Statements in Meeting with the President and Officials of the Judiciary on the Judiciary Week

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

Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad and his pure family, especially the Awaited Savior on earth.

I extend my warm welcome to all dear brothers and sisters, and I congratulate you on the Judiciary Week, wishing all of you success, assistance, and guidance from the Almighty God, and also the rewards and merits that God will bestow upon you in this world and the Hereafter, God willing.

I sincerely thank Mr. Amoli, the esteemed head of the Judiciary, for his comprehensive and detailed report, which was entirely thorough and complete. I wish that these matters be communicated to the public in appropriate ways! Now, while we are informed about the reports and similar matters, and I have read a detailed report in this regard prior to this meeting, some of the points he mentioned were unknown to me; I mean, I was not aware of them. Now, we who are so informed about the issues, the people are completely unaware; I will, God willing, speak about the issue of propaganda. In any case, his report was a comprehensive and detailed one, and I thank him for presenting these matters.

The Judiciary Week and the Judiciary Day, like some other significant days in our Islamic calendar, are based on the concept of martyrdom. This day is defined by sacrifice in the way of God and being killed for His sake; like Teacher's Day, like the 15th of Khordad, and other days that are established based on martyrdom in the way of God. This introduces the judiciary in a specific manner, giving it a unique meaning. The judiciary is not merely an administrative body with duties that must be performed and reported; it is a human entity where jihad must take place, a comprehensive jihad must be conducted. There must be selflessness in the judiciary, just as martyrdom is the pinnacle of selflessness; there must be a passing of personal interests and desires in service of lofty and noble goals; this is the meaning of the judiciary, which is very important and imposes duties on the judiciary that go beyond the usual administrative tasks and responsibilities written on paper.

I must sincerely thank the efforts that have been made; both from the esteemed head of the judiciary, who, thanks be to God, has entered the field with high qualifications, good capabilities, and a spirit of work and progress, and from the staff officials, and the body of the judiciary across the country, including judges and employees and operational staff in the courts; I truly thank all of them, they are genuinely working hard. The activities that Mr. Amoli mentioned that have taken place in the judiciary could not have been achieved without a collective and comprehensive effort within the body; it is clear that the body of the judiciary, thanks be to God, is diligent and hardworking.

An important point is that the duty of the judiciary is a governmental duty; this is no longer a matter of doubt; this is a task that the governing body of the country is obliged to perform; this is the case everywhere in the world; it is a governmental duty that consists of judgment, resolving disputes, and punishing those who violate the law; this is a task that the government must perform. If it is done well, the result is that the people will be satisfied and pleased with the governing body; if it is done poorly, inadequately, or defectively, the people will be upset, worried, and dissatisfied with the governing body; it is not the case that they say, 'Well, the judiciary has a problem'; no, this duty is a governmental duty, and the entire governing body of the country is responsible in this regard. Therefore, this sensitivity elevates your work. If this duty is performed, it is not only that the people become satisfied, but it truly leaves effects and blessings in the reality of people's lives; that is, if there is a serious, correct, logical, persistent, and decisive response to lawbreaking, see how much this impacts the country! Observing the law is the foundation of collective life, and one of the duties of the judiciary is to combat lawbreaking and stop lawbreakers. Or resolving disputes; if the judiciary can succeed in resolving existing disputes, see how much this affects the lives of the people! Preventing disputes and complaints and worries from entering the lives of the people and stopping them brings many blessings.

At that time, an important point is that the judiciary, with this heavy responsibility, must be a manifestation of justice; that is, everyone must feel that there is justice here. I once said in one of the previous meetings we had with friends, the judiciary must reach a point where anyone in any part of the country who suffers an injustice, who has a complaint against someone or an institution, should feel assured that they will go to the judiciary. That is, they should be confident that as soon as they refer to the judiciary, their problem will be solved; we must reach this point; that is, the judiciary must be a manifestation of justice; the people should feel assured that in this matter where you have taken my right, you have transgressed, you have violated, or you have acted unlawfully, well, I will go to the judiciary. The peace of mind of all people should be that they can turn to the judiciary for refuge and protection.

