Mousavi: 'Anyone who defends justice & law is Green Movement member'

The Green Voice Of Freedom ندای سبز آزادی
Translated by The Green Voice Of Freedom ندای سبز آزادی

In a meeting with professors from the University of Tarbiat Modares, Mir Hossein Mousavi said, “we believe that deceit, oppressions, and lawlessness undermine the legitimacy of the [Islamic] system and the promises [given to us] by the Quran, the stories and an analysis of the events of Karbala and Ashura reveal that oppression will not remain.” Mousavi said that the Green Movement’s goal was for the people’s votes to be in control of affairs.

“I believe that God willing, the Green Movement will one day triumph because it seeks the rights of the people. Because it is a defender of human liberties, because it defends reason and logic, because it is against oppression, deceit and tyranny.”

Greens have lost fear

The former prime-minister said that the Green Movement draw great inspiration from the events of Ashura (martyrdom of Imam Hussein in 680 AD) and the “freedom-seeking spirit” of those martyred on that day and above all Imam Hussein and his half brother Abbas, “one must stand against wrongdoing and must seek to return to [the path of] righteousness and justice. This resistance comes with hardships, but we should know that it is the promise of Quran that ‘indeed, with hardship [will be] ease’, with any hardship there is an opening and today we are witnessing this opening in our society and in the public sphere. Despite enduring the difficulties, imprisonments, killings, pressures, Kahrizak [prisons], a vigour can be seen among the nation—especially among the youth—for moving towards a society that is just and free from oppression and tyranny.”

“The greens have become fearless, is this not [considered] ease and comfort?” Mousavi asked. “The greens are striving for a state where the rule of the people is recognised and the rights of the nation as stated in the constitution are revived. Is this not a breakthrough in itself? Is it not a breakthrough when murder and crime committed by the so-called headstrong forces both in the past and present are condemned? “

Iran for all Iranians

Mousavi also spoke about a dialogue within the movement regarding the Green Movement’s charter which he himself had previously proposed and said “The Green Movement charter is a fluid and open text and God willing, through the interaction within the Movement’s body, it will move towards completion.”

“In my opinion, one of the problems and shortcomings of the charter was that it did not address the issue of the rights of religious minorities. Even though it was implicitly addressed, but it can be reiterated in the text and it can be stressed that Iran belongs to all Iranians which is a key slogan.”

Once more, Mousavi stressed that the “the goal of the Green Movement is the rule of the people’s vote” and continued, “I believe that God willing, the Green Movement will be victorious soon, because it seeks the realisation of the people’s rights. Because it defends a democratic link between the nation and the constitution and because it is against oppression, lies and tyranny and we believe that deceit, oppression and lawlessness undermine the legitimacy of the regime.” “The promises [given to us] by the Quran, the stories and a look into the events of Karbala and Ashura reveal that oppression will not remain,” while pointing out the fate of the Umayyad dynasty as an example of this eternal truth.

The veteran reformer also reiterated his call for the full implementation of the constitution.

“[Our] motto regarding the full implementation of the constitution is based on the assumption that this text is neither magical nor a revelation and on a national scale, any change, that can pave the way for free, competitive and non-selective [no vetting] elections, is accepted.”

“We cannot create a consensus based on memories, we need a text that will link us together and under the current circumstances, there is no other alternative and option for the constitution. The full implementation of the constitution means bringing forth the demands of the people which have been neglected. Democratic links with the constitution are what unify us.”

Mousavi also expressed his dismay over the spread of lies in the country, pointing out the recent emergence and distribution of an audio recording of a speech made by a security official in which he had made a series of false accusations against the leaders of Iran’s reform movement and well-known reformist parties. He added that the distribution of the recording was in line with the slogan chanted by hardliners that “in our country there is only one party and it is the party of Velayat” (Velayat Faqih or Guardianship of the Jurist).

“A few are driving the country towards a dead-end,” he said while maintaining that such thinking was similar to the Shah’s founding of the Rastakhiz (resurgence) party in 1975 which was meant to be Iran’s only party after all other parties had been dissolved at the time which was “clearly against the constitution.” “With the current trend, I do not think that it is unlikely for the constitution to come under attack in the future.”

Once more, the 2009 presidential candidate stated clearly that he did not have an official spokesperson outside Iran, but maintained “the green [movement] networks are not limited to inside the country” and said that it was natural for these networks to use their assets including the cyberspace and other means to carry out discussions and dialogues within the Green Movement.

“In my opinion, anyone who seeks justice and moves towards achieving the people’s control over their own destiny, and anyone who defends justice and the law—wherever they might be—is a part of this Movement and we must all believe that in the end, it is the people’s vote that will count.”

During the meeting with the university professors, Mousavi also spoke about the situation of the Green Movement’s media apparatus. “The Green Movement’s networks must move towards understanding the problems of all sectors [of society] especially workers, farmers and teachers, as unfortunately, the green media have been weak in this regard and must begin with their leap towards the dissemination of information and providing solutions.”

Mousavi also criticised the lack of planning and management in the country.

“Today, we a have a water problem and also a problem with the electricity. These are due to the drop in investment in the power sector in the past years which is the outcome of omitting long-term projects and [turning to] short-term approaches which focused on [winning votes before] election night.”

In the end, the Green Movement leader condemned the limitation and pressures against universities and criticised the sense of mistrust towards professors and students.

“The [political] problem at the universities start when tragedies take place at the dormitory [of Tehran University] and the regime avoids taking responsibility for these actions—whose criminal nature has been confirmed by all—and those responsible for the tragedies are not prosecuted.”

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Source: http://www.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/jul/13/5272
URL of this article: http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=609
Photo: BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images.