I seek refuge in God from the accursed Satan
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Iran is an exemplary country; and I think it unlikely that another country like Iran or another nation like the oppressed nation of Iran can be found to exist among all countries of the world, or that there are many examples of such a country even ever having existed at all. It is recorded in history how Genghis (Khan), despite his savage and barbaric temperament and all the bloodshed that he caused, governed according to a system of law which was known by others as `the great code of laws' «1»- a code which neither Genghis nor any other Mongol ever violated. Some have even suggested that the respect held by the Mongols for their law was like that held by the Muslims for the Qur'an at the advent of Islam; for the Mongols to violate their law meant death. So we see that even a people like the Mongols and a man such as Genghis abided by some kind of law. But let us now see, in this present day and age in which we live, which law can this regime of Iran, this Shah of Iran be said to abide by? Is there any law at all governing Iran? Does any law actually command respect? Does this regime and those who run it hold respect for the various social sectors in the country? Let's consider these questions one by one. Let's see whether Iran and this regime of hers abides by the law of Islam. They say that throughout the city of Tehran liquor stores outnumber book stores, and that these stores carry on their business in safety and freedom, doing as they please. If one voices objection to this situation then he is denigrated and penalized.
The regime's disrespect to Islam and the clergy
Which of the laws of Islam is presently enforced in Iran and within its system of government? Much mention is made of oppression in the verses of the Qur'an and in the ordinances of Islam, and the same goes for those who oppress, but all the same can Iran and the Iranian regime be said to be guardians of justice?- of social justice?- of Islamic justice? Are they fooling themselves or are they trying to fool the nation? To what extent do the Shah and his gang value the Qur'an? Does holding respect for the Qur'an mean having it printed and then distributing it to the people in order to fool them «2»- like the kind of respect shown by Mu`awiyah when he fixed the Qur'an to the end of a lance pleading that everyone should act according to its teachings? Can such people be said to hold respect for the Qur'an? Do they hold respect for the clergy? Just consider the extent to which Islam has praised and singled out the clergy as people worthy of respect; yet are they actually respected and held in high regard by these people? Do they respect the maraji` of Islam? Indeed, it was only a few days ago that they stormed the homes of the honorable maraji`, breaking the doors and windows, killing people and brawling. Even now commandos are in the homes of some of these honorable gentlemen. They tell us that commandos are present in these homes in order to monitor the activities of the maraji`. What have the honorable gentlemen done to deserve to be treated with such disrespect?
Do they (the Shah and his regime) act in accordance with the constitutional law? Even Genghis acted according to the `code of laws', and so did others like him and the Mongol people themselves. Does this present-day Genghis, «3» do these Mongols respect the constitutional law? Do their elections comply with legal standards? Do their parliamentary candidates meet stipulated criteria? «4» Is their Majlis one which obeys the law? «5» Which of their affairs can be said to be remotely in accordance with any law, be they religious laws or secular and constitutional laws?
Do they have any regard for our education system? «6» If they do, then why are the schools in Iran either totally or partially closed? And why do the university lecturers suspend their lectures? It is because the government won't leave the university alone. What have these students done to deserve being deprived of education? «7» What kind of respect does this regime show for education? What kind of respect do they afford the army? Those who mistakenly regard the army as a part of their own outfit, just what kind of respect do they afford it? We have an army which serves under American advisers- the latter being granted immunity whilst the former is placed under their command! Why humiliate the army in this way? Do you realize what an affront this is to the Iranian army- how humiliating this is for the army of Iran- for its commanders? Why do these commanders allow themselves to be humiliated so? How come they don't wake up and see to this man «8» sending him to where he belongs? Just what do they hold in respect? What law do they abide by? At least let them abide by a law like that of Genghis when dealing with us; at least let them act according to some kind of principles; let some law come into play somewhere. Anarchy! Iran is currently in a state of anarchy.
Arresting people for fear of Khordad anniversary!
