Speech [American treasons against Iran; sabotage and commotion perpetrated by America]

I would like to thank you, gentlemen, for taking the trouble of coming here so that I could discuss with you, brothers and sisters, matters, which need to be talked about, if not all, at least some of them. You might have heard that the Shah left the United States to go to another place, today. This evidence of (U. S) crimes, this criminal has to be tried here to lift the curtains which have concealed American crimes, in other words, the crimes that the American presidents have committed here through this criminal (the Shah) during all this time. We want to disclose all these crimes which had their roots mainly in the United States. The Shah was the prong of these roots. America thinks that everything will be settled when the Shah leaves the United States. The secretary of state said that he wanted to see the Iranian reaction to this move now. He said that if Iran's core of complaint was why the Shah was in America, then the whole issue would be settled now that he was no longer in the U. S. This is not but the Shah, the core of the problem. The deposed Shah now is an ailing, sickly person. When he was in power he was even more miserable because he was not mentally ready to see what people's demands were. Mr. Carter, too, is an invalid Those who are in power, due to their small brains, wrongly assume that they are authorized to do whatever they can, to involve in any crime they wish to and to crush any nation which is against them. These are the world's most wretched people. They lack the spirit and conscience to control whatever whims come to their minds. In the same way that a wretched person cannot tread a right path, a handicapped person cannot either. These people constitute the wretched ones; their little brain cannot contain the much power that overwhelmed them, and so they cannot control themselves.

The prophets and men of God were never influenced by the power they ha. The governor who governed a country which extended from his Hijaz and Egypt to Iran and elsewhere was more humble than any of his subjects. He his spirit was never stirred by all the powers he had because of his soul was great. His magnitude was so vast that cont'd that it can conquer the universe solitary soul which emerged purified from all contamination and grew as immensely that the universe became but a dot compared to it. Such men deserve to be statesmen. Islam made them administrators. When such people are not available some individuals close to them in intelligence and competence and those who will not be spoiled by power or will not be influenced by power pretensions, should engage in the management of the country. Unfortunately, such characters were rare. Most of them are like unruly beasts, those, who, upon getting powerful, would immediately embark on wreaking mischief. These are the wretched ones like one named Muhammad-Rida, who is ailing and wretched. I say that he was even more wretched when he had power. Now, I say that you (American officials), too, are wretched and all power-wielders who go out of control and let power over take them. All these pathetic people would gather round the principle villain (Cater) and condemn a nation. Perhaps, you have heard that all of these statesmen. You might have heard that the Hague has condemned us. They imagine that now the Iranians would go crazy if they heard this shocking news! The Hague and similar organizations have repeatedly condemned Israel with no result. Besides, our issue is a question of right and we ask everyone to come here and see. We are saying that this is not an embassy at all.

You say that based on regulations created by the gentlemen (U. S. officials) this embassy should be under American jurisdiction. We claim that it is not an embassy; its entity was not that of an embassy. We also claim the personnel working here were not embassy staff, at all.

In the name of" embassy" you created this place as a den for espionage. Let [observers] come over here and see whether the instruments we have confiscated are the usual things for an embassy or for spies. They could take a look at other embassies and Iranian embassies abroad to see if they are like the (U. S) embassy here. They could also see Iran's ambassadors abroad or the embassy staff and see if they are involved in such activities.

If, for instance, Iran or any other country uses its embassy in the U. S. as a center for conspiracy and espionage, then (American) officials could censure those Iranian diplomats to leave the country. Through these rhetorics you want to cheat the whole world. But it is too late now; nobody believes you (American officials) anymore. You get rid of the Shah so that your past conspiracies remain disclosed. But we, ourselves, will try you right here; the Pahlavi regime and the U. S republic right here. During this recent period, they (U. S) hurled accusations of committing crimes and hached conspiracies against us.

