In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
All praise is due to God, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master, Muhammad, and his Pure Progeny, particularly the Remnant of God on earth.
Welcome, dear brothers, sisters, and respected employees of the judicial branch, which has a very sensitive position. Your hard work in this country's judicial complex is especially meritorious due to the great importance of this branch. God willing, you will be successful and assisted (by God).
First of all, I would like to mention the importance of these days. You, who provide service to the Islamic system and who, God willing, are respected and close to Almighty God, should strengthen your heart's connection with God as much as possible during these days, especially during these last one or two days of the glorious first ten days of [the Islamic month of] Dhu al-Hijjah. Appreciate the day of Arafah, which is tomorrow, and overcome problems in the literal sense of the word through supplications, beseeching God, attentiveness, and asking Almighty God. Our efforts, your struggles, and our struggles, will be in vain without God’s grace and mercy.
In the noble Kumayl Supplication [he says], “This is only achieved by your grace.” In other words, we fulfill all our obligations, [but] the thing that breathes spirit and life into our efforts and carrying out our duties is God’s mercy, His grace, and His attention. Of course, it is possible to establish a relationship with God at all times. Establishing a relationship with God is easy, but some hours and some days have a special importance. At the top of the list of these days, one of these days is the Day of Arafah, which is tomorrow, and similarly, there is Eid al-Adha.
Let's take a moment to remember Martyr Beheshti (ra), for this day is designated for the commemoration of that noble martyr. The late Beheshti (ra) had a high academic status in the intellectual sciences and the traditional sciences — he truly, honestly had a high rank both in the intellectual sciences of the seminary and in the traditional sciences of the seminary. And he was a very good cleric. In addition to these things, this honorable person's characteristics in ethics and work can serve as a lesson for all of us.
Firstly, he was a very hard worker. He never said he was tired from working, and he truly used all his energy for his work. He was very organized. During the many years of knowing and working with him, whether it was before or after the Revolution, I never saw anyone among my friends or associates who was as organized as the late Mr. Beheshti. He was organized in his work. It’s very important to be organized. He was innovative and patient. Whenever he heard any complaints, even insulting complaints, he wouldn’t take off. He would listen to what people had to say. He would even sit down and listen to what the opposition had to say. He was a very patient man.
These are all lessons for us. We need to learn to act in this manner. He wasn’t a person to show off, no. I had known him for many years. His inner self was no different from his appearance. He was not a pretentious person. Well, Almighty God gave him the reward that the best of his servants deserve, and that was martyrdom at the hands of the most vicious people of that time. Almighty God gifted this to this faithful, righteous servant of his.
There is a lot to say about the judiciary in terms of both reminders and in terms of expressing appreciation. Appreciation can be expressed, and reminders can be made. There is a lot to say. The matters that Mr. Mohseni spoke about here were important matters. I have heard about and know about many of the things that he mentioned through various reports. He spoke about important matters. Well, one of the merits of Mr. Mohseni is his familiarity with the various dimensions of the judiciary. He has worked in and been present in the judiciary for many years. I will say a few words regarding this too.
The first thing is the importance of the judiciary. Those of you who are working in the judiciary as a judge — either as a judge in a court or as a judge in a public prosecutor’s office — or as an employee for example, or in any position where you are providing services in this branch of government, you need to realize that you are working in a place that is one of the most important pillars of the Islamic system. And it is incomparable to many other places. The judiciary is truly one of the main pillars in the establishment of the Islamic system. It is clear that if there is a disturbance in any of these main pillars, there will be a disturbance in the whole system. Therefore, the work you do is extremely important.
In the same way, if mistakes are made here or if there is a disturbance, the impact is also significant. That’s how it is. When the position that a person holds becomes more important, both his positive work and his negative work can have enormous effects. This is about you [and your jobs]. The good work that you do will have a great effect on improving people's lives and on the progress of the Islamic system. But, God forbid, if you make a mistake, that too will have a large effect.
Last year, in this annual meeting that I had with you, I spoke about some important matters. I do not want to repeat the same things now or go into detail about those matters. I’ll just underline a few points. Regarding the tasks that I mentioned last year, well, I have found out that at that time a station was formed in the judiciary to follow up on those tasks. Good progress has been made on some of those tasks, but there has been no progress in some other areas. Nevertheless, some work was done and some arrangements were made, and these arrangements to move things forward are important and noteworthy.