Also, in the area of restoring public rights, which is another duty that Mr. Amoli referred to; as soon as an incident occurs, like the examples he mentioned, which I also know - the meat issue, the road issue, the airplane issue, and other matters - the people should say, 'Well, we will tell the judiciary about this'; they should know where to refer and be assured that when they refer, this public right will be fulfilled, it will be restored. The judiciary must reach this point; let us set this as the standard.

He referred to transformation, which is one of the things we have repeatedly emphasized in meetings with the judiciary - both in this term and in the previous terms when friends were at the head of the judiciary - we have repeatedly reiterated this. Well, how does transformation occur? First, we must determine the indicators for transformation; what event, if it occurs, signifies that the judiciary has transformed? It is very important to clarify what transformation means; first, we must specify the indicators of transformation, then determine the timeline for achieving these indicators; otherwise, if this is not the case and as they pointed out - I read in the report - if we gradually move towards transformation, this transformation will not happen; because problems always move ahead of our progress if we try to move slowly like this. Transformation is a process that must occur almost suddenly. I say 'almost suddenly'; I do not say 'truly suddenly'; that is, something must happen quickly, with appropriate speed, to show that transformation has occurred and those indicators have been realized. The times when the esteemed heads of the judiciary take on responsibility are very good times, and it is appropriate that real transformation occurs during these times. It is not a problem if several transformations occur over several decades in the judiciary of the country; this is very normal and natural. That is, suppose Mr. Amoli, with his dynamism, creates a transformation in the judiciary, renovates it, refreshes it, gives it vitality and youth; it is as if starting the movement anew. In another period, someone comes and advances this in a better way and elevates it; we must look at the issue of transformation in this way.

An important point regarding the judiciary - which I see is among the concerns of the esteemed officials of the judiciary and Mr. Amoli himself, and often does not progress properly - is the issue of building public trust; I previously made a reference to it, and now I will elaborate a bit more. Well, public opinion is very important. We must act with firmness and decisiveness against the enemy, the ill-wisher, the conspirator, the liar, and the slanderer; thanks be to God, Mr. Amoli's positions are truly very good in confronting and dealing with them. The speech he gave the day before yesterday was a very strong, good, and desirable speech for the people; that is, in confronting the slanderer, the corrupt person, the lawbreaker, we must enter with power. In front of public opinion, we cannot appear like this. In front of public opinion, we must enter with humility, compassion, and love, and reach an understanding with public opinion; this is very important, so that we can build public trust.

Building public trust is one of the most fundamental tasks for the judiciary; of course, this is the case for all institutions, but the judiciary, because it deals with disputes and enters the field of confrontation with the violator and transgressor of the law, needs to build trust more than most other institutions; both the judiciary itself and the institutions that are the agents of the judiciary; they also need this. For example, consider the police force, which is an agent of the judiciary; it needs the people to trust it so that when it needs to exercise power, to exert violence, the people have enough trust in it to say, 'Ah! This was the right time, it was necessary, this action should have been taken.'

