Statements at the Workers' Gathering in the Daroupakhsh Pharmaceutical Factories

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 and prophet, Abu al-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his pure and chosen progeny, especially the Awaited One among the inhabitants of the earth.

I congratulate not only the esteemed workers but also the Iranian nation on the Workers' Week. If the hands of workers, the minds of workers, and the entrepreneurial human resources are honored in a society, that society will progress. The fact that the noble Prophet of Islam raises the worker's hand and kisses it is not merely an appreciation of an individual; it is a valuation, it is a lesson; it tells us that the hand of the worker, the producer, and the human resource is so valuable that someone like the sacred existence of the Prophet—who is the reason for all creation—bends down and kisses it; this is a lesson for us.

Work, in the broadest sense of the word, includes manual work, physical work, intellectual work, scientific work, and managerial work; it is, in fact, the axis of progress, movement, and the continuous life of society; we all must understand this. Without work, capital, materials, energy, and information will be of no benefit to humanity. Work is what breathes life into capital, energy, and raw materials, transforming them into consumable entities so that humans can utilize them. The value of work is in these aspects.

The issue is that in the Islamic Republic, there is no pretense with the worker. A group formed a so-called workers' government at one point and occupied the world for decades; no benefit reached the worker from them. The managers of socialist and communist countries took immense profits from their societies; they ruled, displayed power, and thrived in life like the other tyrants of the world, all in the name of the worker. This is a lie, this is pretense.

In the Western world, worker insurance, support for workers, and so forth are primarily to ensure that the worker works so that the so-called 'one percent' can enjoy and thrive. They are not honest and straightforward with the worker. Islam is honest with the worker, it is straightforward, it has logic. Work creates value; it is value. There is a narration that states: "Knowledge calls for action; if answered, it remains; if not, it departs"; meaning even knowledge is dependent on work. In this narration—which is a symbolic expression—it states that knowledge calls for work; if work responds, knowledge remains and develops; if work does not respond, knowledge also departs. See what a beautiful expression this is. The emergence of knowledge, the sustainability of knowledge, the advancement of knowledge, is dependent on work. These are logical principles, these are the foundations of thought; Islam is like this. Islam treats the working class sincerely.

Of course, these principles must be operationalized; they must manifest in execution and planning; much effort has been made, many works have been done, and even more must be done. Therefore, this year we said: "Support for Iranian work and capital"; Iranian work, Iranian capital. Capital is equal to work. If there is no capital, work cannot be realized; these are two wings that national production moves with. Iranian capital deserves respect, and Iranian work deserves respect. The result of capital and work is national production. This must be realized.

Every year, on the occasion of Workers' Week, dear workers would come to us at the Hosseiniyeh; there we would have a meeting, and we would say a few words; this year I came to serve the workers; we chose this factory—the Daroupakhsh Company—as a symbolic center. You workers of this factory and those who have come from other factories, pay attention that I have organized this program in this manner to express respect and gratitude for Iranian work and workers.

Unless we respect Iranian work and Iranian capital, national production will not take shape; and if national production does not take shape, the economic independence of this country will not be realized; and if the economic independence of a society is not realized—meaning it cannot make decisions regarding its economy and stand on its own feet—then the political independence of this country will not be realized; and if the political independence of a society is not realized, the rest of the words are nothing but words. Until a country strengthens its economy, stabilizes it, relies on itself, and achieves independence, it cannot be influential politically, culturally, and otherwise.

Our country needs a strong and stable economy. For three or four years now, in my public and major speeches, I have warned our nation, our dear ones, our youth, and our officials, saying that the enemy's conspiracy is currently directed at our economy. Now do you notice? You see that the signs of this great conspiracy they have planned are appearing one after another.

Of course, you, the Iranian nation, with the same resolute determination that you removed other obstacles, God willing, will also remove this obstacle. This effort must be made by the worker, the investor, the government managers, the private sector managers; all people must show their resolute determination in consuming domestic production and national production.

Fundamental works must be done. Fortunately, efforts have begun. As the responsible friends in the respected government have informed, since the beginning of the year, their meetings, planning, and discussions have focused on this issue; I also emphasize this. Obstacles must be removed. In order for national production to take shape and for the domestic economy to gain strength and stability, everyone must strive; officials must strive first and foremost; whether in the executive branch, the legislative branch, or the judiciary. Sometimes work may end up in the judiciary. A healthy and attentive flow in the country's economy and in work, production, and investment requires the vigilance of all branches together.

From various dimensions, different works must be carried out: the issue of strengthening skills in the workplace, the issue of correct managerial perspectives, the issue of empowering the workforce, the issue of creating a sense of security; both for the worker and for the investor—meaning programs, laws, and regulations must be such that both the worker feels secure and assured, and the investor feels secure— the issue of correctly confronting economic disruption. One of the economic disruptions is the issue of smuggling. One of the economic disruptions is the various abuses of national resources; of the reserves belonging to the people in the banks of the country. Some people use facilities under one name but consume them elsewhere; this is treachery, this is theft. Sometimes theft is from the pocket of an individual, sometimes theft is from the pocket of a nation; this is heavier. These disruptions must be confronted.

A few years ago, when I wrote to the heads of the three branches regarding economic corruption and emphasized it, some were afraid, saying that investors might withdraw due to these warnings. I said the opposite is true; the investor—those who want to engage in economic activity in a healthy manner in the country—will be pleased to see that we are fighting economic corruption and economic corruptors. We must be able to carry out this correct struggle at the legal level.

We must pay attention to creating competitive advantages. We say domestic production. Fortunately, today, significant advancements have been made in domestic production. Certainly, the amount that is in the public memory is less than the amount of work that has been done. This new and prominent work that has fortunately been done in this company and that we saw today is very valuable; its establishment, creation, and startup were done by domestic forces in a short period; its design was domestic, its construction was domestic, its equipment was domestic. However, in highlighting national production, the issue of quality is very important; production management and dear workers must pay attention to this issue. The issue of competitiveness in the final price is important and must be considered; this, of course, requires government assistance. These are many works that must be done. These works are not solely the responsibility of the government; the government, the Islamic Consultative Assembly, various management bodies, the private sector, the people, and the cultural builders of society—those who create culture for the people with their statements—media advertisements, all must be at the service of national production. If we succeed in doing this, know that a heavy blow will be dealt to our bloodthirsty enemies.

Production-oriented policymaking, cultural building for consuming domestic production, enhancing the quality of domestic products, modernization and innovation in machinery, products, management, and construction; these are works that must be done, and we hope, God willing, they will be done.

I apologize to my friends, brothers, and sisters who sat in this warm weather under the sun—thankfully, the sun of our Ordibehesht is warmer than the sun of other Ordibeheshts. We hope, God willing, your lives will be sweet, warm, and lively.

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