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Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's exasperating reliance on the West
Oct 18, 2017I will tell you that when I look at the memoirs which have been written by Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's friends, I read that in certain cases, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi himself was extremely angry at the Americans. He sometimes cursed them. Of course, he did so in his private room and in the company of his close friends. He was like a person who goes to his rooftop and swears at a policeman in a distant city. He used to swear at them in his private room, but whenever the British or the US ambassador delivered a message, made a phone call and issued a command, he was ready to bow to them and obey their command. He had no choice and he had to do so. This is dependence. This should be destroyed.
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The brutal massacre of the Iranian people on the orders of a U.S. general
Sep 9, 2017Another assassination like the one on the 17th of Shahrivar took place in Enqelab Square. This event is usually ignored. During this event, the taghuti agents attacked the people. An American general [Robert Huyser] - who on the last days of the former regime had come to Iran to save it from the Revolution - is quoted as saying, "I gathered the Shah's generals and asked them to lower their gun barrels." On many occasions, the Shah's soldiers used to fire into the air in order to scare the people, but this person asked the Shah's generals to lower their gun barrels and to aim at the people. As a result, the soldiers executed the order in Enqelab Square by lowering their gun barrels and aiming at the people. They martyred a large number of the people, but it was not effective because the people did not retreat. They continued their movement. After that, one of the commanders of the Shah's army - Gharabaghi who was the commander-in-chief of the army at that time - went to Huyser and said to him, "Your order was not effective because it could not make the people move back." In his memoirs, Huyser writes, "What childish analyses they have. What do they mean?" He goes on to say, "Gharabaghi expected the issue to be over with one attempt, but this should continue. They should massacre the people wherever they see them." This is America. America completely ruled over the country for 25 years. These were the orders that it used to issue to the Shah's generals. The Americans had the final say in Iran in economic, political and security matters and in the area of foreign policy. This is the complete rule of America during the time of the taghuti regime. Such a regime used to rule over our country. Its officers, its minister of finance, its minister of defense, its prime minister and even the Shah himself obeyed America unquestioningly! Such a regime used to rule over our country.
2015
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The infernal espionage apparatus of SAVAK was created by the Zionists and the U.S.
Jan 7, 2015One of the characteristic of that corrupt regime was dark dictatorship and suppression of the people with the cruelest methods. These methods may exist in other countries as well. We ourselves have witnessed up close what they did and how they behaved towards the people both during the time of Reza Khan - our fathers had witnessed it and they used to narrate it for us - and the recent era when we ourselves were in the middle of the arena. Of course, youth have not seen those days. There are many reliable sources about what they used to do to the people, revolutionary activists and those who even made a small criticism. They used to adopt extreme measures, torture the people, exert bizarre and strange pressures and put people in startling prisons. Some of these prisons exist today and people are greatly shocked when they go and visit them. This was one of the things that they used to do. They used to preserve their power by behaving in an oppressive and dictatorial way and by exerting pressures on the people. The people who claim to support human rights today and who constantly repeat these ignominious claims used to support them with all their power. We cannot say that they were not aware of their oppressive measures. They were completely aware of them. It was the Zionists, the Americans and the CIA that created the hellish SAVAK. It was they who taught them their methods. How could they not know about it? Recently, it has become clear that they themselves have faced great problems because of these organizations. How can we add together the recent revelations about the behavior of the intelligence service of America towards its opponents and the statements that they make about freedom of expression, liberalism, democracy and attention to people's opinions? It is a strange world. This was one of the characteristics of that malevolent regime in our country: adopting extreme measures and showing utmost cruelty towards anyone who made the slightest criticism. The second characteristic was their humiliating dependence on foreign powers Jan 7, 2015
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One of the main characteristics of the Pahlavi regime was ignoring the people
Jan 7, 2015Ignore the people. This was one of the most important characteristics of the taghuti regime. The people were not seen at all. During our youth in the previous regime, we never participated in an election, nor did we witness this from the people on the streets. This is because there was no election. Sometimes overtly and sometimes less overtly, they acted on their own. That is to say, they used to elect a bunch of mercenaries and through them, they made their own decisions in the Majlis and in the Senate. The people did not at all know who was in charge of affairs. There was no relationship between the people and the government. The political awareness that exists among the people today is the exact opposite of what existed in those days. That malevolent regime was completely separate from the people.
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One of the characteristics of the evil Pahlavi regime was corruption
Jan 7, 2015The third characteristic of that malevolent regime was corruption: different kinds of corruption such as sexual corruption which included all courtiers and their companions. The stories about their sexual decadence are too embarrassing to mention. In those days, the people knew about their sexual corruption, but they did not dare mention it. Sometimes, it was leaked through foreigners. They used to say certain things about their sexual and financial corruption, not only among ordinary officials which can occur at any time, but also in the highest levels of the country. Mohammad Reza himself and his close friends were involved in the highest levels of financial corruption, in the biggest bribes, in the worst transgressions and in the most malevolent pressures on the financial resources of the people. They used to accumulate wealth for themselves by impoverishing the people. Promoting corruption - including sexual and financial - and addictive and industrial drugs was done by the main elements of Iran's government in those days. The Swiss police arrested one of Mohammad Reza's sisters at the airport while she was carrying a suitcase full of heroin. The news spread throughout the world, but they whitewashed it very soon. Well, this disgrace was related to themselves and they covered it up. There was such a situation at that time.
2013
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The Pahlavis did not care about the interests, greatness and glory of this country
Aug 3, 2013Our nation had not tasted democracy before the victory of the Islamic Revolution. From the Constitutional Movement to the victory of the Islamic Revolution, 75 years passed. Out of these 75 years, 55 years belonged to the dictatorship of the Pahlavi dynasty. It was a violent dictatorship which was dependent on global powers - that is to say it was first dependent on England and then on America - which did not consider what the people wanted. In these 55 years, the country was in the hands of the people who neither paid attention to the fate and interests of our nation nor to the magnificence, greatness and dignity of this country. They only cared about their own interests and the interests of the powers which supported them. And during the 20 years before that, the country was in turmoil. That is to say, since the beginning of the Constitutional Movement until the victory of the Islamic Revolution, the country was under the domination of dictatorship and autocracy, except for a two-year period of time during which a weak national government was formed - and that was destroyed by the mutual plots of England and America.