They [United Nations] have condemned us and ordered that we should turn over the embassies and the American embassy, and that the diplomatic corps ambassadors and embassy staff should be set free to return to their country. We say that it is not an embassy. You say that it is an embassy, but we say that the U. S. does not have an embassy here at all. The U. S. does not have any diplomats here. What it has are security agents and not diplomats. These persons are agents of American's intelligence services t «1». These agents have not come to Iran to establish political relations between the United States and Iran. Rather, they come to hatch conspiracies in Iran. Now that they have failed, they might get involved in more extensive conspiracy. At this juncture of time, when the Shah is no longer here and American interests have been served to a certain extent, the Americans may wish to carry out more conspiracies. This is what we mean. We wish to invite world experts, politicians, and scholars alike to come over here and study our situation and to see if the individuals busy working in this place are really people benefiting is an embassy? Are the conditions there those of an embassy could this place be called an embassy? Let these experts come here and look into the dossiers of these people and their previous activities. They should see whether their activities are diplomatic or not. Thus, the Hague's has issued a faulty verdict to condemn us. They have issued the verdict to the effect that the embassy should be returned to the Americans and the spies be allowed to go free. We do not have such an embassy in Iran. Where is the embassy referring to? They have ordered us to free the diplomats, but we do not know of any American diplomats here. They have not stipulated that we should return a den of spies. Let them convene another session and decide on the delivery of the den of the spies. And let them issue a verdict for the freedom of the spies. We have confiscated a center for espionage, and not an embassy.

The United States do not have statesmen and diplomats here. Let them find one diplomat among these hostages, we will free him. However, we claim that these are not diplomats at all. If you do not believe, send some envoys to investigate the case.

We will look into this matter and will try these people. And we will try the American presidents in absentia because we cannot lay our hands on them and we will issue judgment by default. We will issue verdicts based on the dossiers we have on these presidents and the crimes committed against us which have been proved. There were some clandestine activities going on between the Shah and the presidents. Evidence available abroad is beyond our reach. However, their records available in ministries will be scrutinized. There is a group now busy with the collection of documents we will base our judgments solely on the dossiers and records we have here. We will then invite some experts to come here and study them to prove that our words are not untrue. We state simple truths that the whole world will accept once they understand we are telling the truth. Of course, Mr. Carter will not accept our words. This is because he is among those wretched souls who cannot understand the truth. His brain lacks such a power to distinguish the truth. He is juggling the Shah from this hand to that hand with the Shah. He is sent to an island lest he be brought back to Iran and their secrets be disclosed,. Muhammad-Rida had said that if he were to be tried U. S. president, too, would have to tried, particularly those during his regime if he, too, should be tried. These presidents should be prosecuted. But they are beyond our reach and we lack the power to summon the U. S. presidents. However, we can investigate their dossiers available to us. We will then invite some experts to come over here to study these records for them to understand the real story. Then we will prosecute them. Thus, the sending of Muhammad-Rida from one country to another is pointless and will not solve the problem. From the very beginning, we had announced that we would try these hostages if the Shah is not returned to Iran. Now, we are saying once again that we will try both the Pahlavi regime and the American presidents during the time he was at the helm of power and up to the moment the power base was still holding. Thus, the issue is not resolved yet.

Now they (U. S.) think the matter is closed now that the Shah has been sent to another country. There is yet an issue other than the major one and that is we want to prove their crimes to the world. We want to make the deprived people understand their responsibilities against the arrogant powers. A majority of oppressed people do not know. We, too, who are among the oppressed, are ignorant of the things the arrogant powers have wrought upon us. We know but the tip of the iceberg. We have witnessed some (of their crimes) with our own eyes. But a majority part of it remains hidden behind the curtain of our understanding. We want the oppressed people and countries of the world to know what we have witnessed ourselves and other issues tat we can unravel and make them understand what crimes the arrogant powers and the superpowers are doing to the oppressed. We are also resolute to show to the people of the United States what crimes the American presidents have committed against their own people up until now; what crimes have they committed that the image of American nation is being destroyed before the eyes of the world's people. They have tarnished the reputation of and humane nature of the American public and how terribly have they dishonored other countries and nations. Thus, the problem does not end right here. We are a weak nation, but we are a nation which relies on God. We are of a small population; the U. S. population is big, but the American nation is not with its government. You are strong and have phantoms and spears, but we have our fists and our voice of innocence. We will wait to see which one is victorious: the oppressed or the oppressor. This is a current issue that has drawn our attention

