Freedom in Iran
July 5th, 2009People around the world are not all the same. They don’t all want the same exact things. But at the end of the day, my guess would be that most people the world over do want some similar things, and that freedom would probably top the list of what most people need and want. Iranians are no exception.
What is freedom? Not an easy question to answer considering all the hype that goes into that one simple word. Freedom means different things to different people, and its meaning changes as circumstances dictate. One approach is to say that freedom is our say in how our lives are playing themselves out. We want to believe that our small voice is being heard even in the midst of the noisy confusion that fills our daily lives; that we matter in the overall scheme of things. And the belief that everyone should count, may explain some of what is going on in Iran.
Freedom means that if we’re already being given the right to vote, that our vote should count, and not be swept under the rug of authoritative ambition. People want a say in who governs them, in who holds the reigns of power, and in what policies he or she decides to pursue. It is not simply my right to vote that is important, but the knowledge that my voice, as contained in my vote, will be heard, even if only as a whisper.
Freedom touches on the personal as well. Women, for example, may choose to dress traditionally, but they want to make that choice, not have it thrust upon them by angry men wielding big sticks. My right to choose is at the heart of what it means to be free.
And people want a say as to which direction their country is heading. Dictators no doubt have their ideological agendas. But what is deemed necessary by the dictators is not necessarily in the best interest of the people. The man on the street often knows best what is in his best interest better than anyone else. People have a right, for example, to demand that their government’s economic policies will create good paying jobs, and not sky-high unemployment. People want to be proud of their nation, and not have to justify why certain ill-conceived policies are further isolating them from the world community. People want to believe that their personal security is being regarded as sacred, and not undermined by the looming threat of war.
The yearning for freedom is a hard thing to quash. There are people in Iran putting everything on the line; even their own lives. The fight for freedom often brings out the best in us, by which we are willing to sacrifice our own safety for the sake of something we believe in, something greater than ourselves. The willingness to rise to the occasion, and to put a noble cause, like freedom, above everything else, is unique to us as human beings, and is what allows us to aspire to our greatest potential.
I don’t envy the leadership in Iran. They must be frustrated beyond belief. They have convinced themselves that they know what’s best for their people, and somehow, the people just don’t get it. How dare they rise up in this fashion?
I don’t know what will happen in Iran. But I do know that something has happened there already. Their votes were silenced, so the people rose up and made sure that their voices wouldn’t be. Would this make a difference in the long run? No one knows for sure, but one thing is certain; Iran will never quite be the same. The people have spoken, and their voices will reverberate in our collective consciousness forever, along with all those countless others who cast their lots in the search for freedom and justice. Those voices can never be silenced. They will continue to make themselves heard until the day comes when the dream of freedom will be made real, and when true justice will be meted out to all.
Loading ...
Loading...
Dear Nissim,
The problem is exactly here: No one has a definition of Freedom. In Iran they know what really don’t want but don’t know what really they want.
As you mentioned the problem is to know what the freedom is, and before knowing, there’s no aim and all the struggles waste.
Dear Lord Kavi,
I see what you’re saying. The people are angry, but are not as yet emboldened by a vision that inspires them.
I am reminded of a sad chapter in American history. African Americans were certainly entitled to be angry about a legacy of slavery, and a series of racist events, including the passage of the infamous Jim Crow Laws. Yet, as you suggest, that pent up anger went nowhere fast until Martin Luther King came along. I’ll give you an example.
Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus, contrary to the law of that time which required blacks to sit in the back of the bus. Ordinarily a non-event. Dr. King, however, was no ordinary man. He was a man inspired by a big vision of hope, a vision of civil rights and equal justice under the law. He took Rosa Parks as a real example of his vision, and soon, the reality on the ground grew to fill up the space created by the vision. Such is the dynamic of change in the world, and such is the prescription for change in Iran, and for much of the rest of the world suffering under the yoke of repression.
I am not an expert on Iran, but I have a sense that people all over the world, especially in the age of a global economy and the internet, will respond similarly to a vision of hope. As you know, I believe in Selling a Vision of Hope, not just talking about it, or philosophizing about it, but actually selling it to the man on the street.
If you want to give substance and sustainability to Iranian anger, you would sell them on a Vision of Hope, a vision of Peace, Prosperity, and Freedom, and you would find a leader who could galvanize the anger on the street into a message that resonates in the hearts and minds of people across the land.
In a way, that’s what the Mullahs did in the revolution of 1979. They certainly don’t want that type of energy unleashed against them. The will of the people, however, will not be deterred. Once the people have a sense of what they want to accomplish, nothing can stand in their way.
The man on the street may know best what final outcome is in his best interest. But he is not neccesarily aware of the best ways, best policies, best approaches to make his dream come true. Here he needs to subscribe by expert bodies. The man on the street has to come to trust elites, i.e. economists, professional politicians, etc. And this is our problem in today Iran: ordinary citizens swear by their own ideas rather than following experts.
One further point; I certainly agree with you that freedom to vote for the men on the street is the only way to make optimum choices over time. People have to practice voting, and practice makes better. We need to support their votes. We need to make their voices heard. They are final decision-makers.
Mohammad, as you suggest, “practice makes perfect.” Democracy is a hard thing to perfect, but it is certainly worth trying. As Churchill used to say, “Democracy is the worst form of government…except for all others.”
Take the U.S. as an example. We declared our independence in 1776, and wrote our consitution shortly thereafter, based on democratic principles. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are some of the most thoughtful documents ever crafted by the hands of man. And yet, with all that thought, and all that “expertise” of which you speak, it took us a lot of time to get it right, including a Civil War in which some 600,000 people died. And many would argue that the U.S. still has a long way to perfect itself.
I don’t think that this uprising, if you can call it that, is a waste to time or effort. The people have spoken as best they could under the circumstances. The world has heard their plight, although much of the world’s leadership, including President Obama, is taking a very cautious approach in issuing purlic support for the protesters. However, do you know who also has taken note? Non other than the Mullahs themselves. And it may be possible, in light of the hostility against them which they could not help but witness, they may modify some of their policies, and consider a slightly more moderate approach, lest they allow this festering anger to explode once again.
For example, I understand that there are serious negotiations under way to see if Iran would agree to a nuclear program that does not include weaponry, but only nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. It is possible, believe it or not, that the protests paved the way for such considerations. Although it could easily go the other way, by which the leadership comes to conclusion that oncly nuclear weapons will give them cover to quell internal dissent, and to spread their brand of foreign policy thoughout the region. We shall see.
But I agree with you that ordinary citizens need the experts. And I would also add that experts often need a vision, and a visionary, to help them focus their efforts in a more pragmatic way. Otherwise you may well end up with too many cooks in the kitchen, and nothing decent to eat.