Statements of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in a Meeting with a Large Number of People from Qom

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

I welcome all of you dear brothers and sisters and thank you for enduring the effort to travel from the holy city of Qom and for filling our Hosseiniyeh with your warm breaths, arising from faith and sincerity. I ask the Almighty God to bestow His special mercy and forgiveness upon the valuable and pioneering martyrs of the 19th of Dey, who are among the "preceders" and "first ones" on this path.

The 19th of Dey is a shining point; not only in the history of Qom but in the history of our country and the history of the Revolution. The youth of Qom, men and women, seminarians and non-seminarians, gave a faithful and heroic response to the needs of the time on this day. What is important is that every nation, every individual, and every group should be able to respond to the needs of their time. Of course, the people of Qom did not show this awareness, intelligence, and courage for the first time on the 19th of Dey; for twelve hundred years, the city of Qom has been a base for spreading the enlightened thoughts of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them). Even when opposing governments were in power, the people of Qom maintained this position and endured the hardships that came with it. For seventy years, Qom has also been the center and intellectual capital of the Islamic world. Since the arrival of the late Ayatollah Haeri in Qom in 1340 AH, this city became the main scientific center of the Islamic world and Shi'ism, reaching its peak during the time of the late Ayatollah Borujerdi; and the product of those eras was the emergence of a great and unparalleled figure like Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified). This brilliant history exists for Qom, which has always responded to the needs of the time. The 19th of Dey was one of those instances.

The problem with nations and individuals who remain subjugated by the times and are defeated by the events of their era is that they do not recognize their time and its currents; they do not understand what the requirements and needs of the time are; and even if they do understand, they sometimes lack the courage to express it. Thus, the times and opposing and hostile factors dominate them.

If the people of Qom had not risen on the 19th of Dey in 1356 and had not continuously created those great events, perhaps the events would have taken a different direction; but they took the initiative, and men, women, youth, the clergy, and non-clergy participated in this movement; although the main weight of this work was on the shoulders of the youth; because the pure nature and lack of attachment to material concerns make it easier for the youth to step into the arena of duty. The entire Iranian nation demonstrated this spirit and great work during the Revolution; some did it sooner, some later; but Qom was ahead of all. The result was that the impregnable fortress that was entirely in the hands of the enemies of the Iranian nation, the plunderers, the tyrants, and the international bandits - the fortress of the Iranian government - was taken from their hands by the people, and they conquered it.

Sometimes, some individuals conquer a fortress, but quickly lose it. Among the present crowd, certainly many were present in the imposed war and have seen that sometimes a person captures a fortress, a region, a city, or a village; but neglects to maintain it. That is, they have motivation at first, but then lose their motivation; the enemy also attacks again without delay - in military terms, they counterattack - and takes back what has been taken from them with effort, sacrifice, motivation, and faith. The art of the Iranian nation until today has been that they have neutralized the enemy's counterattacks everywhere. It is not that the enemy has not wanted to counterattack; the enemy has always sought to strike us.

Who is the enemy? Anyone who opposes the rule of a religious, independent, popular system is the enemy. The greedy, the plunderers, the profiteers, the hoarders, the tyrants, the dependents, those inclined to corruption, and those who suffer personal losses from the rule of religious culture are enemies. Of course, at the head of these are the foreign enemies who have suffered the most. America has suffered the most from the establishment of the Islamic government and still does - they are at the forefront - the Zionists are the same, the large global companies are the same, and the various libertines in different sectors are the same, as are those who are scheming for national wealth. All of these are enemies.

The degrees of the enemy vary; but in general, a front of enemies has emerged. This front has consistently tried to retake this fortress since the beginning of the Revolution. The goal is to transform the popular religious government, based on the faith, love, and will of the people - which exists today in Iran - into a dependent, monopolistic government that America can easily negotiate with; to grant it personal concessions and take concessions from it. But today they cannot do this.

