Behind the Headlines/January 21

In tonight’s program;

Forty years after the Islamic Revolution we will ask our guests if any one of its slogans have materialised;

Some still argue that the clerics have betrayed the objectives of the revolution, but the question still remains if a religious regime could have ever delivered them in this day and age?

Our guests to discuss these issues are Bahram Moshiri and Mehdi Khazali.

Mehdi Khazali:

The answers to your questions depend on who you are putting them to. If it is the ayatollah Yazdi he would tell you that under this regime Iran has progressed 400 years!!

He would say that because people like him have turned into super rich by confiscating major industries for themselves and members of their family and squandered the wealth of the nation.

However, the real objectives of the revolution were liberty and independence, none of which have been achieved.

We must not put the miseries of our nation into the account of Islam though.

Bahram Moshiri:

We must not think of progress mainly as materialistic achievements as the previous regime had provided them.

Sadly even under the previous regime we did not really provide any freedom for Iranians either.

And it was due to this lack of freedoms and knowledge by the people who went for the clerics and we went from bad to worse.

I disagree with Mr Khazali who thinks religions have nothing to do with the despotic systems that we have in the Muslim countries.

They are all hampering the efforts of the secular and educated social forces who want to bring democracy and the rule of law to their countries.