Freedom Movement of Iran
Encyclopedia
The Freedom Movement of Iran (FMI, also Liberation Movement of Iran (LMI), , Nehzat-e Azadi-e Iran) is an Iran
ian political organization which was founded in 1961 by Mehdi Bazargan
, Mahmoud Taleghani
, Yadollah Sahabi
, Mostafa Chamran
, Ali Shariati
, Sadegh Ghotbzadeh
and some other political or religious figures. Despite being outlawed by the prevailing regime in Iran, the group continues to exist. The group's current leader is Abdolali Bazargan
elected in 24 March 2011. LMI is one of the major parties in The Alliance of Nationalist-Religious Activists of Iran ("Etelaf-e Nirouhaye Melli Mazhabi-e Iran"). Musa al-Sadr
was also a close associate of the movement and of its founding members.
from April 1951 to August 1953 (with a very brief interruption in July 1952). That coup brought down Mossadegh and his colleagues from power and reinstalled the Shah as the dominant force in Iranian politics. The newly installed regime quickly rounded up Mossadegh's closest supporters, outlawing freedom of expression and brutally cracking down on free political activity. Mossadegh himself was placed before a military court and sentenced to three years in prison. Under these unfavorable conditions, a group of low-ranking leaders from the Mossadegh era quickly formed an underground organization calling itself the National Resistance Movement
(NRM). It is significant in the context of the LMI's history because this reincarnation of the National Front
(the umbrella group for Mossadegh's supporters) was constituted mainly of religious laymen, which differentiated it from the secular members of the banned National Front, including Mossadegh himself. The NRM campaigned for the 1954 Majlis
to be free and fair (they were not) and attempted to restore the constitutional monarchy
(which also did not occur). Failing to achieve its aims and facing the power repressive apparatus of the Shah's regime, the group disbanded in the mid-1950s.
, the regime cracked down on dissent. In June 1963, a massive uprising occurred in five Iranian cities over the arrest of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
, a radical cleric who had been making inflammatory statements concerning the regime of the Shah and his allegedly anti-Islamic policies. Faced with this, the regime sent in the army infantry and tanks to crush the riots, which resulted in at least hundreds (some believe thousands) of deaths. Because the LMI had supported the uprising, their group was singled out for harassment and made to disappear by the mid-1960s. But, in 1964, the LMI (along with other parties) helped to form (with Mossadegh's blessings) the Third National Front which, like the LMI, took a more active and radical stance toward the Shah's regime compared to that of the more cautious Second National Front. By 1965, all legal forms of dissidence had been done away with, leaving armed violence as the only means of inflicting some sort of damage on the regime.
and Europe
. The seemingly omnipresent nature of SAVAK
(the Shah's secret police force, allegedly responsible for executing, imprisoning and torturing tens of thousands of political inmates) and the stifling police state atmosphere discouraged any sort of major activity inside Iran proper. Until the mid-70s, those Iranians who had actively opposed the Shah had been mainly of left-wing or liberal background, with the former dominating by far. But beginning in that decade, thanks partly to the LMI, the religious elements (including the mullahs) began to dominate the movement. They were able to do this because the Islamic movement had a network of over 9,000 mosques, 180,000 mullahs and millions of pious followers in Iran and it could freely operate, unlike the left-wing elements who were mercilessly crushed by SAVAK, the police and the regime's military apparatus. In Jan. 1978, the pro-regime newspaper Ettelaat published an article accusing Khomeini of being, among other things, a reactionary and British agent. This led to an uprising in the holy city of Qom
and the uprising soon spread to Tabriz
, Tehran
and other major cities. By the end of 1978, the regime of the Shah (once touted as possessing the fifth largest military force on Earth) had all but collapsed under the weight of massive uprisings and workers' strikes. In response to the Shah's appointment of Shapour Bakhtiar
as prime minister, Khomeini appointed Mehdi Bazargan as head of the provisional government (which was not yet in power). On Feb. 11 1979, the regime fell and what became known as the Islamic Republic of Iran took its place.
