In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Significant responsibility of doctors and the nurses
The presence of Islamic Associations throughout the country, and especially in the revolutionary institutions, is very necessary but the gentlemen who form the Islamic Associations should, firstly, take great care that corrupt elements and deviant groups do not find their way into their associations and, secondly, they should ensure that the activities of their associations are Islamic in nature and that they do not contain any deviation.
Now that the Islamic Associations of the Health Ministry as well as doctors and nurses and the employees of the Health Ministry of the Khouzestan province are present here today, I would like to say a few words in connection with their affairs throughout the country, and a few words on the medical institutions of the Khouzestan province and the west and the south of the country.
What I wish to say to these ladies and gentlemen throughout the country is that serving the sick who are lying in hospital is, both, a very difficult and a valuable service. It is very difficult to treat, nurse, and deal with the sick, injured, and the disabled; however, offering good service to them is very valuable. Although all offices should perform their duties well, the hospitals have their own special characteristics. You, and specially the nurses, have to deal with people who are sick and dejected and need mental peace and care; and treating them affectionately like a mother, a sister, a brother, or a father will have a positive impact on their spirit and will expedite their recovery. Such services dedicated to these people are very valuable before God Almighty.
And what I need to tell the doctors, the nurses, and the other employees of the hospitals of the Khouzestan province as well as the other war-stricken areas is that you are providing invaluable services to those hospitals especially since they are faced with the danger and threat of bombardment by people who do not even spare hospitals and schools.(You should know that) your services in those areas are of great value. Taking care of the people who have lost their health for the cause of Islam is of great value in the presence of God Almighty. However, care should be taken that the conditions of the hospitals are Islamic and that your interaction with the patients is motherly, fatherly, sisterly, and brotherly. Your job is, both, very difficult and valuable as well as full of responsibility, just like the Islamic associations whose contribution is valuable and whose responsibility is great. Therefore, my recommendation and my request to all the Islamic associations throughout the country as well as all the doctors and nurses and paramedics all through the country and especially those serving in the war-stricken areas and the other dangerous sensitive areas is to strive to ensure that their behavior is Islamic and that their interaction with the patients is decent, humane, and Islamic. May God Almighty reward all you brothers and sisters and with His will, ordain for you the same merits that He has granted to those who served the Islamic armies in its early days.
Respecting and abiding by the law
Today, we are faced with problems that have either been designed against us from outside the country or are being created by the elements that have foreign connections. I declared at the onset of this New Year, for this year to be declared as the" year of the law" so that we honor the law in a manner that would earn us the satisfaction of Islam as well as the world. A country in which the rule is not the rule of the law, and especially the laws of Islam, cannot be considered as an Islamic country. All those who oppose the law are also opposed to Islam. Anyone who opposes the laws passed by the Majlis and approved by the Council of Guardians, knowingly or unknowingly, has opposed Islam. If all individuals, groups, and institutions throughout the country respect and abide by the law, there will be no scope for differences. All differences emerge when laws are breached. If a country is governed upon law no differences will prevail. All the divine prophets (`a) had been sent to establish law and Islam has also come to establish law and the Prophet of Islam (s) and the Imams of Islam (`a) as well as the caliphs of Islam (`a), all surrendered and humbled themselves before the law. We, too, should follow in the footsteps of the Prophet of Islam (s) and the guiding Imams (`a) and should abide by the law and respect it. The law applies to one and all. Obviously if one is to implement a law applying to a thief, the thief is bound to object; but the law should be made clear for the thief. Even if the son or the daughter of the Noble Messenger (s) would have, God forbid, extended his or her hand toward theft, he would have severed his or her hand. The law is for the benefit of the entire nation and all of society and is not meant to only favor certain individuals and groups. The law encompasses the entire society and is meant to discipline society as a whole. As expected, thieves and dictators are averse to the law. All those who break the law are averse to it. However, the law, which belongs to the entire nation and is meant to discipline the nation and to ensure its security and interests, should be honored. No one can raise a hue and cry and refuse to accept a certain law just because it is not up to his liking. There is no problem with the law and it is you who should align yourselves with it and not otherwise. If a law can be changed only to suit a certain individual, group, or society, it would not be a" law" at all. The law is at the top of affairs and all the citizens of a country should align themselves with it. And if a law decrees their action to be out of bounds, they should surrender themselves to the law and only on that condition would a country be honoring the law.
