Introduction
Iran’s Islamic Revolution, known as the last revolution of the twentieth century, is undoubtedly a remarkable and historical event among a series of events and political and social developments of the contemporary era. An event that not only led to the overthrow of the millennial monarchy in Iran but also it marked the beginning of a new era of the re-emergence of Islam as the starting point for the rise of Islamic Awakening in modern times. This Revolution differs from other religious awakening movements in the past in that Iran’s Islamic Revolution under the leadership of Imam Khomeini and by spreading political Islam and confronting the ideologies of the world’s secular systems was able to guide many Muslims in the world towards the path of regaining their Islamic identity thereby introducing this identity as an accepted reality as opposed to the universal identity of the West.
In this regard, the author in this article intends to first address the contributions of the Islamic Revolution towards governing this type of view in the world and then by dividing Islamic societies into five important regions, the article will study the reflection of the Islamic Revolution in the Islamic world.
a) Iran’s Successes in the Field of Religious Awakening: Under Imam Khomeini’s leadership and following the above ideas, Iranian Muslims were able to achieve success in a country like Iran, which was ruled by an internal tyranny and foreign colonialism. Furthermore, after the triumph of Iran’s Islamic Revolution, the revolutionaries, based on the universal Islamic ideology, aimed to revive the Islamic identity, fight nationalism and establish unity in the Islamic world.
In this regard, the officials of the Revolution believed that the interests of the Islamic Ummah would only be achieved through adopting this policy. Therefore, issues such as exporting the Revolution and the spread of Islamic values were considered a threat to the world system and the interests of the superpowers and their conflicting interests with that of Iran led the enemies of the Revolution, to take a stance against the new developments under the banner of Islamic fundamentalism considering the situation as a threat to their interests. They came to the conclusion that they should suppress political Islamists. That is why by supporting secular regimes in the Middle East, the United States has launched widespread propaganda that Islamists are violent and anti-Western in order to prevent the spread of Shi’ah political Islam in the region and the world. However, despite the supportive measures taken by some Islamic authoritarian governments of foreign powers, this Revolution has brought success in the field of religious awakening, the most important of which are:
1) Reviving Islam as a Comprehensive and Universal School
2) Confronting the Prevailing Ideologies and Presenting the Discourse of Political Islam at an International Level
B) Studying the Impacts of the Islamic Revolution on Islamic Societies: Iran’s Islamic Revolution, as the starting point of the Islamic Awakening Movement in the second half of the twentieth century, promises to the Islamic world the beginning of a new era of the emergence of Islam with a political approach. The success of the most prominent Islamic Movement in this era inspired other Islamic movements in the Islamic world.
It is important to note that the Islamic Revolution has not had the same impacts on all Islamic societies; Rather, depending on the specific situation of each region and the intellectual, cultural and geographical closeness, the degree of its impact has been different. The more Iranian nation has shared with other nations in achieving the revolutionary goals, the more widely this Revolution was welcomed. In this regard, we will examine the impact of the Revolution in different countries. To move this discussion forward, we have divided these areas into five main types in order to address the role of Iran’s Islamic Revolution in the awakening of the Islamic world.
1) Southeast Asia
1.1) Malaysia and Indonesia: In Indonesia and Malaysia, due to the existence of a religiously pluralistic society, the Islamic revival movements are active and at the same time with the Islamic Revolution, the Islamic revival movement was accelerating in this region and Muslims, whether being minorities or majorities in their countries, have become more aware of their identity. For this reason, according to many thinkers who study contemporary Islam in Malaysia and Indonesia, the general consensus is that the Iranian Revolution had a significant impact on elements affiliated with religion in these countries.