But what about our domestic affairs when we started our struggle against the Shah's regime it was a fight between a man who was empty handed and someone who was armed to his teeth. Once, you (audience) stood against a powerful regime equipped with high-powered military weapons and backed by world powers. That is, you (referring to the Iranian nation) stood empty-handed at one end of the struggle against the Shah with all the (war) material and enjoying the support of world power. By these two countries I refer to the governments and not to the nations. These governments, except a few, and also the big powers especially America and England, would support him. And when you triumphed these powers desperately tried to keep the king in power and upon failing, they endeavored seriously to support Bakhtiyar. Why did they fail, but you won? Did you have military power? Did you military training? We were a bunch of clerics who did not know anything of military functions. You are also a bunch of physicians who are unaware of military functions. We had not been exposed to any military training. Our nation had not had any military training. On the other hand, they had military knowledge but we did not; we had nothing. Now that you see some guns in the hands of our youth, you should be aware that they were taken as booty; they never had guns before. The youth used to make efforts concocting something (Molotov cocktail) and would fling them at government forces, which were nothing compared to what the military had. What caused the victory of our nation was a spiritual power, a divine power. Do not attribute this victory to anybody. I would like to thank you all for your reading these articles. But I want to ask you not to compliment somebody to such a degree. We are nothing; it is only He who makes everything possible. We are nothing but the feeble slaves (of God). We could have been easily defeated. What made us victorious against our enemies was a divine force. A divine and hidden force changed this nation into something else! A nation which trembled at hearing the very name of the secret police took to the street shouting they did not want the Shah, or the monarchial regime or the secret police. This victory is achieved through, the Blessed and Exalted God, who willed it.

There is one major point that they have neglected and it is the fact that God has created fear and anxiety in our foes. In the Qur'an" victory" is sometimes engendered through fear «2». Sometimes a small clique appears large to the (frightened) ones; sometimes a power display of the weak looks overwhelming to them. Rest assured that if God had not put this fear in their minds, they could have easily destroyed Tehran overnight. Muhammad-Rida had said before that he would destroy Iran if he left. In fact, even prior to his departing this country he had already destroyed Iran when he ruled. Now we are confronted with a ruined country. I do not know whether we could construct this country or not. This means that God created a vacuum in their hearts making soldiers and low-ranking officers disobey their seniors. God did something that you and I could not have done the senior army offices had turned into beasts but the junior officers and the privates had distanced themselves from their senior officers. And even if the high-ranking officers ordered them, they did not obey anymore I have heard that Bakhtiyar ordered the army officers to bombard Tehran, but the officers disobeyed him. This disobedience came about due to God's will. If these soldiers had obeyed the Shah, or Bakhtiyar and higher officials, neither you nor me were sitting here now. We would have been in a niche, or in prison or have been massacred. We would have been killed.

But let us not forget the significance of the great victory that God has bestowed upon us. We saw that those who opposed us later unified with us. The night when they wanted to carry out coup d' etat we were in Tehran. They informed us of the event. They insisted that we should leave the house where we were staying. I told them I would stay where I was. Later I found that they had in mind to kill any influential figure of the revolution. They, then, enforced the Martial Law even within the day. But God thwarted their vicious plans. I did not know the reason. Then I was told that there have been a coup d'etat I did not realize it was a Martial Law. To have done something to counteract it, I announced to people to ignore it. They had in mind to seize all the streets and to place their forces there. But people interfered and offset their pernicious plans. All this was done due to God's blessings. This should not be attributed neither to me nor to you, or to anybody. Everything issued from God. You will be victorious for as long as you pay attention to that fountainhead of power. Do not separate yourself from that Divine power. Strength your close ties with the center of that power.

