Radio
broadcasting of his message was another form of urging people to disobedience.
Ayatullah Ruhollah Khomeini, the cleric who led an Islamic revolution in Iran, may have perceived himself as an avenger of the humiliations that the West had for more than a century inflicted on the Muslims of the Middle East. Khomeini was a highly respected religious teacher, but his position was not a leading one until 1963, when he was arrested for opposing land reform and women's emancipation.
In the 1970s, Khomeini had begun to be a symbol of the opposition facing the Shah. He listed the various ways in which the Shah had allegedly violated the constitution, condemned the spread of moral corruption in the country, and accused the Shah of submission to America and Israel. Khomeini taunted the Shah for his ties with Israel, warning that the Jews were seeking to take over Iran. He denounced as non-Islamic a bill to grant the vote to women. He called a proposal to permit American servicemen based in Iran to be tried in U.S. military courts "a document for Iran's enslavement." In 1964, he was banished by the Shah to Turkey, then was permitted to relocate in the Shi'ite holy city of An Najaf in Iraq. But the Shah erred in thinking Khomeini would be forgotten.
Khomeini's
fight against the Shah was even more effective when conducted from abroad than
it would have been inside the country. His message was recorded, and duplicated
to music cassettes, which where smuggled into Iran. These cassettes where
duplicated over and over again inside Iran with normal equipment, and Khomeini's
message was quickly spread over all of the country. Radio
broadcasting of his message was another form of urging people to disobedience.
In late 1978 huge street demonstrations calling for the Shah's abdication ignited the government's implosion. Students, the middle class, bazaar merchants, workers, the army — the pillars of society — successively abandoned the regime. The Shah had nowhere to turn for help but to Washington. Yet the more he did, the more isolated he became. In January 1979 he fled to the West. Two weeks later, Khomeini returned home in triumph.
Why was the Shah Ousted?
In a United States CIA clandestine operation between November 1952 and August 1953, the democratically elected Premier of Iran, Mossadeq, was ousted and put under arrest and Shah Muhammad Pahlavi returned to the throne. The decision of the Eisenhower Administration to return the Shah to power was based on the fear that Mossadeq had too many ties to the Iranian Communist Party and that he would nationalize Iranian oil production, causing the price of oil to rise. This was the beginning of Iranian distrust of the government of the United States.
In January 1963, the Shah of Iran announced the "White Revolution", a six-point program of reform calling for land reform, nationalization of the forests, the sale of state-owned enterprises to private interests, electoral changes to enfranchise women and allow non-Muslims to hold office, profit sharing in industry, and a literacy campaign in the nation's schools. All of these initiatives were regarded as dangerous, Westernizing trends by traditionalists, especially by the powerful and privileged Shiite religious scholars.
In February 1979, Khomeini returned to Iran and a process of Islamization began. All Western influence was to be removed from Iran. Khomeini's politics were then the politics of world Islamist revolution. As a senior Shi`i Muslim cleric, Islamic philosopher and religious authority, he became the political leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Following the revolution, Khomeini became the country's Supreme Leader—the paramount political figure of the new Islamic Republic until his death.
Shortly after assuming power, Khomeini began calling for Islamic revolutions across the Muslim world, including Iran's Arab neighbour Iraq,] the one large state besides Iran with a Shia majority population. At the same time Saddam Hussein, Iraq's secular Arab nationalist Ba'athist leader, was eager to take advantage of Iran's weakened military and (what he assumed was) revolutionary chaos, and in particular to occupy Iran's adjacent oil-rich province of Khuzestan, and, of course, to undermine Iranian Islamic revolutionary attempts to incite the Shi'a majority of his country.
Over the remaining decade of his life, Khomeini consolidated his rule. Proving himself as ruthless as the Shah had been, he had thousands killed while stamping out a rebellion of the secular left. He stacked the state bureaucracies with faithful clerics and drenched the schools and the media with his personal doctrines. After purging the military and security services, he rebuilt them to ensure their loyalty to the clerical state.
Khomeini also launched a campaign to "export" — the term was his — the revolution to surrounding Muslim countries. His provocations of Iraq in 1980 helped start a war that lasted eight years, at the cost of a million lives, and that ended only after America intervened to sink several Iranian warships in the Persian Gulf. Iranians asked whether God had revoked his blessing of the revolution. Khomeini described the defeat as "more deadly than taking poison."
“Ayatullah Ruhollah Khomeini.” Time. 2003. Time Inc. 8 Nov. 2007 <http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/khomeini.html>.
“Ruhollah Khomeini.” Wikipedia. 8 Nov. 2007. Wikimedia Foundation. 9 Nov. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam>.