For the Muslims, Iran’s Islamic Revolution was considered a source of inspiration rather than a social and repeatable pattern, and it revived the power of the Islamic Revolution in these societies. The reflection of the Revolution in these countries had two aspects: On the one hand, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution and its media coverage strengthened the sense of religious identity among Muslims and accelerated the process of political revival of Islam in these societies; Because efforts of Iranian Muslims to overthrow the anti-religious government have had a positive effect on them, and that is why with the formation of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, some observers and commentators of Islamic events have predicted that countries like Malaysia and Indonesia could become another Iran. On the other hand, the Iranian Revolution has strengthened the power of Malaysian and Indonesian governments in justifying the monitoring and suppressing Islamist opposition movements, and they have made accusations such as radical Islam in order to discredit any Islamic opposition and sought to intensify the monitoring of activities of those Islamic forces which they considered as being harmful to government policy. Therefore, the governments of these two countries tried to control them by combining a set of selections, threats, increasing religious ceremonies and speeches, and the intensification of monitoring religious activities.
At the same time, they have tried to deal cautiously with the Islamic Revolution, and although at times they have been forced to reform and moderate their policy in favour of Muslims due to domestic and foreign considerations, they have always tried to maintain official political relations with Iran in various ways and prevent the spread and deepening of the message of the Islamic Revolution in their societies. In this regard, since Muslim missionaries and political organizations in Indonesia have always asked their rulers to support and follow Imam Khomeini and the Revolution, the rulers, despite their apparent silence, viewed the Islamic Revolution under the leadership of Imam Khomeini with serious concern, because Indonesian Muslims saw some similarities between Iran and their country and this made them interested in the Islamic Revolution. These include Iran’s efforts to free itself from the domination of a superpower, its use of oil revenues to develop the country, and its use of Islam to free itself from the clutches of capitalism and socialism at national and international levels.
Although the Malaysian government, attaches importance to Islam, along with ethnicity, in the country’s political life, yet it has never hidden its concern about the emergence of Islamic movements and usually monitored and controlled local and Islamic leaders’ travels to Iran. Also, monitoring the bilateral relations prevented the political impact of the revolution on the Muslims of the country; This is because the Muslims of this country showed interest in following the events of Iran and were fascinated by the character of Imam Khomeini.
1) The Philippines: The Philippines, which has a Christian majority, gradually came under American rule after being liberated from Spanish colonization. The Muslims in the Philippines, known as the Moro, make up only five percent of the country’s population. Many Muslims in the country see the overthrow of the Shah of Iran as an example of divine wrath believing that it is a possible sign of the fate of their king.
With the triumph of Iran’s Islamic Revolution, we are witnessing the impact of the Revolution in this country, including that the formation of a government in Iran caused the awakening of Muslims and brought a sense of hope and confidence for them, and in fact, this Revolution showed them the ability of Islam in the leadership of repressed people to confront corrupt and oppressed foreign regimes. In this regard, by supporting the struggles of the Moro National Liberation Front, Iran has intensified the existing political tendencies and strengthened the Islamic uprising by creating morale and supporting the armed struggle against the Manila government. In addition, Iran imposed an oil embargo on the Philippines in order to support the Muslims of the country. Following the fall of the Marcus dictatorial regime in 1986, the relations between the two countries became more friendly, and the two sides have maintained relations based on peace and sustainable development, and currently, Iranian cultural organizations are widely active in the Philippines.
2) The Indian Subcontinent and Afghanistan
The spread of revolutionary ideas in this region is also of importance, hence we have tried to study the reflection of the Islamic Revolution in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Kashmir and Bangladesh.
1.2) Afghanistan: Before the victory of the Revolution, the impact of the Islamic Revolution on Afghanistan, due to the cultural and linguistic commonalities of the two countries, was manifested in the form of the people’s resistance to the pro-Soviet communist coup. Nine months after the Marxist coup in Kabul, the Islamic Revolution in Iran gained triumph and influenced Afghanistan’s struggles and politics. Also, after the victory of the Iranian Revolution and the occupation of Afghanistan by the Soviet Red Army, this Revolution provided inspiration for the Shi’ah and Sunni groups, most of which bore the name of Islam (the Afghan Mujahidin) and undoubtedly the focus of these groups on Islam had been the result of the influence of the Revolution.