Khordad 15 has not yet arrived, but even so, well in advance, well before this day approaches, they are busy making arrests for fear that on Khordad 15 a few people might speak up and voice some kind of objection with regard to the killings which occurred on this day (in 1963) - that they might speak of the crimes that were perpetrated and murders committed on the orders of the Shah himself, the very one who commanded the troops during these killings. They have already arrested a number of people in Tehran. In Qum a large number of religious students have been arrested as well as ordinary people and even youngsters, children. They arrest anyone they come across- or so it is said- and the governor-general's prisons in Qum are so full of people that there is no room for any more; they've become absolutely chock-a-block.
Baseless claims
What state of affairs is this that we now see in Iran? What kind of freedom is this that His Imperial Majesty has granted us?! «9» Indeed, is freedom something to be granted?! To say that it is, is in itself a crime. To say" we granted freedom" itself constitutes a crime. Freedom belongs to the people. The law has given freedom to people. God has given freedom to people. Islam has given freedom. The constitutional law has given freedom to people. What on earth is meant by" we granted" (freedom)? Who the deuce are you to do the" granting"? What the dickens had it got to do with you anyway?" We granted freedom to the people"!! The granting of freedom means this that we now see; it does not in truth concern freedom at all but instead concerns what we are now witnessing- it is something to fool the people.
America the prime criminal, the Shah the secondary one
The regime, after deliberation, has formed a group from within its own gang which is to write something every now and then to give the impression that there is in fact freedom of the pen; that people are free to write what they wish. Of course there are some honorable people amongst those who write, who come from all different walks of life and who continue to write despite the dangers facing them. A great number of scholars and academics in Qum write about the tragic events which occur here, may God always assist them, and more or less all of the religious students also write reports of these events, which they then sign and publish. Again such writers can also be found within political groups and associations who bravely document what is going on and publish their work, although in so doing, they subject themselves to danger and harassment. Of course amongst these, within these so-called political fronts, there are also those who wish to draw a red herring by diverting attention from the main culprit to these lesser mortals; to those in the government for example. The regime would like nothing more than for the blame to be placed on the government, for anyone to say whatever they like about the government, and for His Imperial Majesty to go unnoticed; for the real culprit to be overlooked. On one occasion when I had intended to speak out, they sent someone to tell me that I was not to speak of the Americans, but that apart from this there would be no objection to my speaking of anyone else, even the Shah. I told them that all of our problems are due to Americans; all of the misery we suffer is America's doing. Are we to leave the main culprit alone and to turn our attention to the henchmen and stooges instead? Right now in Iran, it is America that is the prime culprit while this Shah of ours plays a secondary role. We are now suffering at the hands of this lesser culprit and the rest of those who are involved are not worth considering! Neither does his Prime Minister deserve mention, nor do his ministers and Members of Parliament; none of these are in any way worthy of mention. He himself is not worth talking about either, but we have no choice but to speak of him. The `ulama' of Iran are now suffering. Indeed, the Iranian people as a whole are presently suffering. They are not allowed to breathe. At present the streets of Iran are swarming with commandos. Two or three days ago, some people told us that commandos are within the homes of the high-ranking clergy, and that they are amongst the people too; and they say that the streets are full of guns and tanks and the like. What has happened? What has this nation done? Has it done anything other than to say let us breathe?