However, let me say one thing. Don't judge yourself by what you have done. Judge yourself by the result of the task you were working on. For example, suppose that we did such and such about a certain matter. We held a certain number of meetings, etc. These aren’t what’s important. What’s important is the result and the outcome of the work that was undertaken. It is the same in all issues related to the country. Statistics are important, but what about the outcome of these statistics and what has been said in these meetings. This is what is important. It is important to know what the final product that will get to the people will be.
The first thing that I would like to mention is the subject of a transformation in the judiciary. Well, the judiciary has over 40 years of experience with trial and error. This is very important. For over 40 years, we have been witnessing various plans, various programs, and various actions in the judiciary, and this has provided experts with accumulated accrued experience. This is very valuable. This experience should be used for bringing about a transformation. We have already defined what transformation is. Transformation means reinforcing the strengths and reducing the weaknesses to zero. This is the meaning of transformation.
Sometimes, reducing the weaknesses to zero requires an important organizational change. Changes must be made in the organization. Sometimes changes need to be made in orientations. In a limited number of cases, people need to be changed. Transformation requires these things. This is transformation.
A plan for transformation was prepared in the judiciary a few years ago. The experts who have talked with me or given written reports about this plan in recent years have all said that this is a good, well-founded plan. This plan is now at your disposal. It is at the disposal of the judiciary. I spoke about it last year as well. This plan must move forward. The progress that has been made on it is minimal. You need to proceed toward the implementation of the judiciary’s transformation plan.
Of course, it needs a budget, which the government and parliament should help with. It also requires a proficient workforce. Praise God, there are proficient employees in some places, but in other places, a strong, competent workforce may need to be reinforced. Some items in the document may also need to be changed. After all, not all plans are permanent and forever.
Some things may need to be updated. That is another point. Review the document. See where it needs completion, see where it needs updating, and update it. It must be implemented. The good thing about this document and any other plan is that it helps organize things. It prevents work from becoming scattered. Work that is done in a disciplined manner moves forward. This is very useful and important. Of course, it also requires a law. In some cases, the application of the document requires a law, which should be supported by the parliament. You should ask the government and parliament to provide you with the law.
Since I mentioned that [the transformation of the judiciary] requires a proficient workforce, let me take this opportunity to stress building and training a workforce that is specialized. This is one of the very important tasks. The judiciary should have a group of specialists and experts ready in each one of its departments, so they can be used whenever it is deemed necessary to bring in alternatives, make changes, or recruit new people.
I have spoken about training successors with regard to other organizations. An example of training successors here means the training of specialized forces, which I have already mentioned. This is something that I emphasize and insist on. Take the matter of the transformation plan seriously while keeping in mind the aspects that I have mentioned.
The next issue is the issue of fighting corruption both inside and outside the judiciary. This is one of your responsibilities. Of course, I spoke with Mr. Mohseni in a meeting a couple of days ago about fighting corruption within the judiciary and I insisted on this matter. A clear majority, almost all of the judges or employees in the judiciary, are honorable people. They are working hard with minimal facilities and with very little income. The honor of these individuals should not be overlooked.
There is also a small minority who abuse their position and distort the image of the judiciary in people’s minds. The person who does this, the person who does something that’s wrong, is not necessarily a judge. Sometimes, for example, the secretary of a certain courthouse in a distant city does something. They propagate this and attribute it to the judiciary. Then the judiciary is judged based on that. It is a pity [for that to happen]. This needs to be confronted.
All parts of the judiciary should make sure that corruption doesn’t enter this branch of government. Corruption is something contagious too. God forbid, when corruption enters a place, this disease spreads, and it increases every day. When corrupt people are not dealt with, corruption increases. This is the same both inside the judiciary and outside the judiciary.
Of course, others also share in the responsibility of preventing corruption outside of the judiciary. In other words, sometimes there is corruption, but the origin of corruption is not in the hands of the judiciary. It may be in the hands of the executive branch, the legislative branch, or the armed forces. They are the ones who must prevent the source of that corruption. Of course, if it is not stopped, then it is the duty of the judiciary to intervene.
Of course, there are biased people today who have sick hearts, those who are truly “sick in their hearts” (Quran 2:10) spread rumors against the judiciary. Sometimes they create controversies and sometimes they may say something which is exaggerated and is more than the reality of that which exists in the judiciary. So don’t let that happen. Follow this up. That is the second point with regard to corruption.