The arrival of the Red Army forces in Afghanistan which coincided with the occurrence of the internal events of Iran caused the officials of the Islamic Revolution to pay special attention to this land and therefore, along with having a deep spiritual influence on the jihad of the Afghan people, the tactics of the struggles which had been used by the Muslims of Iran against the Shah’s regime, greatly influenced the struggles of Afghans. Popular uprisings in the cities of Herat and Kabul in 1979 were prime examples of the jihadist methods of the Muslim people of Iran, which fundamentally changed the atmosphere of the struggles of Afghan Muslims. Also, given this situation, Iran tried to organize the fighters and jihadi groups.
With the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan, the struggles of the Afghan Mujahidin took on a different nature and a political and economic tendency in terms of fighting (jihad) and ideology, and jihadist groups clashed with each other to divide and consolidate their power. This resulted in the occurrence of a civil war in Afghanistan. As the conflict in Afghanistan continued and as the result of the weakening of the jihadist groups, the Taliban emerged and, with the support of foreign powers, including the United States and Saudi Arabia, they changed the balance of power for some time to their advantages. From an ideological and political point of view, while presenting a special reading of Islam, the Taliban proposed a model for Islamic government and statehood that was in opposition to pure Islam and therefore the development of their sphere of influence in Afghanistan hindered the Iranian investment in that country. After the 9/11 attacks, however, with the collapse of their power by the United States the continuation of this trend was changed; However, it is important to note that Iran, with the support of some Islamic groups, has always sought to expand Islamic ideals in the country.
2.2) Pakistan: Pakistan, as one of Iran’s most important neighbours, was politically and socially exposed to the influence of the Islamic Revolution. However, in the sequence and symmetry of the Islamic Revolution, the popular excitement and social imagination were so significant in Pakistan as they were in the Revolution; yet in this country, almost at the same time as the Islamic Revolution, a military coup led by Zia al-Haqq took place and by dominating his country he became the leader of the revival of Islam. In this regard, it should be noted that the occurrence of such a phenomenon, although it is likely to be caused by the historical requirements and personal motives; But in addition, it can be argued that a tactic to control Islamism and revolutionary activism arose from the developments of Iran.
At the same time, the simultaneity of the above-mentioned military coup with Iran’s Islamic Revolution did not prevent the spread of the ideal ideas of Iran’s Islamic Revolution in this country; Because Iran’s Islamic Revolution revived the spark of hope in the hearts of Muslims, especially Shi’ahs, who wanted the establishment of an Islamic government and the implementation of the Islamic rules in their country. Because the Pakistani Shi’ahs lack of knowledge of the Shi’ah school – because they limit Twelver Shi’ism in mourning ceremonies, and due to the prevalence of superstitions among them – has caused the Shi’ahs to face humiliations in their workplaces, communities, educational centres and colleges thereby forcing them to hid their Shi’ah identity. However, after the Islamic Revolution, on the one hand, with the expansion of the relationship between the Shi’ahs of Pakistan with seminaries, they gained a relatively deeper religious awareness and thus the necessary self-confidence has emerged among them.
Because of the awareness brought by Iran’s Islamic Revolution for the Shi’ahs of Pakistan, they gradually withdrew from the state of isolation and became more cohesive and organized. Thus, in April 1979, a great gathering was held in Punjab under the leadership of Allamah Mufti Ja’far in opposition to ignoring Ja’fari jurisprudence in the Islamic laws of the country and the imposition of Hanafi jurisprudence. This action by the Shi’ahs against the government of the time was unparalleled even in the history of Pakistan. By doing so, while showing that the Shi’ahs are no longer in a state of isolation, they called for engagement in policy-making of the country and one of the important consequences of this action was that Zia al-Haqq announced that he will take into account Ja’fari jurisprudence in legislation and the laws against it will not be passed.
Following the activities of Shi’ahs to achieve the defend of Shi’ahs in Pakistani society, the second meeting was held in Islamabad in July 1980, in which Shi’ahs called for gaining the “important government positions and asked the government to allow the Shi’ahs to be able to propagate their ideologies on the radio and television.”
