In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all sentient beings, and peace and greetings be upon our Master and Prophet, Ab-al-Qassem Al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his immaculate and infallible household, especially the one remaining with Allah on earth.
I'm very delighted to be present in this gathering of the brave people of Bijar and Garoos which is full of enthusiasm and kindness. The people of these two regions have a great history and have made great achievements. Besides their great historical background, the people of Bijar proved their great capabilities during different revolutionary events and the imposed war - when they had to protect the country's borders.
The men and women of Bijar, young and old, and their teenagers in particular showed such bravery during the imposed war that it will never be forgotten. Before I came here, I visited the tombs of a group of martyred students who had studied in the same school and had been martyred together on the battlefields. These are signs of magnanimity. History will help us judge a particular group of people or the people living in a particular city.
Previously, those who were in power or lived in capital cities did not pay any attention to remote cities and ignored the different ethnicities that lived there. Today all individuals living in different parts of the country have their own values. These independent values and identities, together with the kindness and determination of these people, have come together to form the great Iranian nation. In the current era, the Iranian nation has been influential in the world, and has managed to maintain its presence and impose its will on the enemies. This is against the will of the global arrogant powers. Today, the resistance of the Iranian nation is exemplary. And many nations have learnt lessons from such resistance. Such resistance is the result of the resistance of all the people living in our country. It is the result of the prominent character of all the Iranian people who live in different cities and parts of the country.
What is most noticeable about Bijar is that the people who live here - whether they are Sunnis or Shias - have managed to emerge victorious out of great tests thanks to their love for the Prophet's (s.w.a.) household. The people of Bijar successfully protected the country's borders. In Kurdistan province - especially in Bijar which is mainly populated by Shia Muslims - Shia and Sunni Muslims live together. And this is an example of Islamic solidarity and unity. This has to be appreciated. Our analyses and research show that there was a negative attitude towards this region during the Pahlavi era. They considered the inhabitants of this region as aliens and ignored them. At the beginning of the Revolution, the first construction group was formed under the name of Kurdistan Construction Office, and was sent on a mission to Kurdistan province on Imam Khomeini's (r.a.) order. The group was supposed to render services to the people of Kurdistan province and solve the numerous problems which had been caused in this province during the Pahlavi era.
Of course, the great insecurity which was caused by the enemies of the Islamic Revolution - during a particular era - made us lose our opportunities and caused us to fall behind in the process of rendering services to the people of this province. Of course the brave youth of the Islamic Republic - the members of the Construction Jihad, the IRGC, the Islamic Republic's Army, and the police force - managed to carry out certain projects in this province with the help of the people who lived here. Of course, this province has fallen behind to a great extent. The honorable Friday prayer leader of Kurdistan referred to some of the shortcomings of this province. Thankfully, the administration officials discussed these issues in the meeting that was held in Sanandaj two days ago, and made some good decisions for Bijar. They have also delivered a report to me about the decisions which have been made. I stressed that they should pursue these decisions, and they will hopefully do so. With the help of you dear people, the current hardworking administration will hopefully manage to complete the great projects which it has developed for the dear people of this region.
Let me refer to a point which concerns the general issues of the country and the Islamic Revolution. This point also concerns the current problems of Bijar as well. The point is that three factors led to the great movement of the Iranian nation, which bewildered global observers: Unity, presence, and awareness. The Iranian nation managed to make this great movement thanks to its unity, presence, and awareness. By making this great movement, the Iranian nation started a new movement in global political ideology. As a result of this movement, the Muslim nations of the world found a new identity. They felt that they could make up for the backwardness which had been imposed on the Islamic Ummah. Therefore, you can see that the movement of the Iranian nation had an influence on Muslim nations - from North Africa to East Asia - and awakened the nations of the world. The influence of the Iranian nation's movement is clearly noticeable in Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq, and Afghanistan. This great achievement was rooted in these three factors.
Another important factor was national unity. The people got united and all the people were committed to the same cause. The people of the country - who were from different religions and ethnicities - had the same goal. And that was to help establish the Islamic Republic and raise the flag of Islam. They acted together and vowed to achieve this goal. Such unanimity made the enemies - the Pahlavi regime - buckle under the pressure at the beginning of the Islamic Revolution. Ever since those days, it has been due to such unity that the Iranian nation has managed to impose its will on the enemies and frustrate the enemies from infiltrating the nation. Such unity should be preserved.
I mentioned a point in Sanandaj and I would like to repeat that point here. Our Muslim brothers should try to achieve Islamic unity rather than create discord among Shia and Sunni Muslims. They should not let religious differences result in a conflict among the people. The reason is that unity among different ethnicities, political groups, and followers of different religions is a factor which ensures our grandeur. I would like to provide a piece of advice for everyone. I made the same point in Sanandaj, which is mainly populated by Sunnis. I would like to repeat that advice here as well: Preserve your unity and spirit of brotherhood. This was the first point which I wanted to mention.
