Speech [Analyzing the results of the Iranian nation's struggles; spiritual and material welfare programs; emphasis on an Islamic republic and self-edification]

I seek refuge in God from the accursed Satan

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

I would like to thank the Iranian nation for its kind affection. I will never forget you tormented people. I can never ever reciprocate your kindness. I pray to the Exalted and Blessed God for the health and prosperity of the Iranian nation.

The Iranian nation has revived Islam with its life and blood; it has given Islam and the Muslims a new life, and thwarted the almost 300- year-long efforts of the colonial powers and foreigners. The colonial and foreign powers had launched a 300- year propaganda campaign against Islam, all religions and the clerical institution. Such propaganda reached its peak during the reigns of this father and son (Rida Khan and the Shah). These foreign lackeys trampled upon the nation's dignity in the last fifty-odd years. This father and son perpetrated treacheries that have blackened our history. They committed so many crimes in Iran of which we cannot report even one-tenth or one-hundredth. They pushed our nation into servility. They plundered our resources. They destroyed our human resources, which take precedence over all other resources. They made efforts to keep our youth and the universities backward. They tried to prevent theology schools from performing their tasks.

I should thank you, the Iranian nation and the people of Qum, who, in this uprising over the past couple of years, thwarted all the plots and drove away the agents of colonialism from your country, and those remaining will also be flung out. You have curtailed the hands of colonial powers, severed the hands of profiteers and international plunderers. You gave blood and sacrificed your young sons, but these young people and their blood were for the sake of Islam and served its interests. Islam is precious enough for us not to fear the shedding of blood and the sacrificing of our youths for its sake. Islam has had so many martyrs. The Commander of the Faithful, may God's peace be upon him, was a martyr of Islam and he achieved martyrdom for the sake of Islam. Husayn ibn `Ali was martyred for the cause of Islam. We have no fear of martyrdom; nor do we have any fear of being killed. You, the Iranian nation have insured Islam with your blood and that of your youths, and have severed the hands of foreigners. You have made all of us grateful. I am indebted to all of you. I am your servant. I cannot ever appreciate enough, to the extent that I should, this blessing bestowed on those zealous Iranians across the land and on us.

You have now reached this stage. They (Shah et al) have already fled the country and left us a devastated land with expanded cemeteries. They" developed" our graveyards with the graves of our youths and destroyed the country. The chaos and muddled state of our country are not such that can be remedied within a couple of years or in a short period. This necessitates the collaboration of all the members of the Iranian nation to improve the affairs and situation of the country. The nation should not sit idle waiting for the government to reconstruct the country. The government cannot do it alone. Nor should the people wait for the clergymen to do the reconstruction. The clergymen cannot do it alone either. All of us, including the farmers, workers, manufacturers, clergymen, university people, civil servants and the armed forces; all should collaborate. This movement, which has now reached this point, is still halfway through. You have so far only driven out the thieves and the saboteurs. But the ravaged land still remains. Reconstruction of this devastation is of primary importance to us. What is important is that this ruined land be reconstructed through your noble determination.

Be alert! Be vigilant! Agitators and foreign lackeys are lurking. They are not asleep, and neither should you. You must be vigilant. They are busy hatching conspiracies in different ways and forms. Now that the degenerate monarchial regime has been destroyed, they want to re-enter the arena to regain the same advantages for themselves, and carry out the same plundering and to restore the same suppression. My beloved nation! Be alert! Whatever we put our finger on is out of order: our culture is corrupt and it should be transformed. This culture is a colonial one, and should be changed. Colonially oriented teachers must leave. Those who have been up to now at the service of colonialism and the monarchial regime must go and be replaced by people of pure character. Pure-hearted scholars must come to the scene. We are beset with many difficulties in our hands. We must all join in resolving these problems and end these betrayals. Be alert and be vigilant not to let this movement slip off your hand. If, God forbid, the zeal for this movement wanes, then you have to prepare for the return of the previous problems and afflictions. If you wish to rescue Iran and Islam and the glorious Qur'an, you must safeguard this movement. You should stage demonstrations and have gatherings whenever necessary. Today, demonstrations should be staged fervently. This movement must be preserved; this nation should remain dynamic.

