When we adopt a comprehensive outlook towards the entire world -- including our region -- we see a basic point. This point is the fact that the dominant world system is undergoing a change; one can understand and see this. After the First World War, a new system emerged in the world, particularly, in our region. Certain powers gained strength, and they turned into superpowers of the world. And after the Second World War -- it is about 70 years now since it has passed -- this global system became well-established and global management took a special form.
In fact, the west -- whether in the form of socialism or liberalism, which were both western -- dominated world management and took affairs into their own hands. Asia, Africa, Latin America, and other regions moved forward, under the influence and domination of westerners, during the past 70 years. However, one can clearly see that this system is changing. I will briefly refer to this issue, and I will explain the reasons and signs of this change.
Well, when the world is changing, when the global system is undergoing a transformation and when a new order is in an embryonic state, we naturally have more important responsibilities. What is the position of Islam, the Islamic Republic and our great country, Iran, in this new global system? We can think about this, make predictions, and move in this direction. The previous system -- which, as I've said, dominated the world for about 70 years --had two fundamental bases: an intellectual or ideological basis, and another was a practical -- militarized and political -- one: both of these bases have been challenged and undermined in the present time.
The moral and intellectual basis was the West's --including Europe's and America's -- claim to have superiority over other regions and people around the world in intellectual and ideological arenas. They chanted certain words and phrases, which had nothing to do with scientific and industrial achievements. They chanted attractive words and deceptive slogans: slogans about freedom, democracy, and human rights; and about the defense of nations and individuals.
With these slogans, they wanted to establish their superiority over the ideological system of various other regions: religions and intellectual orientations, particularly, over Islam. Of course, they succeeded in doing so. In our part of the Islamic world, individuals, groups, political personalities and government officials that have really believed in the superiority of the western ideological system are not few in number. Today, in our society, too, there are some people who have the same belief and opinion [beliefs adopted from the West].
The second part, which is the practical part and which forms the second basis of western power and domination over global management, revolved around the political and military capabilities of the west. If some nations, governments, and orientations were not influenced by this ideological system or by the first basis, if they did not surrender and if they showed resistance, westerners confronted them with political and military pressure. Westerners carried out many measures in this arena -- the arena of political, military and security pressures -- in order to force those who did not give into the first factor, into following and cooperating with them.
We witnessed this around the world and in our own country. Western propaganda networks, which developed and modernized daily, increasing their capabilities to a great extent, constantly showed off these factors: ideological superiority, and military or political domination, to other nations; and they managed to convince intellectuals, broad-minded personalities, and gradually the masses of the people.
Today, these two factors have been challenged: both the first and the second one. These two tools and weapons, with which the West managed and dominated the world and took all affairs in its hands, have been undermined. The first factor -- the ideological factor which means the superiority of western values over the values of other nations, religions, Islam and the like -- has been undermined because of a number of reasons. There are certain reasons why it has been undermined.
1- The increasing moral and spiritual crisis in the west
I have written down a number of these reasons to discuss in this meeting: one of the factors, which has undermined the western ideological system and its spiritual domination, is the increasing moral and spiritual crisis in the west. A clear sign of this crisis is that a feeling of absurdity, nothingness, desperation and psychological insecurity has been engendered in all western people, particularly, the youth. The foundation of family has been shaken in the west; these are the consequences.
Western orientation towards women's issues has caused intellectuals, thinkers, and broad-minded personalities to seriously question feminism, which was formed decades ago. These intellectuals and thinkers believe that feminism was a trap for women and that it created many obstacles for them: This is a long story.
Another issue is the issue of giving value to decadent practices. For example, homosexuality becomes a value in the west, and opposition to homosexuality becomes an anti-value. If a person, a government official, a president or an outstanding personality is interviewed, and if he says that he is opposed to homosexuality, this will be recorded as a negative point on his performance record; today, the moral environment has taken this direction in the west.
