4th of November is an important day in the history of political Islam. 30 years ago on this day a faction of Islamic Republic (the pro-Khomeini students who have now “matured” into state reformist figures) occupied American Embassy in Iran and took its employees hostage for 400 days. This day was a turning point in the life of Islamic Republic, who was being increasingly threatened by women rights’ and workers’ movements, the left, the communists and other disenchanted sections of the society. Soon after coming to power of the Islamic regime, people began protesting against suppression of civil rights and individual rights, the imposition of religious laws in the society and demanded higher wages and their rights. Anti-Americanism became an integrated part of Islamic regime and Islamist movement’s ideology and continued to serve as the main ideological justification for Islamic terrorism until today.
Islamic regime came to power as a result of a miscarriage of the political revolution against the monarchist dictatorship, for a freer, more egalitarian and just society. From the onset, this regime tried to reverse any political, economic and social achievements people had gained by their massive political movement, which toppled the monarchy. Couple of weeks after coming to power, it tried to impose Islamic veil on women, imposed religious rulings and restrictions on social life, tried to censor the newly freed press, fired at unemployed workers’ demonstrations and killed a worker. The army attacked people in Kurdistan and executed those who fought against it. The protests for more freedom, more rights and better economic conditions continued.
Occupation of American embassy and taking Americans hostage was a defensive tactic by section of the Islamic regime with two aims; one to ideologically disarm the “anti-imperialist” populist left and two to create a foreign enemy to mobilize the people behind it and to silence the protests. This tactic provided the regime with a breathing space and enabled it to gather its forces to clamp down on the opposition as “counter-revolutionaries”. In fact the Islamic regime crushed the revolutionary aspirations of the people under the name of revolution. Two and a half years after gaining power, it declared a state of siege, arrested thousands of opposition, tortured and killed more than hundred thousand people in the following years.
This day marks the consolidation of the Islamic regime in Iran and Islamist reaction in the region; thus, a black day for the people. However, the political situation has now changed considerably in Iran. The people’s uprising in the summer of 2009 and the mass protest against the regime has changed the balance of power. Despite brutal clamp down by the regime, people use any opportunity to come to streets and protest against this monstrous regime. On days when Islamic Republic has historically celebrated its bloody history, people come to streets and organise counter-demonstrations against the regime. 4th of November is one of these days. People know this; the Islamic regime knows it too.
Therefore, the regime has issued ultimatum against the people and announced that it would forcefully suppress any anti-regime actions of the people. The state reformist movement is trying to calm the people down and has asked them to protest in complete silence and refrain from chanting any radical slogans against the regime. The state reformists, Messers Moussavi, Khatami, Karoubi and the likes are well aware that people are anxiously awaiting an opportune moment to overthrow the regime. Without an Islamic Republic, the movement to “reform” it will be obsolete and redundant. Knowing this, they are trying hard to divert people’s movement into conciliatory channels. But the times are changing. There is no way back. The days of the Islamic regime are numbered.
Worker-communism Unity Party is calling upon the people to nullify the efforts by the state reformists to subdue the anti-Islamic regime’s movement. WUP calls upon people to come to the streets on 4th of November and express their desire to overthrow the regime and to create a free, egalitarian and prosperous society. “No to Islamic Republic”, “no to poverty”, “no to Islamic veil”, “no to gender apartheid” and “long live freedom, equality and prosperity” are the real demands and slogans of the people. These demands must be voiced on this day by the people in their counter-demonstrations. We must try to radicalize people’s protests. We must try to unify and organise the people. These protests must be used to achieve these aims.
WUP is working towards this end. People’s real demands, that is, freedom, equality and prosperity, can only be realized by overthrowing the Islamic regime through a Worker revolution and to create a socialist republic. This is WUP’s aim.