Gone are the days when a police officer would govern us. Gone are the days when a general-governor would rule us, and gone are the days when a low-ranking officer would rule us. Today, everybody is at your service and at the service of Islam. You should appreciate the value of this blessing. Do not let weakness and lethargy overcome you. Do not say that the Shah is gone and so the struggle is over. No! Colonialism has studied our situation for over 300 years or even more: they have reviewed your morale and the ways and manners of various tribes among you and have come to this conclusion that they have to sow seeds of discord among various Muslim factions and cause differences in every city, create rifts and separate you from one another by playing different tunes (of deception); separate the clergy from Muslims; separate the university people from clergymen; separate workers from clerics. But clergymen are at the service of workers. Islam is at the service of the oppressed. Those who claim that nothing has been done are seeking to disrupt the unity of the people. A great task has been achieved. Yet, a greater task ahead remains to be done. If there are some elements that intend to create discord, you must ostracize them from your ranks. Do not let them say things that will cause disunity. Workers must stay alert. They want to bring back the former era (of monarchial oppression). Oh, farmers, be alert! They want to despoil your agriculture once again. You, farmers, who are the greatest supporters of the nation, should seriously carry on your farming activities. This is now the time for sowing. Get involved in spring cultivation. You the shopkeepers, guild workers and respectable businessmen! be lenient toward people in their needs for staple food. Desist from hiking prices. Establish a cooperative and humanitarian spirit among yourselves. Render support to the deprived people. Give them discounts. Avoid hiking prices and overpricing commodities. Stay united. You are all brothers. People from all walks of life are brothers. Stay together. Observe each other's rights. Refrain from things that became prevalent during the past fifty-odd years such as lying, fraud, price hiking, and so on and so forth. Today Islam has spread its shadow over you. The Imam of the Time looks at you with kindness. The Holy Prophet is watching you with affection. The Blessed and Exalted God is supporting you.

We have many things ahead of us, some of which I would like to mention to you. In these recent days when I was intending to leave Tehran, I ordered that all the assets of the sinister Pahlavi dynasty and those related to it, who plundered the people, be confiscated. Houses should be constructed for the poor and the deprived. We intend to build housing units for the poor across the land. The ex-Shah's assets and those of his siblings will be enough to improve the state of affairs in a whole country. We will fulfill our promises; we will not stop at words. We are going to act (upon those words).

All committees all over the country are duty-bound to hand over to banks whatever belongs to Iran's treasury that has been retrieved and whatever they had taken and stashed away somewhere. A bank account will be announced later for this purpose and all such assets will be remitted to that account and will be used for building houses for the workers, the poor and the oppressed in order to make their lives comfortable.

In addition to our wish to make your material life comfortable, we also wish to make your spiritual life satisfying. You all need spirituality. They took away our spirituality. Do not be content that we have built you homes and provided the poor with free water and electricity or free bus transportation. Do not be content just with this. We will enhance your spirituality, boost your morale, and help you reach a humanitarian status. They (ex-regime) had made you degenerate. They made the world so glittering in your eyes that you thought it was everything. We will make you prosperous in this world as well as in the hereafter. This is one of the things that should be done and it will be so. These assets derive from Islamic wealth and belong to the nation and the oppressed people. I have ordered the officials to give them to the oppressed people and they will do so. And after this, other concessions will also be obtained, but you will have to be a little patient. Do not listen to evil tunes (of deception). They (enemies) merely talk, but we act. They want to disillusion you about Islam, but Islam is your support.

Subsequent to this, we have programs regarding banks in order to reverse this pathetic and colonial situation. All these palaces and ministries on which millions and billions of the nation's wealth had been spent will have to be transformed into a well-balanced Islamic institution. The (prevailing) system is foreign-oriented, alien and of taghout. A palace had been made in the justice ministry, but no justice is administered there; it is not the place to dispense justice. It is nothing but a palace. Palaces will have to be demolished and replaced with a court of justice. Banks must gradually adopt a balanced form and usury be completely stopped.