Slum-dwellers in the capital of `Great Civilization'
This Mr. Gateway to a Great Civilization! «10» He has not taken a proper look at Tehran and its various districts. Written reports made by certain gentlemen tell of forty-odd districts (in Tehran) in which one finds these slum-dwellers, these tent-dwellers, who either have no home at all, or have made some kind of tent for themselves, or again who have found a hole in the ground and thus live like animals, the poor souls. A great number of districts, forty-odd in all, have been named in the reports. I have the list in front of me right now. This Mr. Great Civilization has not taken a look at this city of Tehran with its forty-odd wretched districts, where they are deprived of whatever civilization has to offer. They have no water or electricity, and there is no trace of such things as tarmacked surfaces; they have absolutely nothing, the poor wretches. They drove these poor souls out of the villages appropriating the land there for themselves; and as a result the villagers came to Tehran. And this is now the state of Tehran, with its forty-odd districts and its slum- and tent-dwellers who are living in pain and misery, who are living in a desperate state. The reports state that in order to obtain water, these poor women have to climb a hundred steps or more to where a water tap is situated. Just imagine having to carry a water jug all this distance, and having to descend all these steps, especially during the winter. Imagine how often they must fall down and what pains they must take for the sake of obtaining a drop of water for their children. Can this Mr. Great Civilization see all this from where he is sitting? Is he really unaware of these things or does he turn a blind eye to them? Only three or four days ago, he visited the holy shrine in Mashhad where, as usual, he went through the motions of devout worship. Afterwards he came and spoke of a great civilization before a group of poor people who had been assembled there by the regime's agents. He spoke of what we will have achieved in a few years' time, and amongst other remarks made he stated that in the near future Iran's population will have reached sixty-five million and its oil will have run out. «11» Who on earth is exhausting our oil supply? He repeatedly says that there is no oil. But there is oil and it is you who is sucking our oil supply dry. You are pumping oil down the throats of America and other countries. It is not that there is no oil. We have many oil reserves, but you are using them up such that in a few years' time they will run dry and people will be left in despair. After this he intends to use solar energy! Why, for goodness sake what on earth are you talking about? Be ashamed of yourself! You want to use solar energy?! Will we have no need for oil later?! Are we to use other sources of energy?! For whom are you saying these things? At least tell them not to say these things over the radio. Let them say these things to the peasants but not over the radio where people and even those in Najaf can hear them, and where those in Europe can hear them and laugh at them. I now have in my possession the names and particulars of the forty-odd districts of Tehran which they listed and brought to me- Tehran, a city which stretches all the way from Hadrat `Abdul-`Azim (in the south) to Shemiran (in the north). Such far-off districts as these are all a part of Tehran. And there are places which are even worse than Tehran. Certain gentlemen, certain honorable merchants who came to see me, spoke of a place other than Tehran saying:" Permit us to add something to the charitable tax which is demanded of us by Islam, and to use this money to make a water tank for these poor souls whose wives have to travel a distance of six kilometers- I believe that was the distance quoted if my memory serves me right- to find water to bring back for their children and families to drink"; and I accordingly gave them permission. Whether they have now made the water tank or not, I don't know. It is the same in every district. Don't imagine that group of people who are loyal to the regime and who lead a prosperous life are typical. When certain people who know no better see the kind of lives these people have, they think that Iran is a prosperous country, and that everyone is fortunate enough to own a car, a garden and so on. The people who own these kinds of things are in fact the very members of his (the Shah's) own gang; they are the very plunderers who are fleecing the people. Can the ordinary people ever hope to enjoy a life like theirs? Go and take a look at the slum-dwellers. Go and look at the tent-dwellers. Go and look at the south of the city. Such deprivation can even be found in the north of the city too. Eisenhower Street is another of the places where slum- and tent-dwellers can be found. «12» Go and take a look at these people and then talk of progress made and of how we are about to reach the gateway to a great civilization- for which occasion we are in fact about to hold a commemorative celebration!
Nationalization as cover up in stealing the country's resources
That is how things stand on one front, with regard to the slum-dwellers and the down-and-outs in Iran. On the other front however, the regime has handed wherever and whatever is of value over to large American, Zionist or British companies; and they have done so in the name of nationalization. They have handed over our forests, pastures, water sources, rivers, subterranean waters and so on. I have a copy of a report which explains how these grazing pastures had been such that during a visit to Iran by the Queen of England's husband, the latter, after merely seeing the Arjan Plain, «13» had remarked that this was the finest place in the world, the best pasturage for the farming of any kind of livestock. Yet they nationalized this land and afterwards gave it to the British. And now, according to the written report given to me, the Queen of England along with some of the British plutocracy and British companies, are doing something or other with the animal husbandry carried out on these pastures in order to produce meat. Now whether they are producing meat for export abroad, or whether they also intend to give a little of it to us, only God knows. They say that the `Umran Plain «14», situated on the outskirts of Qazvin, is the best place for cultivation.