The Iran Hostage Crisis
On October 22, 1979, the Shah was admitted into the United States for medical treatment for lymphoma. There was an immediate outcry in Iran and on November 4, 1979, a group of students, all of whom were ardent followers of Khomeini, seized the United States embassy in Tehran, taking 63 American citizens as hostage. After a judicious delay, Khomeini supported the hostage-takers under the slogan "America can't do a damn thing." Fifty of the hostages were held prisoner for 444 days — an event usually referred to as the Iran hostage crisis. The hostage-takers justified this violation of long-established international law as a reaction to American refusal to hand over the Shah for trial and execution. On February 23, 1980, Khomeini proclaimed Iran's Majlis would decide the fate of the American embassy hostages, and demanded that the United States hand over the Shah for trial in Iran for crimes against the nation. Although the Shah died less than a year later, this did not end the crisis. Supporters of Khomeini named the U.S. Embassy a "Den of Espionage", and publicized the weapons, electronic listening devices, other equipment and many volumes of official and secret classified documents they found there. Others explain the length of the imprisonment by what Khomeini is reported to have told his president: "This action has many benefits. ... This has united our people. Our opponents do not dare act against us. We can put the constitution to the people's vote without difficulty, and carry out presidential and parliamentary elections." He was right, it worked.
Iran-Iraq War
With what many Iranians believe was the encouragement of the United States, Saudi Arabia and other countries, Iraq soon launched a full scale invasion of Iran, starting what would become the eight-year-long Iran-Iraq War.
Outside powers supplied arms to both sides during the war, but the West wanted to be sure the Islamic revolution did not spread to other parts of the oil-exporting Persian Gulf and began to supply Iraq with whatever help it needed. Most military sales came from the USSR and France, and many also from Saudi Arabia, the USA, and Egypt. Most rulers of other Muslim countries also supported Iraq out of opposition to the Islamic ideology of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which threatened their own native monarchies. On the other hand, most Islamic parties and organizations supported Islamic unity with Iran, especially the Shiite ones.
Islamic Beliefs, Teachings, Practices
Almost all Muslims belong to one of two major denominations, the Sunni and Shi'a. The schism developed in the late 7th century following disagreements over the religious and political leadership of the Muslim community. Roughly 85 percent of Muslims are Sunni and 15 percent are Shi'a. Islam is the predominant religion throughout the Middle East, as well as in parts of Africa and Asia. Large communities are also found in China, the Balkan Peninsula in Eastern Europe and Russia. There are also large Muslim immigrant communities in wealthier, and more developed parts of the world such as Western Europe and the USA. About 20 percent of Muslims live in Arab countries.
Muslims consider the Qur'an to be the literal word of God; it is the central religious text of Islam.[23] Muslims believe that the verses of the Qur'an were revealed to Muhammad by God through the angel Gabriel on many occasions between the years 610 and his death on July 6, 632.
The basic unit of Islamic society is the family, and Islam defines the obligations and legal rights of family members. The father is seen as financially responsible for his family, and is obliged to cater for their well-being. The division of inheritance is specified in the Qur'an, which states that most of it is to pass to the immediate family, while a portion is set aside for the payment of debts and the making of bequests. The woman's share of inheritance is generally half of that of a man with the same rights of succession.Marriage in Islam is a civil contract which consists of an offer and acceptance between two qualified parties in the presence of two witnesses. The groom is required to pay a dowry (mahr) to the bride, as stipulated in the contract.
A man may marry up to four wives if he believes he can treat them equally, while a woman may marry one man only. In most Muslim countries, the process of divorce in Islam is known as talaq, which the husband initiates by pronouncing the word "divorce". Scholars disagree whether Islamic holy texts justify traditional Islamic practices such as veiling and seclusion (purdah). Starting in the 20th century, Muslim social reformers argued against these and other practices such as polygamy, with varying success. At the same time, many Muslim women have attempted to reconcile tradition with modernity by combining an active life with outward modesty. Islamist groups and regimes like the Taliban mostly seek to continue traditional law as applied to women.
“Islam.” Wikipedia. 8 Nov. 2007. Wikimedia Foundation. 9 Nov. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam>.
Five Pillars Of Islam - TC \l4 " In Islam, practice is of greater importance than doctrine, and the "five pillars" represent the framework for a responsible and good life.
1. The declaration of faith - the shahada: "There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God." One becomes a Muslim by formally making this declaration, which represents the belief that the purpose of life is to serve and obey the one God, and that it is achieved through the teachings and practices of Muhammad.
2. Prayer ( salat). Muslims are to perform formal prayers five times a day, involving verses in Arabic from the Koran, thus structuring their lives around God. Congregational prayer is traditionally on Friday. Personal prayers are offered at any time.
