Khamenei.ir

Leader’s Speech to Panegyrists

With their involvement, Iranian women became a major pillar the revolution’s victory

We have made progress in the Islamic Republic. I am optimistic. I saw the situation of our society before the Revolution. At that time our country, our society and our women were heading towards a horrible and dangerous situation. Because women in our country were imitating European women, in some cases their situation was even worse than the situation of European women. This was the kind of situation that they were promoting. Of course Iranian women managed to overcome this destructive wave because of the religious faith that has been instilled into their hearts. Encouraged by Iranian men, they managed to contribute a lot to the Revolution through their presence and they managed to play an essential role in helping the Revolution achieve victory. And after the victory of the Revolution, the movement of Iranian women has been extraordinary. I would say that the wives and mothers of those who struggle in the way of God are true manifestations of patience and resistance. If you read their biography, you will see how much they have suffered. Of course there were a few such women among the wives of revolutionary activists who went through those hardships, but perfect examples of such women emerged during the Sacred Defense Era. They sent their children to the battlefields. Many of their children were martyred or disabled, but these models of patience and resistance stood firm like a mountain. This is the progress that we have made in spiritual areas. Thankfully our country has made extraordinary progress on political and scientific fronts as well. The large number of intellectual women who teach at our Islamic seminaries and universities - some of whom are fortunately present among you dear audience - shows that the Islamic Republic has been successful. This is my view. This optimistic view makes hearts hopeful about the future. If we continue making progress at this speed, we will definitely manage to overcome the wrong western culture that is prevalent in the world. We should work hard. We should make determined efforts. However, this optimistic view should not prevent us from seeing the weaknesses.

The Islamic Republic questions the west regarding women

I was once asked how we would defend ourselves against what westerners say about the issue of women in our country. I said, "We will not defend ourselves: we will attack them." regarding the issue of women, it is the west that owes us an explanation. It is the west that is oppressing and humiliating women. Westerners pressure women psychologically and emotionally and they insult women's personality and position in the name of freedom, employment and responsibility. They are the ones who should answer for their actions. The Islamic Republic has a responsibility in this regard. The Islamic Republic should clarify its position on the issue of women without standing on ceremony. The position of the Islamic Republic is mainly a protest against the western view and the oppressive western inequation. The issue of hijab and the issue of man-woman relationship become meaningful from this perspective.

West's main strategy regarding women lies upon exposition and corruption

In the west, they are gradually voicing their opposition to hijab in an open way. They say that hijab is the symbol of a religious movement and that they do not want religious symbols to be promoted in their secular societies. These are the reasons that they present for this opposition. I believe what their claims are a lie. It is not a matter of religion. The problem is that the fundamental policy of the west is to promote moral corruption among women and to exploit them, and hijab works against this policy. Even if hijab is not motivated by religious faith, they oppose it. This is the main problem. This issue has resulted in serious consequences for different communities: the break-up of the family and shocking statistics about women trafficking. According to a report that has been published globally - I think the report has been published by the UN - women trafficking is among the trades that are growing fastest in the world. There are a few countries which are worst in this regard and the Zionist regime is among them. Under the guise of labor, marriage and other such things, they collect women and girls from poor countries in Latin America, certain Asian countries and certain poor European countries and they deliver them to certain centers, centers whose names and activities would shock people. All of these things are the result of the misconception about women, the result of the oppressive inequation about women's position in society. The issue of illegitimate children - which is most common in America - and the issue of cohabitation are in fact destroying the warm family environment and its blessings. They are depriving humanity of these blessings. These issues are the consequences of the first problem that I spoke about. It is necessary to do something in this regard. It is necessary to define the position of women and to stand up against the propaganda of the west in a serious way. May 22, 2011

Misjudging the status of women, misjudging family matters make the foundation of problems regarding women