They have forced the people there to migrate elsewhere and have handed this land over to the Jews, the Zionists. Yes, they have given it to the Jews who are now using it to their own ends, American and Zionist companies reaping the benefits. These pieces of land which are second to none are now theirs to farm and cultivate whilst this poor, downtrodden nation still goes hungry. This nation remains in a wretched state and is at a loss as to what it should do about it. This is our `great civilization' for you!! People haven't got bread to eat but the gentleman( the Shah )speaks of civilization! He speaks of our enjoying a great civilization; of wanting to take us to a great civilization! The Mughan Plain «15» is yet another of the plains which they have nationalized. Its people have been driven away and its farmers ruined. And again they have handed this over to yet another group of foreigners. Similarly, the Dez Dam, «16» which cost seven hundred million to build and on which they spent one billion two hundred million dollars- or perhaps tumans, I can't remember- in order to build a canal system which would feed water into the dam: this too is another gift which has been graciously presented to His Imperial Majesty and his gang. One hundred and fifty villages have been brought to ruin. They have destroyed these villages and have nationalized the land there, which ought in fact to mean that this land is for the whole nation, but instead it is owned by His Imperial Majesty and his gang only. These are the things which have been documented and spoken of and which can be verified by witnesses.
Khordad 15 must be kept alive
This is the kind of life we have and this is the kind of great civilization we enjoy where our youngsters are arrested and detained before the arrival of Khordad 15. I doubt whether even the law of the jungle is like this. Indeed, the Mongols were not, for they at least had their `code of laws'; they at least had a law by which to abide. But in Iran, according to which law is so-and-so to be arrested? According to which law must so-and-so be killed? Which procedure must be followed and according to which law? As for you (the Shah), you kill people and illegally enter the homes of the `ulama' of Islam. Should someone speak up proclaiming the people's innocence, he is beaten and killed by some reprobate or other; and there is no one to speak out and ask why!
It is unlikely that history has ever before witnessed such events as the crimes committed by that man (the Shah) on Khordad 15; and if it has then they have been very rare cases. They just mowed down innocent people at random. Those who were witnesses to this said that these military trucks just kept coming; these armored vehicles just kept mowing the people down, leaving them lying in the streets. The regime won't allow anyone to make the slightest murmur with regard to Khordad 15; but the nation of Iran must not allow Khordad 15 to fade from their memory. Khordad 15 must be kept alive. «17» This event constitutes a crime whose imprint must not be allowed to fade away. Now, thanks be to God, they themselves are causing this day to become revitalized to a certain extent because these preventative measures and these arrests and other such steps taken by them, infuse Khordad 15 with a new life and vitality. The nation of Iran must not allow Khordad 15 to fade from their memory, nor must they allow any of the crimes which have been committed subsequent to Khordad 15, or those committed prior to it by the Shah's father, to be forgotten. These crimes must serve as a portrait of what went on during the Pahlavi reign so that there is no chance of any misconceptions occurring, and so that it is well understood that these affairs were the doing of the heads of the Pahlavi family. People must preserve the memory of Khordad 15. If possible they are to do so by raising a hue and cry, creating uproar and holding demonstrations; if not, then they are to do so by passive resistance and by staging sit-ins in their homes. If the regime's forces are seen to make a savage wolf-like attack against the people during demonstrations with the intention of arresting the youngsters, then the people are to remain in their homes. Let them show the abhorrence they feel towards this regime and this person (the Shah) by remaining in their homes by way of protest. If possible then, they are to hold demonstrations; but whatever happens this day must not be forgotten; it must stay alive and, God willing, so it shall. At the same time, it is important for all of the various groups, whichever groups are in the country, to consult each other, be it the scholastic and clerical front or the military and merchant fronts; the academic and university fronts, or the nomads and those who live in shacks- all of these fronts must consult each other and take each other into account.
