Statements in Meeting with the Head and Officials of the Judiciary

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

We welcome all dear brothers and sisters, the esteemed officials of the Judiciary of the country, as well as the respected survivors of the esteemed martyrs of the Seventh of Tir, whose two occasions are intertwined by divine providence; our Judiciary has taken on the color of martyrdom and the fragrance of martyrs. It is very important if, God willing, we can benefit from this correctly.

I would like to say a word regarding the dear martyrs of the Seventh of Tir and this important and lasting incident; I will also say a word to the esteemed officials of the Judiciary.

Regarding the incident of the Seventh of Tir, what is most important is that in this incident, the dearest and most prominent elements of the revolution were placed in the position of sacrifice and were martyred. A personality like martyr Beheshti, who was an unparalleled, at least rare, element in the revolution, was sacrificed in the service of the revolution and in the direction of the revolution. The number of personalities and political elites and senior managers of the institutions, ministers, members of parliament, and activists in the political arena of the Islamic Republic, each of whom was a personality in their own right - we were closely acquainted with many of them, and had worked with some - it is very important that at this level, personalities have their lives in their hands and are exposed to martyrdom and are sacrificed in this way. After all, a country, a system, a civilization cannot reach anywhere without sacrifice and giving blood; these were the pioneers of this path.

The next point is that this system brought so many elite jewels to the scene and poured them at the feet of the revolution and lost them, yet the system did not shake. Those who designed these assassinations did not intend for individuals. Their primary intention was to undermine, empty, and eliminate the elites from the revolution; they wanted to bring the revolution to failure with these assassinations and these losses; however, it did not happen that way, and the opposite occurred. That is, the main foundation of the system, which is the relationship between the people and the system, increased. All of these are lessons from our revolution. And let me tell you that today is the same. Today, if individuals place themselves in the position of sacrifice and martyrdom for the system, for God, and are sacrificed in this way, this system will become more solid; the roots of this system are as solid as that good tree mentioned in the Quran, which God the Almighty has said, "Its root is firm and its branches are in the sky." Let us connect our hearts in this way with the foundations, principles, and values of the revolution.

And martyr Beheshti, that distinguished and outstanding personality, truly and justly has many rights over the Islamic Republic and especially over the Judiciary. In the short time he was engaged in the Judiciary - from late 1979 to early 1981 - he designed many initiatives, great works, and far-sighted plans for the Judiciary. Thanks be to God, the Judiciary has also moved forward, and in these thirty years, good works have been accomplished. Today, thanks be to God, with the management of a distinguished and outstanding personality like Mr. Shahroudi, who is truly and justly prominent in various fields of knowledge and qualifications and has carried the heavy burden of this Judiciary for ten years - two five-year terms.

Regarding the Judiciary, what is important is that we see what the Judiciary is for; we must secure that. All work must be directed towards this. The Judiciary is for justice; it is for fairness. The criterion and indicator of justice is adherence to the law. If the actions of individuals or groups conform to the law, that is justice; if they deviate from the law, that is injustice. And the law in the Islamic system is the Islamic law. Of course, in our collection of laws, there may be laws that do not fully conform to Islamic rulings, or laws that have remained from before or some other laws, which need to be reformed. The criterion is that actions must be in accordance with the law. Justice is realized here.

Of course, achieving justice in the Judiciary is not easy. All of these infrastructures that Mr. Shahroudi referred to are necessary. These policies - which themselves are a software infrastructure - the selection of good policies, the hardware systems that have been established in the Judiciary or have begun to be established, all are necessary. That is, justice in a large entity like the Judiciary, which is supposed to manage a large country with a population of seventy million in the judicial sector, cannot be achieved with mere compliments and words; it requires these prerequisites, these infrastructures. Therefore, what has been done in terms of these infrastructures - whether software or hardware - is valuable; we must appreciate these. And God willing, these policies should continue in the same correct manner. And it is truly necessary for me to thank both him and - as he mentioned - the senior managers of the Judiciary in various sectors who have worked hard and deserve appreciation.

However, the point is that although securing general and comprehensive justice depends on these infrastructures, it is not the case that the existence of these infrastructures necessarily means the establishment of justice. We may have these things and still lack justice; we must be wary of this. What guarantees justice is a committed, resolute, determined, and God-fearing individual. They must fear God and not fear anyone else. "So do not fear the people, but fear Me," God the Almighty says in the Quran. If this is the case, then with these diverse and good systems, complete justice can be achieved. If this will is not present, if there is weakness and disruption in this will, none of these systems will, by themselves, guarantee justice; rather, sometimes they may even create the grounds for injustice. This is the essence of the matter. My main point in these annual meetings with you esteemed officials of the Judiciary and in other more limited meetings with some other sectors of the Judiciary is always the same: we must look to see whether the output of our work is justice or not. If justice is achieved, then we will be honored before God, before our own souls, and before the people. That is, when we implement justice, it is true that in our judgment one person will be pleased, and another will be displeased - this is inevitable. When a person judges, they please one side and displease the other - but even that displeased side is satisfied in their heart. If we do not implement justice, even the one whose judgment is in their favor will look at us with disbelief and mockery in their heart; they will laugh at us in their heart. This is the fundamental issue. All efforts must be directed towards this. Justice is also one of those things that "truth is the broadest of things in mutual acknowledgment and the narrowest in mutual sharing"; it is easy to say, but adhering to it is not easy; it is very hard. A person encounters great obstacles. If there is no firm determination and reliance on God, a person will remain stuck in the middle of the road; this must be constantly injected into the Judiciary; this spirit must be pumped throughout the Judiciary; that our duty is to create fairness, to establish justice.