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Iran of the Pahlavi era was governed by U.S. policies
Jun 4, 2013Dependence of the taghuti Pahlavi regime - which is was even worse than the reactionary and disgraced Qajar regime - on England and subsequently on America. Their dependence had reached a disgraceful level. After the Revolution, an outstanding American diplomat mentioned the same thing in his writings. He said that it was the Americans who used to tell the Shah what he needed and what he did not need. It was the Americans who used to tell him with whom to establish relations and with whom not to. They used to tell him how much oil he had to produce and sell. It was the Americans who used to tell him to whom he should sell oil and to whom he should not. Our country used to be managed on the basis of America's policies and plans, and before that our country used to be run on the basis of the plans and policies of England.
2012
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Most of the country's resources were at the disposal of the Shah and his dependents
Oct 13, 2012We have made progress in equitable distribution of our resources throughout the country. There was a day when the largest portion of our national resources used to be allocated to certain regions which were affiliated with powerful people of that time, with court officials. And many other cities and provinces were completely deprived of our national resources. Before the Revolution, there were five personal airports in different parts of one of our big provinces. Those airports belonged to people affiliated with court officials of the Shah. This was while there was not even one single airport in that province which could be used by the people. That is to say, the people of that province could not use airplanes to fly in and out of the province, while there were five personal airports in the same province. This was injustice. Today we see that all parts of the country have access to different services and to roads and highways.
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The erroneous foundation established during Pahlavis at the beginning of formation of university
Aug 6, 2012Some people think that university is an environment wherein it is not necessary and desirable to adhere to religion and ethics. This is due to the erroneous foundation that was laid out at the beginning of the formation of universities during the era of the Taghut (tyrannical regime of Pahlavi). At that time, those who created universities did not believe in the principles of religion, spirituality, and ethics; they were fascinated by the West, and deceived by the ethics of the West. Of course, fascination was the common form; some of them even acted as mercenaries and proxies of the West. They wanted to design and plan a program inside the country that would give them the type of dominance over Iran they enjoyed during the Pahlavi era, and during the Qajar era, and give it a different, subtle form: a less explicit one. [The plan was to] educate an enlightened and educated generation who thinks like the Westerners, though they are Iranian; they would think French, English and American; their aspirations would be aspirations of an American person; their actions would be the actions of an American or English person, even though they were Iranian nationals and residents of Iran. They were looking forward to educating such a generation.
2011
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To appoint the prime minister, the Shah needed the consent and agreement of the United States
Feb 4, 2011The country was politically dependent before the Revolution. That is to say, the government - both Mohammad Reza Shah and different governmental organizations - obeyed America. They were just waiting for America to make a move. Again, there is overwhelming evidence in this regard. Dr. Amini traveled from Iran to America in order to convince the Americans to let him be the prime minister of Iran. When he came back, he became prime minister! After a couple of years the Shah - who was opposed to Dr. Amini - made a trip to America and convinced the Americans to remove him. The Shah came back and removed him! This was the situation of our country. In order to install a prime minister, the Shah who was the head of the country needed the agreement and approval of America. In the case of many issues the Shah used to invite the American and English ambassadors to his palace in order to discuss his decision with them. If they did not agree, the decision was not implemented. This is what political dependence means. They obeyed America, and before America they obeyed England. It was the English who brought Reza Khan to power. When they realized that he was no longer useful to them, they fired him. They forced him out of the country and put his son in power. This was our situation before the Revolution.
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People had no role or place in Pahlavi regime
Feb 4, 2011Monarchy was the system of government before the Revolution. Democracy is the opposite of monarchy. In a monarchy the people do not have any role in government. In a democracy the people are in charge of everything. Government was hereditary before the Revolution. Rulers used to determine their successors before they died. That is to say, the people had no role in government. Whether they liked it or not, they had no choice but to accept their government. Thanks to the Revolution, the people can now choose their government. The taste and will of the people play a determining role. Before the Revolution the system of government was security-based dictatorship - harsh and dark dictatorship… The Revolution came and created a free atmosphere for criticism and reform. Feb 5, 2011
2010
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Pahlavi regime granted capitulation to the US
Nov 3, 2010Americans had tens of thousands of agents in Iran. The exact number is not important - fifty thousand, sixty thousand or more. They were political, security and military agents. They were among the people who used to manage Iran - in the army, in intelligence organizations, planning centers and different other places. They used to charge the Iranian government several times more, but they used to work for America. This was a bad thing that happened in our country. Because it was dependent on America and acted as an American mercenary, the satanic Pahlavi regime had gradually allowed those agents to enter the country over a number of years. This was already bad enough, but what happened next was even worse: They approved a law in the parliament of that time, which granted immunity to American agents so that they could not be prosecuted by Iranian courts, judiciary and security organizations. This is called legal immunity. When foreigners are allowed to enter a country and do whatever they like, when the courts and police force of a country are unable to do anything to stop foreigners, it shows that the country is suffering from an extreme form of weakness and dependence. Legal immunity was what the Americans demanded from the satanic Pahlavi regime, and it was given to them on a silver platter. Nov 3, 2010
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During the Pahlavi period, there was dictatorship as well as dependency
Oct 27, 2010In scientific areas, they kept us backward for a period of 100-150 years. The same is true of industrial areas as well as different social areas. Similarly, corrupt, tyrannical, immoral, greedy and dependant governments wreaked havoc on this country during the few decades before the Revolution. One day it was only tyranny and dictatorship - such as the tyranny of Nasser al-Din Shah and the tyranny of Fath Ali Shah - but there was no dependence. However, there was also a day when the situation of this country got so bad that tyranny was accompanied by serving foreigners and bullying and pressuring the people… Our country was in this situation for many years. Our people were living under the pressure of corrupt, tyrannical and greedy governments for many years. Reza Shah grabbed the ownership of any developed piece of land in all parts of the country - in Mazandaran, in Khorasan and in many other parts of the country. They accumulated wealth. They accumulated property. They accumulated jewelry for themselves. At the end, they fled from the country and took some of our national wealth with them.