Regarding women's issues in society, there two essential problems. If we can address these two problems, we can hope to find a solution to "women's crisis" over time - in the long or medium term. One of the problems is the misconception about women's position in society. This misconception and wrong attitude started in the west and it is not a very deep-rooted and old issue. We can say that the claims about the inclusion of this issue in the protocols of Zionist intellectuals do not go against the truth. That is to say, if we look carefully, we will see that in the west this misconception dates back to only 100-150 years ago and that the misconception spread to other societies, including Islamic societies. This is one problem. The second problem is the misconception about the family and misbehavior in the family environment. I believe that these two problems have given rise to "women's crisis" which is a critical problem in the modern world. "Women's crisis" might appear to be a strange term. Today the environmental crisis, the water crisis, the energy crisis and global warming are considered as the main issues that humanity has to face. But none of these things are among the main issues of humanity. Most of the main problems of humanity are related to spirituality, ethics and social behavior of human beings towards each other - including the relationship between men and women, women's position in society and women's issues. This is a genuine problem, but they do not discuss it. Those who formulate dominant global policies do not consider this issue in their best interest and maybe they believe that discussing this issue goes against their main strategies. Regarding women's position in society - no matter what you call it - the problem is that they have gradually created an inequation: one side of the inequation is the taker and the other side is the giver. They have divided humanity into these two categories. Men are the taker and women are the giver. This has been gradually established in western societies over several decades using different methods and propaganda techniques. Maybe the process took 100-150 years. I cannot give you an accurate number. This is an issue that deserves to be researched. Later on the problem spread to other societies as well. They defined women as the creatures who should benefit men and they promoted this definition. Therefore, if a woman is determined to distinguish herself in western societies, she has no choice but to make use of her sexual appeal. Even in formal meetings women should dress in a way to appear pleasing to their beneficiaries - namely, men. I believe this is the greatest blow, the biggest insult and the greatest injustice as far as women are concerned. Unfortunately, there is a cultural norm in western culture according to which women are considered the giver and men are considered the taker. Other societies followed the west and made efforts on its path. And this norm has been established in the world. If somebody says something that goes against this norm, they create uproar against him. For example, if in a society women are prohibited from wearing make-up in public places, they will create an uproar. But there will be no uproar in the world if the opposite is done - that is to say, if immodesty is promoted among women in a society. When a society promotes modesty and discourages make-up among women, dominant propaganda machines of the world create an uproar about it. This shows that there is a culture, a policy, a strategy that has been followed for many years in order to consolidate this wrong and insulting position for women. And unfortunately, this has already happened.

A comparison between the status of women in Western families and Muslim families

The situation of western families - in terms of oppression against women and in terms of violating women's rights - is definitely worse than Islamic, Iranian and eastern families. Their situation is not better than us and in certain cases, their situation is definitely worse. But we do not follow them. They are not our role model. We have a lot of shortcomings in our family environments. Addressing these shortcomings requires a legal guarantee for implementation and this is something that has to be done. This is one of the areas in which very little work has been done in the country and it is necessary to do something about it. There is no shortage of Islamic texts and sources in this area. Sometimes we see certain people criticizing Islamic thought and finding fault with Islamic rules such as those related to inheritance, blood money and other such things. This is while these criticisms are misplaced. There are logical and firm answers for these criticisms. However, we, unfortunately, fail to pay enough attention to behaviors in the family environment. This is while Islam has absolutely clear views in this regard. The family environment must be a safe, dignified and peaceful environment for women so that they can fulfill their essential duty of protecting the family in the best possible way.

Leader: Hijab Challenges Western Policy of Exploiting Women

Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution met this morning with hundreds of prominent Iranian women. Speaking at the meeting, which was held on the eve of the birthday anniversary of Hazrat Fatima al-Zahra (s.a.), Ayatollah Khamenei said that clear opposition to hijab in the west is one of the consequences of the western view of women, further adding: "Westerners claim that hijab is a religious issue and that it should not appear in secular communities, but the real reason behind the opposition of the west to hijab is that hijab challenges and thwarts the fundamental policy of the west regarding women - namely, exploiting women and promoting moral corruption among them."

The greatest insult the western culture made to the woman is sexualization and objectification

If a woman is determined to distinguish herself in western societies, she has no choice but to make use of her sexual appeal. Even in formal meetings women should dress in a way to appear pleasing to their beneficiaries - namely, men. I believe this is the greatest blow, the biggest insult and the greatest injustice as far as women are concerned. Unfortunately there is a cultural norm in western culture according to which women are considered the giver and men are considered the taker. Other societies followed the west and made efforts on its path. And this norm has been established in the world. If somebody says something that goes against this norm, they create uproar against him. For example, if in a society women are prohibited from wearing make-up in public places, they will create uproar. But there will be no uproar in the world if the opposite is done - that is to say, if immodesty is promoted among women in a society. When a society promotes modesty and discourages make-up among women, dominant propaganda machines of the world create uproar about it. This shows that there is a culture, a policy, a strategy that has been followed for many years in order to consolidate this wrong and insulting position for women. And unfortunately this has already happened.

What are the hidden reasons behind the western governments' opposition to hijab?

