Speech [Characteristics of an ungodly regime; the educational role of radio and television]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

The organizations of the monarchial regime and those things that are similar to monarchial regimes that overall, we must call them [ungodly regimes]; ungodly regimes because on the basis of their characteristic type they betray the trust of the nation and build an organization to serve their own purpose and employ the people to further their own interests and are alienated from the people, their programs are designed to corrupt the nation and corrupt the young generation. If the young generation is not corrupt, they are fearful of it and are afraid lest at any moment the young generation rise up and destroy them. For this reason, by various means they attempt to corrupt the young generation so that they leave aside the issues of the day and the issues of living. Numerous means such as the publications were at their disposal; the radio and television broadcasting, the cinema, the theatre- all of these were at the service of the non-monotheistic regime.

All of these were meant to push the nation backward and to make them indifferent toward their own destinies and probably pull them to their side so that while they are preoccupied with things other than their own destinies these people make the most of the situation and are confident that nobody is opposing them. Thus, they made available all the means of corrupting the youth such as the centers of corruption that you all are probably aware of how many were there, especially in Tehran; by various means some of which cannot be spoken about at all. Likewise, it was at the seaside. At the time when people would go to the seaside, one of the things they would promote was this intermingling that was present between women and men. This was not because they wanted our youth to have a good time; rather it was meant to corrupt them. The number of centers that served intoxicants such as alcohol and other addictions was countless. If our youth would go to the cinema; if they would go to the cinema over a period of several days, they would become habituated; and the cinema with all its corrupting influences; all the radio stations were corrupting; the print media such as newspapers, such as magazines were all means to lead our youth astray.

One of the things that again intoxicates the minds of the youth and benumbs it is music. Music causes the mind of a human being after it has listened to music over a period of time into a mind other than a serious mind. It draws a person away from seriousness and takes one to another world. All these means and equipment, some of which were present until now- and they had made countless of them- was meant to cause our nation to become indifferent to its destiny and draw its attention in other directions; to deviate them from the issues of the day lest they cause them trouble. This was a very detailed plan that was designed; it was not that it was, for instance, incidental that these things have taken place. Not at all; this was a plan which those who are the planners had designed to destroy the youth.

In addition to this was the pressures that they would bring on the people and the pressures that they would bring on the clergy; the pressures they would bring on the universities and on the rest of the strata. On the whole, they wanted to empty the country of human beings and to destroy the manpower. Organizations that were for education, for development were transformed into organizations that were contrary to these. Education that was useful for a human being, for a society and useful for a country would be eliminated and instead instructions that were contrary to the course of the nation; that was based on the lusts of the individual himself but was contrary to the direction of the nation; that was opposed to the interests of the nation, would be introduced.

It was impossible for the articles that were related to the destiny of the nation to be written in the newspapers or be broadcast over the radio. Articles that were contrary to the direction of the nation; that were in conflict with the interests of the society, these were in circulation. Magazines that must educate the young generation were transformed into an education that you all observed how disgraceful were the reputation of our magazines. It was all in order to lead our youth away from the path that they were treading and off course from the path of humanity that they must traverse and bring them on another course and exploit the country. Exploit in such a way as to destroy all that are in the interests of a country; corrupt everything; handover all our resources to foreigners; and nobody should be present to ask them" why"; because they have diverted the attention of the people from that thing which was important for their living. When the youth who are the foundations of a country, who are the pillars of a country are all drawn toward immorality and vice; are drawn toward narcotics; are attracted to these magazines and these circumstances and those circumstances of the radio and television broadcasts and the issues that they dealt with- the youth would no longer have the time to think on issues and neither will his mind work.

Music is something that every person on the basis of his taste likes to hear; but it is one of those things that draws away a person from seriousness and attracts him to frivolous issues. This youngster who gets habituated to listening to music for a few hours everyday- most of the radio and television broadcasts of those people was of these sorts- and a youngster who uses most of his time to listen to music and so forth; this youngster will become totally neglectful of the matters of living and serious issues; he gets habituated in the same way that they get addicted to narcotics and drugs. Those who get addicted to narcotics can no longer be serious individuals who can think on political issues. Music causes the mind of a person to become addicted to it in such a way that the person becomes incapable of thinking at all except about the environment of music and matters related to carnal desires and music. It was for this reason that they stressed that the radio should be in that fashion and the television broadcasts in that fashion and the magazines in that fashion and the newspapers in that fashion and the cinema in that fashion; and all of them together joined hands and entertained the nation and kept them busy with these things while they took away all our resources such that now that they have left and got lost, nothing beneficial has remained for our country; whichever part one lays one's hand, it is unhealthy.

They created a tumult; they shouted that they wanted to take us to gateway of a" great civilization" whereas the fact was to take away the nation from the basis of civilization let alone" great civilization"! They took everyone far away from civilization from that which brings about the independence of human beings; the independence of thought of human beings. Unless a human being possesses independence of thought he cannot be a useful individual; and they wanted that no useful individual should exist; basically, they were afraid of human beings. They saw that a certain Mudarris «1» who in the reign of Rida Khan was in the Majlis and did not allow Rida Khan who wanted a republic to create one. Even though it happened against the interests and had it happened it would have been better- but at that time they had ill intentions. In other words, he had not become the monarch until then and he wanted to become the president; and next, to do other things. The person who did not allow this to happen was Mudarris- one who confronted him till the end and ultimately sacrificed his life. It was Mudarris who prevented him from doing as he pleased; but eventually they martyred him at some place.