This superpower now will not cease confronting you. The way the U. S. guzzled up our oil, it was not little wealth that slipped off its hands. More importantly, the (U. S.) power, which imposed itself upon the world and against whom nobody could resist, has now suffered a severe political defeat. A small crowed (of Iranian) stood against it, expressed its will and kicked out the person (the Shah) it wanted to reign over it. In a sense, this defeat was a formidable blow to them, considering the beliefs the U. S. with which it indoctrinated that people's mind that you (Iranian nation) could not do a thing against it. If they wanted to impose a nasty contract or military pact over Iran, a ship from England would dock around Khoramshahr and its vicinity and the contract would be concluded in accordance with their whims and desires. If an American ship showed up an American in the Persian Gulf then everything was carried out and concluded effortlessly. The powers joined hands (in plundering our oil). Now the situation has changed and nation from this side of the world has risen against this superpower;(foreign) ships that arrive here wandered aimlessly. The crew on the ship threatens us but nobody pays any heed. So the Shah had to be taken away. This was another defeat [of the American diplomacy]. They (Americans) wanted to take care of their dearest guest and to cure him. They want to cure a wretched creature. This means one step backward for the U. S. to have Shah and his mischief for keeps.

If the United States thought rationally and if that arrogant one (Carter) because he cannot get anywhere by bulling us and instead opt for a political approach, not the political way the U. S. dictates but employing a sound political approach, then we might be able to reach a solution to the problem to contain extent. This way would not make (Carter) him look like he has disgraced the Shah so much. At the time (when the Shah was in the U. S.), it would appear quite disgraceful if Carter would extradite the Shah directly from the U. S., so he refused to do. But let me tell you something. Somebody came from abroad and told me about twenty days ago- I don't know where from- that could dispense with his false pride the host country for the Shah was ready to surrender him to Iran through a plan in which the Shah would be hijacked on the plane and would be returned to Iran. They (the U. S.) are prepared to do this to put an end to this deadlock. I am not gullible. I said I would not approve of such a plan. Rather, I preferred them to surrender him. Only if they pay proper attention to their nation's interest and corruption in their country and not just think of how powerful they are and their whims to do anything they wish. They should that now time has changed. The powerful can no longer do whatever they wish; now people put up a resistance and stand against them. It is no longer true that when some trouble befell your friend would come to your aid. Your opponent will also raise his voice from the other side. Therefore, it is now meaningless to assume that one can advance using military power. Now, if he (Carter) thinks more logically and accept the fact that the U. S. can no longer frighten us as they did in the past. They thought that it was like when a ship would dock (at Iranian harbors) and did whatever they wished and we would cower at any word of threat said- well, time has changed. Nobody will submit to power anymore. Our nation is ready to get martyred. They have put on their shrouds. So, if (Carter) thinks wisely, the problem can find a solution. The Americans must give us back our assets. They are the nation's possessions.

As history and books relate, we can claim that Rida Khan came to Arak. In describing his whereabouts, this book, which was brought to me, mentioned that once he was a soldier when he came to Arak. He narrated in this book how he (constantly) waited for the beginning of each month to receive a meager income to run his life. He used to tell his ministers the fale of how little he received a monthly salary of seven toumans.

We all know that he was a nobody: he had no property, nor was he merchant or a tradesman. Many of you possibly know he came here (Tehran) with nothing. And most of you may not remember that when Rida Shah came to Mazandara, he wanted to purchase it for himself. At that time, I was told that when he was shown the map of Mazandaran outlining that northern part which he wanted to acquire he saw a demarcation separating other areas of it. When he asked what it was, he was told that those were not included in the area he owned. He ordered to coerce the people to give up those lands and conclude the" deeds of sale", not that he brought it. He usurped all these land holdings: Mazandaran or the north of Iran 0 and every estate he could lay his hands on. Well, of course, he later could not be kept (in power).[When he was deposed], his heir (Muhammad-Rida) also did not have anything. He unlawfully received the royal salary because he was not a legitimate monarch, I have repeatedly proven this fact. Let our accountants calculate how much his expenditure was and how much he received as the royal salary. Let our experts calculate how much wealth he has abroad and money he has in banks everywhere, in the United States and in Switzerland. If we owe him anything, let him get it. A person who owned nothing but who now owns a lot, has to questioned where he got his wealth from. Once there was a rule in Iran called" Where did you get it?" based on that rule, we will ask the Shah where he got all his possessions. All he has taken from this country belongs to this nation.