3. Almsgiving ( zakat). A principle of Islam is that everything belongs to God, and wealth is held by people in trust. Muslims also have a responsibility to care for the less fortunate. The zakat calls for annual giving of 2.5 percent of a Muslim's capital, calculated by the individual.
4. Fasting during Ramadan.
5. Pilgrimage (the hajj). The pilgimage to Mecca is a once-in-a-lifetime obligation for every Muslim able to do so. During 10 days of rites, pilgrims from around the world don simple garments to remove distinctions of class and culture, showing that all stand equal before God. The close of the hajj is marked by the other major festival celebrated by all Muslims, Eid al-Adha.
Other Islamic teachings
According to the Koran, man was created to be God's viceregent on earth and has been given free will and great potential. His mission is to create a moral and egalitarian social order.
Human experience is a test in which each individual is constantly called upon to choose between right and wrong.
There is no original sin, but Satan attempts to seduce human beings from the straight path. Yet God is with every individual who makes the necessary effort (jihad), and salvation lies in keeping to the right path.
The family is foundational to Islamic society and is seen as essential for its members' spiritual growth. Marriage is a legal agreement, not a sacrament, and either partner may include conditions.
Muslims are taught to value many kinds of knowledge, and to travel "even to China" to seek it, but its use must always be tempered with moral perception.
As Islam is a way of life, the Koran provides guidance on what constitutes a just society and places particlar emphasis on equitable economic relationships.
When Muhammad and his followers fled persecution in Mecca for Medina in 622, he became the political as well as religious leader for the first Muslim community ( umma), which serves as a model for Muslims. Some Muslim scholars, for example, point out that women participated fully in the life of that community.
Islamic law does not distinguish between "matters of church" and "matters of state"; the ulema function as both jurists and theologians. In practice, Islamic rulers frequently bypassed the Sharia courts with a parallel system of so-called "Grievance courts" over which they had sole control. As the Muslim world came into contact with Western secular ideals, Muslim societies responded in different ways. Turkey has been governed as a secular state ever since the reforms of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. In contrast, the 1979 Iranian Revolution replaced a mostly secular regime with an Islamic republic led by the Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini.
Iranian women's rights severely restricted
Despite International Women's Day celebrations today, women in Iran still struggle for basic rights. The country's conservative authorities forbid women from simple activities such as watching the World Cup qualifying soccer game live in a stadium. More prominent are restrictions on their legal and civil rights. Women in Iran can inherit only half as much of their parents' wealth as their brothers. Their husbands can marry more than one woman, and automatically get custody of children after a divorce. Women can be jailed or hanged for defying the dress code, and they can be stoned to death for adultery.
Since the 1979 overthrow of the Shah, the fundamentalist governments dominated by clerics have stressed the traditional role of women and restricted their civil rights and participation in political activities. "The changes of women's conditions are very minor, only about surface things. But the limitations on basic rights and the legislation infrastructure haven't been changed at all," said Mahnaz Afkhami, president of Women's Learning Partnership for Rights, Development and Peace, a nongovernmental organization based in Washington.
Iranian women are better-educated and more politically sophisticated than many of their Muslim neighbors. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization reports that the literacy rate of Iranian women is 70 percent, compared with an average 46.2 percent in the Middle East.
A large number of Iranian women hold professional jobs in journalism, medicine or law, or become human-rights activists. Up to 70 percent of university students in Iran are female, said Swanee Hunt, director of the Women and Public Policy Program at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. Women's active engagement in society, however, has been met with increasing oppression from the regime.
In June, Iran's Guardian Council, a conservative constitutional watchdog, barred all 81 female presidential candidates on the basis of their sex. Women are beaten or jailed for wearing clothes or makeup regarded as insufficiently modest, the State Department said in a 2004 human-rights report.
Other Restrictions: The woman had to have written permission from her husband to travel. Since inside the country, one does not need to show an ID to travel, this permission was required for traveling outside the country. Citizenship was only through paternity. An Iranian man’s child from any woman would become an Iranian citizen automatically. An Iranian woman’s child from a non-Iranian would not be eligible for citizenship.
All these laws and many more were in place in Iran. Due to the rise of women’s rights movements around the world, including Iran, certain advancements were being implemented gradually such as the right to vote, which was established in Iran in 1963. One law (the "family protection law") that was passed in late 1970’s required married men to get permission from their permanent wife, or wives, to acquire another permanent wife. This did not apply to temporary wives.
Li, Xin. “ Iranian women's rights severely restricted.” Women's Learning Partnership. 2007. Women's Learning Partnership. 8 Nov. 2007<http://www.learningpartnership.org/news/press/030806iran>.