شامگاه ۱۶ تیرماه؛ تظاهرات مردم برازجان: سوریه را رها کن؛ فکری به حال كن

ANALYSIS: The disintegrating moral fabric of Iranian society

Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini had nothing but contempt for the ordinary citizens of Iran. In his own words, he saw them as “ignorant, incomplete and imperfect”.

Such was his contempt for those he was destined to enslave that he described them as nothing more than brutes, who would eventually destroy each other if left to their own devices. In his arrogant mind, he believed that it was only through his astute and strict leadership, they could be moulded into a unified nation.

He never really recognized the people’s part in bringing him to power, such was his egotism. He believed that it was he had reached the pinnacle through his own devices, having judiciously chosen his goals by unveiling the truth of religion, through which he was able to attain a position of absolute power and would lead Iran toward eventually dominating the world.

Iranians shop in a supermarket in north Tehran, Iran, on April 29, 2015. (AP)

Misrule in a collapsing economy

With Khomeini out of the picture, his radical ideology lives on through Iran’s present Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. By enhancing the grip of terror on the Iranian people, Khamenei has strengthened his hold through the use of a vicious internal security apparatus.

In a regime devoid of any kind of morality, having carefully adhered to the radical ideology of Khomeini, Khamenei is leading Iran along a path of both moral and economic decline.

As far as present-day Iran is concerned, under the “leadership” of so-called moderate President Hassan Rouhani, hangings have spiked dramatically, crackdowns on dissent have increased, and not only are all aspects of the country’s social fabric disintegrating, the countryis in extreme moral decline.

The economy is virtually bankrupt, with unemployment and poverty on the increase. Unemployment stands at 12.50 percent and there are said to be at least 4.5 million university graduates amongst the unemployed. It is estimated that unemployment will rise to 15 million, as college graduates seeking work number a million each year.

But with Iran needing to create 950,000 jobs to make any dent on these unemployment statistics, there is little hope for improvement. In the present economic climate, with Donald Trump having already imposed new sanctions on the country, there are more economic woes on the horizon.

Such is the extent of poverty that the Iranian administration estimates about 15,000 homeless live on the streetsof Tehran alone, a number which is believed to include 5,000 women, along with thousands of children. This figure comes from a regime that is prone to massaging statistics and so the number of homeless far exceeds the official count.

In this Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015 photo, a drug addict smokes cigarette at drop-in center and shelter south of Tehran, Iran. Anti-narcotics and medical officials say more than 2.2 million of Iran's 80 million citizens already are addicted to illegal drugs, including 1.3 million on registered treatment programs. (AP)

Drugs and child trafficking

The only kindness shown to these people comes from local citizens, who bring clothes and food to the areas known to be frequented by the homeless. Put on hangers these clothes draw donors, who also leave behind food. These sites have become known as “walls of kindness”.

But as far as government officials are concerned, they adopt a cruel approach toward their dejected citizens, by concealing the problem wherever possible by conducting mass roundups. Beggars, homeless people, drug addicts, and runaway girls are herded together and taken to special centres, where they are kept out of the sight of general public.

This is happening in a country where the whole social fabric is disintegrating, where every form of illicit trade is thriving even in the capital. The smuggling of children and babies is increasing. Drug addicts, the homeless and prostitutes have become so desperate that they sell their children to survive, with their siblings often exchanging hands for between $25 and $50.

Among the vulnerable sections of the Iranian society, sexually transmitted diseases run rampant and many of the baby’s falling into the hands of traffickers are often infected with HIV.

With all this tragedy unfolding around them, theIranian people suffer from the pangs of despair, as they helplessly watch the economy collapse around them, and see their wages diminish by the day. Such is their despair that they turn to chemical inducements to find solace.

With drugs being trafficked (including heroin and opium from neighbouring Afghanistan), various painkillers, synthetic hallucinogens, and crystal meth are consumed. There are an estimated three million drug addicts in Iran, even though those dealing with this face the death penalty if caught.

ran’s Revolutionary Guard troops march in a military parade marking the 36th anniversary of Iraq’s 1980 invasion of Iran on Sept. 21, 2016. (AP)

Burgeoning military budget

With Iran facing significant economic issues such as inflation, unemployment, renewed sanctions, and a severe lack of housing, the regime continues to plunder the people’s wealth, making billionaires out of many of the country’s leaders, and the military budget under so-called moderate Rouhani rising to $285 billion.

Billions of dollars that should be earmarked for building up Iran’s economy is being frittered away in a mad rush to acquire new weaponry and not for providing food and shelter for those in need.

On the extensive list of weapons are: Russian T-90 tanks, advanced Su-30 fighter jets, M-17 helicopters with various rocket systems, a number of Russian S-300 air defence systems that are already in place – after Iran had signed a $800 million contract to purchase them in 2007 – as well as a vast number of indigenous missiles being produced in an accelerated missile program, and a multitude of other indigenous weapons being churned out by Iranian arms producers.

Not only is a vast amount of money being spent on weapons to strengthen Iran’s military, there is alsothe $60-$100 million a year of Iranian tax payers money being paid out to shore up Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, as well as somewhere in the region of $60-$100 million a year to Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis. All this to the detriment of the Iranian poor, and those on low incomes