What causes a battalion or company or army unit that conquers a fortress in the battlefield to then fall into negligence? There are factors that create this negligence. The first factor is lack of motivation, weakening of zeal and courage, weakening of faith, and weakening of solidarity and bravery. In order to render the vast popular front in the Islamic Revolution and system inactive, these factors are injected by the enemy.

They know that military war is not a solution for Iran; because it unites the people more; therefore, they enter through another route. The reason I emphasize the issue of culture and the cultural atmosphere of the country so much is because of this. During my trip two or three months ago to Qom, I mentioned this point to you dear people of Qom once again; and I say it now; because this is the foundation of the work. When the physical environment becomes polluted, everyone feels danger and warns - for example, they say that the air pollutants in Tehran or some other city have increased so much - of course, these pollutants are harmful, and breathing in this atmosphere harms people's bodies, lungs, blood, and nerves; this is true; but what about the cultural environment? Does the cultural environment not matter? A Muslim youth grows up in an environment that is filled with various temptations to lust, corruption, encouragement to idleness and laziness, encouragement to addiction and various troubles, encouragement to political and cultural dependency on foreigners, and is suspended in this cultural atmosphere. Is this not harmful to someone who breathes in the cultural atmosphere of the country?

What factor for the enemy - that same front of enmity I mentioned; whoever they are - is better than this, that within the Islamic society, the people and the youth ultimately come to the conclusion that why should they oppose the foreign schemers who want to plunder Iran's resources?! No, let them come; let them organize the government themselves; let them take charge of affairs; let them take whatever they want from the resources; they should just give us something to eat so we do not remain hungry! Just as it was before the Revolution. Of course, there was no last part there that said, "give us something to eat so we do not remain hungry"; no, hunger, poverty, and the general weakness of the nation were rampant. If they promote this thought among the people and turn it into a belief, is there any greater danger for a nation than this?

Islam awakened our nation and youth. Islam first showed that if a nation decides to stand on its own feet and reform its affairs, it can; secondly, it opened the eyes of the people to understand that those who govern the fate of the country are disconnected and separate from the people. The people felt and saw this. Whoever wants to govern must either rely on the people, or rely on foreigners, or rely on tyranny and the sword. They were not reliant on the people; they relied on foreigners; and the foreigners helped them to rely on tyranny and the sword. The Islamic system came and disrupted all of this. Today, the Islamic system and government is genuinely reliant on the people and Islamic principles. We do not claim that Islamic laws have been fully implemented; no, many Islamic laws still remain to be implemented; but who can implement them? Someone who is faithful to Islam and reliant on the people. Therefore, the movement is a correct movement.

The enemy tries to poison the political atmosphere with its propaganda. Today, the government of America and the most reactionary and corrupt governments and regimes sit comfortably and speak sincerely with each other and have no complaints against one another - like the corrupt Pahlavi regime in the past, and today some other governments - but these same ones accuse the Iranian nation and government, which relies on the votes of the people and is ahead of all countries in this region - indeed, ahead of most countries in the world - of violating democratic principles! What is democracy? Democracy means relying on the votes of the people? No; the recent elections in America showed that this is not the case. In Iran, there is real popular sovereignty. In the twenty-one or two years after the Revolution, on average, there has been an election every year in this country, and the people have participated in all matters of the country. At the same time, they accuse Iran of violating human rights! Today, the ugliest violations of human rights are committed by these arrogant global powers and their followers, agents, and allies in the world; they themselves have no shame in all the actions that occur for them, regarding human rights violations! What is their goal in slandering and speaking ill of us? The goal is to poison the intellectual, cultural, and political atmosphere of the country so that anyone who breathes in this atmosphere has their mind and thoughts poisoned.

