My dear Kurdistani brothers! My dear ones! O you who have been deceived by those mercenary leaders (of those parties). Come back to Islam. There is forgiveness in Islam; Islam belongs to everyone; Islam is the gate to blessings; come back in the lap of Islam. Take refuge in Islam. Quit those parties and those corrupt groups. Islam will treat you affectionately and treat the traitors sternly. It suppresses the traitors by swords and weapons but treats you with grace, and tolerates you. The gate of mercy is open; the gate of forgiveness is open. Come to God's gate of mercy; do not be deceived by those traitors and those hypocrites.

Unfortunately, there also circulates a prevailing corrupted view in some centers. Those who want freedom; those who want our youth to be free express their view eloquently but with exaggeration about the kind of freedom that they see fit for our youth! They want our youth to be liberated: They want the gambling houses to be open and unrestricted; the bars to be opened unrestricted; the fleshpots to be open unrestricted; heroin addicts to be free; opium smokers to be free; beaches to be on the loose and all avenues to be open to the youth. They want our youth to be free to indulge into whatever corruptions they desire; to be dragged to any kind of prostitution they fancy. These are all that have been dictated in the West. This is what they want to do in order to render useless our youth, who are capable of confronting them. But we want to take our youth out of the bars and into the battlefields. «2» We want to send our youth out of the fleshpots into the battlefields. «3» We want to lead our youth out of the movie theaters, which existed then and used to corrupt our youth, to places, which are beneficial for the nation. The kind of freedom that these gentlemen want is the type of freedom that has been dictated by the superpowers, and our own writers are either ignorant or traitors. These pseudo-democrats, who say that there must be freedom in everything and nothing is to be restricted under any circumstances, are inspired by the superpowers that want to plunder us and expect our youth to be indifferent. Those youth who are out in the fleshpots are indeed indifferent. The youth, who are addicted to narcotics, are indifferent to the country's affairs. Those youth, who are bred in the brothels, do not care about the country's interests. The youth who care about the country's interests are the ones who stay away from all these things and are under Islamic upbringing. The commander of the Revolutionary Guards told me," In performing their night prayers, and while in the" qunout" (the standing posture), they utter a lengthy supplication." These are the ones who can safeguard the country. We want to protect the country. Saving the country does not have to do with the type of freedom that you speak of. That kind of freedom will destroy the country. This type of freedom that you talk about is one that has been dictated in order for them to swallow up our country, and we would not have any young forces (left) to fight back. As we saw that they acted (accordingly) and what happened and what tragedy our country went through. Why? Because they had our youth corrupted. We want to rid our youth of the opium pipes and hand them machineguns instead. We want to rid our youth of opium pipes and take them to the battlefield. You want us to give freedom to our youth so that our youth become corrupted and for your masters to reap the benefit from this.

Yes! We are reactionaries, and you are intellectuals. And it is you intellectuals who do not like to see us turn back to 1,400 years ago. Your fear is that if we train our youth like 1,400 years ago and they follow suit and destroy two great empires- like their peers did then- that makes us reactionaries. And you, who want to drag our youth into a kind of Western teaching, the kind that they reserve for the colonial countries, and not what they have for their own, that makes you intellectuals! Yes, you who want freedom, freedom of everything, including the freedom of prostitution, and freedom of everything else, you are intellectuals! The kind of freedom that corrupts our youth; the kind of freedom that will pave the way for the hegemonic powers; the kind of freedom that will enslave our nation forever; those are the kinds of freedom you want and that is what has been dictated to you from abroad.