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Pahlavi's logic represented complete dependence on the West
Sep 7, 2010Unfortunately, there are some people who still have their eyes on the outside. This is the result of the wrong culture which was promoted during the sinister era of monarchy - the era of taught and dependence - in our country. There was one day when the executive officials of the country openly said that Iran cannot even produce a container. They practically imported everything. In the era of taghut, a high-ranking official came across me in a meeting - we never had any relationship with these people, nor did we meet with them. I was making certain criticisms about such issues. He looked at us and said, "What are you criticizing? We are sitting here like lords and other countries are working and sending goods for us like servants. Is this bad?" Notice that this was the way officials during the time of taghut reasoned
2009
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Important issues in which the Iranian people felt failure
Jun 4, 2009During the reign of the Pahlavi regime, the ruthless dictator, Reza Shah, suppressed the entire Iranian nation. Later on during the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi - due to the presence of Americans in Iran, the establishment of the intelligence service called SAVAK, and the violence the people were exposed to - the Iranian people felt totally enervated. The Iranian nation felt it had been defeated in a number of cases. Regarding the Constitutional Revolution, although the Iranian nation was victorious in the beginning, it felt it had been defeated in the end. Similarly, although the Iranian nation started a great movement to nationalize the oil industry, the officials in charge of the movement were not able to preserve this movement, and, therefore, the Iranian nation was defeated. After this defeat, there was a suppressive era of dictatorship from 1333 to 1357, crushing the sprits of the Iranian nation. Through their actions and words, the westoxicated intellectuals, many of whom were among government officials, had made the public believe that they were unable to make a difference, that they were not able to do anything on their own, and that they had to emulate westerners. They made the public believe that they had to imitate western science, industries, culture, clothing, foods, and manner of speaking. They even went as far as to claim that the writing system of Farsi had to be changed. Just imagine how much a nation has to be alienated from its independence and self-confidence to make a group of people insolent enough to claim that the writing system of the country has to be changed. They claimed that we should change our writing system, the system that had been used for a thousand years to encode and preserve our scientific achievements. They suggested that we adopt the European system of writing. That shows the extent of their tendency towards imitation.
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One of the vicious policies of the Pahlavi era was regarding different ethnicities as foreign
May 12, 2009Of course, I should tell you that the enemies will never stop pursuing their goals. An evil policy had been adopted in the country since the Pahlavi era: Alienating different ethnicities from one another. They used to alienate Kurds, Baluchis, Azeris, Arabs, and Turkmen from other people. They used to consider these ethnicities as aliens. Such policies were manifested in their behavior too. If you take a look, you will see that no major construction or cultural projects were carried out in this province during the Pahlavi era. They did not feel responsible and would not do anything in this regard. Construction projects were almost non-existent during the Pahlavi era. The same was true of cultural projects. Today, there are nearly 50,000 students studying at some twenty academic centers in Kurdistan province, while during the Pahlavi era the number of students in this province was only 360. The rate of illiteracy was also terrible during that era. Only 29 percent of the population of this province were literate! They Taghut regime of Pahlavi did not want the Kurdish people—this talented and smart people—to be literate. Only 29 percent of the population of the province—that enjoyed such great features and qualities—were literate! That was their construction work, and this was their cultural works! Their view of this province was a mischievous and fallacious one.
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In the Pahlavi era, election was considered a purely theatrical show
Apr 29, 2009Our nation was a passive element in the management of the country. Why? Because of the nature of the despotic governments that ruled in our country… However, after the Pahlavi regime came to power, elections were considered a purely political gesture. Except for a short time during the time of Mosaddeq - for a period of two years when the conditions were comparatively better, although there were many problems - the Majlis was shut down and all its authority was returned to the government. Except for this short period, democracy was reduced to rubber stamp elections. Throughout the post-constitutional era, everybody knew that elections did not at all mean popular vote. The court and the kings selected a number of people and there was an internal competition among them. The government only wanted to send submissive people into the Majlis, people who could protect their illegitimate interests. The people were completely ignored. Throughout the entire period, rarely did the people go to the ballot boxes to make a change in the management of the country. There was no such thing.
2008
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Even construction works were carried out for Western interests
May 5, 2008The day railroads were introduced into this country, the first thing that occurred to everybody was that the railroads had to connect the capital city to the Persian Gulf through the central provinces - that is to say, Fars and Isfahan. That was the most natural thing that they could have done in this country. But they did not do so… during the reign of Reza-Khan [Pahlavi Regime], Iran’s railway was built based on the interests of the powers which were the big enemies of our country—that is, the UK and Soviet Union at those times—and they named it ‘cross-country railway’! An absolute lie; how come cross-country? For the Allies of World War II—that is, the UK and the Soviet Union—to transfer armaments and supplies through our country, and to use our oil, they built a railway that stretched from—a point at some distance from—the Persian Gulf to Tehran; and then, from Tehran to the Caspian Sea: so that the Russian and British troops could be connected and transport arms, equipment and supplies to one another and take the Iranian oil to anywhere they needed. Thus, the policy of the constructive work in the country, which consisted of building a railway, was so much influenced by colonial policies and foreigners’ infiltration. Consequently, the outcome was that a city like Shiraz—located at the heart of the country—had no railway.