In the west they are gradually voicing their opposition to hijab in an open way. They say that hijab is the symbol of a religious movement and that they do not want religious symbols to be promoted in their secular societies. These are the reasons that they present for this opposition. I believe what their claims are a lie. It is not a matter of religion. The problem is that the fundamental policy of the west is to promote moral corruption among women and to exploit them, and hijab works against this policy. Even if hijab is not motivated by religious faith, they oppose it. This is the main problem. This issue has resulted in serious consequences for different communities: the break-up of the family and shocking statistics about women trafficking. According to a report that has been published globally - I think the report has been published by the UN - women trafficking is among the trades that are growing fastest in the world. There are a few countries which are worst in this regard and the Zionist regime is among them. Under the guise of labor, marriage and other such things, they collect women and girls from poor countries in Latin America, certain Asian countries and certain poor European countries and they deliver them to certain centers, centers whose names and activities would shock people. All of these things are the result of the misconception about women, the result of the oppressive inequation about women's position in society. The issue of illegitimate children - which is most common in America - and the issue of cohabitation are in fact destroying the warm family environment and its blessings. They are depriving humanity of these blessings. These issues are the consequences of the first problem that I spoke about. It is necessary to do something in this regard. It is necessary to define the position of women and to stand up against the propaganda of the west in a serious way.

Speeches

Leader’s Speech to Prominent Iranian Women

The following is the full text of the speech delivered on May 22, 2011 by Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution in a meeting with a group of prominent Iranian women in Tehran.

Leader’s View of Islamic Awakening

Leader Urges Development of Islamic Theory on Justice

Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution attended the 2nd Forum on Strategic Thoughts this morning. Speaking at the meeting, which lasted for about four hours, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution stressed the need for serious efforts to formulate a pure Islamic theory on justice.

Leader’s Speech at "Strategic Thoughts" Forum

Leader: Even Enemies Acknowledge Iran’s Power

In a meeting with a group of ordinary citizens, families of martyrs, religious scholars and government officials of Kurdistan province, Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said that the enemies acknowledge the power and glory of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the region. He reiterated: "Since the first day after the victory of the Islamic Revolution, the propaganda empire of the enemy broadcast as much propaganda against the Islamic Republic as it could, but the Islamic Republic foiled these plots by moving on the path of progress."

Leader’s Speech to Teachers

Leader: Awakening to Continue into Heart of Europe

Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of Islamic Revolution met this morning with thousands of teachers from across the country. Speaking during the meeting, which was held in Tehran on the occasion of Teachers' Day, Ayatollah Khamenei said that the current wave of awakening in West Asia and North Africa is the continuation of the movement started by the Iranian nation. He stressed: "This wave of awakening will definitely continue into the heart of Europe, and European nations will rise up against their politicians and leaders who have totally subjugated them to cultural and economic policies of America and the Zionists."

Leader Warns Against Encouraging Enemies

In a meeting with mayors and a number of other government officials from across the country, Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said that it is necessary to avoid any action which would upset friends and encourage enemies to cause uproar.

Leader: Progress Is Destiny of Iranian Nation

In a meeting with thousands of laborers from across the country on the eve of International Labor Day, Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said this morning that progress is the definite destiny of the Iranian nation.

Leader’s Speech to Laborers

Leader Meets Police Officials

Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution met this afternoon with the Interior Minister and a group of police officials and commanders. Speaking at the meeting, His Eminence said that one of the most important duties of the police force is to establish moral and psychological security in society.

Leader: Leader Intervenes Only When Important National Interests Ignored

Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution met this morning with thousands of people from Fars province. Speaking at the meeting, His Eminence referred to the recent developments in the Ministry of Intelligence and reiterated: "The Leader will step in whenever he feels an important [national] interest has been ignored."

Leader’s Speech to People of Fars Province

The Leader’s View of the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.)

Leader Meets Army Commanders

Ayatollah Khamenei the Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Armed Forces met today with a group of Army commanders. Speaking during the meeting, which had been arranged on the occasion of Army Day, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution expressed his gratitude for the efforts made by the Islamic Republic of Iran's Army.

The Leader’s View of Nuclear Energy

Leader’s Speech to Cultural and Political Figures

Leader's Speech in Meeting with President Ahmadinejad, Cabinet Members and Majlis Presiding

Leader: Regional Movement Inspired by Iranian Nation

Leader’s Speech in Asalouyeh

Leader Condemns Strike on Libya

Addressing a large gathering of people in the holy city of Mashhad on the first day of the Iranian new year, Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution referred to the recent developments in Libya and said that Iran utterly condemns both the killings by the Libyan regime and the western strike on Libya.