I should tell and warn high officials not to show such weakness in determination! Do not go after Western styles (of administration). Our helplessness has been the result of going after this Western form and wishing that our justice administration and laws be patterned after the West. Do not give in to self-distrust. We have a very rich code of life in the form of divine laws. Those who prefer Western laws to divine laws, have no knowledge of Islam. Those who say Islam cannot be implemented in our time say so because they do not know Islam and do not understand what Islam says.

Within the scope of the (Qur'anic) principle" enjoining the good and forbidding the evil", an autonomous ministry independent of the government will be set up, God willing. Through this ministry, we will fight corruption; we will eradicate prostitution, reform the media, radio and television, the cinema, all of which must adopt an Islamic form. Propagation must be Islamic, likewise the ministries, and laws must be Islamic laws. We will enforce punishment code of Islam and we will not be concerned whether the West likes it or not.

The West had humiliated us, crushed our morale and made us Westernized. We will eradicate this Westernization; together with the Iranian nation and its support, we will erase all traces of Westernization, all its corrupt vestiges- not its civilized aspects- all its corrupt morals, all contemptible Western songs. We will create a" Mohammedan" country. Our flag should not be the monarchial flag; the emblems of Iran should not be the monarchial one; they should be Islamic. The despicable" lion and sun" emblem should be removed from all ministries and offices. The banner should be Islam. The remnants of the taghout should be effaced. All these are vestiges of the taghout; this crown is a symbol of the taghout. Islam must be our emblem.

Gentlemen, be vigilant! O government, be vigilant! O nation, be vigilant! Do not let them (regime's agents) drag you back to the previous situation. This issue must be resolved right now. Of course, we need to exercise caution and it will be slow but we will begin it. We will commence it. We will, of course, give the government a grace period; we have to give it a certain amount of time. Do not listen to this tittle-tattle going about questioning (the government)" What has happened? What have you accomplished? What will happen?" These words are meant to undermine our government. The enervation of the government means the enervation of Islam. The government is an Islamic one. A debilitated army means a weakened Islam. Do not let undermine them. Certainly all places such as offices and ministries will be purged and the traitors and thieves will leave. But not all of them are traitors; the trustworthy ones will remain; they are dear (to us)

Many of the elderly people of Iran and some of the younger ones remember the fifty-odd years- or perhaps twenty years that almost all of you remember- during which the Iranian nation endured all the difficulties until its patience snapped. Give the government some time to carry out its affairs. Of course, some appointments have not been right but the mistakes have not been deliberately made. The government will not commit this mistake intentionally. Some of the appointments have been made wrongly. Likewise, the chief of staff and the army headquarters will not commit any treason on purpose or appoint a traitor (to a post) deliberately. Mistakes are possible. So, whenever you spot any mistakes, point them out. Do not weaken them. Those who are saying that you must undermine the government or engage in propaganda to enervate (the government) are traitors. They wish to enfeeble the government and the military so that they can re-establish another organization to push everything back to square one. Be alert!

We will resist until our last breath. I have devoted these last couple of years of my life to you. I want you, the nation, to safeguard this movement until the establishment of a just Islamic government. Up until now, you have said (in your slogans) that this movement will go on until the death of so and so. «1»

Now, you should say," This movement will go on until the establishment of an Islamic government." What the nation wants is an Islamic republic; not merely a republic; nor does it want a democratic republic or a democratic Islamic republic. It wants an Islamic republic.

