Leader's Speech in Meeting with MPs of 7th Majlis
The following is the full text of the speech delivered on May 29, 2007 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting with the members of the seventh Majlis.
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
I thank Allah the Exalted who, once more, gave the diligent outstanding personalities in the Majlis the opportunity to gather in this meeting today. They have rendered many services and made many efforts which they can make a list of and which can be a source of pride for them.
How good it is that when an individual, whatever position they hold, looks back on his past and makes an exact and strict calculation without any considerations, he can see a list of his work which is presentable to Allah Almighty. When it is said to us, “Judge your own actions before you are judged" [Bihar al-Anwar, volume 67, page 73] and when religious ulama consider judgment of one's actions as one of the first responsibilities of a mystic, this is because of the fact that we should constantly check our performance sheet so that on the day when our performance sheet is read to us, we will not be surprised.
We ourselves should read our performance sheet before it is checked by Allah the Exalted. If there is a shortcoming, we should correct it. If there is a strong point in it, we should thank God for it. If we do not judge our own actions and if we ignore this duty, we will be surprised.
In Abu Hamza al-Thumali Dua, Imam Sajjad (a.s.) said, “Dear God, show me mercy when I have no more excuses to make, when my tongue fails to answer your questions and when my mind makes a mistake when you are asking me questions.” In the face of God's questions, we have no more excuses to make and – as we say today – we lose and we do not know what to do. One's tongue cannot utter any words and even one's mind, brain and lips become nervous: “My mind makes a mistake when you are asking me questions.”
Those who carefully judge their own actions, they can hope to be saved. When we look at our performance sheet and see that there are some shortcomings, we can correct them because we still have time and we are still alive. “And return to your Lord” [The Holy Quran, 39: 54]. That is to say, we should return to Him and make up for our mistakes. If we see that there are strong points in our performance sheet, our hearts will be confident and hopeful about God's assistance, blessings and guidance. Then, we will both thank God and continue our path. This is the benefit of judgment.
As an individual should judge his own actions, a group of people, such as you in the Majlis and such as administrations and organizations in charge of different affairs in the country, should judge their own actions. We should judge our own actions. If we have this performance sheet – like the one that Dr. Haddad referred to with his usual articulate and sweet way of speaking – we become happy and we thank God. But one should not be satisfied with this. We should not be satisfied with this and we should not fail to pay attention to our mistakes as we do not show lenience when we judge other people’s – as far as they are not our friends and people with whom we have a close relationship – actions. We are strict and we find faults with such people. We should do the same thing when it comes to ourselves. I hope that Allah the Exalted bestows on you, me and all officials perception, strengthens our determination and increases our capability to take action on a daily basis. “Strengthen all parts of my body to render services to you and make firm my heart” [Mafatih al-Jinan, Dua Komeil, Page 62].
Three years have passed. As Mr. Haddad said, quoting the statements of this humble person, these three years was not a short time. But even such a long time passes in the twinkling of an eye. Before an individual begins to notice what has occurred, he sees that this long time is over. Our lifetime is also like this. When one is 70 years old and when one reaches an old age – of course, thankfully, many of you are young – he sees that everything has already happened in the twinkling of an eye and he has taken such a long path. This last year of your term will also pass in the twinkling of an eye. What will remain after your term is over? The work that we will do during this one year and the things which we will write in the boxes of our crossword will remain.
Our work is like the letters which we write in a crossword puzzle to form an accurate word or a complete sentence. We should know how we want to carry out each piece of our work during this time, what it is that we want to do, what our intentions are and in which direction it is heading towards. We should know in advance what we want and we should adopt appropriate measures to do what we want to do. Of course, one year is not a short time. It is a significant amount of time. In this year, many great things can be done which I will refer to later on.