Our words not require much deliberation, but they do need to be inquired into. They are quite easy to understand. We are saying when Muhammad-Rida's father came to power he was penniless as he himself has confessed. And when he rose to power he neither has business nor any trade; he had nothing. Now, he is such (a wealth one). We want him to return the wealth he plundered from the nation. This issue is what we want to be acquired into (by experts) to find out if we owe him anything or he owes us. By applying economic pressures on us, the U. S. wants to sustain the life of a wretched man and thirty-five million people die for" humanitarian" reasons. Carter thought we would starve if we are beleaguered through economic sanctions. What he does not know is such things will never happen.

Since the United States has suffered both political and economic blows, it is not going to leave us alone. They are engaged in conspiracies against us both inside and outside the country. One of their greatest plots is to hinder the establishment of a deep-rooted government here in this country. This is because such a government would terminate their exploitation here. You may observe that they have been creating problems for us from the very start of our Islamic order. They enticed a group to question the validity and legality of the Islamic republic. They say that the nation wants a" republic". So, they ask what is the" Islamic" republic? They do not want Islam to be part of it. They planned to stop" Islamic." They thought if it were purely republic then everybody could misuse the government, but if it were the Islamic republic then a lot of abuse will not be allowed. They still intrigued another minor political band to present the concept of a" democratic republic." Once again they evaded using the word" Islamic." A third group, who tried to deceive us, used the term" Islamic democratic Republic." This turned out to be wrong as well. I told them I do not understand the meaning of" democratic." This is because this word is very general and is interpreted differently in different cultures. It meant one thing in the past and another thing at present. I told them I would not accept anything I did not understand. But I understand Islam. I know its rules and regulations. I told them I knew the meaning of republic for which we will cast our ballots. We will not vote for anything we can not comprehend.

What they had in mind was not the establishment of a democratic republic. Rather, they were after creating turmoils. They wanted to disrupt the election for the Islamic republic by causing a convulsive situation where in one group takes to the street while another stops the Islamic republic from getting the vote. But people defeated this minority by more than 98 percent of their votes. The referendum was unique in the world; the enemies were defeated in this (arena). Their next move was to abstract the formation of the Council of Experts. They gave rise to controversies and found fault after fault in it, but in spite all this, the people still voted in favor of it. And when the assembly started its investigation work, up to now they have just been trying to find fault in it. These very sane people are the tentacles of those who oppose the formation of the Islamic Republic through popular vote. Each one [of these tentacles] finds one kind of defect. A crowd of, let's say, fifty-thousand is trying to impose their idea over the majority of ninety-nine percent of the nation who voted for the (ratification of the) Constitution. Who else but a handful wants the country to have a democracy- a mere fifty-thousand want to impose this idea on a population of thirty-five million people through coercion, aggression, killing and seizing places these people create a hullabaloo in one particular to prevent the realization of an Islamic republic, or a[ new ]Constitution. The [former] Constitution is no longer valid that merits everyone to talk about it. Whoever talks about it does not believe in democracy and obviously is a dictator. All of you talks of retaining the old Constitution but this very same Constitution will result in a dictatorship. You must ratify a (new) Constitution that agrees with Islamic edicts and by the people's representatives. There were no bayonets to coerce the people nor a government to impose something on the people. The people elected a group (Assembly of Experts). Does this move contradict the democracy they are talking about? But later, they still were not content.