What I want of you, the Iranian nation, is to be vigilant; do not let the blood shed by your beloved ones be in vain. Do not fear the word" democratic" or be afraid that it will be expunged. This from is a Western notion and we do not want a Western form (of government). We approve of Western civilization but not its corruption. Those who shed their blood are the masses; those who sacrificed their young sons are the masses. A clique from abroad, the aristocrats and the affluent sat (comfortably in their homes) while you gave your blood and sacrificed your young ones and your homes set ablaze. It will be as desired by you not what those who came from Europe and abroad want; not what the rich and the aristocrats want or what the legal experts want. What you want is what will be set up. Those who gave their lives must be heard; their opinion must be adhered to

Newspapers should reform themselves. They should not betray Islam and the Muslims. Do not render in vain the blood shed by the oppressed people. They should not reflect adverse propaganda; they should thwart conspiracies, but people are free to cast their votes. When the referendum is announced, I shall vote for a republic, an Islamic republic. Anyone who follows Islam must want an Islamic republic. However, people are free to cast their votes and say that they want a monarchial regime or the return of Muhammad Rida Pahlavi. They are free (to say so); or, say that they want a Western-oriented regime or a republic, but not an Islamic one.

We should ask that person who says there should be a republic, but not Islam, what he knows and has seen of Islam. What evil have you seen in Islam? He should be told that it was Islam, not the people, which uprooted the taghout; it was faith, not you or I, which overthrew the taghout! What bad thing have you seen in Islam? Those who say they want a democratic republic, that is, a Western kind of republic, what bad aspects have you seen in Islam? What do you know of Islam? Islam guarantees freedom, independence and justice. In Islam, there was no difference between the head of the country and a peasant. In fact, the former was entitled to the use of material things less than the latter. Freedom to vote has always been part of Islam even at its inception, not only during the time of the Imams, may God's peace be upon them, but also at the time of the Prophet. People were free to express what they wanted to say or to discuss issues. Anybody who has an argument to put forward regarding freedom of expression has nothing to fear, but we will not consent to any conspiratorial moves. These (the opposition) do not have any (substantial) thing to say; they just want to plot (against Islam). We invited them to come to the television station and express what they want and we would debate (the issue). So far, nobody has stepped forward.

I thank the Iranian nation, my fellow countrymen and the people of Qum for their display of affection. I had said before that knowledge issue forth from Qum and power emerged from Qum. Qum was a model, and I am honored that I am here. I was away from you for a little more than fifteen years, but my heart was here and I was with you (in spirit). You, the honorable and chaste youth have become paragons for everyone. Thanks God, the entire nation throughout the land shouted out in unison. The divine power defeated the taghout. It was this divine power that destroyed, and will destroy, the superpowers. We will no longer allow the superpowers to interfere in the country's affairs.

Shun differences. The secret of our victory was unity and solidarity. Laud the theological schools. Do not listen to the words of the people who want to separate you from theological circles, and the Religious Reference Authorities. These people have ulterior motives. These theological centers have preserved Islam until now. Had it not been for the clergymen, there would not be anything of Islam. What has kept Islam alive, during these dark times and bleak period is the presence of the clergymen. Support them.

All theological centers everywhere must be vigilant. This is not the time for theological centers to act the way they used to. The previous situation was one thing and the present situation is another. Theology schools should be vigilant. Piety! Piety! Keep piety always in your mind. Learned people, students of the divine sciences, be pious, edify yourselves and strive to overcome the self! An (Islamic) crusader can rule a nation with just the power of the self. Endeavor and purge your theological schools. Everybody must purify himself. The entire nation is duty bound to purify itself.

The Islamic school of thought is a school of edification. The Qur'an is a book that builds man; rely upon the Qur'an. Learn from the sublime teachings of Islam. Islam builds human beings. This is why the foreigners and superpowers are afraid of it. They are afraid of its people, so they lambasted Islam because it is a school that builds human beings. They are afraid of a person and so they subdue the schools and universities. Let this place be the center for the development of human beings! One man can rectify a nation. The Messenger of God was a single individual, a perfect human being and could edify one world. And one corrupt individual can corrupt a nation. One certain Muhammad Rida Pahlavi was dragging the nation toward corruption. May the Exalted God grant victory to all of you. May the Exalted God fortify Islam. May the Exalted God keep this movement alive. May the Exalted God preserve this Islamic power. May the Exalted God grant the Religious Reference Authorities and the `ulama' honor and grandeur. May the Exalted God grant our nation courage. May God's peace, mercy and blessings be upon you.