Well, now what should we do to gain this trust? It seems to me that two fundamental tasks must be performed. One task is practical; one task is promotional. First, let me talk about the promotional task; see, today the judiciary is under the most severe promotional and media pressures! Both from the enemies outside and from the oblivious inside; now let us use the term oblivious in a way that is charitable. Suppose a ruthless murderer comes and kills several young security guards, then the judiciary, in a legal process over several months, addresses his crime and condemns him and executes the sentence; that is, a completely just, fair, and correct action. The propaganda that the enemy conducts is exactly the opposite of what should happen; that is, this ruthless murderer is introduced as a victim, while the compassionate and concerned judiciary that seeks to restore the rights of the oppressed is portrayed as the oppressor and, for example, the transgressor; that is, the propaganda is like this now. Propaganda against the judiciary has a greater impact; this is usually the case; that is, often slander and rumors and nonsense gain more ground than a person can compensate for and correct and replace the truth with it. Well, how do you want to solve this? In response to this, promotional work is necessary. Promotion must mean conveying that truth to the heart of the audience, not just to their ears; the heart of the audience must be affected. Well, this is a technical task, an artistic task; this is being done today on a very large scale in the world, where they show black as white. Now look at the so-called propaganda of the world; this is how it is; they present something false as true and an absolute falsehood as right, and people believe it; how? Simply because they come and say something and speak in a scholarly and juristic manner, no! There is a method, there is a process; this is an artistic task. One of your most important tasks is this; that is, employ a strong artistic media team to design - not for one day, two days, or one month; continuously - so that they can convey what you said, that we have set aside this number of judges in this way or we have made this reformative move or we have made this legal amendment or we have made this long-term prediction, so that the people can understand it correctly and see it. Well, this task is very important; we have greatly underestimated this task. Many of our institutions are afflicted by this issue; it is not just the judiciary, but the judiciary needs to be able to gain the trust and optimism of the people. One of the two tasks necessary for gaining public trust is the correct technical and artistic promotion, which requires a capable team experienced in promotional communication; this task must be performed. This is one.

The second is a serious internal movement within the judiciary, which has already begun; I am aware of it, he has also told me, it has been discussed several times, and I have also mentioned in some places where it was appropriate that, for example, agents should go to a court anonymously and observe the situation of the judiciary, the people's visits, then refer to that judge or that investigator to see how the court is, how the prosecutor's office is, how they make judgments; these are very good tasks, but this must be done ten times more than what is currently being done; ten times! Now I am not saying this based on calculations; it just seems to me like this. Perhaps it is necessary to say that instead of ten times, it should be a hundred times, but now I will be cautious; at least ten times this work must be done; because complaints are numerous. Naturally, they refer to you, they refer to us as well.

In one of the sessions - I think it was last year or the year before - I said that you have many good judges; you have very good judges; a judge who has no day or night, who sacrifices his sleep, his rest, and his time with family to reach the depth of a case and realize its contents; diligent, hardworking, honest, and content judges. Very well, introduce some of them; for example, identify a judge who has handled this number of cases in the best way that satisfies the disputants or satisfies the entire institution and has resolved them; introduce them; like distinguished teachers, like distinguished professors, like distinguished researchers, like distinguished entrepreneurs. Highlight a distinguished judge so that some people are encouraged to work in this style; well, everyone likes reputation, and this is a reputation-building task for these individuals; this is one of the tasks. The opposite should also be done; now I am not saying that anyone who has committed an offense should be immediately publicized - it may not be necessary or permissible in some cases - but in some cases, publicizing is necessary; identify and introduce a judge who has betrayed his position in the judiciary - now whether a judge or members of the prosecutor's office, it does not matter - introduce them; what is the problem? Publicize them. Such cases should be handled. And the movement of the judiciary towards internal reform must, in my opinion, be continuous, without interruption. I say that every important case you initiate, every dispute you resolve with a just ruling, is a charity, a good deed, a blessing from the Lord upon you; and as for the blessing of your Lord, speak of it; this blessing should be made known so that everyone knows that this event occurred. This is also a matter I have mentioned.

Another issue is the fight against corruption, which I believe is very important. Today, the issue of the economy is a fundamental issue in the country. The main audience in managing the country's economy is, of course, the executive branch and, in part, the legislative branch; there is no doubt about this; but the judiciary can also play a role in various aspects of the economy. One of the areas where the judiciary can play a role in reforming the country's economy is creating security in the economic environment; this is the task of the judiciary. The judiciary must be able to confront those who disrupt security, so that the business environment, the living and livelihood space of the people, is a secure space; this is one of the areas of work for the judiciary regarding the economy of the country. Another aspect of the work that the judiciary wants to do in economic matters is the fight against economic corruption and corrupt individuals. The judiciary must enter this field clearly and sometimes even sensationally.