Unity a religious duty
Furthermore, the leaders of the various groups must liaise with each other; they are not to go their own way. Now is not the time for you to act in isolation. If you lack solidarity then not only will your lot remain as it is now, but it will become even worse. It is a bounden duty, a sacred duty, for you to be united. The senior members of these fronts must establish secret links with each other. These links must not be open but rather must remain underground. But in any case, these members must liaise with each other so that should they decide to make some kind of statement, then they all do so together; should they decide to stage an attack, then they all do so together; should they decide to remain silent, then they all do so together. They must act in unison and not in isolation. It is wrong for one person to want to form a party, whilst another wants to form whatever else. We must all unite as one. Muslims must all form a corporate body. If the Muslims were as one then no one could stand up to such a multitude of people; there isn't a damned thing they could do about it. Not only these here, but large powerful countries wouldn't be able to do a damned thing either if the Muslims were to unite. However, the regime sows discord between the various fronts and we mistakenly believe this discord to be genuine. But we must stop being taken in so easily.
We must stop believing in their ostensible propriety. We must consider what Hadrat Rida (`a) would say to this person, who, in a sham of piety visits Mashhad once or twice a year and stands before the tomb of the Hadrat. God knows that if the Hadrat were alive he would not allow him to enter his shrine. How could Hadrat Rida possibly permit a libertine debauchee to enter his shrine? However, the Hadrat is not here with us now. They bring some akhound or other to eulogize, depicting him (the Shah) in glowing terms and declaring the sincere love and devotion felt towards him by the people. Yet just look what he has been up to elsewhere! Just look at the things he has said!
There must be a liaison between you, your activities being undertaken in an organized way via an inter-related network and based upon certain criteria. Muslims must act according to a program. The various parties must join together. It must not be a case of every party for itself. They must point out who the murderer is, if possible directly, if not then indirectly, and if this too is not possible then at least they are not to pin the crime on someone else. To relate these crimes to anyone but the Shah is in itself a crime. Supposing you were to say:" The government has done such-and-such a thing", what is the government anyway other than the Shah's mouthpiece? Or again supposing you were to say:" The police have done such-and-such a thing", what is the police force anyway other than a tool at the Shah's disposal? It was only yesterday that certain clergymen told me of how seventeen of these officers- or maybe they were both officers and some other kind of functionaries- had been brought to Qum to commit some kind of felony. All seventeen of them have gone into hiding taking their weapons with them; and according to the aforementioned clergymen, this search which is being conducted in Qum and this comprehensive inspection which has been carried out, have in fact been in order to trace these arms which the officers have taken along with them.
This is the present state in which our army finds itself. Do you think that the army is fond of these people- people who have handed over control of the entire army to a few Americans, a few American advisers in whose hands the whole world lies and as a result of which those in the army receive harsh and unfair treatment? Are those in the army fond of these people? This could only be the case if these servicemen had no sense of honor; for there is no way that anyone with a sense of honor could feel kindly towards them. As with the other fronts, those in the army must not remain silent either. They too must liaise with others.
Closed is the path of reconciliation between the Shah and the nation
There must be links between the various parties and those in the army, and between the latter and the clergy. Everyone must liaise together and mark out a course to bring about this person's downfall.
The Muslim people and the nation of Iran will not become reconciled with this person. If someone should speak of reconciliation, know that he is a traitor. There can be no reconciliation with him. The door to reconciliation is now closed. How could there possibly be reconciliation? Which doors have they left open for him that would make reconciliation possible? Can one still talk of reconciliation after all those youngsters of ours have been killed? Can one still talk of reconciliation in spite of all that profanity towards that which we hold sacred? Forget it! There is no way that we could consider reconciliation. The claim that the clergy spoke of reconciliation is but a lie. No one is prepared to consider reconciliation with this regime. It is preposterous to imagine such a thing. How could this nation possibly become reconciled with a person who has thrown away everything it ever had, including its honor and whatever it had of spiritual or material worth? A prominent diplomat was right when he said that Muslims, Iranians, can choose one of two options: either freedom, or permitting him to remain. «18» They must either choose to allow him to stay, and therefore remain in a state of suppression for ever more, or they must opt for freedom and therefore get rid of him. And since they are sure to opt for freedom, then they are sure to get rid of him, God willing. Indeed, it is a solemn duty for us all: a solemn duty, a sacred duty. A nation has been and is still being divested of all it possesses, yet striving to ameliorate the affairs of the Muslims is amongst the most pressing of religious obligations. You must pay due attention to this ordinance, otherwise wa illah fa laysa bi Muslim. «19» This is one of the commands which applies to us all. We are all obliged to ensure the continued existence of Islam in Iran. This person neither favors Islam, nor the Qur'an, nor Hadrat Rida (`a). Someone who inclines towards Islam does not act with such impertinence towards it. It is the duty of us all to rise up against this person, be it by the written word, by word of mouth, or, whenever the situation demands, by armed revolt. When that time comes, I will be the first to shoulder arms. But whilst armed revolt is not possible we shall revolt by speaking out.
