A review of the Islamic revolution
We are approaching anniversary of an extra ordinary event in the history of our nation, which had a profound effect over the lives of every single Iranian in one way or another even if we had no contribution to it. I remember those days that when traveling on the roads, from one place to another, we would encounter mobs of people with clubs in their hands while blocking the road asking you to say “death to shah” so they let you go! Then they put a picture of Khomeini on the windshield of your car after getting what they wanted and before you run into another group of them a bit further. It was a truly unusual scene to see and live in those days in a country, which was considered an “island of stability” in a troubled region, not much earlier!
When about a year before that, I heard about some demonstrations and clashes between students and police around Tehran University for the first time, I took the news with a grain of salt. I was very familiar with how the news, traditionally, traveled with so much of exaggeration, while living and working far away from Capital in a small industrial town. Sometime before that, I had heard about “fazaaye baaze siyaasi” or “open political atmosphere” that late Shah had mentioned a few times in his speeches and was broadcasted in news programs during the previous couple of years. But I did not know this would require violent demonstration and clash with police to show it! I thought that open atmosphere would result in activating people who were willing to have a role in political affairs of the nation and would end all those bickering about how everything was pre-planned by others and “we” could not change anything!
A few years earlier in 1975, foundation of “Rastaakhiz Party” that everyone had to become a member of, by late Shah had opened door for critics to denounce single party, single leader dictatorship. Shah himself seemed to believe that Rastaakhiz, would bring new and pure forces into play and inject new blood into veins of Iranian political body that had become too comfortable with leaving everything to be done by Shah himself. The trick did not work and all it did was a superficial change to appearance of Iranian political body with same people and same names. The hand over of position of Prime Minister to Jamshid Amouzegar after more than 13 years of late Hoveyda’s government, made no difference towards “open political atmosphere” in the eyes of those who saw the hands of Shah behind every political activitt. At the same time, a true political opposition that could provide a viable alternative to the situation was missing or failed to present itself to the society within available opportunities.
No doubt that bitterness and distrust of some political forces towards late Shah because of memories from previous couple of decades, were still at work and affecting the political atmosphere of the nation. Majority of Iranians in every sector of society seemed to be comfortably keeping their own status of being mere audiences to the events in those days. Papers were reporting the news and publishing articles, which indicated different atmosphere in the society while skeptics, held their position and considered everything as a show by government and Savak to identify and arrest opposing elements! Political environment showed some change and new people seemed to show interest and courage in getting involved and test the waters of new political order, but the change was not coming fast enough to satisfy growing demands, mainly by intellectual community, for more drastic changes. Complaints against corruption in government were publicly discussed and reported by the media but no one seemed to believe the sincerity of reports and the justice system to resolve any of the issues. Many people looked at the trials as just another show and the rumors about many thousands of political prisoners were circled around to prove the point!
Strikes that were mostly initiated under influence and inspiration of some groups who considered themselves defenders of workers rights against injustice of “capitalist world”, spread from one work place to another and, it seemed that it had turned into a fashionable thing to do. In many cases, the demands did not really reflect a true economic problem other than just taking advantage of the newly practiced liberal atmosphere of the country to bring some “change” but it was not clear to many that, what particular “change” was needed and what that “change” would result in. Later on, demand for freeing political prisoners became part of the agenda in the strikes, which by then, it had taken most of the country. In one of these days, an article was published in Iranian media blaming Khomeini for instigating and stirring the unrest in the society and trying to take advantage of newly achieved political liberties to advance his backward agenda. In this article the background of Khomeini has been brought into focus through using his original family name “Hendi” which some of his relatives have not changed to this very day.
A violent demonstration by clerics and theological students in Ghom followed the next day hence, the clash with police forces. Right after that, rumors flew far and wide through out the country about a big number of deaths and injuries in Ghom’s demonstration, which was supposedly committed by government forces when trying to disperse demonstrators. This became a staring point for “Islamic Revolution”.
From that point on, Khomeini was a dominant figure in all opposition activities and he ordered his supporters to commemorate the dead in a week and then in 40 days as per Iranians traditions to pay respect to those who had died. This kind of demonstration became a daily affair almost all over the country and every time, rumors of clashes and killings followed. Khomeini and his followers seemed to have taken the center stage and became the main force behind the events which were speeding up in an unusual manner and leaving everyone confused while pushing them aside to become mere audiences of those events and demonstrations by Islamic fanatics! Burning of theatres, vandalizing liquor shops and music stores became a trademark of Islamic fanatics that showed to be working on a predefined agenda and according to precise instructions and in a very organized fashion. Islamic Revolution had started!