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The Pahlavi era was the era of U.S. domination over Iran
Mar 20, 2008The American regime placed our country under domination. Our nation had no control over the situation. They had installed a tyrant and used his rule to dominate this nation. They used to interfere in our domestic affairs. They used to appoint and discharge officials, determine the guidelines for the government, and appoint and discharge prime ministers. They even interfered in the appointment of ministers and army commanders. From an economic point of view, domination entails the plundering of the country's resources or results in the suspension of these resources. These are the results that domination may produce.
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One of Pahlavi regime’s major crimes was the ban on hijab
Jan 9, 2008One of the gravest crimes of the evil Pahlavi regime was the issue of January 8th in 1936. Banning hijab was removing the screen and the distance set by Islam between the two sexes. Hijab is a wholesome practice that benefits men and women as well as society. It renders the society healthy and safe. They had plans to inflict all the malicious abuse suffered by women in Western societies on Muslim Iranian women. Using strong-arm tactics, Reza Khan carried out this plan inside the country. What the Western women achieved by plummeting into the quagmire of corruption and perversion was the destruction of the family. That women could only advance in science and politics or in social activities by merely removing hijab was an absolute falsity. Women could do so by holding onto their hijab and decency and we have experienced the fact in our Islamic country. Banning hijab was a prelude to striping women of their dignity and decency. It was meant to keep people busy with powerful sexual desires. They wanted to prevent people from doing other things and they were successful for some time. But the strong faith of the Iranian nation did not let this happen. In spite of all the strictures on hijab in the past, our Muslim women resisted suppression in various ways during and after Reza Khan's reign, and during the rest of the rule of the evil Pahlavi regime… They destroyed religious ideals, moral values, economic growth, our international honor, and in short, all the assets of a nation were among the acts that the dictatorial and tyrannical regime committed.
2007
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There was no freedom of expression during the Pahlavi era
May 15, 2007The taghuti regime could not tolerate clerics and students holding meetings particularly these warm meetings where many people were present. And the subject of these meetings was about religion. Of course, there were never meetings like the ones that have been held since the victory of the Islamic Revolution. However compared to the meetings which were held in those times, no meeting was like the ones that were held in Keramat Mosque and Imam Hassan Mujtaba (a.s.) Mosque - in those meetings, I taught Quranic Tafsir - in terms of harmony and the number of participants.
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The Pahlavi regime was never condemned for violating human rights or democracy
Mar 21, 2007During the time of taghut - Pahlavi regime - Iran was under the complete control of the Americans. Americans dominated all parts of Iran. They used to establish military bases in order to gain control of Arab countries of the Middle East and monitor their activities from these bases. Iran and Israel were allies and the worst dictators ruled over Iran. They used to torture freedom fighters in prison. Brutal suppression of the people by the taghuti regime's violent agents and the severity of their actions were noticeable throughout the country for example in your own city, Mashhad, and in Tehran and many other cities. They plundered our oil. They lost our national wealth and public funds to foreign rulers. They did not allow the Iranian nation to participate in global competition to make progress in scientific and industrial arenas. They utterly humiliated the Iranian nation. That regime in Iran was the closest ally of the U.S. in the region. Therefore, the Americans fervently supported these rulers. They raised no objections to violating human rights and lack of democracy in taghuti regime of that time.
2006
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People were victims of discrimination during the Pahlavi era
Nov 10, 2006There was a day when the main goal of high-ranking officials in Tehran was to fill their own pockets with money and to satisfy their foreign, American and Zionist masters. They did not feel obliged to pursue the goal of solving the problems of the people and the country. If a certain city had had an influential personality in the government, that person could have appropriated government funds for his own city - often for his own personal interests - as much as his power allowed him to do so. But, if a city had not had an influential personality among decision-makers, it would have been deprived of everything. During the time of taghut, many of our people and many of our cities became victims of this discrimination and this is a wrong and taghuti system.
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The Pahlavi regime sought to destroy principles
Nov 9, 2006Our highly respected intellectuals came to the conclusion that the Iranians had to be westernized from top to toe if they wanted to achieve progress. This is blind imitation. This was how they acted, and this trend continued until the time of the Pahlavi regime. After the Pahlavi regime came to power, it introduced initiatives for westernization of Iran in order to speed up the process. Westerners were not satisfied with the level of westernization that had been achieved during the time of the Qajar Dynasty. In fact this was why they brought the Pahlavi regime to power, and they decided to let a number of Iranian intellectuals they trusted to help Pahlavi officials do what they were doing. The issue of banning hijab, the issue of changing our local costumes, the issue of de-Iranization of names by eliminating titles such as Mirza, Seyyed, Khan and Agha, the issue of making a large number of concessions to foreigners in areas relating to oil and the issue of inviting foreign advisors were part of the same plan. Later on after the English had removed Reza Khan from power, the Americans were literary in charge of everything in the country from the year 1332. This was what happened to us during the time of taghut and with the dangerous management that I explained earlier, they were moving towards the destruction of our roots
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Iran of the Pahlavi era was a holiday resort for the heads of the Zionist regime
Aug 21, 2006The conditions of Iran were not good before the victory of the Revolution. The people did not have a sense of responsibility towards the country, the enemies had dominated our country, Iran had become the stronghold of Israel, a place where leaders of the Zionist regime would rest: they would come and plunder our resources and use our country to further their political and financial goals. The day when certain Arab countries decided to use oil against Israel, the Shah of Iran relieved the minds of the Zionists by saying that he would provide them with oil. This was the situation of Iran at that time and nobody was hopeful.
2005
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In the Pahlavi era, one of the most promoted propaganda was, "we cannot do it"
Sep 22, 2005In the Pahlavi era, one of the vastly spread propaganda was "we cannot do it". All of us were brought up with the idea that the Iranian products are poor, inferior and of low quality; ‘Iranian’ is the equivalent for the inability to produce quality products in all arenas. They had institutionalized this culture in the mind of our nation, while the reality is totally different. This nation is a nation that can do it, can produce, can grow, can innovate, and can break through the boundaries of science and technology and advance.
