Author: Mava S
Statement of Academic Integrity: “This paper represents my own integral work in both content and flow. Quotations have been kept minimal and it does not contain any plagiarized (borrowed, copied, or heavily paraphrased) material. I have not used AI technology to write it for me, purchased it from a website service, paid someone else to write it for me, or borrowed/copied it from another student or source. All material based on other sources has been properly referenced and cited in the endnotes.” – Mava Sanaei
The CIA coup of 1953 was what led to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi becoming the Shah of Iran. However, the Islamic Revolution of 1979 led to the fleeing of the shah which then resulted in a new form of government and power which is now called the Islamic Republic. The Islamic Republic has been protested for many human rights issues from 1999 till today. Many laws that were implemented once Ruhollah Khomeini came into power directly after the Islamic Revolution, included suppression and discrimination towards women, Baha’i people and others who spoke up against the Islamic Republic. The laws that were implemented were centered around the Islam which is not inclusive to all the other Iranians who do not wish to practice Islam. Some of the laws include discrimination and banning of the Baha’i religion, a dress code which will be enforced by the morality police, and other forms of suppression. This form of government should be abolished because it is discriminatory and suppressive, so freedom and democracy should be given to the people of Iran. What series of events took place after the Islamic Revolution leading up to the Iran of today? What laws were implemented directly following the Islamic Revolution of 1979?
According to an official CIA document, in 1953 the CIA gained interest in Iran for economic benefits and their own self-interest. So, they arranged an unconstitutional and violent coup in Iran which replaced the prime minister of Iran at the time, Mohammed Mossadegh, with the new Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. (CIA: 2). Mohammad Reza Pahlavi finally was declared the Shah and the form of government in Iran at this time was a monarchy. Pahlavi maintained a pro-Western foreign policy and was allies with Egypt and the United States since the CIA helped him gain power in Iran. According to G. Bhagat, in 1963 Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini made violent speeches against the Shah in front of 100,000 people at the mosque. Then, the secret security police of the Shah opened fire and killed 20 young mullahs and imprisoned Khomeini. (Bhagat: 33). In mid-1978 there was protests held against the monarchy in Iran which had low probability of success. The Iranian people felt the monarchy was repressive and they wanted a democratic system of government. So, millions of Iranians peacefully protested for democracy. (December 19, 2022, Kurzman). However, on September 8, 1978, a day known as “Black Friday” the regime imposed martial law and security forces to kill over 100 lives with open fire in Tehran’s Jaleh Square. (May 30, 2023, Fact Sheet). To bring down the monarchy of Iran and the Shah, Mahammad Reza Pahlavi, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini led an Islamic Revolution in 1979 and he announced the enemies as the Shah and the United States. Iranians viewed United States poorly because of the 1953 CIA operation that helped Reza Pahlavi become the Shah. (Bhagat: 38). The Revolution led to the Shah of Iran fleeing and looking for a new home and on January 16, 1979, he found it in since they were previously allies. (December 19, 2022, Kurzman). Then Khomeini began to control the government of Iran and established the Islamic Republic on April 1, 1979. (May 30, 2023, Fact Sheet). However, in 1979 many radical Islamists believed the CIA was working with Iranian contracts to overthrow the Islamic regime and re-establish the monarchy or create a pro-Western republic. (Gasiorowski: 115). Finally, in 1980 Mohammad Reza Pahlavi died after a battle with cancer in Egypt.
According to Bahman Baktiari, when the supreme leader was writing the Iranian Constitution, he wrote it according to Islamic Ideology and implemented laws that take many rights away from women. (Baktiari: 36). Some of these laws including a dress code for women and it involves women being forced to cover up and wear a hijab in public and if they don’t comply or don’t correctly wear it they will be faced with consequences by morality police. However, Islamic ideology does not apply to all the Iranian citizens. For example, a recent survey of the Tehran population found that only 16 percent of people attend Friday prayers at least once a month and nearly 40 percent have never been to Friday prayers, and over 70 percent of people believe they are occasionally mistreated by the state. So, the country’s leaders’ rule is purely based around their own self-interest. (Baktiari: 42).