In my opinion, overall, the institution has a dual foundational error in dealing with economic issues; one foundation is a type of speech and behavior that leads public perception to believe that corruption is widespread, while it is not; the corruption is limited to a small number of corrupt individuals; both in government institutions and in public institutions, and in the business environment, those who are corrupt are few; but we speak in such a way in our statements and expressions that the public perception becomes that corruption has taken over everywhere! This is incorrect; this is not the reality. This is one erroneous foundation. The second erroneous foundation is that we do not confront the cases that are truly corrupt with decisiveness and clarity; there must be a confrontation; where there is truly economic corruption, it must be addressed clearly and decisively.

And the confrontation must also be with explanation; one of the important tasks in this regard, which returns to the same issue of promotion. That is, when you try and condemn an economic corrupt individual to a penalty and punishment, this must be explained to the people in such a way that everyone feels that this is the right action and that this action should have been taken in this manner.

I just remembered that this has happened in our past history. In the life of Imam Hassan (peace be upon him), it is mentioned that Ubaidullah ibn Abbas, who was the commander of a very important section of Imam Hassan's army, when he went to sleep at night, in the morning he woke up and found he was not in his tent; he had fled and joined Muawiya; they bribed him, gave him money, and he went to Muawiya. Well, such an incident was very destabilizing for Imam Hassan's army. At that time, one of the close companions - I do not remember now, I have seen it long ago, it was either Hajar ibn Adi or someone else - came to speak to the people; he gave a speech, and after his speech, everyone expressed their happiness, saying, 'Thanks be to God, he left!' See, this is the true meaning of explanation, the true meaning of promotion; he comes and speaks and clarifies that what happened was in our favor; that is, to use today's common expression, turning a threat into an opportunity; this must be the case in the judiciary. Creating security in the business environment, decisively fighting against economic corruption, cooperating with the government in solving problems; this is also one of the tasks that the judiciary can perform in the field of the economy.

He made a reference to human rights and international work; honestly, in this regard, the judiciary has done good and unprecedented work. This 120 billion dollars that he mentioned - whether we can obtain it or not is another discussion - but this movement is a completely correct movement. Or this issue of confronting human rights; we are creditors in the field of human rights, we are not debtors! In the early years of the revolution, I used to go to the university regularly, I would go to give speeches; students would ask questions, and we would answer. One time, one of the students asked me what defense we have regarding the issue of women? What defense does the Islamic Republic have? I said we have no defense! We have an offensive! What defense? We are claiming in the field of [women]. We are claiming against the world in the field of [women], claiming against the tyrannical regime - at that time when those discussions were raised - we have no defense.

In the field of human rights, it is the same; we should not defend, we should attack! Those who have committed so many crimes, who have created so much corruption - not only in history, but even now - for example, consider the French, who have become the epitome of human rights. The atrocities that the French have committed in Africa, in Algeria and elsewhere, when one reads about them, it truly makes one shudder! For example, they would contaminate a large lake, a swamp, with oil and other substances, then they would forcibly displace a large population - men, women, children - from the village towards it, and then they would shoot them down as they sought refuge in that lake, and then set that lake on fire! Now imagine, this incident happened! For example, this incident occurred at the hands of the French. At the hands of the English in India, in a garden, six thousand people gathered for a demonstration; the English set up machine guns at the entrance of that garden and killed six thousand people in one day or half a day and in a few hours! Now, whether this was fifty or a hundred years ago, but even in our own time regarding the issues of ISIS and the issues in Syria and Myanmar, see what they have truly done! And then these people claim to be human rights advocates; we have a case in the field of human rights, we have a claim against the lying and shameless advocates of human rights; these are very good works that, thanks be to God, are being carried out in the judiciary.

May God, God willing, grant you all success, assist you so that, God willing, you can establish a judiciary that is desirable to the Almighty God and to the righteous and just people in the country, and that is desirable to the Islamic system, God willing, at least prepare the grounds for it; anyone who takes a step in this path is valuable. God willing, may God grant you all success.

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