Student’s Day (December 7)
Universities have been the cradle of freedom in Iranian history and despite suppression by the Shah’s Intelligence Unit and Special Guards Forces and despite the Cultural Revolution under Khomeini’s reign, the pro-democracy and freedom loving forces in the university were never silenced.
Three martyrs Students
After students protested in the dark years of the coup against Dr. Mohammad Mosadeq, three students (Shariat Razavi, Qandchi and Bozorgnia) were shot and killed by the Shah’s forces in a protest in Tehran University. From that year on, this event was like a torch which led the way for freedom loving students who lived under the Shah or under the religious dictatorship in Iran.
Next big event in universities
The next big event in universities in Iran occurred in April 18, 1980 when the bloody violent attacks of the mercenaries of the religious dictatorship in Iran started against universities which led to the closure of all universities in Iran from 1980 to 1982 under the name of the ‘Cultural Revolution’.
After universities were opened in 1982, 45 percent of the shares of universities were given to the pro-regime forces including Bassijis and others who worked for the government. In addition to placement exam, students also had to pass inquisition style exams to be admitted in universities.
In the last year of the presidency of Khatami, students in Tehran University disrupted his speech in this university and he showed his true face and cried out to the students that ‘if you are the supporters of the people, I am the enemy of the people!”
Khatami later violently suppressed a pro-democracy uprising by students in Tehran in July 1999.
In December 2006, students tore and burned Ahmadinejad’s pictures in front of him when he was giving a speech in Amir Kabir (Polytechnic) University.
In 2009, freedom loving students broke the 30 year old chains of the mullahs over universities. They broke down the gates of Tehran University and joined the people who were waiting for them outside the gates. They joined hands with them crying out for freedom and the first sparks for justice were once again made by students in the universities which inflamed the protests of the post-election uprising.
When students entered the scene, the slogans changed to the ultimate cry of the Iranian people which was ‘death to the principle of the Supreme Leadership’. This movement which was led by pro-democracy university students was a turning point in the Iranian uprising.
This movement spanned across most cities in Iran and brought the Iranian regime to its knees. The secret to the success of this uprising was sacrifice and perseverance.
The Iranian regime knows that it cannot deceive a society that has at least 4.5 million students. That is why in the course of the 30 year reign of the Iranian regime, the clerical dictators have aimed their animosity towards students and academics. Khomeini saw the university as the only bastion he had not been able to capture.
“All corruption comes from universities”, he said in one of his speeches.
That is why, under orders of Khomeini, all universities and institutions of higher education were violently closed down in 1980.
On April 21, 1980, Khomeini said in a speech, “We are not afraid of an economical blockade, we are not afraid of military intervention. We are afraid of a colonialist university”.
“Our universities are colonialist… Our universities are not good for the people. I support the decision by the Revolution Council and the president on purging universities”.
“In the past half century, universities have had the most lethal impact on Iran and Islam”, he wrote in his will.
Currently, the clerical dictatorship, which has been extremely weakened, has closed down the Iran Medical Science University in Tehran under the pretext of ‘improving the education level of students’. The Iranian regime has realized that students and other sectors of the society have lost their patience as a result of all the injustice. As pioneers of the society, university students will definitely be the first to protest therefore, the regime carries out suppressive measures, such as closing down universities. In this way it wants to decrease the number of educational institutions to increase the concentration of its forces in the remaining universities.
Some time ago, the Ministry of Higher Education said that ‘universities that do not support the leadership will be leveled to the ground’!
Officials have alleviated the pressures of sanctions on themselves by lowering the expenses of the society and have put the pressure on students and other sectors of the society. A clear example of this is the closure of the Iran Medical Science University which had a 35 year history as a medical university.
According to reports, the Beheshti Medical Science University and a number of other universities will also soon be closed under these illogical excuses. In this way, because of the explosive atmosphere of the society, the Iranian regime suppresses the open minded sector of the society and cuts the number of universities and students. This is all while the schools of Tehran University have announced that they are not willing to accept the students who went to the closed medical university.
But the pro-democracy students are not willing to bow down to force and pressure and will protest against all these suppressive measures on Student’s Day.
The history of universities under the clerical leadership has been entwined with suppression, killings, beatings, purges, and the expulsions of students, professors and academics.
But above all odds, they have not been able to overpower students and they have stood up and said ‘NO’ to the dictators in the past 30 years.
Students Committee in Iran (Supporters of PMOI)
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