in which allegedly more than 98% voted for this system. The Provisional Government took office on Feb. 12, right after the former regime fell, but it quickly became apparent that this government lacked any real power, which was instead concentrated in the Islamic Revolutionary Council (which was dominated by hard-line religious fundamentalists) and the local Islamic Komitehs (committees) which were executing thousands of Iranians, mainly those who had ties to the Shah's regime. The PG was composed mainly of elements from the LMI (including Bazargan, Taleghani, Sahabi, Yazdi, Nazih and Bani-Sadr), but also included a few leaders of the National Front (Sanjabi
, Ardalan, Forouhar
). This period expressed the height of the LMI's influence over Iranian politics, but it was not to last. By Aug. 1979, the new regime was clamping down on dissent, outlawing nearly all political parties and instituting a campaign of terror against its critics. The Bazargan cabinet resigned en masse on Nov. 5 1979 and thus ended the Interim Government of Iran. The Islamic regime (led by Ayatollah Khomeini) crushed all dissent in the country so that the oppositionists, both real and potential, either fled abroad or were murdered or imprisoned. But the LMI continued to exist as a barely tolerated force in the Majlis, where it called for an early end to the war with Iraq
in 1984 (the war had started in Sept. 1980 when Iraq
i forces, under the orders of President Saddam Hussein
, invaded Iran).
In 1995, Bazargan died (of natural causes) and Ibrahim Yazdi took over as leader of the organization. The group continued to exist as a tolerated party until the regime cracked down on it in the year 2000, arresting and placing on trial dozens of activists belonging to the group. As of now, the LMI's prospects are bleak as the Supreme leaders'regime does not allow it to operate freely.
In 2011, Ebrahim Yazdi
resigned as leader of party to end his 16 years leadership and was succeeded by Abdolali Bazargan
.
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian political organization which was founded in 1961 by Mehdi Bazargan
Mehdi Bazargan
Mehdi Bazargan was a prominent Iranian scholar, academic, long-time pro-democracy activist and head of Iran's interim government, making him Iran's first prime minister after the Iranian Revolution of 1979. He was the head of the first engineering department of Tehran University...
, Mahmoud Taleghani
Mahmoud Taleghani
Ayatollah Mahmoud Taleghani was an Iranian theologian, humanist, Muslim reformer, democracy advocate and a senior Shi'a cleric of Iran. Taleghani was a contemporary of the Iranian Revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and a leader in his own right of Iran's Shi'a resistance movement...
, Yadollah Sahabi
Yadollah Sahabi
Yadollah Sahabi was a prominent Iranian scholar, writer, reformist and politician. A close associate of Mohammad Mosaddegh and Mehdi Bazargan, Sahabi was an active campaigner for the nationalisation of the Iranian oil industry in the 1950s. He was the father of Ezzatollah Sahabi.Sahabi studied at...
, Mostafa Chamran
Mostafa Chamran
Mostafa Chamran Savei was an Iranian scientist who served as first Defence Minister of post-revolutionary Iran and as member of parliament, as well as commander of paramilitary volunteers in Iran–Iraq War. He was killed during the war...
, Ali Shariati
Ali Shariati
Ali Shariati was an Iranian revolutionary and sociologist, who focused on the sociology of religion. He is held as one of the most influential Iranian intellectuals of the 20th century and has been called the 'ideologue of the Iranian Revolution'.-Biography:Ali....
, Sadegh Ghotbzadeh
Sadegh Ghotbzadeh
Sadegh Ghotbzadeh was a close aide of Ayatollah Khomeini during his 1978 exile in France, and Iranian Foreign Minister during the Iran hostage crisis following the Iranian Revolution...
and some other political or religious figures. Despite being outlawed by the prevailing regime in Iran, the group continues to exist. The group's current leader is Abdolali Bazargan
Abdolali Bazargan
Abdolali Bazargan is an Iranian liberal politician, writer and intellectual who is current leader of Freedom Movement of Iran. He is one of five major figures in the Green Movement to author a manifesto calling for the resignation of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.-Early life:He was born on...
elected in 24 March 2011. LMI is one of the major parties in The Alliance of Nationalist-Religious Activists of Iran ("Etelaf-e Nirouhaye Melli Mazhabi-e Iran"). Musa al-Sadr
Musa al-Sadr
For the Twelver Shī‘ah Imām, see Mūsá al-KāżimMūsá aṣ-Ṣadr , also Musā-ye Sader and Moussa Sadr), was an Iranian-Lebanese philosopher and Shī‘ah religious leader who disappeared in August 1978...
was also a close associate of the movement and of its founding members.
