Celebrating the 43rd Anniversary of the Islamic Revolution | ||||
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By: Abdullah R. Makwinja, President of Ahl ul-Bayt Islamic Guidance Council of Zimbabwe
Iran is going to celebrate the 43rd anniversary of its 1979 Islamic Revolution on February 11, 2022. The Revolution that, under the leadership of the late Imam Khomeini, overthrew the last monarch of the Pahlavi regime and established an Islamic government in the country. This year’s anniversary assumes its importance from the fact that in spite of facing many hostilities and efforts to dismantle the revolution once and for all, the Iranian nation intends to pour on their streets and demonstrate the increasing power of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Islamic Revolution of Iran has certain unique features that distinguish it from other outstanding revolutions. One of these features is adherence to the path of divine prophets according to which it is extremely important to recognize the absolute truth and take the necessary actions for proving and spreading it. What happened in Iran was much greater than a mere change in the political system; it was the fulfillment of what God Almighty has promised the oppressed righteous servants in a verse of the Holy Quran: “And we desired to show favor to those who were oppressed in the land and make them leaders and to make them the heirs, and to establish them in the land” (28:5) This most important feature of the movement of the divine prophets that was reflected in the Islamic Revolution of Iran is to draw the focus of man’s attention to his spiritual dimensions. It is this feature that has made this movement completely different from other movements and liberal or leftist revolutions. The French revolution of 1789, for example, was built on European Enlightenment ideals of liberty, equality, and fraternity. The Russian and Chinese revolutions were guided and defined by a Marxist secular spirit of liberation from oppressive political and economic systems. However, the Islamic Revolution of Iran was a religious revolution in words, spirit, content, and action. With regards to the source of the greatness of this revolution different possibilities may come to one’s mind, each of which is worth being taken into consideration and evaluated. One possibility is that the greatness of this revolution is due to the overthrow of the monarchial regime and the establishment of another regime caused by political differences. But the aim of the Islamic Revolution in Iran was not merely to ensure the fall of the ruling regime and rather it was to establish a new era in Islamic history and mark the beginning of the establishment of truth, justice, freedom, equality, and above all, spirituality in society. Like the movement of the divine prophets, another characteristic of this Revolution is that it never values individualism, selfishness, and self-importance. This is because such things are a requirement of materialism and worldliness that the prophets always took in the opposite direction. They always tried to ensure that all human beings benefit from the blessings of God Almighty and traverse His path in order to gain nearness to Him. Creating unity between different strata of society is another feature of the movement of the prophets that has been done to make the true salvation of human beings possible; the feature that has been emphasized in the Islamic Revolution of Iran. It can be claimed that after a leap that occurred in the history of the life of Muslims during the time of the Messenger of God (pbuh), the next major leap was the one that took place under the leadership of a descendant of the Prophet (pbuh) and through the diligence of God-fearing and truth-loving men resulting in the victory of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. This revolution is the second example of the greatest divine leaps that can be sought throughout the history of Islam and other divine religions. From a sociological point of view, the realization of this revolution was a phenomenon contrary to international equations, which political analysts never considered possible. Such a revolution was able to quickly affect the global equations at the world level. It was due to the effects of the Islamic Revolution in these areas that the imperialists and arrogant powers decided to confront this revolution right from its advent and through all forms of pressure and conspiracy, both internally and externally, in order to silence and completely obliterate it. Yet, the wise, truly Islamic leadership, coupled with the sacrificial spirit of the faithful Iranians has served and is continuing to serve as a firm shield against the imperialists’ aggressions, and thus today we see a flourishing, thriving Islamic Republic of Iran, presenting a praise-worthy model of resistance in the face of world bullies and also of defending the other oppressed nations of the world. From an alternative angle, the threats to revolution and national security of Iran pushed the Iranians to achieve self-sufficiency in many technological and hardware areas. The result is a significant increase in the area of production and export opportunities to major countries around the world. Scientifically, as per the 2018 Human Development Report, Iran holds the 16th rank among 189 countries of the world. All Iranian households have access to water and electricity, and the poverty level was reduced to 10% by 2014. Dependence on oil revenues has also been progressively reduced. In response to Western sanctions, the Iranians are implementing a new strategy, dubbed “resistance economy”, to cope with the pressures of sanctions. This strategy is aimed at promoting domestic production for domestic consumptions to reduce imports and dependence on foreign currencies, particularly dollar-based foreign trade. So the objective is to reduce Iran’s vulnerabilities by promoting the domestic capacity to absorb economic shocks, improving Iran’s industrial and technological competitiveness, and facilitating the development of a knowledge-based economy. “Our achievements in science and technology - which have put us in the 16th place among more than 200 countries in the world, have surprised world observers and in some sensitive and new fields has promoted us to the first ranks - happened while the country was under financial and scientific sanctions. In spite of having to swim against the tide made by the enemy, we have made great records, and this is a great blessing, for which one needs to thank God day and night”, said Grand Ayatollah Khamenei. To conclude, after more than 40 years of the Islamic Revolution, Iran has consolidated itself both domestically and regionally by developing itself into a dominant regional power. Domestically, Iranians remain committed to the basic objectives of the revolution – independence, freedom, and the Islamic Republic. Overall, Iran stands much stronger than it did before the revolution with its military and social capacity to defend itself from future foreign aggression and protect the Islamic Revolution. The way the Islamic Republic of Iran has progressed in the last 43 years, often passing through numerous twists and turns, conforms to its national resilience to hold on to the revolution, project an independent voice in world affairs and expand its influence in regional and global affairs. As admitted by friends and foes alike, the Islamic Republic of Iran has attained amazing success in various scientific fields since the victory of the Islamic Revolution more than four decades ago and in spite of facing many obstacles, including anti-human sanctions, and despite various ups and downs, which are unavoidably faced by all freedom fighters, Islamic Iran has already emerged as a great power in the world scene. All these magnificent achievements are no doubt owing to the adherence of Iranians to Divine commands and their reliance on Allah the Almighty. It can be claimed that after a leap that occurred in the history of the life of Muslims during the time of the Messenger of God (pbuh), the next major leap was the one that took place under the leadership of a descendant of the Prophet (pbuh) and through the diligence of God-fearing and truth-loving men resulting in the victory of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. | ||||
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