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Who brought the Pahlavi regime to power?
Apr 19, 2005Who brought Pahlavi regime to power in Iran? Who installed Reza Khan as ruler in this country? Today, the answers to these questions are quite clear, since today everybody knows that Reza Khan was brought to power by the British, who also deposed him when they felt he could no longer serve their purposes, and who instead brought his son Mohammad-Reza to power in Iran. This is one of the clear chapters of our contemporary history. Those who installed Pahlavi rulers in this country also tried to keep them dependent on themselves through certain policies. When Mosaddeq's movement, which was a national movement, took place in Iran, it was the British rather than Pahlavi regime that felt the most threatened. And when the British noticed that they were not able to cope with Mosaddeq alone, they invited the Americans to interfere in the situation in Iran. The United States intervened and turned into the dominant power in this country. An American official with a suitcase full of dollars came to our country and overthrew the national government by creating a superficial crisis. Consequently, Pahlavi regime managed to bring the situation under control. The documents indicating this interference are now available to the public.
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Most of the officials in the Pahlavi era prevented the flourishing of talents
Apr 19, 2005Great injustice was done to the Iranian nation and to our national identity for long years before the victory of the Islamic Revolution. The remarkable talent and potential that our dear youngsters have were also possessed by the previous generations. However, encouragement, motivation and self-confidence are needed in order for this potential to be fulfilled and developed. But the ruling regimes before the revolution did not take any steps in this direction. The officials of the former Pahlavi regime pursued certain policies that were aimed at suppressing the young generation's talent and potential and preventing the fulfillment of their potential. This reason for what they did was clear, since they believed that the Iranian nation should always remain dependent on outside powers, the powers that dictated such policies to the officials of the Pahlavi regime.
2002
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The Pahlavi sultans were the executives of UK and US policies
Feb 10, 2002Despite claiming modernity and pretending to be familiar with the emerging concepts of the world, Pahlavi sultans were limited to this; there was nothing else in their minds: they regarded themselves as the owners of the country and owners of the destiny of this nation. In the latest period, another aspect was added, which was foreign influence; it began toward the end of the Qajar era and peaked in the Pahlavi period, as Reza Khan was brought to power by the British and they provided the prerequisites for him [to become the king]; they supported him by preparing the grounds and dictated him how to move. After him, his son was also appointed by the British, which is part of the documented history rather than just a claim. Sometimes, in the past, we mentioned these as analysis and speculations, but later, documents and evidence were revealed that proved they were brought to power by foreigners. They were the executors of foreigners’ policies; they were mostly the policy enforcers of Britain, then, after the Mossadeq period, the executors of U.S. policies. Sometimes, for personal motives and interests—not national concerns—it might have occurred to them that they were upset (deep down) that they had to obey what the United States dictated to them, but they were ultimately the guarantors of their policies; they could not disobey. The foreigners appointed the government and they had to approve the prime ministers… The country was, thus, controlled by foreigners and in line with U.S. policies, in such manner. This was not restricted to oil-related policies; in all dimensions of the country, their policies dominated and were implemented: in matters on petroleum, industrialization of the country, foreign policy, or taking stances against other countries.
2001
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Reza Khan and Mohammed Reza were appointed to power by the UK
Jul 23, 2001The British appointed Reza Khan as a puppet to obey their orders… but the moment when they felt Reza khan had started to disobey them and had developed an interest in independence—not real independence, rather obsession with the Nazi Germany under Hitler (as, when Reza Khan looked at Hitler, he was excited and pleased)—they put him aside and brought his son to power… For fifty-sixty years, those who ruled over us were not only not chosen by the people—because in Iran there was no such thing as the rule of the people previously—they had not even come to power due to their own grit. I wish that if they were a dictator, at least, they would have come to power with their own power, like Nader Shah, or with their own cunningness, like Agha-Mohammad-Khan, but it was not the case. Others came and put them in power to dominate the nation and looted all the material and spiritual resources of this nation.
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The souvenir Reza Khan brought from the west to Iran
May 2, 2001When Reza Khan, the domineering bully, wanted to introduce us to western traditions, the first thing he brought over was the style of clothing and the removal of the veil: that was accomplished by use of force through his style of bullying! Dresses needed to be short; hats needed to be a special model--they even changed the name, hats became chapeaux! If anyone dared to wear a hat different from the "Pahlavi hat," which was the name given to the style worn at the time, or wore a long dress, they were beaten and repelled. They adopted these traditions from western culture. Women were not allowed to keep their veils. Their chadors (the Iranian hijab) were already forbidden. If they covered their hair and neck, they were beaten! Why? Because, in the West women did not wear head scarves. These styles were adopted from the West. They didn’t bring what was really needed for our nation. No knowledge, no experience, assiduousness and hard-working or risk taking habits--which were the good aspects of the western culture--none, were ever introduced to us. On the other hand, the things that were brought to our nation were accepted systematically. They brought ideas, but they accepted them with no analysis. They said we had to follow them because it came from the West. The clothing, eating, speaking, and even their style of walking were like that of westerners, so they were supposed to be accepted. There was no way out of it. For a country, this is the worst kind of poison.
2000
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The coming into power of Reza Khan in Iran is one of the most remarkable lessons of our history
Oct 5, 2000The British proposed an agreement to the Qajar government, according to which all the financial and military matters of Iran would be accessible for the British. The late Seyyed Hassan Modarress, the prominent scholar, opposed the agreement and did not allow the bill to be approved by the National Consultative Assembly of that day. When the British were disappointed and recognized it was impossible to take similar initiatives, they had a new idea. They realized that they needed to appoint a dictator in Iran to eliminate individuals like Modarress; to treat the people with violence; and to comply with the demands of the British. So they brought Reza Khan to power. The story of the placement of Reza Khan as a king in Iran is one of the most thought-provoking lessons of our history. It's a story that every one of the youth in this country must know today. The chaos prior to the reign of Reza Khan ended due to the severe despotism of Reza Khan and with the help of the British government, and an authoritarian and imposed order was established in the country, which lasted for fifty-five years. British influence in our country's political and cultural institutions pressured the people.