1953 Coup D'etat and aftermath
The group's origins go back to the early 1950s right after the 1953 coup d'état against the government of Dr. Mohammad Mossadeq, who was Prime Minister of IranPrime Minister of Iran
Prime Minister of Iran was a political post in Iran that had existed during several different periods of time starting with the Qajar era until its most recent revival from 1979 to 1989 following the Iranian Revolution.-Prime Ministers of Qajar era:In the Qajar era, prime ministers were known by...
from April 1951 to August 1953 (with a very brief interruption in July 1952). That coup brought down Mossadegh and his colleagues from power and reinstalled the Shah as the dominant force in Iranian politics. The newly installed regime quickly rounded up Mossadegh's closest supporters, outlawing freedom of expression and brutally cracking down on free political activity. Mossadegh himself was placed before a military court and sentenced to three years in prison. Under these unfavorable conditions, a group of low-ranking leaders from the Mossadegh era quickly formed an underground organization calling itself the National Resistance Movement
National Resistance Movement of Iran
The National Movement of Iranian Resistance was founded in the early 1980s by Shapour Bakhtiar, the last prime minister of Iran under the Monarchy before it was overthrown in the February 1979 revolution. Even though he was an opponent to the Shah, he assumed the post of prime minister "to save...
(NRM). It is significant in the context of the LMI's history because this reincarnation of the National Front
National Front (Iran)
The National Front of Iran or Jebhe Melli is a Democratic, political opposition group founded by Mohammad Mossadegh and other secular Iranian leaders of Nationalist, Liberal, and Social-Democratic political orientation who had been educated in France in the late 1940s...
(the umbrella group for Mossadegh's supporters) was constituted mainly of religious laymen, which differentiated it from the secular members of the banned National Front, including Mossadegh himself. The NRM campaigned for the 1954 Majlis
Majlis
' , is an Arabic term meaning "a place of sitting", used in the context of "council", to describe various types of special gatherings among common interest groups be it administrative, social or religious in countries with linguistic or cultural connections to Islamic countries...
to be free and fair (they were not) and attempted to restore the constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution, whether it be a written, uncodified or blended constitution...
(which also did not occur). Failing to achieve its aims and facing the power repressive apparatus of the Shah's regime, the group disbanded in the mid-1950s.
Early 1960s: the creation of the Freedom Movement
But in 1960, the Second National Front was formed, which mostly involved figures from the early 1950s during Mossadegh's time in office. But in 1961, Mehdi Bazargan, Mahmud Taleghani, Yadollah Sahabi (all prominent liberals) broke away to form a more religious (and radical) counterpart to the National Front. This new group quickly gained a large following exceeding that of their rival and its leaders advocated civil disobedience such as protests, sit-ins and strikes as a way of pressuring the Shah to reinstitute democratic rule. But, after a brief period of reform under Prime Minister Ali AminiAli Amini
Ali Amini was an Iranian politician and writer who was the Prime Minister of Iran from May 6, 1961 to July 19, 1962.-Early life:...
, the regime cracked down on dissent. In June 1963, a massive uprising occurred in five Iranian cities over the arrest of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
Ruhollah Khomeini
Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini was an Iranian religious leader and politician, and leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution which saw the overthrow of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran...
, a radical cleric who had been making inflammatory statements concerning the regime of the Shah and his allegedly anti-Islamic policies. Faced with this, the regime sent in the army infantry and tanks to crush the riots, which resulted in at least hundreds (some believe thousands) of deaths. Because the LMI had supported the uprising, their group was singled out for harassment and made to disappear by the mid-1960s. But, in 1964, the LMI (along with other parties) helped to form (with Mossadegh's blessings) the Third National Front which, like the LMI, took a more active and radical stance toward the Shah's regime compared to that of the more cautious Second National Front. By 1965, all legal forms of dissidence had been done away with, leaving armed violence as the only means of inflicting some sort of damage on the regime.
Events leading to the Islamic Revolution (1965-1979)
Throughout the 1960s and 70s, the LMI operated mostly outside in the country, mainly in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. The seemingly omnipresent nature of SAVAK
SAVAK
SAVAK was the secret police, domestic security and intelligence service established by Iran's Mohammad Reza Shah on the recommendation of the British Government and with the help of the United States' Central Intelligence Agency SAVAK (Persian: ساواک, short for سازمان اطلاعات و امنیت کشور...