What I can say about this Majlis is that, in my opinion, it is a good Majlis and it is considered as among good parliaments. I am saying this by relying on the assessments which I have made in my mind about this Majlis. I have been in a number of sessions which are held frequently in the Majlis and I interacted with the Members of the Majlis. This Majlis has a certain characteristic. It is the fact that this group of people in the Majlis – I will speak about a number of general characteristics and main policies of this Majlis – blossomed in an inappropriate environment. It is like a plant or a tree which grows out of a rugged ground: “But you must remember that hardy trees which grow on the border of deserts have very strong timber and they burn longer and with a very strong glow" [Nahjul Balaghah, Letter 45]. Your Majlis is like this.
The situation which had been created by certain people - who did certain things out of ignorance - before the formation of this Majlis was bad and weird. These people tried to boycott the elections, make the Members of the Majlis resign, organize a strike and pit them against one another. At that time, the voice of the Majlis was inconsistent with many principles of the Islamic Republic. This Majlis was formed in such conditions.
What does this signify? No one installs the Majlis. The Members of the Majlis are elected by the people. It signifies that the hearts of the people thump for the same thing that a number of people had planned to root out. The hearts of these people thump for Islamic principles. We do not want to claim that all the people of Iran are among outstanding saints. But we want to claim that even those who are not among outstanding saints attach great significance to Islamic values and values which this Revolution bestowed on the people. They have seen the benefits of these values. The historical memory of our people cannot forget the period of time when this great nation, which enjoys a rich historical background, was a plaything in the hands of colonialists and the Zionists.
They wanted to control its economy, culture, the people's hearts, the people's dress code and even their beliefs. They wanted to determine in which direction the people should move. One cannot think of a greater insult. There was poverty, discrimination, bullying and oppression. Besides, all these things were accompanied by an insult to the holy beliefs that the people believed in and also anti-Islamic, anti-Quranic and anti-religious orientations. They dragged men and women deep into decadence. The memory of the people of Iran will not forget those times. Even if the majority of the people, who live in the present time, have not experienced those times – this is because they are young, but we have experienced those times - but every people commit certain things to memory. Those things will turn into the principles and the wisdom of those people by which they understand things.
It was the will of the people who formed this Majlis. In your election campaigns, you mostly focused on issues such as promoting Islamic principles, being committed to the values of the Islamic Revolution, combating corruption, improving the conditions of the underprivileged people and making efforts to preserve national independence and dignity. And the people welcomed these slogans and statements and they voted for you. As a result of this, this Majlis was formed. This is an outstanding phenomenon and it will go down in the history of our country. History is cruel. The future generations will look back at this time and they will make a judgment about it. This election was one of the most important and sensitive junctures in our history. This is the identity of your Majlis.
To be fair, based on this identity and in line with these slogans, good and reliable guidelines were developed. Neither your friends, the advocates of the Majlis, nor your enemies can deny this. The Majlis showed that it pays attention to underprivileged classes in society. For it, the main issue is to make up for the poverty of underprivileged classes, poor people and those who are deprived of many privileges. You paid attention to this issue. It was both reflected in words and in certain laws. This was very important and good.
The Majlis pursued the policies specified in Article 44 of the Constitution – which can create a great economic movement in the country - in an efficient manner. However, the Majlis and all MPs should support them. That only a few people – who are members of a parliamentary commission in charge of this – pursue this matter is not enough. You should move forward and you should pass a strong and efficient law so that you can leave behind a valuable asset for your country.
One of the strong points of this Majlis, which was clearly visible, was its reasonable and strong positions on international issues and in the face of global arrogance. It is very bad to see that the people who govern a people give the green light to the enemies who are opposed to those people, its orientations and its principles. This is really embarrassing and people feel that they are being humiliated.
Our logic against the interferences of America is not a weak logic. It is the kind of logic that all nations throughout the world will cherish with all their heart if they become familiar with it. We are not bullying anyone with our words. We are not saying anything that is strange and shocking. We are saying that our nation and our country do not want to allow a certain power and a certain usurping empire, which makes extravagant claims, to have control over their natural and human resources, to formulate their policies and undermine their authority. They say that we should do or not do such and such a thing, sell such and such a thing, buy such and such a thing, accept or not accept such and such a thing for our government. This is what the Americans are doing in many parts of the world.
