On February 11, 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini led a coalition to a new government in Iran. Little did many of the revolutionaries who assisted in bringing him to power know what would be in store for them. February 11 is known in the Islamic Republic of Iran as “Islamic Revolution’s Victory Day.” This event is commemorated with a national holiday. In the past there have been demonstrations with the expected chants, “Death to America” and “Death to Israel”; this year there may still be demonstrations but the chants may be different.
The regime is not prepared to admit that the election last year was fraudulent. Claudia Schwartz, writing for Standpoint, makes a very valid point about the conspiracy theories that the current rulers of Iran like to spread:
The regime, evidently anxious about the increasing strength of the opposition and its own inability to curtail the demonstrations, has used a traditional tactic of blaming foreign powers in the hope that the Iranian people will aim their frustration beyond their borders. Fars News Agency released pictures of demonstrators in support of the regime, holding pictures of three reform leaders (Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karoubi and Mohammad Khatami) on the three points of a Star of David with the sign reading ‘lovers of Israel’. The regime has also accused the Mossad of penning the last open letter written by Mousavi, and asserted that he and other leaders of the reformist camp are an Israeli fifth column. Iran’s ambassador to Bahrain even claimed that Iranian authorities had carried out investigations and revealed that groups from Britain and the U.S. were carrying out assassinations by infiltrating the opposition.
One of Schwartz’s conclusions in her interesting article is as follows:
The greatest hope we have for Iran is democratic change for and by the people.
How can any decent person disagree?