(the Shah's secret police force, allegedly responsible for executing, imprisoning and torturing tens of thousands of political inmates) and the stifling police state atmosphere discouraged any sort of major activity inside Iran proper. Until the mid-70s, those Iranians who had actively opposed the Shah had been mainly of left-wing or liberal background, with the former dominating by far. But beginning in that decade, thanks partly to the LMI, the religious elements (including the mullahs) began to dominate the movement. They were able to do this because the Islamic movement had a network of over 9,000 mosques, 180,000 mullahs and millions of pious followers in Iran and it could freely operate, unlike the left-wing elements who were mercilessly crushed by SAVAK, the police and the regime's military apparatus. In Jan. 1978, the pro-regime newspaper Ettelaat published an article accusing Khomeini of being, among other things, a reactionary and British agent. This led to an uprising in the holy city of Qom
Qom
Qom is a city in Iran. It lies by road southwest of Tehran and is the capital of Qom Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 957,496, in 241,827 families. It is situated on the banks of the Qom River....
and the uprising soon spread to Tabriz
Tabriz
Tabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former...
, Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
and other major cities. By the end of 1978, the regime of the Shah (once touted as possessing the fifth largest military force on Earth) had all but collapsed under the weight of massive uprisings and workers' strikes. In response to the Shah's appointment of Shapour Bakhtiar
Shapour Bakhtiar
Shapour Bakhtiar was an Iranian political scientist, writer and the last Prime Minister of Iran under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi...
as prime minister, Khomeini appointed Mehdi Bazargan as head of the provisional government (which was not yet in power). On Feb. 11 1979, the regime fell and what became known as the Islamic Republic of Iran took its place.
Islamic Republic of Iran (1979-Present)
The Islamic Republic of Iran was proclaimed on April 1, 1979 after the results of a referendumIranian Islamic Republic referendum, March 1979
A referendum on creating an Islamic Republic was held in Iran on 30 and 31 March 1979. It was approved by 99.3% of voters.-Results:...
in which allegedly more than 98% voted for this system. The Provisional Government took office on Feb. 12, right after the former regime fell, but it quickly became apparent that this government lacked any real power, which was instead concentrated in the Islamic Revolutionary Council (which was dominated by hard-line religious fundamentalists) and the local Islamic Komitehs (committees) which were executing thousands of Iranians, mainly those who had ties to the Shah's regime. The PG was composed mainly of elements from the LMI (including Bazargan, Taleghani, Sahabi, Yazdi, Nazih and Bani-Sadr), but also included a few leaders of the National Front (Sanjabi
Karim Sanjabi
Karim Sanjabi was an Iranian liberal political leader of the 20th century. He was born in Kermanshah, Iran.-Early life:...
, Ardalan, Forouhar
Dariush Forouhar
Dariush Forouhar was a founder and leader of the Hezb-e Mellat-e Iran , a pan-Iranist opposition party in Iran and served as Minister of Labor in the Provisional Revolutionary Government of Mehdi Bazargan in 1979...
). This period expressed the height of the LMI's influence over Iranian politics, but it was not to last. By Aug. 1979, the new regime was clamping down on dissent, outlawing nearly all political parties and instituting a campaign of terror against its critics. The Bazargan cabinet resigned en masse on Nov. 5 1979 and thus ended the Interim Government of Iran. The Islamic regime (led by Ayatollah Khomeini) crushed all dissent in the country so that the oppositionists, both real and potential, either fled abroad or were murdered or imprisoned. But the LMI continued to exist as a barely tolerated force in the Majlis, where it called for an early end to the war with Iraq
Iran-Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...
in 1984 (the war had started in Sept. 1980 when Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
i forces, under the orders of President Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
, invaded Iran).
In 1995, Bazargan died (of natural causes) and Ibrahim Yazdi took over as leader of the organization. The group continued to exist as a tolerated party until the regime cracked down on it in the year 2000, arresting and placing on trial dozens of activists belonging to the group. As of now, the LMI's prospects are bleak as the Supreme leaders'regime does not allow it to operate freely.
In 2011, Ebrahim Yazdi
Ebrahim Yazdi
Ebrahim Yazdi is an Iranian politician and diplomat who served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs in the interim government of Mehdi Bazargan, until his resignation in November 1979, in protest to the Iran hostage crisis...
resigned as leader of party to end his 16 years leadership and was succeeded by Abdolali Bazargan
Abdolali Bazargan
Abdolali Bazargan is an Iranian liberal politician, writer and intellectual who is current leader of Freedom Movement of Iran. He is one of five major figures in the Green Movement to author a manifesto calling for the resignation of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.-Early life:He was born on...
.
External links
Sources
- Chehabi, H.E., Iranian Politics and Religious Modernism: The Liberation Movement of Iran Under the Shah and Khomeini, Cornell University Press, October 1990
- Abrahamian, Ervand, Iran Between Two Revolutions,Princeton University Press, July 1982.
- Siavoshi, Sussan, Liberal Nationalism in Iran: The Failure of a Movement, Westview Press, March 1990.