A YEAR ago police attacked a demonstration of several thousand studenis in the Iranian capital of Tehran. It hardly merited more than a few column inches — the usual space awarded to that slightly central Asian country.
This week the British press is freely speculating on which country Shah will retire to, so shaky is his rule.
In the past year police repression has set in motion a rising cycle of resistance, centred first religious Gues opposition, now on the industrial WOrKITE CIESS.
Now many workers are on strike for openly political ends. Some of the longest - standing political prisoners nave been released and the snan does not dare resort to the repression which greeted the movement September The fall of the government at the weekend was the direct result of mass action. For once the appointment of a military government was less a signal for further LCOICSSIOH admission of weakness on the part of the dictator. He simply could not find ponuctan form administration.
The life expectancy of an Iranian government is becoming rather less than a Tommy in the trenches. professional politickers are looking to their careers republican government way these self-seekers bend is always a sign of which way the wind is blowing.
Among the masses themselves things are changing at an incredible rate. For example, against all Islamic tradition, women are play a more and more active part in politics.
This is CyCl true religious opposition have visited Ayatollah Khomeini in France have remarked on the number of unveiled women playing an active part in political discussion in his household.
ine working class was from the struggles in Iran for many HORERS. That has been set right.
workers have SWIRLY struggles extensive political demands which can only mean the end of the regime.
The significance of all this is not simply that the end of the Shah is on the immediate agenda.
Dr Death 1s rignl provisional capitalist government is bound to be inherently unstable.
Even the bourgeois democracy is unlikely satisfy the needs of the masses, have spent months increasing their experience of independent organisation and independent political action.
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Socialist Challenge 9 November 1978 Page 2 obscure COLL the intellectual death wish.
CXISES Iran insurrectionary WOrKCES DOWErthan own destiny once and for all possible!
One major CHOLLIOUS armoury furnished and TULUTe the establishment of US Iranian soil, there are among the zones Reporters who British anti-riot weapons.
pivot of stability in Also (and here and for once any the Gulf, to the Caucasus.
those of its He SHOOTIES.
far-reaching staci or whoever Vild pushed, not because of any vague In other words, what today situation in which there is the possibility of the masses developing their own organisations of winds.
- not simply to get rid of their present ruler, but ip seize their None of this is certain of course. The only thing we can predict with scientific accuracy is that everything is obstacle still stands between the masses and power: an of repression maintained Iran has received 40 per cent of US arms exports since 1973. Although a treaty with the Soviet Union prevents Daises 43,000 US personnel working as 'advisers with the Iranian armed forces — some of whom have been deployed in combat fingers The Shah's regime is the world's among biggest buyer of British arms. The tanks which are rolled out to gree demonstrators are British Chieftains (ol which Iran has more than ine British army) and Tehran recently bought a massive consignment of LOUDS For a long time the Shah has been a Iran's military strength provides the central Asia. the West with a guarantee that Middle East oil won't fall into the wrong polices a whole sub-continent from the Himalayas, to gives Iran's own oil supplies have always arrived with greater regularity than more highly strung accordance time-honoured principles the Shah is prepared to sell to anyone with the money to spare; be they South Africa, If Iranian stability is militarily and to imperialism, Iran also has an importance as a "model' of development indication that third world countries can develop if they are prepared to buy high technology from the West and throw political caution to the But there is another side to this coin. If the Shah goes, imperialist interests in the whole of central Asia are put on the line. Afghanistan has recently had left-wing Pakistan is on the verge of collapse and the states to the west of Iran are chronically unstable The Iranian people themse ver understand this imperialist concern for Iran's future. In particular they see perfectly Britain's role in shoring up the dictatorship • better than does the British left and labour movement.
The burning of the British embassy and other British buildings in Tehran this week was not an accidental act of vandalism DUL a calcuated to the Shah's enthusiastic backer In the orgy of support for the Shah the well-placed and well-heeled, the role of Foreign Secretary Owen almost defies description.
In 18 months in office Dr Death has a record which must be the secret envy of the Ghengis Khans of the Tory backbenches. Troops into Belize, into Bermuda general proposed to run Zimbabwe -and now expressions of affection for Shah which make Sadat-Begin mutual congratulation sessions look positively stand-offish.