Cinema Rex and Black Friday
Burning of Cinema Rex in Abadan that resulted in murder of more than 400 innocent people became another turning point event in the process of “Islamic Revolution”. Through out all these months, Iranian police and security forces were mysteriously absent and did not show any seriously active role in bringing the situation under control. Burning of Cinema Rex was quickly turned into a propaganda issue against government and Islamic revolutionaries successfully discredited the government by claiming that the action was done by SAVAK . One of my cousins who, used to work for NIOC (National Iranian Oil Company) as an ambulance driver, had friendship with cinema manager (who also worked for NIOC) and other staffs in the cinema. He usually got to see all the movies for free and, was inside the Cinema Rex that night talking to one of his friends who, was in charge of controlling tickets and checking and collecting the amount of sale at the end of night. Tickets have been sold out for the last show that day as it usually did for that movie and, except him and the operator of the projector no one was there. Their conversation dragged a few minutes beyond the starting time of the movie and his friend told him that he wanted to go inside the theatre and watch the movie and he had to lock the main door which was already closed, from inside, before going. This was nothing unusual and it was for not letting outsiders in without a ticket and when tickets were sold out and theatre was full. He invited my cousin to join him but he declined and said he had to go home.
My cousin left after his friend opened the main door, near the ticket kiosk in the hallway where they were talking, for him to leave. His father’s house, where he lived, was in one of alleys from Khaghani Avenue, which was not that far and he usually walked there. About an hour later, when he arrived, after seeing some other friends on his way to home and chatting with them a little, he noticed unusual crowd in the alley for that time of the night. Asked neighbiors what’s going on and someone told him that Cinema Rex was on fire! “I was there a moment ago, this is not true”, he replied. But, other neighbors, who had heard about that, confirmed the news. He told me that he ran back to the cinema and saw it with his own eyes. Except some smoke coming from rooftop, there was not much of evidence of fire. He saw the police and spoke with some of them who did not let anyone to get close to the scene. His friend died that night and his other friend, the cinema manager, a totally innocent man who, was not even present there that night, was executed by Islamic regime after the revolution.
Islamic revolutionaries later spread the rumor about SAVAK burning the Cinema Rex and blamed head of police, General Ramzi for failing to save people’s lives while claiming that he locked the door from outside so that the terrorists do not escape! In those days, it seemed that any negative propaganda against government was quickly absorbed and accepted by most people and government’s agencies confusion and failures had greatest contribution to make these propagandas work easier and faster.
When about a year before that, I heard about some demonstrations and clashes between students and police around Tehran University for the first time, I took the news with a grain of salt. I was very familiar with how the news, traditionally, traveled with so much of exaggeration, while living and working far away from Capital in a small industrial town. Sometime before that, I had heard about “fazaaye baaze siyaasi” or “open political atmosphere” that late Shah had mentioned a few times in his speeches and was broadcasted in news programs during the previous couple of years. But I did not know this would require violent demonstration and clash with police to show it! I thought that open atmosphere would result in activating people who were willing to have a role in political affairs of the nation and would end all those bickering about how everything was pre-planned by others and “we” could not change anything!
A few years earlier in 1975, foundation of “Rastaakhiz Party” that everyone had to become a member of, by late Shah had opened door for critics to denounce single party, single leader dictatorship. Shah himself seemed to believe that Rastaakhiz, would bring new and pure forces into play and inject new blood into veins of Iranian political body that had become too comfortable with leaving everything to be done by Shah himself. The trick did not work and all it did was a superficial change to appearance of Iranian political body with same people and same names. The hand over of position of Prime Minister to Jamshid Amouzegar after more than 13 years of late Hoveyda’s government, made no difference towards “open political atmosphere” in the eyes of those who saw the hands of Shah behind every political activitt. At the same time, a true political opposition that could provide a viable alternative to the situation was missing or failed to present itself to the society within available opportunities.
No doubt that bitterness and distrust of some political forces towards late Shah because of memories from previous couple of decades, were still at work and affecting the political atmosphere of the nation. Majority of Iranians in every sector of society seemed to be comfortably keeping their own status of being mere audiences to the events in those days. Papers were reporting the news and publishing articles, which indicated different atmosphere in the society while skeptics, held their position and considered everything as a show by government and Savak to identify and arrest opposing elements! Political environment showed some change and new people seemed to show interest and courage in getting involved and test the waters of new political order, but the change was not coming fast enough to satisfy growing demands, mainly by intellectual community, for more drastic changes. Complaints against corruption in government were publicly discussed and reported by the media but no one seemed to believe the sincerity of reports and the justice system to resolve any of the issues. Many people looked at the trials as just another show and the rumors about many thousands of political prisoners were circled around to prove the point!