Furthermore, another rally was held in July 1987 in which Arif Husayn al-Husayni delivered a speech to defend the Shi’ah rights and expressed objections against global arrogance, the Wahhabis and the Zia al-Haqq regime.
Following the expansion of Shi’ah influence and social power which were the result of the spread of awareness influenced by Iran’s Islamic Revolution, the fears of following the model of the Islamic Revolution in Pakistan provoked reactions from the Pakistani regime, Wahhabism, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
In this regard, the Pakistani government has pursued the policy of being closer to the West and the rich Arab countries of the Persian Gulf, in order to prevent the reoccurrence of similar events of the Islamic Republic of Iran inside Pakistan since the Shi’ahs have paved the way for such events. The Wahhabi groups have also perpetrated widespread violence against Shi’ahs in the country since 1983, most notable of which are the attacks of Wahhabis on Shi’ah villages in northern Pakistan, the assassination of Iranian officials, and the martyrdom of the Shi’ah leader Arif al-Husayni. In this regard, Wahhabism, with the help of Saudi Arabia, has taken other steps to prevent the Islamic Revolution from influencing the country including the financial aids provided for Pakistan by Saudi Arabia, giving the interest-free loans, military and security cooperation, establishing seminaries, universities, libraries and mosques.
In contrast, the Islamic Republic of Iran has always been active in spreading revolutionary ideas in Pakistan, which has yielded good results, the most important of which are: strengthening the religious and political position of Shi’ahs in society against the Sunni government, increasing the intellectual level as well as promoting the political insight of the young Shi’ah generation, the organization of the Shi’ah groups, the growing popularity of the clergy and the strengthening of this institution among Shi’ahs, the strengthening of the spirit of struggle and Islamic resistance against domestic and foreign governments.
3.2) India: Iran has a long and inspiring history in the eyes of Indians, and this is especially accepted by Indian Muslims, especially Shi’ahs. After the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran as a great and amazing phenomenon that shifted the attention of all the world to the religious and political potential of Islam and the spread of its news all over the world, the Muslims of India, as a minority who had been under pressure, were also influenced by such event. Evidence of this claims is the presence of a large number of Indian seminarians in Iran, who follow and accept the Islamic Revolution because of various goals. On one hand, the presentation of the Revolution and the historical and spiritual demands of Muslims can be considered, and on the other hand, deprived and oppressed Muslims, like Indians, who consider themselves as being deserving of receiving the material support from rich Muslims such as Iran and other Middle Eastern countries, is another factor which is likely to cause their inclination towards Iran.
4.2) Kashmir: Studying the reflection of the Islamic Revolution in India, draws the attention to Kashmir; Because historically, Iran has been the origin and base for the promotion of Islam in that place, and also, factors of convergence between Iran and the people of Kashmir, including religion, culture, language, geography, etc. have in an attractive way provided the grounds for the Revolution influencing the oppressed people of Kashmir.
In this country, which has been called “Little Iran” for historical and cultural reasons, the mottos of the Islamic Revolution have been seen in the unrests that took place and the residents of the “Free Kashmir” strongly support and follow the Islamic Revolution. In addition, the influence of the Islamic Revolution on them in choosing mosques as bases of struggle, as well as in choosing their slogans, is clearly visible, and Iran has always condemned the oppression and aggression of India against the Muslims of this country.
5.2) Bangladesh: Evidence suggests that Iran’s Islamic Revolution also had repercussions among Muslims in Bangladesh and that favourable conditions for the reflection of the Iranian Revolution in this country were provided because of the historical and political history of Islam in this land. Documents in this regard indicate that the Islamic Revolution of Iran has caused the organization of the Shi’ah minority in this country and the most important factor that has led to the reflection of the Iranian Revolution there was the presence of seminarians in the schools of the World Centre of Islamic Sciences. In this regard, religious organizations that had been established there have spread the ideology and message of the Islamic Revolution.
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