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The biggest treason to Iran’s economy was committed by the Pahlavi regime
Mar 25, 2000The Pahlavi regime committed the greatest treason to Iran's economy, not just the economy of their time, but also to our economic foundations as its implications lasted for years to come. They transformed Iran to a storage for worthless, useless imported western goods. They bought cheap instruments and unnecessary and disproportionate things at exorbitant prices. They completely destroyed the once self-sufficient agriculture of this country; to an extent that years later, even now, our agriculture has not found its previous status. Because the waves of immigration [from villages to the city] that they incited, was not something that could be easily stopped. They made the nation dependent on foreign countries in agriculture. They bought wheat from the US. The wheat storage facilities were built by the Soviets, too. That is, we were dependent for our wheat and for its storage. They ruined the rural areas. They stopped the industry which was to progress. The progress that was needed in the industry to stop imports was not made. Active industry was halted in this country and a dependent industry was encouraged that relied on imports as much as or more than it produced. They stopped science. They talked a lot about universities and students, but practically, the country's universities had minimum scientific activity. Any brilliant and active talent, if they wanted to flourish, if they were not suppressed in the country, had to leave to work abroad. It was impossible here. They gave foreign companies dominance over much of the country's economic resources and gave away much of oil reserves for free.
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The Pahlavi regime was trying to make the Iranian nation numb, indifferent, and insensitive
Feb 8, 2000When a nation is under cultural, political, economic and military influence of a foreign power, there will be no liberty to develop and move in the direction they desire. Any living entity wants to grow and develop. Even if you want to stop the growth of a plant, it will break free from its bounds, and even crack the stone to grow. A human being and a nation are the same. To diffuse this feeling and motivation in a nation, those in a position of power have found a way, and that is making nations numb, indifferent, and insensitive. The corrupt Pahlavi regime tried to do that in every possible way: making numb, indifferent, and insensitive, overwhelmed with a deluge of illusions, and of course sometimes putting on a desirable display, and a gleaming facade. They had made this happen to the army in those days ... making the army rot away from inside. They had set up a facade of an army enough for their goals and their image. But there was no scientific work, technology, research, or production. Higher education, was only up to a certain point, in a certain environment and pursued abroad. Commands, measures, and methods, not only in the military, but also in culture, and beliefs, were influenced and managed by foreigners. They were just given some tools. An army with a set of tools, but without the ability to function using this tool if it breaks or a piece is misplaced: what kind of an army is it and how independent can it be? It was like this. In those times, there was no talk of the Iranian army using its own products, and the results of its own research. Not at all. There was not even any talk of the army knowing and studying the aircrafts, the radars, or any modern electronic device it was given. They were not even allowed to do this. These are the stone, cover, and bounds that want to stop a living entity from growing. This entity, as long as it stays numb and indifferent, will be limited by those bounds, and when it becomes alert, it will break the bounds and overcome the obstacles.
1999
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The Pahlavi regime was the worst among the corrupt regimes of this region in imprudence, corruption and dependency on foreign powers
Feb 10, 1999The Pahlavi regime—which was the worst in terms of imprudence, corruption and dependency on foreign powers among the corrupt regimes of this region—brought about the severest harms to the people and the country during decades in power. The nation was kept out of the political scene of the country through violent dictatorship and ruthless repression. The interests of the country were sacrificed for compromise with intervening powers and pillaging corporations. The youth were dejected from reflecting on the fate of the country by widespread corruption and lewdness, and every rising voice complaining and seeking liberty was muffled. By ruining national agriculture and making the already defective and flawed industry dependent; by giving room to the greedy foreigners and the monarchy’s servants to plunder; by looting oil reserves and giving away national resources to American and European masters; by destroying rural areas and transforming Iran to a market for useless imported goods and leftover of U.S. agricultural products; and other such treasonous programs, the country's economy was in a constant tumble, and dependent on the will of foreign powers, and the nation's livelihood was in the hands of the enemies. The Iranian nation's faith, culture and beliefs were scorned, and the regime had embarked on a mission against this great nation's self-confidence, and self-esteem through defying these beliefs and encouraging imposed Western culture. Religion and the clergy—who had been the source of call for justice, liberty and equality for centuries and the main resistance front against invasion by the foreigners, the cruel, and the despots—were target of the harshest of revenges, and treated with all means of coercion, intimidation, accusation, and negative propaganda. While most people were suffering from poverty, famine, and low living standards, they were even more pressured on the one hand by the extravagant, luxurious, and wasteful fairytale-like lifestyle of the Shah, his family, friends and strongmen, and on the other hand by the pillaging of national resources by foreign companies and their domestic brokers.
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How did the Pahlavis live in the country for fifty years?