Strikes that were mostly initiated under influence and inspiration of some groups who considered themselves defenders of workers rights against injustice of “capitalist world”, spread from one work place to another and, it seemed that it had turned into a fashionable thing to do. In many cases, the demands did not really reflect a true economic problem other than just taking advantage of the newly practiced liberal atmosphere of the country to bring some “change” but it was not clear to many that, what particular “change” was needed and what that “change” would result in. Later on, demand for freeing political prisoners became part of the agenda in the strikes, which by then, it had taken most of the country. In one of these days, an article was published in Iranian media blaming Khomeini for instigating and stirring the unrest in the society and trying to take advantage of newly achieved political liberties to advance his backward agenda. In this article the background of Khomeini has been brought into focus through using his original family name “Hendi” which some of his relatives have not changed to this very day.
A violent demonstration by clerics and theological students in Ghom followed the next day hence, the clash with police forces. Right after that, rumors flew far and wide through out the country about a big number of deaths and injuries in Ghom’s demonstration, which was supposedly committed by government forces when trying to disperse demonstrators. This became a staring point for “Islamic Revolution”.
From that point on, Khomeini was a dominant figure in all opposition activities and he ordered his supporters to commemorate the dead in a week and then in 40 days as per Iranians traditions to pay respect to those who had died. This kind of demonstration became a daily affair almost all over the country and every time, rumors of clashes and killings followed. Khomeini and his followers seemed to have taken the center stage and became the main force behind the events which were speeding up in an unusual manner and leaving everyone confused while pushing them aside to become mere audiences of those events and demonstrations by Islamic fanatics! Burning of theatres, vandalizing liquor shops and music stores became a trademark of Islamic fanatics that showed to be working on a predefined agenda and according to precise instructions and in a very organized fashion. Islamic Revolution had started!
Cinema Rex and Black Friday
Burning of Cinema Rex in Abadan that resulted in murder of more than 400 innocent people became another turning point event in the process of “Islamic Revolution”. Through out all these months, Iranian police and security forces were mysteriously absent and did not show any seriously active role in bringing the situation under control. Burning of Cinema Rex was quickly turned into a propaganda issue against government and Islamic revolutionaries successfully discredited the government by claiming that the action was done by SAVAK . One of my cousins who, used to work for NIOC (National Iranian Oil Company) as an ambulance driver, had friendship with cinema manager (who also worked for NIOC) and other staffs in the cinema. He usually got to see all the movies for free and, was inside the Cinema Rex that night talking to one of his friends who, was in charge of controlling tickets and checking and collecting the amount of sale at the end of night. Tickets have been sold out for the last show that day as it usually did for that movie and, except him and the operator of the projector no one was there. Their conversation dragged a few minutes beyond the starting time of the movie and his friend told him that he wanted to go inside the theatre and watch the movie and he had to lock the main door which was already closed, from inside, before going. This was nothing unusual and it was for not letting outsiders in without a ticket and when tickets were sold out and theatre was full. He invited my cousin to join him but he declined and said he had to go home.
My cousin left after his friend opened the main door, near the ticket kiosk in the hallway where they were talking, for him to leave. His father’s house, where he lived, was in one of alleys from Khaghani Avenue, which was not that far and he usually walked there. About an hour later, when he arrived, after seeing some other friends on his way to home and chatting with them a little, he noticed unusual crowd in the alley for that time of the night. Asked neighbiors what’s going on and someone told him that Cinema Rex was on fire! “I was there a moment ago, this is not true”, he replied. But, other neighbors, who had heard about that, confirmed the news. He told me that he ran back to the cinema and saw it with his own eyes. Except some smoke coming from rooftop, there was not much of evidence of fire. He saw the police and spoke with some of them who did not let anyone to get close to the scene. His friend died that night and his other friend, the cinema manager, a totally innocent man who, was not even present there that night, was executed by Islamic regime after the revolution.
Islamic revolutionaries later spread the rumor about SAVAK burning the Cinema Rex and blamed head of police, General Ramzi for failing to save people’s lives while claiming that he locked the door from outside so that the terrorists do not escape! In those days, it seemed that any negative propaganda against government was quickly absorbed and accepted by most people and government’s agencies confusion and failures had greatest contribution to make these propagandas work easier and faster.
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