Plot to destroy agriculture
After causing us to lose all our prestige and after bringing about the destruction of our pastures, reports state that almost forty thousand aqueducts have dried up in Iran due to their having closed the dams or whatever it is they have done. Naturally, when the aqueducts dry up, the land cannot be cultivated; and when the people there cannot cultivate the land they migrate to Tehran or some other city, where they fall into a state of poverty and misery. This constitutes a deliberate measure to move people to the cities in order to ensure that no insurgence breaks out in the villages where it is difficult to keep the people in check. Anyone with the slightest political awareness can tell that the idea is to force the villagers to migrate- those who live in mountainous regions, such as the Bakhtiyaris, or the Baluchis, who are to be found in both mountainous and desert regions- they want such people to migrate to the cities where they can be controlled and monitored more easily. That is to say that should these people ever be about to voice opposition to the regime then they could be brought under control by deploying guns and tanks against them. If these people were in the highlands however, it would be impossible to bridle them there. But the time will come when people from all sectors of society will rise up in opposition to the regime, and this uprising will then spread throughout the country. So far we have dealt with one aspect, but there is another aspect which concerns profit-seeking: their handing everything over to the plunderers in both the East and the West- everything, whatever there is to give.
Exceptional examples of crimes and looting of the country
Iran has never before experienced the situation in which it finds itself today. That is, there may have been crimes, murders and the like in the past, but you cannot find another time when Iran's resources have been given away to such an extent. You can go back to foregone eras and work your way as far back in history as you like, but you will not find a time when all of the good pastures in Iran had been given over to outsiders and foreign companies as they now have. All of our fisheries, all of Iran's fisheries in both the north and the south, have been taken from the people and are being run by foreign companies. The report states that seven thousand people were killed in the north of Iran before the government was able to `nationalize'- to use its own words- the fisheries, which it then appropriated and handed over to giant companies. «20» Just consider our oil, our fishing industry and fisheries, our pastures, our bountiful forests. People were under the impression that the forests had been nationalized, that is, that the forests were now for the benefit of the nation! But this is mere rhetoric." Nationalization" is like that gateway
to civilization that he (the Shah) talks about; these also being mere words which the regime comes out with, but which bear no truth. They have given some of those splendid forests, with their fine-quality wood, to a Romanian company; and the latter is now enjoying the returns on them.
Shah's claim of" saving Iran"
He had said in a speech that at one time, some years ago, Iran had been divided into two regions: one belonging to Russia and the other belonging to Britain, and that he had done this and that to free the country. Well, it's really beyond me how he hasn't got more sense than to say such things! Or maybe he does know better but he is trying to fool a certain few. If this is the case however, why does he say these things over the radio?" We rescued Iran from its divided state"! Very well, so how exactly did you rescue Iran- you, whose pastures are in part serving to feed the English lady «21» and her gang, in part the Americans and Zionists, and in part yourself and your offspring? What kind of" nationalization" do you call this?! What kind of rescue is this which entails us handing over all our national resources to them and being their servants again? Is our nation to serve others and to surrender whatever resources it may have to them, be they physical or intellectual?" We rescued Iran"! In what way did you rescue Iran? You have given Iran and all it has away to others; you have completely ruined the education in Iran. Nowadays, if we need the services of a physician, we have to go to England. Every few days someone heads for England for medical treatment. But if we had doctors of our own then why would we need to go to England? The universities- these too have been destroyed by you. We no longer have universities. On the face of it there are universities, but you won't even allow this semblance of a university system to go unthreatened. What are the poor university students and professors to do about these monstrosities (the Shah and his regime)? Whatever Iran stands for has now become a mockery. This person has destroyed whatever dignity Iran had, and has made a mockery of it. He has given whatever is of any use to giant companies, he and his select circle of followers having permission to feed from the small shares apportioned to them. As for those poor souls who once lived in the villages, and whom they claim to have transformed into farmers, they have been forced to migrate to the cities. The tent- and slum-dwellers now living on the outskirts of Tehran were those very same farmers, poor souls, who used to raise cattle and supply the country of Iran with wool, oil, meat etc. Now, all of them have been lost. Whatever we need has to come from abroad. Meat has to come from abroad. Wheat has to come from abroad. He has completely destroyed our agriculture. He has destroyed our education system. He has destroyed our army; our army's honor. And he means to destroy our religious establishment, but, God willing, he will not succeed in this.
