All appeals to nationalist sentiment among the masses remain without an echo
By Bahman Nirumand
December 8, 2009
Source:
Once again the Iranian opposition showed on Monday that it is not willing to give up the resistance against the clerical dictatorship. Thousands of arrests, torture and rape in prisons, which has claimed so far seventy-nine deaths caused by the long prison sentences, many show trials and forced confessions; the whole apparatus of repression has had its effect. The critics however cannot be intimidated.
The regime in Tehran has largely lost its base. All propaganda attempts to attacks “foreign enemies”, appealing to so-called nationalist sentiment among the masses remain without response. The balance of power in the Islamic state, which so far despite the rivalries and conflicting opinions always acted consistently against “internal and external enemies”, no longer works. Not only the reformers have long since turned away from the governance, also formed in the conservative camp, a new front against the Ahmadinejad administration and especially against the supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Economically is worse for the disaster. Iran is a potentially rich country with high foreign exchange revenue from the sale of gas and oil, however according to official figures, 50 percent of the residents are on the edge of poverty or below. The unemployment rate is high and rampant inflation is at 27 percent of young people are without jobs and a lack of future prospects.
Iran is moving on a very dangerous course where foreign policy is concerned. After the rejection of the compromise proposal of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to process low-enriched uranium to atomic fuel in Russia and France respectively, we are seeing an escalation of the conflict. The U.S. and its Western allies have threatened tough sanctions, not withstanding military attack, and now even recently, China and Russia can no longer be relied upon.
Given this situation, from the perspective of the Tehran regime, the use of violence seems to be the only way out. But a regime that has come through a popular uprising in the power and relies on faith, can not exist without the loyalty of the masses of the faithful; as such its days are numbered.
Translated from German to English by Planet Iran staff
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