The Iranian Regime’s Fear of Societal Restiveness and Organized Opposition
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Written by
Mahmoud Hakamian
Despite their rhetoric of “defeating the riots” and constant bragging about “stopping revolts,” the Iranian regime’s officials and state media cannot hide their true sentiment against a restive society and the role of the organized opposition, People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).
In his homage to the regime’s founder Ruhollah Khomeini on his death anniversary on June 5, supreme leader Ali Khamenei claimed that the “enemy’s plan has been disrupted.”
On June 3, the regime’s president, Ebrahim Raisi, also claimed that “the country is progressing. The enemy’s combined war couldn’t hinder this process!”
By progress, Raisi was apparently speaking of the continuously soaring prices of consumer goods and inflation that hovers above 50%, let alone the regime’s economic bankruptcy that has forced it to dig its hands deeper into people’s pockets and plunder their life savings and pensions.
Raisi and Khamenei’s claims starkly contrast the facts on the ground, which have been sometimes acknowledged by the regime’s officials and state media.
“We should await unfortunate events. When the flood of dissent rages, nothing can stop it. No ruling system can endure without people’s support,” Javad Emam, a former deputy minister, said on June 5.
“If we fail to resolve the pension funds crises, it can threaten the system like a devastating tsunami,” Alireza Amir Pour, a state-affiliated expert, told the state-run Entekhab website on June 5.
A Glance at Iran’s State Media: Deepening Crisis, Dire Conditions, and a Looming Uprising#IranRevolution pic.twitter.com/q9yp5En82v
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) June 2, 2023
“Recently, there have been various interpretations regarding the issue of pension funds in Iran, such as ‘time bomb’ and ‘super crisis,’ It is important to acknowledge that this crisis is real and its consequences will greatly affect the lives of Iranian citizens,” Davoud Hamidi, the head of the governing board for the supervision of the pension fund said on June 4.
These are but just some of the warnings and acknowledgments regarding the regime’s deadlock and society’s restiveness that provide the basis for future developments and more uprisings.
The presence of organized opposition and its role in mobilizing society and the world community against the regime also expedites this process. This organized opposition, and Khamenei’s primary adversary, is the MEK and their Resistance Units network. Through numerous operations and campaigns, including the regular torching of regime symbols, these brave youth have fearlessly challenged the regime’s hold on power.
Reeling from the MEK’s effect on society, officials of the world’s top state sponsor of terrorism rehash their worn-out allegations against the organization, laying bare the utter fear of their archenemy.
“The MEK is being supported by those countries that claim they advocate human rights and accuse the Islamic Republic of human rights violations. Who supports the MEK? Who supports those thugs that instigated riots in cities but these so-called Western democracies?” Ahmad Vahidi, Raisi’s Minister of Interior, said on June 5. Sanctioned for human rights violations by the US Treasury Department on October 6, 2022, Ahmad Vahidi is wanted by Interpol for his role in the devastating bombing of the AMIA Jewish Center in Argentina in 1994.
“Those acting in an organized fashion and on behalf of the [MEK] should be separated from our deceived youth. They should learn their lesson and know that we do not show mercy to our enemy,” the regime’s Judiciary chief, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Eje’i said on June 2.
Beyond the regimes’ propaganda and Khamenei’s efforts to save face, the uprising, with MEK Resistance Units as its trailblazers, has laid bare the ruling theocracy’s weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Despite the high rates of state executions and numerous mock trials, the Iranian youth refuse to be intimidated. They seize every opportunity, whether it’s funerals, national celebrations, or even events orchestrated by the regime, to voice their dissent. Their actions send a powerful message to the state, the nation, and the world: the uprising will persist until the regime is overthrown.