Some [of the opponents] who opposed everything used to say that a referendum was not necessary. And that an Assembly of Experts would suffice. Now that the Assembly got the vote and the referendum was held, they are finding faults in them. This behavior is symptomatic of a malady afflicting them lest an Islamic republic finds reality, which will, in turn, sever the hands (of influence) of their (American) masters. This is why these belligerent elements are fomenting troubles here and there. I am sure they would create some problems in the future for the election of the president, and more problems for the election of the representatives of the Consultative Assembly.

Our nation should go through all these stages vigilantly. Do not fear these local disturbances. You have brought about a great revolution, which materialized through the efforts of the nation which was armed with nothing. We resort to neither a coup d'etat, nor any military force. This revolution took place through the nation's efforts. These turbulences that you observe are common reactions to world revolutions in general. When the central government is not strong enough, these turmoils naturally occur. The source of these disorders lies in the remnants of the previous rotten regime both inside and outside the country. They consist of individuals who carry favor with America. Do not be afraid of them. This nation has reached this stage (of victory) through Allah's power and our reliance on Him. Preserve this reliance on God and divine power. Stay united. Do not count on a minority heedless of any advice. I hope everybody in this country will realize that by Islamic Republic we mean" Islamic orders and commands." Islamic regulations are good for everybody. The Islamic regulations will create so much comfort for the religious minority they have never dreamed of. Islam does not approve of any oppression towards even a deviated individual. Islam does not approve of injustice in general. Rest assured that if you continue relying in God and stay united, and keep the flames of the revolution alive you will advance.[One from the audience: Sir, we are not fearful and we are hopeful] the Imam: Thank God.

They have ruined every section of this country and then left. Anywhere you put your hands on, you will encounter countless cases of destruction. Who else can repair this except the nation? A nation is a huge power. If thirty five million people try to carry out a plan, they can easily do it. If each stratum shun its responsibility and pass the buck to another, say the people expect the government to shoulder the responsibility and vice-versa, then nothing will be done properly. Everybody no matter where, should join hands and carry out his/ her task in the job that he/ she has. Everybody should feel responsible for what he does. Every person in his/ her own capacity must carry out his tasks properly; do not look around to see who is doing one's job or not. It is not necessary to engage in altercation as to what will happen at the justice department what is done there is not related to what the doctors do. Doctors should perform their jobs well. Those who do not do their jobs shirk responsibility. Those at the justice department must fulfill their duties. You remember those who chanted and played in the `Ashoura's scenes in the past. Many would question this and we said it would be better if they chanted threnodies. A good Shimr (the murderer of Imam Husayn) was one who performed as if he was the real Shimr. And the one who acted as Imam Husayn was considered to be a good representative of Imam Husayn's character if he performed his role properly. In this connection, someone who does his job well is someone impinge upon others' job and vice-versa. If everyone does the task entrusted upon him/ her well, ever then everything will run smoothly.

You are physicians. May God protect you. You should act like fathers towards your patients and your interest should be directed towards improving their health. You show affection towards the sick people as if they were your children. You should look at them as your brothers or sisters. God has created brotherhood among the believers. «3» Now this is your sister who has become sick and this is your brother who suffers from some disease. You should treat him or her with utmost affection. The same should be done by the nurses. The one who manages the hospital should discharge their duties there and show interest as if he is running his own house. Everybody should feel responsible for what he does. Everybody should perform his or her tasks perfectly. Everyone should not say that it is not his/ her business if another person does or does not do his job, or say that his done his job well and so another person's task is not business of his. Or if someone passes on the responsibility to somebody, he does it badly. Whatever task is assigned to you should be carried out well. A badly-done job should be at the top of your agenda. Let your work be a sample of perfection. Now a strong feeling of cooperation is present among the people. Now there is cooperation in all fields and this feeling should be strengthened. You notice that now people who would never do a particular job now goes field and do the harvest or construct houses. For instance, people from schools, doctors and physicians have become in the tasks they have not done before. People cooperate with farmers. Our physicians cooperate with villagers. With this feeling of cooperation if strengthened the ruins (in the construction) will soon be rebuilt, God willing.

May God keep you and grant you success.