Over the past 40 years, many of us have seen various Iranian opposition groups and TV channels pop up, one after another, but none united or supported their competitors. Each group had its own agenda. A typical Iranian dilemma: “too many chiefs, not enough Indians.”
Let’s make a note of it: If we remain divided, there won’t be a chance against the powerful Islamic regime with the vast and destructive power apparatus who has no problem in using it against its own population as it did to the 2009 Green Movement.
Sadly, my experience tells me that Iranians are inherently too stubborn to work within a group like Japanese are. A Japanese proverb says “A single arrow is easily broken, but not ten in a bundle.” This means that ten arrows are stronger than a single arrow. If you change the arrows to people, you will understand more about why the Japanese are so group oriented.
If my assessment is accurate, we are in it for a long haul.
After 40 long and draining years since the arrival of the Ayatollah Khomeini, I am puzzled as to why our political activists or groups have never compromised or found common ground to work with one another for the sake of Iran in order rescue her from a further drift into the abyss...
National Council
After 40 years in exile, with nothing to show for it, some groups gave it another shot at trying to sit down, listen and communicate through a venue called the “National Council” known in Persian as Shoray-e Melli. Many of us were under the assumption that since “the fire of youth turns to the ashes of old age,” perhaps there was a chance for them to come to a tentative meeting of the minds.
The National Council initiated its operations in April of 2013. Mr. Reza Pahlavi II led the first general meeting, a loosely based umbrella group of 36 opposition organizations. I understand that Mr. Pahlavi has since resigned from this organization along with a few more groups.
While I was not present, I hoped yet again this Council would become an ice breaker, a bridge of trust for further teamwork among Iranians irrespective of belief or ideology. We must know that we should never count on any foreign country to save Iran. That’s a terrible mistake. History has proven this, time and again.
The MEK
It is no secret that our wealthy competitor, known as “Mujahedeen Khalgh” or just MEK, is a Marxist Iranian opposition group that claims to be the government in exile. It is known as the cult of Rajavi, and feels it has the upper hand with the unlimited support of many current and former US and European officials and funds, but with zero support of the Iranian people from the inside.
Personal note
I never had the privilege of meeting Mr. Pahlavi in person, but after 40 years of activism, his maturity, knowledge, charisma and full understanding of the current events in Iran is quite impressive and noticeable. He has become a quite articulate politician. In my opinion, Mr. Pahlavi has become the very asset that the
It would be expedient to give these valiant fighters a hand so that future generations can recall this generation of expatriate Iranians as trailblazers who had the courage to break from the bleak past and launch a bright future.
opposition has desperately been seeking for years to represent them. It is urgent to stand with and support him at this crucial time.
Undeniably, Mr. Pahlavi is very popular among the Iranian people (young and old) and recent protesters on numerous occasions have been chanting his name to return home and “Make Iran Great Again.”
Mr. Pahlavi’s calm temperament and demeanor, makes him an ideal catalyst among different opposition groups. In a recent interview, he said: “He believes the people in Iran and abroad 'trust' in his vision for a future Iran," adding: “The reason they look up to me in some ways, is because of my own track record.”
Question to opposition groiups: What are you afraid of? It is either now or never. It is freedom and democracy-seeking secular Iranians who are thoroughly capable of dislodging the tyrannical Mullahs. They will eventually accomplish this task with or without any help from the outside, yet, it would be expedient to give these valiant fighters a hand so that future generations can recall this generation of expatriate Iranians as trailblazers who had the courage to break from the bleak past and launch a bright future.
Mr. Pahlavi on his recent interview with Mr. Mehdi Falahati ,on June 8, 2018, was asked what has he done and what plans he envisions for the future. He also spoke at length to Elaph.
Mr. Pahlavi asserted, "let me make one thing clear, so that my compatriots understand my goal. I don’t have the slightest ambition or personal desire to capture power. However, I feel committed and obligated as an Iranian so that it is my national duty to support and fulfill the will of my people. And, even more important than this, the rights of its citizens to decide their own destiny."
Well, this forty year battle has been arduous and unpredictable. What has changed today is that we have a new generation in Iran who cannot be blamed for the calamity of the 1979 revolution. Today, clearly, they are searching for their own path in life. They also have arrived at the same conclusion that as long as this regime is still in power, Iran will never see daylight anytime soon.
As you know, Iran is going through national protests across the country. Truck drivers have joined the strike for quite some time now. Before that, we saw the protests in Kazeron and elsewhere in Iran. What these waves of protests tell us is that they are united. They speak with one voice. This is the will of the people who are telling the regime, your time is up. Leave! Let me add that I have always chosen a path without violence and civil disobedience. And now we are witnessing that I was proven right in my analysis and organized protesters participated in this demonstration.
Falahati: What is your definition of civil disobedience?
Pahlevi: "Look, you must fight for your rights. If you don’t, no one will give them to you. Today, this society is vibrant and they demand their rights. They object to lawlessness. They go on strike! They have slogans. They speak out. They support one another. And especially, this includes the blue-collar workers and regrettably today poverty is widespread among the Iranian people. What disappoints me are the more moderately wealthy Iranians who are comfortable, but have yet to enter the fray, not only to join their compatriots, but also to take some leadership role. You cannot believe in street slogans as final words."
"This work requires leadership and teamwork. Hence, we have a good start, but it must reach the finish line. And, that’s exactly why we must do our homework and teamwork, finding experts in every field who are willing to work together. I do my share and I expect others to come forward and use their expertise in every field, to help out, in the short or long term, for a new Iran."
Conclusion
Great opportunities don't come every day -- recognize and seize them with every chance you get. If we fail to take action with this golden opportunity now, future historians will ask: how could the entire group have seen it coming and done nothing about it? What kind of opiate were these people on?
[Editor's note: Imani on Gaza, interviewed January, 2009:
INN: From your familiarity with Islam and Islamist regimes - like Hamas - what should be Israel's immediate objective in Gaza? And for the long-term?
Imani: Israel is a sovereign state, but hardly safe. She is surrounded by nations and peoples who are bent on her
destruction. It is tragic that your neighbors and you have not been able to find an equitable way of living side-by-side with mutual respect and in peace. I think the people of Israel are fighting for their very existence against a small group who are the elite of elite and want them removed from the planet.
Israel should never have left Gaza; they should have stayed and mopped up the terrorists. I am getting a bit miffed with GLOBAL TV[in Ontario, Canada - ed.] and other networks. Every time Hamas shoots these many rockets into Israel and Israel clouts them back, GLOBAL TV always shows the "poor Palestinian citizenry" suffering under the return fire of Israel. The poor Palestinian "innocent" citizens are taught in their schools, in their textbooks and in class that Israel and the West are bad and must be destroyed. This is promoted while the Hamas terrorists hide behind their women and children in a firefight.
But now that Israelis have left Gaza voluntarily, they don't know what to do with Gaza. I think they should keep their presence in Gaza as long as it takes to completely disarm Hamas, which has become the proxy of the Islamic Republic. But the problem is that the other party, Fatah, cannot be trusted either. Arabs do not trust them, why should Israelis do so? I believe Israel must always do what is in the best interest of Israel and her citizens.]