These people did not want a human being to be to be found. They make efforts to ensure that the university- which is of special interest to them and is a target of their attacks- does not have the right programs. Even if you assume that they have a correct program, they shall not allow it to be implemented and will create a disturbance everyday; they would create disturbances in order to preoccupy our youth. In our field also it is the same; they would and are causing disturbances; every day they would create a new disturbance; they would organize certain gatherings so that everybody would be kept busy and we would be removed from the principal and humane issues. Part of these issues is the subject of the seaside that you are now mentioning. The subject of the seaside was that these very young youth and these young girls would go to the seaside and mingle with one another and do as they pleased; that the generation be wasted; that human beings be wasted. A young person who goes to the seaside for a couple of months and mingles with two other youngsters, this person can no longer think of what must be done to stop them from taking away our crude oil. Basically the mindset of a youth who only thinks of reciting verses of romantic poetry and of having romance with a lover will not pursue those issues- the direction changes. They work on the basis of a plan. Incidentally, it has not happened in this way that the seaside would become such and the means would be easily available. The way it is being said, all the means were made available; they would be encouraged. They would be encouraged to do all these deviant activities. This was meant to lead our youth away from the path of living by all means so that it would become a poor nation and does not comprehend what is happening now. We now have a poor country; and the nation would not know what it is. Now that they have gone away, the eyes have opened and they witness that all the banks have been emptied and they had made borrowings and taken away with them all the jewels; in other words, Rida Shah took away much of the jewels that the British took from him; and a lot of it was taken away by this person which I do not know where they will surface. The foreign banks are full of foreign currencies and money of these people while our youth were negligent of these issues because they had diverted their attention to somewhere else. The soul of a young man whose time is now to indulge in lusts, if the means of satisfying his lusts is made available to him in that manner and the serious issues are relegated to the background in that manner; ultimately this young man will be reared in that manner. In his old age also he will be of no use; he is incapable of doing anything. When the power of youth is present and it must be put to good use; at that time this power of youth is diverted; it has been emptied of what it was and has been replaced by something else.

There are many other issues such as this issue of Westernization and the West and these also have a long story for them. Finally, they have calculated with all the means- whose plans are most probably prepared abroad and by those who want to take away our resources. They present the plans and these people implement them; or the experts come here and handover the plans to them and they implement. These are calculated issues and are based on the wicked objectives that the foreigners had and the system itself had. Now, God willing, I hope that these issues have been resolved to some extent. By the grace of God, their hands have now been severed; and I hope that they shall remain severed to the end. The regime has gone; and I hope that it does not return again and it will not return.

Now you must take the issues seriously; you should revert from that joking and jesting and should I add, nonsense matters to serious issues which is to govern your country; you must govern it yourself. The television stations and the radio stations must air instructive programs; that give strength to our youth; that strengthens their willpower. The television stations must not be such that they broadcast ten hours of music. A youngster who is strong is converted into an intoxicated and ecstatic state much like opium and this is also not very different from that; this brings one kind of ecstasy while that brings its own kind of ecstasy. These must be transformed. If you want that your country to be a proper one; if you want it to be free; to be independent; you should take things seriously from now on. Transform the radio and television broadcasts to an educational radio and television; eliminate (sensual) music. Do not be afraid of being told that because we have rejected music we are old-fashioned! Okay, we are old-fashioned! Do not be afraid of this. This very word is a plan to push you back from doing serious work.

That they say if music is not broadcast over the radio, they would go to other stations and listen to music from those places; let them take it from somewhere else, you should not for the present be spoiled; they too shall gradually revert to this side. This is no excuse that if there is no music played over the radio; they will go and listen from somewhere else. Now that they are listening to music from somewhere else, must we give them music? Must we commit treason? This is betrayal to a country; it is betrayal to our youth. Eliminate this music totally; instead, broadcast a program that is educational.

Gradually make our people and our youth habituated to educational programs so that they revert from this evil habit. That you see that our youth will listen to other music if we do not provide them is because they have become habituated. This is proof that our youth have been corrupted. Now it is our duty to transform this generation that has been corrupted to piety and not allows these smaller children of ours to be corrupted; prevent this from happening; there must be seriousness involved on this issue. The intermingling of women and men along the seashore was among those plans; people must be serious and put a stop to it. The police organizations and governments and so forth must put a stop to this; the people themselves must put a stop to this. The radio must propagate this matter that such things must not happen and explain to them the immoralities.

Likewise, the radio should be an apparatus for education and development of a nation. One can impart education and training to a country better over the radio and television than by all other things because both the preacher and literate person can make use of them as well as the illiterate person; whereas by other means such as newspapers and magazines, only a specific group in a limited area can benefit. Now the radio and television has become such that in all places, as you say, the forty-million populations can listen to it. Radio and television broadcasts are now becoming such that all strata can see and listen to them. Through the sight and sound you can be of service to this country- although they committed treason against this country. Radio and television is a thing by means of which one can help to educate better than by all other means; make the systems progressive ones and through it train the youth because everybody listens to them; all the youth listen to it and the villages and settlements and all of them; whoever can afford, has procured a radio; and if he could not, then he goes to his friend's house and listens to it there.

In any case, these organizations must be transformed if you want that your country should remain yours. And if the same programs are broadcast and the same situation, then know that if it does not happen now, after a few years you shall return to the same problems; and again there will be misery for your offspring.

May God endorse all of you and awaken our entire nation and the whole nation be familiarized with its interests; and God willing, become aware of the plans that they have drawn for us and nullify them.