Iran’s Conflicting State Media Outlets Sing in Chorus in Warning against Restive Society

Iran, IRGC, Iran Protests, state media, maryam rajavi, mek
Written by
Shahriar Kia

Just two days before the resurgence of an uprising in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, marking the anniversary of the Zahedan Bloody Friday, an online outlet affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps called Javan Online raised the alarm about the society veering from established “norms” and the looming threat of a devastating uprising led by the hungry masses.

The cause for this heightened concern was evident in the subsequent days, September 29th and 30th, when both the regime and the Iranian populace heard echoing chants of “death to Khamenei” and “death to the dictator” across the impoverished province. This was accompanied by widespread strikes in major cities across the province and dozens of clashes and skirmishes by revolutionary youth against security forces or state buildings.

On September 27, in a column entitled “Values Lost, Norms Broken,” the IRGC-run outlet wrote, “We are witnessing periods of accumulating anger. This anger has various reasons; reasons as livelihood, political demands, economic issues, and other factors that can be mentioned in this regard. In fact, continuous and negative emotions are turning into anger. Currently, the intervals of this anger’s tendency towards emancipation have reduced compared to before. We used to witness the burst of this anger approximately once every 10 years, but now, this time gap has decreased.”

The notion of ‘deviation from norms’ and the ‘accumulation of people’s anger’ is not merely a statement by the so-called “moderate” faction in the regime or a castaway individual from the power structure. It stands as an acknowledgment of the main tool of Khamenei’s crackdown apparatus, the IRGC.

The IRGC’s mouthpiece openly concedes that this built-up anger is a highly compressed explosive, primed to detonate. What fuels this explosion and potential uprising isn’t just societal pressures, restrictions, and cultural grievances; it’s also economic hardships and livelihood challenges.

In response to this warning conveyed by Javan Online, a media platform under state control, another outlet called Ruydad 24, echoed this security concern. It showcased the regime’s fear of an uprising and the eruption of public anger due to livelihood problems, citing an analyst associated with the regime.

Quoting a sociologist named Amanollah Qaraei Moghadam, the website wrote: ‘People who are hungry will not stop until they obtain their rights because livelihood problems shatter and disintegrate everything at its root.”

This prior warning was conveyed in a more explicit manner by the state-run Jomhouri-e Eslami daily on June 16: “Don’t assume the people’s patience is endless. Beware of the day when the hungry masses rise against you.”

In recent years, state officials and government experts have repeatedly issued warnings regarding the movement of the “hungry masses.” This fear plays a significant role in the regime’s internal conflicts and the sudden change of heart of authorities who once acted as fierce interrogators and torturers, but now portray themselves as reformists and moderates. These self-proclaimed critics now cite economic problems as a source of severe concern.

A state-affiliated economist Vahid Shaqaqi Shahri emphasized on August 11, “We are experiencing an unprecedented era of inflation in Iran’s history. The level of inflation we are facing today is unmatched and enduring. Presently, we are facing severe inflation, substantial challenges with pension funds, land subsidence crisis, water scarcity, infrastructure deterioration, and more. I see these challenges as a looming flood, currently at a distance, but approaching rapidly.”

The 2023 uprising in Sistan and Baluchestan illustrated a crucial point: even when the state is thoroughly prepared and its security forces completely alarmed, it cannot triumph over a population with nothing more to lose. Despite the deteriorating economic situation and the government’s failure to take fundamental actions to enhance infrastructure, establish democratic institutions, ensure check and balances, and combat rampant corruption, Sistan and Baluchestan has emerged as a blueprint for the entire nation of Iran.

Past experiences also underline that the priorities of the Khamenei regime will remain unchanged, and no amount of frozen funds that the West releases for the regime will enable it to effectively address and resolve its security crises.

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