Of course, it will not stop at this point, and it will be much worse and much more inappropriate than what it is now. Some western thinkers and well-intentioned personalities have understood this, and they constantly issue warnings, but it's of no use. When a system falls into this abyss there is no way out, and its fate will be nothing but destruction. This is one reason why western values have been challenged.
2- People's interest in religion
The second factor is people's interest in religion. This is, in fact, a reaction to the first factor. Among different people in western countries, interests in religion -- particularly interest in Islam and in understanding the Holy Quran -- is increasing on a daily basis. Those who are in the middle of the arena know this all too well. This is another factor that has seriously challenged the moral and ideological system of the west.
3- The contradictions between western actions and rhetoric
The third factor is the contradictions between western actions and rhetoric. They constantly speak about freedom, democracy, human rights and the like; but, in practice, western governments have violated their meaning, in a way that bringing up these words, by westerners, is considered to be ridiculous and condemnable. Thinkers and intellectuals understand that these words are hollow.
The number of coups that western governments and powers have launched against independent governments, which were mostly elected by the people, is astonishingly high. According to a number of reports, America has tried to overthrow fifty governments, since the end of the Second World War until today. It has adopted all sorts of measures for overthrowing these governments, and it has confronted tens of popular orientations. These courses of action have been recorded on the performance sheet of America and other such countries.
The only time that a nuclear bomb has been used was by USA, which claims, more than anyone else, to support the people, human rights and the like. During the event that happened in Japan, more than 200,000 people were killed and more suffered from its consequences. Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib prisons, and the secret prisons established in Europe proved to everyone that these people have secret prisons; they torture people and they hold individuals there without any trial. These prisons still exist, and everyone is witnessing this. This [abuse of man] was the third factor that challenged the ideological system of the west.
4- Resorting to violence, bullying and suppression
The fourth factor was resorting to violence, bullying and suppression. They showed many varieties of violence including sanctions. Everyone in the world saw that when these countries have a problem with a people and when they cannot impose their cultural domination over them, they resort to violence, and they dispatch their troops.
Sometimes, they send their armies, sometimes they assassinate people and sometimes they establish terrorist organizations. All these things have been recently witnessed, and this is before the eyes the world. They have attacked other countries: Iraq, Afghanistan, and they have attacked Pakistan and other countries in different ways. This is another factor which has challenged the western ideological system.
5- Creating terrorist organizations
And the fifth factor is creating terrorist organizations: such as al-Qaida, DAESH and the like. Now, they claim that this has nothing to do with them, but everyone knows that they are involved. Once, I quoted a statement from a well-known American politician, but they denied it later on. However, when it comes to terrorist outfits, they themselves acknowledge that it was they who created them; even if they do not acknowledge it, we have certain evidence to prove it: We know it.
I can't forget the time when the late Sheikh Said Sha'ban, the well-known Sunni scholar in Mashhad --it's alright to mention his name -- said to me, "I know that they are trying to keep you busy from the eastern part of your country." I said, "Well, our neighboring country in the east is Afghanistan." He said, "Yes, they want to keep you busy from Afghanistan." This happened during the war, before the emergence of Taliban, al-Qaida and other such orientations in Afghanistan.
Well, he was in contact with different political and seminarian groups of Sunni Muslims. He showed his presence in sensitive areas, and he was a very respectable personality. He said, "I considered it my responsibility to inform you about this." After a short time, these events occurred exactly as he revealed.
Therefore, there is no doubt that these orientations have been created by these western powers and their regional agents. It is possible that they are not directly involved in some cases, and they use their agents for this purpose. Of course, they were directly involved, in some cases, as well. On the issue of the Taliban, I haven't forgotten that American newspapers [media] somehow supported and promoted the ideas of Taliban. They did not do it outspokenly, but in fact, their propaganda work was based on promoting Taliban, during a time when it had just been formed.
Therefore, these are the factors that have completely challenged the western ideological system, which claims to be superior. In the present time, no one believes westerners and western powers if they say they support human rights, human values and other such things. All the rhetoric included in the United States Declaration of Independence, 200 years ago, has been violated in practice.
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