Feb 2, 1999That government was, firstly, corrupt: financially corrupt; ethically corrupt; and corrupt in administrative affairs. In the financial corruption, it suffices to remind that the Shah himself and his family were involved in most of the major economic transactions of the country. He and his brothers and sisters were among those who accumulated the most of personal wealth. In his sixteen or seventeen-year kingdom, Reza Khan accumulated important wealth. It is interesting to know that some of the cities of this country, in bill of sale, were wholly properties of Reza Khan! For example, the city of Fariman was Reza Khan's property! The best of estate and lands in this country belonged to him. He was interested in these things and in jewelry. Of course, his children had a wider taste; they loved and gathered every kind of capital! The best proof to that is that when they left the country, billions of dollars of their wealth were accumulated in foreign banks! A political system that was so financially corrupt at its head, look how military-oriented it was and what it did to the people! They were also morally corrupt. Trafficking gangs were under the control of his [Shah’s] brothers and sisters. In terms of ethical and sexual issues, there were cases that telling and hearing them will make a man sweat in shame. Of course, some of the memories of these type were written and published by their circle of friends, associates and relatives later. In terms of administrations, they were corrupts, too. While choosing leaders, they did not consider qualifications; they considered the individuals’ affiliations to themselves, as well as orders by foreign intelligence and security services and appointed individuals based on such criteria. You see; a government that does bribery at its head, makes a fortune, smuggles, and betrays the people: what sort of a government it would be. If anyone wants to describe these facts with proofs and documents, they would be compiled into books. They were dependent. Their dependence emerged from the fact that they were cut off from the people. In order to maintain their own regime, they felt obliged to rely on foreigners… They had no respect for people's opinions, for the people's wishes, for the people's faiths, for the religion of the people and for the culture of the people; they had no friendly relationship with the people. They had established a hostile relationship with the people: like the relationship between a lord and the peasants; like the relationship between a master and the servants; So, It had the qualities of a monarchy! Monarchy means this: an absolute rule that has no commitment to the people. The Pahlavis lived in our country for fifty years in such a manner.
1998
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Mohammad Reza did not know whether he was the king
Apr 22, 1998Read the memoirs of Pahlavi personalities. When in 1941 Reza Khan was dismissed, his son, Mohammad Reza, did not know for a few days whether he would be the king or not! He sent someone to the British Embassy, they said he could be the king, provided that he does not do certain things and does some other things! He was happy. These are the facts of this country. For fifty years, the regime ruling over Iran—which was a dictatorial, monarchical, tyrannical, corrupt regime—was ruled by two individuals who were brought to power by foreigners and people did not have any role in appointing them. Before that, it was the Qajar dynasty and the rule of the Sultans. Read the history of these sultans! People were nothing to them. They regarded government officials, from the prime minister to the lowest levels, as their servants, and they told them ‘you are this and that among our servants’! Such regimes ruled over this country!
1997
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Absolute injustice topped Pahlavi regime’s power
Mar 21, 1997The Qajar kings, the Pahlavi kings - we do not know well about the previous ones, and we have nothing to do with them - those who were at the top of the government, and those who lived as kings in this country and at the head of the country were richer than all the people of the nation. How is this possible? Is this possible except through oppression? They took possessions of the people away from them. Wherever there was a good property, an attractive estate or a beautiful mansion, Reza Khan took it for himself and made a tremendous fortune. He even took possession of some areas of the country as a whole! His successors were the same. Their power was headed with absolute injustice. As one moved down the pyramid of power, this injustice continued to persist and spread. In that system, if possible, anyone would practice oppression on others. It was not hindered. There were no impeders in place. Those systems were like that.
1995
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Why did the Pahlavi and Qajar regimes confront the clergy?
Nov 1, 1995One of the most important tasks given to Reza Khan was to divest the clergy of any influence with the intention of destroying religion. So, once he took power in 1934 and 1935 he began to dismantle the clergy’s influence. Reza Khan adopted a coercive manner. He assumed he could carry out his work with coercion. He banned wearing a turban and the long robe, as well as clergy titles and seminaries. He devastated—as he thought—the seminaries of Qom and Mashhad, as much as possible. Of course, he could not. Our dear Imam Khomeini was one of the seminary students of that era, the time when the clergy was supposed to completely collapse, due to Reza Khan’s pressures and repressions. But not only the clergy did persisted, but also people like the magnanimous Imam Khomeini emerged among them. The Reza Khan's dynasty did not comprise of only Reza Khan. There were also some of the so-called scholars, thinkers and ideologists of the Reza Khani system who would plan and suggest ideas. When they saw that the pressures did not work, they developed a new plan with the Reza Khan’s money, support and Command and Policy Organization. The plan included the establishment of an institute named "Wa'z wa Khataba" in Tehran. Unfortunately, the young generation are not familiar with these facts. The establishment of "Wa'z wa Khataba" [literally: preaching and sermons] dates back to 1937 and 1938-- two or three years after the beginning of opposing the clergy. The institute was founded so that anyone who wanted to remain a clergyman could remain a clergyman only if they were under the supervision of this institute, which was affiliated to Reza Khan! In other words, they only wanted clergymen who would comply with Reza Khan and serve the policies of the arrogant power.
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Reza Khan was a rowdy lout
Sep 5, 1995If you see that all respectful Iranian people are opposed to Reza Khan, it is because Reza Khan was a rowdy lout absolutely ignorant and unperceptive of religion. He grew up in an uneducated, rowdy family, unfamiliar with religious teachings, and when he grew up, he roamed about in cafes and bars with louts. Reza Khan was not familiar with religion at all. He was potentially ready to counter the religion—with the purpose of obliterating it. There are some mistrustful and distasteful individuals who sometimes praise, for instance the construction works done during the reign of Reza Khan, saying he developed railways and established security! They should ask whether the construction of the railway and the establishment of security were for the good of the people or foreign powers?! Who benefited from these so-called construction projects? In fact, Reza Khan was an agent that the British appointed to put an end to the religious system in Iran. For the same reason, in 1935 Reza Khan prohibited wearing a turban and banned the presence of clerics in the society, disrupted the seminary system and forced the clergy to remain at their homes.