Baha’i people are the largest minority in Iran, and they do not have the same freedoms that other Iranian citizens have. Baha’i people were singled out by the government because of the ban placed against the religion of Baha’i which resulted in hundreds of Baha’i people executed. Moreover, Baha’i community properties, important cultural and historical sites and cemeteries were confiscated and, in most cases, Islamized. In 1980, all Baha’i students were expelled from their university and deprived of higher education, and the deprivation of higher education has continued to this day. However, to combat this issue a “Baha’i Institute for Higher Education” was established in 1987 to help Baha’i youth get the education they deem necessary and don’t have available. (Aftahi: 2). This blatant form of discrimination against the Baha’i people in Iran is a form of inequality that takes away their right to religion, private property, and basic freedoms. This attack is purely based on their religion and is not fair that their rights and freedoms and in some cases, lives are taken away because of their beliefs.
In 2006 activists in Tehran put together a campaign (CEDAW) to eliminate all forms of discrimination in the law, however the Guardian Council rejected it due to the grounds that it conflicted with shari’a. (Bahtiari: 38-39). This shows how the leaders rule according to values of Islam over what the Iranian people want. The supreme leader of Iran, Khomeini died June of 1989, and in 1992, 138 Indians came together to commemorate Khomeini after his death. After the death of Khomeini, Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei came into power, and he believes that Islam as a religion is what freed the Arabs (2023, Thodika). So, he continued ruling according to religion. Additionally, He has continued leading Iran up until today.
Due to the mistreatment and discrimination of many Iranians there were many protests held. In 1999 students in Tehran University began protesting the government’s closure of the popular reformist newspaper entitled, Salaam. Riot police began to attack the students with clubs and put fire to their dormitories which resulted in a student dead and 1500 protestors arrested. Then, these attacks sparked anger and more protests spread across the country for six days. By the end of it, four protestors were killed and an estimated 1200 to 1400 were detained. These protests laid the foundation for the Green Movement in 2009. In June of 2009, the Green Movement was held which was a protest demanding democratic rights, which was previously sought after during the ruling of the Shah. Between June of 2009 and February of 2010, more than 30 protestors were killed by the police and 4000 were arrested. Next, on December 28th, 2017, demonstrators in the second largest city, Mashhad, took to the streets to protest the government’s economic policies and high prices of basic goods and commodities. Two weeks of protests led to 22 protestors killed and 3,700 detained. Furthermore, more protests have continued to this day regarding other issues caused by the government such as the government hurting and killing innocent lives for not properly following the dress code enforced. These protests relate to the topic of conflict and peace due to the conflict between citizens and the government. The conflict involves Iranians protesting the Islamic Republic which often resulted in death, injury, or detainment.
In conclusion, what led up to the Islamic Revolution was the rise in 1925 and fall in 1979 of the Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Continuing, after the revolution the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini came into power after leading the revolution and established the Islamic Republic in 1979. In addition, the Islamic Republic rules according to Islamic ideology and their own benefit. Furthermore, they hurt and/or detain any citizen that rebels or does not follow the law correctly. The government is discriminatory and not in favor of the people of Iran. They do not have freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and have an extreme dress code that can lead the citizens to death if not followed correctly. This government should be abolished, and democracy should be given to the people of Iran since they have been protesting for it for decades.
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About the Author: Mava S. is the author of this article and a scholar in Washington State University. She has tried to explain the impact of the Islamic Republic Revolution throughout this paper. With a deep commitment to understanding and documenting the changes in women’s rights and human rights, Mava sheds light on the complex societal changes that have unfolded in Iran after the Islamic Republic revolution in 1979. Mava Sanaei is a dedicated and passionate student with a strong commitment to social change and community development and improving the lives of underprivileged people and and advocating for meaningful changes.