You do not maintain any limits for freedom. You identify promiscuity with freedom. You identify immorality with freedom. You consider prostitution as freedom. We gave you freedom, but you indulged yourselves in licentiousness; you even did worse and you put yourselves to shame in front of the nation. We gave you latitude (in using your pens), but you conspirators tried to destroy the country using your envenomed pens in the name of democracy, in the name of liberalism, in the name of enlightenment, and other such labels. The traitors started their activities and conspiracies in this country openly. It was the same traitors who initiated the uprisings of Kurdistan. And it is the same traitors who are mourning for the conspirators. Nobody wants to talk about those who decapitated our youth but they elegize and mourn the executed criminals and murderers. Now that we intend to save our country from the clutches of criminals; from the clutches of the traitors; from the clutches of plunderers, we (are said to) have deprived (people of their) freedom. Of course, there is the kind of freedom that ends up in corruption; the kind of freedom that ends up in the destruction of the nation and the destruction of the country. These kinds of freedom, we cannot afford to give. Those are the kinds of freedom that you have in mind; the kind of freedom that you want that will make our youth indifferent so that whatever is being done in whatever place and whoever does whatever (they want). And in order for the superpowers to plunder our country's revenues and our youth indulge in sensual gratification in the fleshpots. They erected fleshpots; they erected bars; they erected movie theaters, and added fuel to the fire to foment corruption. They mixed the young girls and boys and corrupted both in the name of" freedom". They despoiled our country and those who were free and had latitude stayed indifferent. These very intellectuals, too, stayed indifferent, and so did those very Democrats and political parties.

Those who saved our country are this very mass of people, the dear university students and faculty, the dear seminarians, these `ulama' from different cities, these tradesmen and merchants, these youth, these laborers, these farmers- these are the ones who saved our country. And now you want to push them back to a situation they first had and thus humiliate them in the name of freedom and liberalism, and democracy and similar terms. You want to set them free for them to do whatever they want so that there would not exist any committed human being in the next generation to come. This is the kind of freedom that you want and this is the same kind of freedom that they have inspired in you and you were inspired by it, but we will not accept imported freedom. We have to protect this nation. We have to protect the youth. We have to pull our youth out of ruination and make them strong. We need combatant men; we need brave young men. We need heroic young men. We do not want intellectuals- of this kind, that is. Of course, there exist many sound persons among the intellectuals and educated ones, too. But those who act against our people by dipping their pens in gall and by their acts, and opened fire on our dear Kurds, will be suppressed.

God, the Blessed and Exalted, states thus about the faithful," hard against the unbelievers, but merciful to one another." «4» As regards the conspirators, and as regards the infidels- a group to which the conspirators also belong- and the leaders of these parties, are of the same type, too. As Islam has ordered us, we will treat them sternly and with clenched fists. But we treat the nation of grace in a friendly way and with compassion. We are servants of all, and because we are your servants, we suppress these betrayals, only because they betray you.

We are the servants of our Kurdistani brethren and the servants of the Balouchistani and Sistani brethren and of all other strata (of people). We want to deliver you from the clutches of these traitors. You, too, can help: Drive these traitors away from you; arrest their leaders and turn them over. These people do not believe in Islam. They oppose the Qur'an. If they did believe in the Qur'an, this is what Qur'an says," Obey God, and obey the Messenger and the ou li'l-amr among you." «5» Why do not they obey the ou li'l-amr? Why did they rise up against the government? Why did they rise up against the ou li'l-amr?

O `ulama' of Kurdistan! Awaken your youth. O `ulama' of Kurdistan! Support Islam. O `ulama' of Kurdistan! Drive away these traitors and order their arrest and turn them over to the Islamic court. Do not let them escape the borders. The army should safeguard the borders. It is a duty to safeguard them forcefully. The Revolutionary Guards should have unity of expression and be coordinated. The Revolutionary Guards should coordinate themselves with the discpilinary force; if you do not coordinate yourselves, you will be considered traitors.

Today, opposition equals treason. Today, to split into several splinter groups is considered an act of treason. If you are coordinated, you will not leave dead bodies behind; you will make advancement fast. And by the will of God very soon these roots of corruption will be uprooted and these traitors will be duly punished. May Almighty God guide all of you and all of us. May Almighty God wipe out the traitors from the face of the earth.

May God's peace, mercy and blessings be upon you.