And all the while, as he jets around the world from dictator to dictator, he pious SLalCHCHEs interviews on the virtues of 'Christian Socialism', the centrality of human rights in politics, and the necessity of fulfilling our loyalties.
This oily individual goes so far that he even outdoes the Shah in explaining away mass murder in the polite tones of the salon and debating chamber. The Shah has at least admitted that there have been 'mistakes', 'corruption', 'cruelty' sustained apologies months look a little foolish.
But it is not just the capitalist West which has come to the Shah's rescue.
Peking's suppor reactionary torturers has occone justified as it is by the claim that the Soviet Union is the more dangerous of the "superpowers". True to form Hua Kuo-feng has done the Shah loyal service.
Brezhnev's little-publicised telegram of congratulation to the Shah on his 59th birthday is a token of Soviet interest in the central Asian status an CLO Daily Telegraph leader writers may live in a fantasy world where every rum doing is financed by Moscow gold. Sady perhaps, workers live in a real world where they have received not an ounce of gold, nor any other support. coup, Soviet motivated, as in Europe, by fear of the awesome genuine socialist Soviet working Class believe that bureaucratic monopoly. Socialism on the borders of the USSR could mean curtains for the Kremlin.
So it is natural that capitalists and bureaucrats should line up - with Vary TE degrees of behind the Shah.
But equally it should go without saying that the place of the working two people of the world is alongside the most struggles of the Iranian masses. In the first place that means opposition to their own government's support for the Shah.
If, as we have argued, the main thing standing between the Iranian people and revolution Western-backed machinery of repression, then international solidarity could play the crucial role in deciding what happens in Iran.
This solidarity must be based on the the assumption that it is the Iranian workers and peasants who must make their own revolution.
cosy Inere is a model for such ar international solidarity The relentless wave of support for the Vietnamese revolution imperialist countries was a central ECasull • Immediately action to demand an end to all trade, military and diplomatic links with Tehran. That campaign should be built both on the streets and within the perhaps even a teensy bit of which makes Owen's COT the past Vietnam sine most cach oter cliques of killers and well-known, political anodyne Whitehall.
be colleges.
torturers.
the Iranian Haracuar FASTE conscuuchees Or a And revolution on Caucated le socialism equals certainly enthusiasm peace.
is the Shah follows that greater.
CLUS
Not central responsible. movement.
in the defeat of US Let us we must fight for Our socialism will be infinitels more democratic than what siste do not take up arms against the socialist state 'socialism' in the LSSR and Fastern Europe have discredited socialisn in the eyes of the millions of workers throughout the world. Weare opposed t GHOLAM AZHARI, chief of staff of Iran's armed forces, and now the country's prime minister.
factories and workplaces. As the campaign OI une 1960s showed, these two type of activities are not alternatives but complement • Another immediate task is action release of the remaining prisoners. Adoption prisoners by labour movement bodies is a good way of drawing attention to the reality of Iran as opposed to the nonsense issuing • The campaign to kick out SAVAK and stop Iranian embassy spying must developed, particularly in the Enousane of Iranian students in British whose political activity is curtailed by fear of SAVAK, the Iranian secret police Joint Iranian and British student activity can drive out the Shah's • We must also take up the role of the Labour government and of Owen Unusually, Owen's brazen defence of the Shah has caused quite a stir in the Labour Party. The Croydon CLP has resigned from the party after 20 year when Owen addressed Cambridge Fabian Society meeting he was hit by a sack of flour - thrown by the secretary of the society!
This sort of activity (which should be discouraged) nevertheless not enough. Opposition to Owen and the government, both inside and outside the Labour Party, needs to be organised A good focus would be meetings where Owen or other prominent Labour leaders are speaking. Owen must be hounded the length and breadth of the country. The Shah's poodle must not be given a month's Britain is the major backer of the This means that our responsibility for the course of the Iranian revolution could hardly be yet international campaign. It is an issue importance facing the international working class.
If the Iranian revolution expires before the bayonets and tanks ol THOSE who survive will look at us and hold us We cannot guarantee anything that happens in Iran, but we should not awful responsibility having failed to do what was possible.
repeat: the repression inflicted upon them has dispelled the fear of the Iranian masses. They have nothing to lose and a world to gain. Everything is possible Socialist Challenge Editorial Board
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Less well-known is Soviet concern for the stability of the Iranian regime.