On the fourth day of his tour of Kerman Province, the Grand Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei paid a visit to the provincial city of Zarand on Wednesday, May 4.
Ayatollah Khamenei visited the different parts of the city and the neighboring villages that had been struck by a recent earthquake, and he talked to their devoted and sincere residents.
The village of Dahouyiyeh, which was visited by the Leader, had been razed to the ground in an earthquake that hit Zarand in February, 2005. The inhabitants of the village expressed great joy and excitement over the Leader's visit to the quake-stricken areas.
Ayatollah Khamenei also visited the township of Rayhan near Zarand, which had been destroyed by eighty percent in the recent earthquake, and the village of Gatguiyeh, which had also been affected by the earthquake. During the visit, the Leader praised the patience and fortitude of the people of quake-stricken areas and referred to natural disasters as divine trials for the people and government officials.
Following the visit, the Leader of the Islamic Republic addressed a large gathering of enthusiastic local residents at Bahman-22 Stadium in the city of Zarand.
Ayatollah Khamenei told the audience that the Iranian nation will benefit from hardships and afflictions in ascending the ladder of progress and development. He stressed that the Iranian people are determined to continue treading on the path of worldly progress and spiritual salvation.
The Leader also expressed his gratitude to the faithful, dedicated and cultured residents of Zarand for their warm welcome and enthusiasm. He further commemorated the victims of the earthquake that hit Zarand early this year.
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed out that the natural disasters are not strong enough to undermine the firmness of purpose and determination of the Iranian people to make material and spiritual progress.
Elsewhere in his statements, the Leader of the Islamic Republic described the main concern of the Islamic government as making efforts to raise the living standards of the public and solve their problems.
Calling on government officials to expedite their constructive measures, he further stated, "Making decisions to solve the people's problems is not enough in itself, but that decisions should be followed up with concrete measures, so that the people may witness the fruits of the government's plans and programs."
Ayatollah Khamenei further hinted at the plans formulated by the government to redress the damage caused by the earthquake and reconstruct the quake-stricken areas. Emphasizing that both the present and future governments should seriously follow through on the devised plans and projects, he added that he will ensure that the declared promises and plans will be carried into effect.
The Leader also stressed that the most important lesson that the government should learn from the devastative earthquakes in Kerman Province is to increase the resistance of weak structures in urban and rural areas across the country.
"Many regions in Iran are prone to earthquakes. Therefore, government officials, those involved in the mass construction of buildings and the people should pay special attention to the issue of making buildings resistant to earthquakes," he pointed out.
Further in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei stated that the perseverance and wise and appropriate attitude of the Iranian nation and government toward impediments and the enemies' threats have caused the arrogant powers to fear the progress made by the Iranian people.
"Even today that the enemies of our nation are threatening the Islamic Republic through their propaganda apparatus, the Iranian people are treading the glorious path of scientific, material and spiritual progress with self-confidence, awareness, determination, deep faith, national solidarity and public participation," he told the audience.