AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): In meeting with the head and members of the Assembly of Experts, Imam Khamenei argued that the leaders of liberal democracy have been dominating the world for decades and and the religion of Islam naturally stands against such domination. This meeting was held on February 23, 2023 in the Imam Khomeini Hussainiyah.
Imam Khamenei, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, said “political” and “essential” reasons are behind the widespread enmities toward the Islamic Republic. Clarifying his point, the Leader said certain enmities toward the Islamic Republic are related to political issues, such as its positions on issues such as Palestine.
But the main reason behind the enmities, he said, is the nature of the Islamic government, because it opposes those who believe in the Western prescription, which is against any kind of religious presence in social affairs, or opposes the leaders of liberal democracy, who have devised a plot to dominate over and plunder the world’s resources, hiding behind the banner of freedom and democracy.
The Islamic Republic, according to the Leader, has disrupted such a plot by uniting “democracy” and “religion”.
During the meeting, Imam Khamenei congratulated the Assembly on the beginning of the month of Sha’ban and the Sha’ban holidays. He described the Assembly of Experts as a true symbol of the combination of republic and Islam. “This assembly is elected by the people in light of the completely legitimate implementation of democracy, while being composed of religious scholars, showing the religious essence of the system,” the Leader stated.
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution considered the position, importance and sensitivity of the Assembly of Experts to be above any other center or organization in the country. “This assembly determines the leadership [of the country] and with vigilance, it guarantees the existence and continuity of the leadership conditions."
Imam Khamenei considered the Assembly of Experts’ endeavors in dealing with various issues in the country as a correct matter and a demand of the leadership. He added that the most important issue is to pay serious attention to the internal and external duties of the members of the Assembly of Experts.
The Leader of the Revolution considered it important for the investigative committee of the Assembly of Experts to continue to handle and take care of "maintaining the conditions of leadership and performing the duties stipulated in the constitution and other definitive duties of leadership." He added that the most important duty of the [country’s] Leader is to monitor and maintain the overall movement and to make sure that the system’s important sectors are moving in line with the Revolution so that a deviation does not arise from the main path and that the Islamic Revolution does not deviate like the other revolutions.
Imam Khamenei stated that the secondary position of the Assembly of Experts is a “scholarly position”. He described the Islamic Republic’s strong popular support and the relationship and reliance of the people and the system on each other as a national asset, and a reality that cannot be hidden and something that is unique in the world or rare, to say the least. "We saw manifestations of this during the coronavirus pandemic or the aid provided by the people to help the victims of natural disasters."
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution described this year’s walk for the 22nd of Bahman as being another manifestation of the people's strong support of the Islamic Republic. “Where in the world will you find such a huge gathering for a political cause where people have participated for over forty years in a row, often in difficult weather conditions in such a scope, with such diversity and different tastes, from old hunched men, to young teenagers?”
Imam Khamenei noted that such great, anti-threat wealth, namely the strong popular support, is essential for the Islamic Republic. “Scholars, regardless of whether or not they have a governmental responsibility, have heavy duties to protect this huge capital, the most important of which is the jihad of clarification.”
In the final part of his speech, he underscored the necessity of creating hope to counter the continuous policy of the enemy, which he said was “creating despair”. Referring to a letter written by a political group in 1369 (1990-1991) to one of the country’s officials, he said: “One year after the demise of the honorable Imam, that group in an open and discouraging letter wrote that the country and the nation have reached the brink of collapse and destruction.”
“Those who themselves and their personalities are subject to collapse and destruction see everything from this angle, but on the other hand, those who have hearts and minds full of hope, look at issues and developments with hope,” the Leader added.
At the beginning of the meeting, Hujjatul Islam wal-Muslimin Raeisi, the vice chairman of the Assembly of Experts, presented a report on the three working sections of the 11th official meeting of the assembly.
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