Another issue that I have noted here that is one of the causes of corruption, and which I mentioned is in the hands of the other branches of government, is the same point that Mr. Mohseni also referred to. It is the issue concerning the fact that informal transactions in immovable property should not be valid. This is an important matter. Much of the corruption that takes place in immovable property comes from these informal, common transactions. This must be stopped.
It is truly the case that even assuming from the point of view of the respected Guardian Council that a law from parliament [with regard to this issue] has a problem, it is still definitely in the interest of the system and the country to abide by this law. So the common practice of transferring property and such things by merely writing a couple of lines is in itself a source of great corruption. This is another point.
The next point is about the judiciary’s other responsibilities. When you refer to the Constitution, you see that the duty of the judiciary is not just to hold court sessions to hear lawsuits and disputes and to do such things. Its duty isn’t just these things. Other important duties are assigned to the judiciary in the constitution. For example, one of them is the restoration of public rights. Public rights are very important.
Identifying public rights is a problem in itself. The restoration of rights is also a very difficult issue. Now, if I want to give an example, one of public rights is for the society to have mental security. If a number of people are sitting around using either the social media or other means to constantly irritate people and disturb people's mental security, frighten people, and things like that, then this is against what is needed for the restoration of public rights, and the judiciary needs to intervene.
Of course, I am aware that in some instances and in some cases prosecutors have intervened and gotten some things done, but this work must be done with planning and organization. This work must be done based on rules. This is missing, and such things need to be done.
Or consider the issue of “ensuring lawful freedoms". One of the duties of the judiciary is to ensure lawful freedoms. They have written this very precisely. It is not absolute freedom. It is lawful freedom. Lawful freedom is the freedom that is allowed by the Sharia [religious law]. That is what the Constitution is. People’s freedoms must be ensured according to Islamic law. Well, institutions of power naturally oppose these freedoms in certain cases. Who should help the people in such instances? The judiciary. So, this is one of the important tasks of the judiciary.
Another example is “crime prevention,” which of course is one of those situations where other organizations also play a role. These are things that are specified in the constitution and plans need to be made for carrying these out. These are not matters that can be solved by talking and by making decisions on a case-by-case basis, by individuals, by the heads, and the like. These things require planning, instructions, and methods, and they may possibly require regulations. These matters need to be followed up on. These matters require a mechanism that has been well thought out. You need to sit down, think, and ponder over this. So these are some of the legal capacities of the judiciary. These legal capacities must be used as much as possible.
Another point is the manner in which we treat clients, which I have mentioned before, and this has actually been implemented in some places. This is very important. That is, if someone goes to a court and comes to face an employee who frowns at him/her, they will come out of that place feeling downhearted. Even if you frown at them but attend to their business afterward, it will not make a difference because it [your frown] will still have a negative impact on them. I mean, it is necessary to treat people nicely. Of course, this is difficult to do. I realize that. People constantly referring to you can sometimes become very tiring. Depending on the people and work, it can truly tire a person out and get on one’s nerves. Nonetheless, you must be tolerant.
The last thing that I would like to mention is the judiciary’s image in the media. The judiciary does not have a good image in the media. The media and promotion techniques are not used properly in the judiciary or for the judiciary. Of course, part of this is related to the media, [such as] the radio, television, newspapers, and the like. But part of it is related to the judiciary itself.
May God send His mercy upon the late Mr. Mousavi Ardebili’s soul. He used to complain to me about the IRIB. He would say, “News about the judiciary comes out after news about the state of the road to Jiroft. [For example], they say the roads are closed, it has snowed, and news like that! They talk about these things first, and then it’s time to say something about the judiciary.” This was his complaint. Of course, it’s not like that now. Things have thankfully gotten better in this regard, but people should be informed and know about all these things that the judiciary has done.
Now, with regard to the point that Mr. Mohseni mentioned about interacting with different groups of people, that is very important. It is important in terms of the type of work that is done and it is a big job. It is also important in terms of the results gained from doing this. It allows the judiciary to expand, it creates open-mindedness within this branch of the government, and new horizons will open up before it. You should interact with lawyers, with different people, with experts in economics, politics, university students, and young people who claim to know something or have something to say. You should interact with professors, businessmen, and with clerics. Interacting with these groups is very important. These things need to be reflected in the right way. Proper reporting needs to be done regarding these things.
May the Almighty God help you, God willing, to fill the gap that he [Mr. Mohseni] spoke about again — that we are far from being in an ideal situation. This is correct. There truly is a gap. [But] God willing, you will be able to fill this gap soon.
May God’s greetings, mercy, and blessings be upon you.
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