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Reza Khan perpetrated the extension of the D'Arcy Concession for 60 years
Feb 3, 1995In the final years of the frail Qajar reign, the British wanted someone to eliminate those who rebelled in different corners of Iran. In order to prevent the threatening of their interests, they needed a thug, a bully who would at the same time comply with them. They came up with Reza Khan; they trained him and prepared him for what they wanted. First, he was a commander of the army and the prime minister, and then he was appointed as the king and the head of Iran! Only a few years after Reza Khan had come to power by the British, he started thinking he could ask them for more money in return for oil. Of course, his submission to the British did not cease; however, every servant might, at times, consider asking his master for more money! His hounding temperament incited him to adopt a bulling manner towards the D'Arcy Concession, which still had thirty years to end. He entered a meeting of regime officials and put the D'Arcy Concession in the fireplace and burned it! When he was told that "thirty years remained of the validity of the contract”, he said: "What sort of a contract is this? They must give us more money for oil." And, who was the other party of the contract? A British company! Once Reza Khan did this to the D'Arcy Concession, the British government reacted and made a lot of fuss. Eventually, the British defeated Reza Khan and made the contract last for another sixty years, which originally had only thirty years left of its validity. That is, he signed another agreement with the British. This was what the British did with respect to Iran's oil, from Qajar to the end of Reza Khan's rule.
1994
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Why did the Pahlavi and Qajar regimes confront the clergy?
Feb 6, 1994The Pahlavi regime was spreading propaganda against the clergy in this country for 50 years. Of course, it was not just the Pahlavi regime. But they did the worst, the most abhorrent. If you study the history of the recent century or so, you will understand that the war on the clergy started during the rule of the Qajar, especially with the reign of Nasser al-Din Shah. When they saw that the clergy opposed granting concessions to foreigners-- including the Reuter concession and the tobacco concession; the widespread and increasing corruption; the oppression by the monarchy, especially during the rule of Nasser al-Din Shah; and the entering of Europeans to Iran who were considered above the law, they began to realize themselves—were also trained as such by those Europeans—that if they wanted enjoy freedom of action, they would have to get rid of the clergy. But it was not possible to get rid of the clergy. They could not simply murder so many clergymen and scholars or make them disappear. They did do that on some occasions. They killed Ayatollah Nouri, Sayyed Abdullah Behbahani, and many other great men around the country; however, when they could not physically remove them all from the scene, they began to apply different means. The best way for them was propaganda. They spread all sorts of propaganda against religious leaders. We were studying in the madrasa, and did not get involved in anything else. We did not realize that the entire hegemonic front of the world of was trying to annihilate religious study and religious scholars through propaganda. Do not think that they did not succeed. They did a lot of damage. For 50 years, during the reign of Reza Shah and his son, they spread a lot of propaganda against the clergy. What was the result? The result was pessimism towards the clergy among a group of people. Of course the majority of the people, the working-class people, still like the clergy and support them. They are deeply passionate about the religious studies community, and are emotionally and rationally dependent on them. Nonetheless, they could make a group of people pessimistic about the clergy. Religious scholars, and students who have spent their life studying and have not thought about anything else may not believe this.
1990
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Within 200 years, Pahlavi and Qajar regimes made Iran a wreck needy of the foreigners
May 31, 1990Our nation missed the best historical opportunities because—at a time when the world had just taken the route to knowledge and industry and while, with vigilance and dynamism, Iran could have played its part in the scientific and industrial progress of humanity and benefit from its fruits—it was left behind the world, thanks to its captivity in the hands of tyrannical, ignorant, and dependent rulers. Instead of building the country and reviving its human and natural potentials, Pahlavi and Qajar kings sold Iran to predators and plunderers [the foreigners], either letting the foreigners exploit the resources or stalling the resources, thus ruining human talents; in place of the well-being of the nation, they aimed at the interests of the regime and of the foreign corporations. This proceeded to the point that, when the railway entered our country—with a hundred years of delay—rather than national interests and commercial requirements of the nation, it was the military interests of the enemies that determined the passage of the railroad. In the course of two hundred years, Iran which was once the flagship of the world of knowledge thanks to Islam, was transformed to a wreck needy of and dominated by foreigners as a result of the dependent political system, imprudent management, lack of self-confidence, and despotism in the Pahlavi and Qajar regimes. As a result, the villages became deserted, the urban areas became consumerists, the farms became fruitless, the industry became assembly lines and brains were left unused.
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Pahlavi regime forced women to fake an identity for themselves by self- exhibition
Jan 16, 1990In the previous regime—even though many women were illiterate and did not understand, fact they were not allowed to understand social affairs, and they were uninterested in the fate of the country, without even realizing that they could play a part—they looked like their European counterparts, and sometimes even surpassed European and western women [in their ways of exhibitionist dressing], and when someone looked at them, one would think that they had come to Iran from a European country and a western environment. However, it was enough to talk to them a little, and it would turn out that they are very ignorant and know very little. They made women create a false identity for themselves by exhibiting themselves to viewers and attracting gazes towards themselves. This was a decline for women, not progress. Is there a bigger crime against women than occupying them with make-up, fashion, clothing and jewelry, and using them as an instrument, in different ways, not letting them flourish in politics, ethics, and education? This is exactly what was planned and done under the previous regime.
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In the self-deprecated society of the contemptible monarchy, women were truly and in all aspects repressed
Jan 16, 1990In the self-deprecated society of the contemptible monarchical regime, women were truly and in all aspects repressed. If women wanted to enter scientific domains, they needed to let go of their religion, faith, and piety. Was it even possible for a Muslim woman to keep her hijab, dignity, and sobriety in universities, and other educational, scientific or cultural centers? Was it even possible? Was it even possible for a Muslim woman, to walk safely with Islamic dignity on the streets of Tehran, and some other cities, or even wear a loose hijab and stay safe from the words and actions of corrupt individuals bewitched by lewdness and lust—the souvenirs from the west? They had created a situation that in this country, studying was usually impossible for women. I am not talking about exceptional cases. Usually, it was not possible for women to follow the path of science. Unless they let go of their hijab, and Islamic piety and sobriety. It was the same in politics, and social activities. If a woman wanted to hold a social or political position in Iran under the monarchy, she had to let go of the hijab, sobriety, and piety of a Muslim woman. Of course, it depended on the essence of that woman. One who was weak would have to go deep down. If she was self-restraining, she would protect herself to some extent. But she would be constantly under increasing pressure from the society. This is how our society was.
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