Speech [Reform and reconstruction of the country with the hands of the nation]

[In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful]

You should not expect that a country that was under subjugation of tyrannical kings for a period of 2,500 years and almost for sixty years under the domination of the unclean Pahlavi regime which tried with all its strength and effort to push back this country in every respect, to become a flower garden and its people to become angels as soon as they had gone away!

They trained our youth in such an inhuman way that it is difficult to cause them to return to a condition and to bring them on this path and get them to move. Every turbaned person is not a cleric or every claimant to being Islamic, a Muslim. In the system of oppression where they would make use of all the strata, this stratum has also been used and you should not expect that in a span of five months, it is possible to reform every person. Not only your city is having those problems, other cities also are facing the same problems; other strata also are having these problems. But each of the groups that come talks about their own condition- because they have felt it- and says that no place is worse than theirs. They come from Kurdistan province and say the same thing; they come from Lorestan and make the same complaint; and from wherever they come these problems are mentioned and all are speaking the truth because in the course of this period they had worked hard to push back everything and especially the manpower. They worked hard in order not to allow our manpower to develop; neither in our stratum nor in the stratum of others; not to allow a clergyman to be correct and upright- and the same for the rest of the people.

Therefore, this is a natural matter that when a corrupt regime moves out and a competent regime wants to take over, it takes time for this competent regime- however competent it may be- to be able to make all the people competent or even be able to make those that are related to the regime itself and be related to the government apparatus it is chaotic to such an extent that one cannot do the job so soon. Even though the government is busy with all its forces to solve these problems and difficulties, yet the problems are too many; and the many problems cannot be solved except with the cooperation of the whole nation.

Just as the whole nation caused the regime to retreat and no single strata could do this job, it was the congregation that did the job. Just as now also for reconstruction which is a more difficult task than the main issue, there is need for help. The government needs the help of all the people; that they hold its underarms and God willing, with the help of all strata it shall be resolved; and these sorts of incompetent people shall, God willing, be ostracized by the people themselves; the people themselves should get rid of them.

God willing, we hope that by the will of God, the Blessed and Exalted, matters are reformed and there should be no doubt in your mind of not being able to do it. Be strong, be united in strength. You have managed to defeat such a power; the other internal disturbances are of our own; was it other than the fact that all the powers were behind it? All the powers; that is, the minor powers of the Muslim countries; the big powers of America and the Soviet Union and Britain- all were backing him and his regime; all had decided to keep him in power; the nation dismissed him. Now it is all over; so what are you afraid of; nothing is going to happen anymore; now it is you yourselves. There are disputes among you; these are internal matters; we have set aside the foreign enemy; all these are internal matters. If a remnant, a decayed thing is present yet; this also you shall eradicate and throw away; it will be finished, God willing.

May God protect all of you; may He protect the sisters; may He also protect the brothers; and may you all be successful in carrying this movement, God willing, to its conclusion.