If every group wants to launch a protest the moment they feel that a certain law is not being properly implemented it would lead to dictatorship and I have repeatedly warned that this kind of dictatorship creeps in gradually and step by step. It is the same dictatorship that turns man into a Hitler and a Stalin. If the law is not properly implemented in a country, those who breach it are in fact, dictators who are pursuing their own goals in the name of Islam or freedom. If these people claim to respect the law then let them sit together and open the books of law and find out what their duties and responsibilities are, as defined by the law and then let them abide by them even if they are not to their liking. In that case there would be no disputes. However, if, for instance, the public prosecutor implements the law and (because it does not suit us) we oppose him, it is nothing but dictatorship. Not abiding by the Majlis and its decisions, the Council of Guardians and its decisions, the Judiciary, the Office of the Public Prosecutor, the Judicial Councils, and other bodies is tantamount to dictatorship. The rule of law means that everyone's duties and responsibilities are defined by the laws of the country, as derived from Islam. Anyone who wishes to go against the limits that the law has defined for him is a dictator who is currently coming forward in the garb of an oppressed victim but will eventually turn into a despot and ruin the country. And even if he does not realize it, he has served the interests of the superpowers by causing rifts among the people and ruining the country. And if he has acted knowingly, he has committed a grave offence. I advise you to abide by the law and to stop making all this noise and to stop creating problems. The newspapers should put an end to this entire racket and should stop creating problems. The writers and orators should also stop creating noise and problems. Only then will we succeed in establishing a lawful country which is what an Islamic country is like and only then will dictatorship be eliminated from this country.
Strong warning to conspirators and mischief makers
Just because I repeatedly advise you all and remind you all to ensure that the country's affairs be handled correctly and as per the law, it does not mean that our country has developed some weakness and that the nation now does not care for Islamic laws and that they are looking out for a dictator whom they can serve! That is not the issue because Khordad 15 and its anniversary have proved that our nation is actively on the scenes for the cause of Islam. As long as I can, and as far as Islamic ethics demand, I invite everyone to peace and harmony. I invite all the groups to peace and harmony. I will keep advising you all, humbly, as a brother. But everyone should know that the day I find the interests of the Islamic Republic being threatened and the day I find Islam under danger, do not expect me to sit around offering my advice. No! I shall cut all hands short. If I find anyone, anywhere in the country, spreading turmoil through his speeches during these crucial times in which we are involved in an imposed war and need to maintain internal peace and harmony- no matter who he is or what position he holds- I will put him firmly in his place before he manages to create turmoil.
Today, I warn all those who go around making speeches- and from what I have heard, these corrupt groups grab the opportunity to launch demonstrations- that the police and the revolutionary guards will strictly prevent such speeches and will arrest their speakers. Even if I have to make a speech that goes against Islam and intends to create turmoil and is meant for causing problems for our Muslim nation that has given great martyrs for the cause of Islam, these people are religiously obliged to arrest me and hand me over to the law. There are no exceptions. Open your ears wide! I will deal with all those who wish to cause corruption and turmoil and wish to oppose the public prosecutor, the Majlis, and the other bodies, in the same way that I dealt with the Shah and this nation dealt with Muhammad Rida! Today, we have all the means and you will be pushed aside.
I, once again, advise you all to hold back and to refuse to pay heed to the corrupt elements that are trying to instigate you and to shun them away. I will take strong action against anyone who tries to disturb peace and harmony. I and everyone else are religiously obliged to do so.
I warn the entire nation and the bazaars of this country that there are certain groups that are trying to close down the bazaars. They are the same old capitalists trying to spread corruption today. They are the same corrupt groups that are manipulating some people in order to create corruption. And, today, if they manage to close down the bazaars and hold protests, these acts would amount to opposing the Noble Prophet (s) and Islam. You need to remain alert lest these opportunistic groups launch demonstrations and cause turmoil under different pretexts. As for those who try to cause turmoil with their pens, words, or any other means, introduce them to me and I will cast them aside. So, as far as possible and as long as I do not find the interests of Islam under threat- and no political games shall ever succeed in threatening Islam and the Muslims- I will continue advising them and humbly request them to stop their mischief making. However, if ever I sense a danger, they will be dealt with in the same manner as Muhammad Rida. All acts like the closing down of the bazaar, making demonstrations, and giving instigative speeches today are against the interests of Islam and are against the instructions of God Almighty Who has chosen Islam as a model of action for us; and (such acts) are haram (religiously unlawful). Closing down the bazaars, anywhere, and holding street protests without the permission of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are acts of deviation and are haram and the police, the revolutionary guards, the basijis, and the entire nation are religiously obliged to prevent such corruption.
I warn all these gentlemen who wish to make speeches, issue statements, circulate open letters, and indulge in all such futilities to return to Islam, the law, and the Noble Qur'an so that I am not forced to sidetrack them. I care for many of you and would like you all to abide by the law and to stay within your bounds. But if you refuse to take heed, I will be forced to act otherwise.
May God's peace, mercy and blessings be upon you.