They constantly did this in the territories of the Soviet Union. It is 10 years now that they have been acting in the same manner in the Middle East region. They are doing this in Asia and many other countries. Iran said, “We do not want you to interfere in our affairs. We ourselves want to make decisions.” Is this a bad thing to say? When the people of Iran directly confront global arrogance, they say to it, “Why do you claim to defend human rights while you obviously violate them everywhere such as in Iraq, Afghanistan, Africa, Kosovo and even in America itself?" This is not something that people’s cannot understand.
Notice that whenever the officials of the country – the President or other high-ranking officials – travel to another country, they receive the warm reception of the academics, intellectuals and the masses of the people if they can speak to them. Why is that? It was the same in the past such as my own trip to Pakistan, Mr. Hashemi’s trip to Africa and Mr. Khatami’s trips to other countries. Today, whenever our President goes to any Islamic country, he is given a very warm reception - because of the positions that he adopts - by the people if they are allowed to do so. This means that nations, particularly the ones in the world of Islam, like these positions and orientations.
Now we are standing firm as a coherent government, nation and country – we are not like an armed or unarmed party that is opposed to something in a corner of the world - and we are saying these things. And the entire world is praising us for such resistance. But imagine that suddenly someone from our camp – particularly someone from the governing body of the country – makes a sign signifying that they support the enemy. “Oh, you who believe, do not take My enemy and your enemy for friends. If you go forth struggling hard in My path and seeking My pleasure, would you manifest love to them?” [The Holy Quran, 60: 1]
This Majlis stood firm as a legislative body that enjoys a high position. During all events, it maintained its anti- arrogance position in an outspoken, logical and explicit way. And logic and reasoning ruled over its behavior and words. This is very valuable and it cannot be ignored. Both your friends and your enemies accept this. This is one of your important glories which you should thank God for when you judge yourselves.
One of the good points about this Majlis is that during these three years it did not cause political tension or the kind of quarrels which create discord outside the Majlis. By Allah's favor, it will be the same in the year which is left of your term. Imagine that you turn the radio on to listen to the speeches of the MPs in the Majlis, but you hear nothing except for bitter disputes, quarrels, disagreements and slander. On this issue, this Majlis had an acceptable performance. Of course, certain inappropriate statements are made in the Majlis which I will refer to. But in general, this was not the kind of Majlis which causes tension, and it behaved in an appropriate way inside the Majlis. Mr. Haddad referred to a number of other good points and he mentioned the things and the activities which were done in the Majlis.
Dear brother and sisters, the last year is one of the years in which you are tested. In the beginning of this Majlis, I said to you – of course, I said the same things to previous Majlises as well – that a Member of the Majlis who comes from a certain area should not imagine that his competence is proved by constantly supporting his own area. The responsibility of a Member of the Majlis is not this in any way. We should not think that because we are an MP from such and such a city or province, we should constantly win certain concessions for our city or province. This is a wrong, disorganized and inappropriate way of competing and it will have damaging results.
Although it is true that you have been elected by the people in a certain city, you are not only the Members of the Majlis of that area. You are the Members of the Majlis for all the people of Iran. The responsibility of the Majlis is to pass laws, not to win concessions and to receive funds for the construction of that area or other such things. You should also pay attention to the Constitution. Your responsibility is to pass laws. However, you should pass the kind of law which benefits your area too. During the last year of your term, this assumption is pursued more fervently. I am saying this to you without any considerations. You should be vigilant. So, this last year is the year of divine tests. It has been always like this. Now, it is the same. You should be vigilant.
In my opinion, what should be done in this year – considering the fact that you have an opportunity for one more year to render services to the people as representatives of the people in the Majlis – is that you should see what priorities and important issues are and that you should follow them up seriously. This one year is also a good opportunity. Of course, the honorable Speaker of the Majlis presented a list to me recently in which 15, 16 suggestions were written. It was good. Of course, I do not decide what you should do, nor do I prefer anything. You yourselves know better what you should do. You should choose a number of things which are really important and fundamental for the country, which will bring about a long-lasting effect, and which are of vital importance. A number of them may not be of prime importance in general, but they may be of vital importance at the present time. You should pursue them without paying attention to certain issues which may happen to anyone – such as the issues related to partisan and personal interests or other such issues. This last year can be full of blessings.