The hardest part of justice is when the opposing side of justice is the powerful; they do not yield, they threaten, they expect. Here, one must stand firm. The art of a judge is that in such situations, they must consider only God and the law. In all matters - individual matters, social matters - if the law is the criterion of action, justice will be secured.

In the recent matters, I have stated that I oppose dividing our people, our dear people, into two parts; we should not set one group against another. The matter is not like that. In many issues, the tastes, views, and opinions of the people are not the same, but this does not mean friction, conflict, and confrontation. We must not force our people to come to blows with each other. I advise both sides: do not provoke the emotions of the youth, do not set the people against each other. The nation is a united one, has a single faith, and has a good relationship with its system; the sign of this good relationship is their presence at the ballot boxes. If they were not hopeful, if they did not have good expectations, if they did not have trust, they would not come to the ballot boxes. Therefore, this nation has no problem with its system. We must not split this united nation, divide it, or incite one group against another.

Here, too, there is a legal criterion for resolving issues. If the law is not upheld, what will come from lawlessness will be much more bitter than what the implementation of the law may bring to some. "And whoever finds justice narrow, injustice will be narrower for them." Justice is the observance of the law. If we feel constrained by the observance of the law, if we do not want to submit to the law, what will come upon us from lawlessness will be much harder than this bitterness of enduring the law. Everyone must pay attention to this.

Our people, by divine grace, divine guidance, and divine assistance, are faithful people; they are both aware and faithful, and they are present in the scene, ready to act wherever necessary. We must reform ourselves. The elites and political figures must be careful about their actions and their words; this is addressed to all elites, not just to a specific side or faction. Everyone must be vigilant. Everyone should know that this nation is a united nation. Provoking the emotions of one side against the other, and vice versa, will not lead anywhere. When you are united, when you are in harmony, when you express trust in your country and your system, then the temptations of international deceivers, these oppressive, meddling politicians, far from humanity, will have no effect.

You see that some of the world leaders - from the Americans to some European countries - have all their problems resolved, yet the problem of Iran remains for them! In a completely internal, popular issue related to the Iranian nation, they shake their heads and make ridiculous comments; unaware that wherever they step into political positions, from the perspective of the Iranian nation, that place will be rendered impure.

Their partisanship yields the opposite result. The people ask themselves what has caused these enemies, who have been trying against the Islamic revolution for thirty years and have used all their tools and resources against this country and this nation, to now become concerned? The people understand the conspiracy; our people perceive the malice. Their problem is the same. If they were faced with an unaware, careless nation, they would have no problem; but they are faced with a vigilant nation, with an experienced nation.

Our thirty years of experience have made the nation aware. They know. These are the same governments and regimes that for eight years during the Sacred Defense, when crimes were committed against this nation, cities were bombed, homes were destroyed, chemical bombs were dropped, innocent people were killed, not only did they not care for the Iranian nation, but they also assisted the enemies of the Iranian nation. Our people have seen this. These are not forgettable. Now they have become concerned! The people see their behavior with the oppressed nations that their claws have sunk into, like the people of Afghanistan, the people of Iraq, the people of Pakistan, the people of Palestine. Wherever their claws have sunk, they have inflicted harm as much as they could. They have no mercy for the people; love for the people is far from them. Now they have become supporters of the Iranian nation, of someone or some people inside the country! It is clear what their ulterior motives are in these actions. The people understand this. If you are united, if you are together, if you maintain the strengthening spirit that the revolution has given to our nation and that our nation has preserved over these thirty years, "their plots will not harm you at all"; their enmity will never have an effect on you, and they will not be able to harm the Iranian nation.

I pray to the Almighty God for the success of all of you, dear brothers and sisters, esteemed officials in various specific and general duties that each of us has, and I hope that, God willing, the pure prayers of the Imam of the Age (may our souls be sacrificed for him) will encompass the Iranian nation and all of us, and that the pure spirit of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) and the pure souls of the esteemed martyrs and the martyrs of the Seventh of Tir will, God willing, be pleased with us and our actions and words.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.