The second point which I am going to discuss is related to the issue of public presence. The presence of the people in different events frustrated the enemies. If people had not participated in the elections during the past thirty years, if they had not participated in the demonstrations marking Quds Day, and if they had not proved their presence to the enemies in different events, the Iranian nation would not be so much respected as it is today. Therefore, you should maintain your presence.
That is why I always stress the importance of public presence in elections and other events. Such presence is not limited to political events only. It is not limited to elections only. People should be present on construction and economic arenas as well. As I previously mentioned, this is a point which has to be taken into account by all the Iranian people. Of course, it should be taken into account by the people of Bijar as well. The people of Bijar should appreciate their city and their green and fertile lands. I sometimes hear that the residents of Bijar migrate to other parts of the country. This is in conflict with being present on the economic arena.
The people of Bijar should stay here and help improve this region. The time has passed when certain governments were unwilling to pay attention to remote regions of the country. Fortunately, the current administration pays attention to the problems of different parts of the country. I closely supervise their plans, and I see that they are paying close attention to the problems of different provinces. The other day, I noticed that the administration officials were fully aware of the problems of Bijar. They are aware of the shortage of water and the transfer of the water resources of this region to other provinces. And these are issues which are also being taken into consideration by the officials of Kurdistan province as well. They are thinking of solutions to solve these problems. It is admirable that the officials of the country care about the issues of different parts of the country - even places which are far away from the capital, or regions which are unknown to many people. This is very admirable.
The people of this region should also cooperate with the officials. You should stay here and cooperate with the officials to solve the problems. Your presence is one of the most important factors which will help the Iranian nation continue its great movement both in the country and in this province. You should appreciate your city, your fertile land, and its resources. You should benefit from these resources. Cooperate with the officials and try to solve the problems together. This was what I intended to say in regard to public presence.
The issue of awareness is another factor which is of paramount importance. It is as important as unity and public presence. The Iranian nation has proved that it is always vigilant. If the Iranian nation had not been vigilant, the previous governments that were opposed to the Islamic Revolution would have undoubtedly ruined the future prospects of the country. If those who clearly expressed their opposition to the Islamic Revolution - those who explicitly said that they were afraid of the US and were inclined to capitulate to the superpowers - had stayed in power, our nation would have had a different destiny and would have trodden a different path. If they had remained in power, there would be no trace of progress and grandeur for our nation today. Our magnanimous Imam stood firmly against those people, and the people supported him because they were vigilant. Such vigilance helped the nation.
I have to say that such vigilance is always essential. It is needed today as well as in the future. The young generation of our country is the dominant generation in the country today. The youth of our country should stay vigilant. The criteria have already been laid down. Such vigilance should come into play in the elections as well as in expressing the demands of the nation. The people should show vigilance in different issues and when taking part in different events. The people should take certain factors into account when voting for a particular candidate. Of course, I mentioned certain factors the other day, and the ones which I am going to mention are a complement to those I previously mentioned. They should not vote for those who surrender to the enemies and disgrace the nation. They should not vote for those who flatter western governments as well as the arrogant and bullying powers in order to secure a position for themselves at the international level. These are of no value for the Iranian nation. They should not vote for those whom the enemies can use as a tool to cause discord among our people, to undermine the people's faith and adherence to the revolutionary values. The people should stay vigilant in this regard. The Iranian nation will face a disaster if those who flatter the west and the global arrogance - instead of treading the path of Imam Khomeini (r.a.) - come to power in the country's economic and political centers. The Iranian nation should stay vigilant in this regard.
Therefore, the Iranian nation is in need of these three factors, as has been the case during the past thirty years. Unity, presence in different arenas, and awareness are the three factors which our nation needs to take into account. If the Iranian nation takes these three factors into account - which are all the result of faith in God and following Quranic teachings - it will be successful both in this world and the hereafter. The Iranian nation will improve its position in this world and earn God's satisfaction thanks to its adherence to Quranic teachings and reliance on the blessings of the Prophet's (s.w.a.) household. This is the path we are treading.
I thank Allah the Exalted who has given me the opportunity to acquire more information about you honorable, friendly, loyal, and brave people. Of course, I had previously heard and studied about this region. I hope the officials of the country will appreciate you honorable, faithful, and loyal people of Kurdistan. You should also appreciate the hardworking officials of the country. The Iranian nation will be able to achieve its Islamic and revolutionary goals through unity between the nation and the officials.
O God, bestow success and Your mercy and blessings on these people. O God, associate with Your saints the soul of the erudite scholar Ayatollah Bahjat whose demise deeply saddened us. Dear God, bestow upon us the opportunity to engage in self-edification.
Greetings be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings