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| Remeber the Past so you don't regret the Future! |
If the Iranian people knew what was to become of their country and their freedoms - I guarantee you; they would not have allowed the country to become the evil and oppressive theocracy which it has become.
The revolution started as a populist revolt against the brutal regime of the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Unknown to the majority of the young students who spearheaded the revolution, who fought and died in the streets of Tehran-was the secret planning of the mullahs and all the clerics whose intention was to take control of the government once the young Iranian revolutionaries forced the Shah and his family out. They planned to take ownership of the people’s revolution and bestow their own theocratic fascistic ideology on every man woman and child. That ownership along with some false promises for freedom, justice, social reforms and fair distribution of wealth allowed the clerics, the Shi’a ulamas, lead by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to take control of the country and the people’s minds and souls. Shortly after Khomeini’s arrival from France February 1st, 1979, the mullahs declared Iran an Islamic Republic. Though the original revolution by the youth of Iran was spontaneous and disorganized but nevertheless successful, the Islamists were very well organized and ready to fill in the vacuum which the fallen Shah government left behind.
Voila….The Islamic Republic of Iran, which, as it turned out has been more brutal and more oppressive than the Pahlavi dynasty ever was. Ayatollah Khomeini who declared himself the supreme leader embarked on a mission of “social cleansing” and Stalinist methods of opposition purging. Civil and human rights were tossed aside, as were individual freedoms and choices. Anything western, anything non-Islamic was forbidden. Women were forced under the control and ownership of their husbands and anyone who was ever remotely associated with the Shah was either executed, imprisoned or just simply vanished. The people’s revolution had been hijacked. The oppressive dictator with a crown was replaced with the oppressive dictator with the Q’aran. Fast forward Egypt Jan, 2011...
The Egyptian people today stand to repeat the mistakes of the past. They had better be careful who they replace their current masters with, as they, too, can have their courageous revolution be hijacked by the same dogs they just go rid of only with different faces. I want to wish my Egyptian friends the best of luck as they are going to need it.
Remember - Those who forget the mistakes of the past are destined to repeat them!
Again this is not News….It’s people power and so it should remain.
Signing off…Dr. Politikong
Excellent piece!!! Already it's becoming obvious that the Muslim Brotherhood is positioning itself to fill the voide left by Mubarak's departure from government. Although they state they would not pursue a significant role due to awareness of 'western perception and sensitivities', the fact remains that they would still function in some capacity in a new Egyptian government. Pundits opine that the MB represents a moderate islam and therefore there should be no concerns. However, a theocracy is exactly that, moderate or not; and as Dr.P has neatly summarized in this blog, theocratic rule becomes progressively more oppressive. I too wish the Egyptians luck, as the path to democracy is tumultuous and long. We can only hope that secular minded individuals and intellects out number the illiterate and religious zealots.
ReplyDeleteAnde
Waterloo
I agree excellent piece. I love the comparison to the Iranian and Russian revolts. I never even thought of that but DP is correct.
ReplyDeleteOn the surface it looks that the majority of Egyptians are middle class educated liberal progressive Muslims but they are still part of the masses. Who ends up in the government is a different story. I do like Ande's view very accurate and well stated.
Ramaj
NY
I agree. Good luck to them. But I have a feeling it is going to end up like Iran only without the petro dollars.
ReplyDeleteJoshua
CA
Iran continues to suffocate opposition and chase out the intellects of its population. Here is just the most recent effort by the religious oligarchy to ensure its long-term presence...http://www.jpost.com/Headlines/Article.aspx?id=206439
ReplyDelete