What is on the shoulders of all the people today - and primarily on the shoulders of the officials, statesmen, members of parliament, scholars, preachers, and high-ranking government officials - is to recognize and know that this Islamic system, just as it faced the most stubborn and savage enemies at the beginning of its birth, continues to face the same enemies in its ongoing work. No statement or action should be issued by the country's officials - whether from the government, the judiciary, or the members of parliament - that indicates a tendency towards this treacherous enemy; they must be vigilant. Let no official - whether a cultural, economic, political official, whether in the legislative, executive, or judicial branches - say something, take a position, or act in a way that benefits the enemy. The enemy is awake; you must also be awake.

The people must keep an eye on the behavior of the officials, statesmen, elected representatives, and those who have an impact in society. It is a mistake to think that we have entrusted responsibility to certain individuals and they are responsible; so we should go about our own work and lives and not concern ourselves with their work; no, if this happens, the nation will suffer; if negligence occurs, events will dominate.

The correct and appropriate action is that which responds to the needs of the time. Today, the primary need of the time is vigilance, awakening, awareness, and maintaining the courage and power to act where action is necessary. Officials should not be afraid to undertake the great tasks that are necessary for the country. With the support and assistance of the people, with the help of public opinion and the bond and connection that exists between the people and the officials, they can accomplish great tasks.

Wherever this courage was accompanied by faith, we have made progress. Revolutionary institutions have been like this. Revolutionary institutions, due to their self-reliance, courage in action, reliance on God, and belief in their inherent power, have been able to do good work wherever they have entered. The faithful forces that showed so much initiative during the eight-year defense - whether the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the faithful forces of the army, or this great popular Basij - performed miraculous works. The Jihad of Construction was the same. Of course, the Jihad of Construction has merged with the Ministry of Agriculture; but the expectation is that the same positive and strong characteristics, the same reliance on their inherent power - which certainly the faithful and committed forces of the former Ministry of Agriculture also welcome - the same spirit that created the Jihad of Construction will shape this new ministry - which is the Ministry of Agricultural Jihad - so that it can solve agricultural problems, rural issues, problems of ancillary industries in rural areas, and the problem of migration. In all sectors - whether economic or cultural sectors - what can untie the knots is the presence of committed, determined, self-reliant, God-reliant, and people-believing elements at the top of the work. These can also resolve economic problems. Wherever a problem remains for us, it is because self-belief, reliance on God, and belief in faith and love for the people have weakened there. Officials - whether in parliament or in the government - should not allow these beliefs to weaken in cultural and economic sectors.

My dear ones! Brave, vigilant, and aware people of Qom! Progressive youth of Qom! I tell you, today the reins of power have slipped from the hands of the great powers. Despite all the concentrated efforts they make against Islam and the Islamic wave and awakening - whether in Asia or Africa - this Islamic wave and awakening continues to expand day by day, and they can no longer do anything. This is thanks to your revolution and your brave, faithful, and courageous uprising. One example is the Palestinian Intifada, where the reins of this work have slipped from the hands of the great powers. The Palestinian nation is a nation besieged in its own streets and cities, facing the most savage enemies. There, every soldier is the enemy of that Palestinian; it is not the case that the soldier is one of their own so that they can solve the problem with affection and love, giving and receiving flowers; that soldier is the personal enemy of that Palestinian youth who is rising up. Such a people, in a closed atmosphere, with all these various economic problems, with all these losses and martyrs, have stood firm and have not retreated. What does this indicate? It indicates that the reins of power have slipped from the hands of the tyrannical, arrogant powers.

You, dear Iranian nation, are at the center and core of this great global movement. They look to you and imitate your words, slogans, and actions, and learn from you. Maintain your reliance on God; preserve your courage and power to act; keep the vigilance and lack of negligence - which, thanks be to God, exists in the Iranian nation today - within yourselves; maintain the bond and connection between yourselves and between the nation and the officials. Know that the Almighty God will send His support upon you, and by the grace of the Lord, He will rub the nose of the aggressor, greedy, and plundering into the ground.

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