Unity of expression in ousting the Shah
The immediate duty of all Muslims now must be to speak with one voice, and that which must be pronounced by them before all other unanimous statements made is:" Let us get rid of him first, then we can sort ourselves out afterwards". And should anyone fail in this duty, then he has betrayed Islam. If you should read anything written by some party that suggests we are demanding nothing more than the implementation of the constitutional law, then this is as good as saying that he( the Shah )must remain, and this therefore constitutes perfidy. As for those who call for an observance of the constitutional law and human rights, «22» they must press for a constitutional law from which those articles included therein by force have been expunged. I myself witnessed how these articles which sanction the present evil monarchy were introduced at bayonet-point- that is, at the point of Rida Khan's bayonet. It is not the case that people had a say in this or were involved in any way the people had no say in the matter. These undertakings were accomplished at bayonet-point. These are articles which are unacceptable to the people of this country. Hence, these articles which have given legal sanction to this regime must be done away with. We too have no qualms with a constitutional law which has been amended via supplementary constitutional laws, but it must be an amended Constitution. You must be aware that he who advocates constitutional law without stipulating that it is to be an amended Constitution- or even if he does make such a stipulation but he does so in ambiguous terms- is either following a misguided path or does not appreciate the situation. Now that I have clarified the situation however, there is no longer any excuse for him not to understand the situation. «23»
The need for links between the `ulama' and the parties in order to establish an Islamic government
We all have a duty to liaise with each other. There must be links between ourselves and those abroad; between active groups at home and active groups abroad; between the `ulama' of Islam and other `ulama'; between eminent religious figures in major Islamic centers and the `ulama' in the provinces; and between the `ulama' of Islam and the various parties. Now is not the time for parties to act in isolation, nor for the `ulama' to act in isolation. A party cannot achieve anything in isolation; and as for the `ulama', they too need the various parties to be involved in affairs. It is up to these two communities to bring Muslims together. They are to ensure that Muslims in Iran enjoy solidarity, and that all groups liaise with each other whilst also having links with high-ranking governmental officials. Relations must be established with those officials in top governmental positions who have not lost their sense of honor and who remain men of integrity. Many such men are still to be found in the governmental sector. There are many such men who are pained by this wretched state of affairs. Relations must be established with these men so that the day will arrive when we are able to rise up, and by so doing get rid of this person, set up an Islamic government, and, God willing, start putting the laws of Islam into practice, for at the moment there is no trace of such laws in Iran. Do divorce proceedings under the present system conform to the laws of Islam? Do the present marriage proceedings conform to the laws of Islam? Do business transactions conform to the laws of Islam? Just what is in accordance with Islam? Does going on a pilgrimage to the shrine of Hadrat Rida (`a) make everything alright?! Can an act of hypocrisy put everything right?! Do you think that you can continue to fool the people?! I pray that God may awaken the Iranian people (Amen), and that He may increase their present awareness (Amen). May He preserve the theological centers (Amen). May He foreshorten the arms of the foreigners and their agents from this country (Amen), and grant unity to all the Islamic countries (Amen).
May God's peace, mercy and blessings be upon you.