I deem it necessary to speak about one of the strong points of this Majlis which has played a fundamental role. It is your strong positions on the issue of the nuclear energy. This is one of your outstanding roles. You acted in a very good way. It was the right thing to make the administration show resistance. The administration itself is interested in this and it plays a leading role in this regard. This is exactly according to the interests of the country and it is good for the future of Iran. You should also pay attention to underprivileged classes as you did so in the past.
If I say that you should pay attention to major tasks, it is because there are major considerations in these tasks that should be taken into account. For example, once Imam (r.a.) said to the Members of the Majlis, “It is true that whatever draft law you pass will be entrusted to the Guardian Council and if that draft is not in line with the Constitution, it will be rejected, but this does not mean that you should pass the kind of draft law that you already know is against the Constitution and then you send it to the Guardian Council. This is because they will reject it.” After this, you might think that this draft can be sent to the Expediency Council which is responsible for reexamining these kinds of laws. This should not be the case and you should not do such things. This is wasting the time of the Majlis. Passing the draft law which is obviously against the Constitution and paying attention to certain details about executive issues waste the time of the Majlis.
Of course, the relationship between the Majlis and the administration is good and I am aware of this relationship. Generally speaking, they thankfully have similar orientations although there are certain differences of opinion between them. When they have differences of opinion on certain issues, each party should give ground a little so that they can sort things out. I am saying this by considering what is good for the country. The administration should be supported.
The administration has adopted a correct orientation towards managing the country. All administrations may have certain differences of opinion – about different plans and issues - with different Majlises, a number of outstanding personalities or certain other people. In these differences of opinion, no one can claim that this or that party is absolutely right. Sometimes, this party may be right and sometimes another party may be right. But this should not result in weakening an administration which believes in the principles of the Revolution, which is very active and which constantly renders services. You should pay attention to such issues.
I am not saying that you should not criticize the administration. There are two kinds of criticism. In order to prove that your criticism against an individual is fair, you should refer to his strong points as well as his weak points when you criticize them. You should do this so that it becomes clear you are not making personal remarks, you do not intend to take revenge on and annoy that individual.
Imagine that we have a group of people who have certain weak and strong points. If we do not take their strong points into consideration or point to them when we are criticizing them and if we constantly speak about 1, 2 or 10 weak points of theirs, it is obvious that they will be weakened. If we want to prove that we do not want to weaken them, we should speak about their strong points too. However, if sometimes we have a certain criticism to make, we can say it. It is alright and no one is against this.
The harmony between the Majlis and the administration is one of the blessings of this term. I would tell you that this harmony had and still has certain opponents. There are certain people who are opposed to the harmony between the administration and the Majlis. They chanted the slogan that the Majlis and the administration have formed a coalition although no one had organized this coalition. The people had done this and this was their choice. They elected the President and the Members of the Majlis. Now it happens that there is a coalition between the Majlis and the administration. This coalition is not a weak point. It is a strong point. They can cooperate with one another and they can pursue the same goals.
When you speak in the Majlis – when you make a speech before passing a law, when you issue a warning and when you decide to coordinate the activities of the administration by issuing warnings and by questioning – you should take care not to help the enemy make a false assumption out of ignorance. Sometimes, we do not intend to do or say something bad, but we speak in a way that the opposing side makes certain false assumptions. It may imagine that there is an orientation among us which supports it. Then it may be encouraged and become more confident. You should take care not to encourage the enemy.
After these three years, what I can say to you is that you have done an excellent job. I hope that God will help you to continue this right path by avoiding wrongdoings. You should be careful about wrongdoings. There are certain narrations that warn us not to do certain things if we are not sure whether they are good or not. Doing such things makes one become in danger of exceeding limits. Therefore, I hope that Allah the Exalted will approve what you do and bestow success on you. I hope that Allah the Exalted will consider your performance to be acceptable and satisfactory at the end of your term.
Greetings be upon you and Allah’s mercy and blessings