Political Justice in Imam Khomeini’s View

1. Political Participation

 

Playing political roles is an indispensable right of every nation. People have the right to equal participation in all political aspects, from establishing the government and determining the type of governing to running their smallest local affairs.

 

This is the opinion of a person who in the first days after the 1979 revolution asked for the public’s view regarding the type of political system and also did the same through holding the election, with respect to the formation of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, the constitution, the election of the members of Assembly of Experts for Constitution and the Assembly of Experts of the Leadership, presidential elections etc.

 

In his view, political participation is a right that everyone has and all people should play an equal role in managing the affairs of the country. The government should provide the grounds for people’s political participation in an equal way so that everyone feels that he has exercised his rights. One of the areas to do this is to hold free elections without imposing anything on people. Imam Khomeini, as he relied on the power of the people for overthrowing the rebellious regime, believes that people are trustworthy and capable of making decisions regarding the affairs of the country as well as the basic issues of the government:

 

“We have to set the people free in the elections. We should not do something so that certain individuals will be imposed on people. Thank God, our people have desirable religious and political progress. They will elect religious individuals who are sympathetic to the plight of the downtrodden, who are well-aware of the religio-political issues and who side with the deprived ones.”

 

Caring for the people, seeking and dedicating oneself to serving the people, and acknowledging that the country owes its achievements to the people, can be seen in Imam Khomeini’s remarks. People are not ignorant who cannot recognize good from evil and would easily being deceived; rather, they have the power to distinguish right from wrong. Being a Muslim, suffering and especially bearing the burden of a revolution would show people the right way to choose someone aware of their problems.

 

Accordingly, those who pursue personal and factional interests and regard people as the means to the fulfillment of their desires have neither the right to impose their opinion on the people nor have any place or value among them. The equality of the people in political participation is one of the components on which Imam Khomeini focused. There should be no discrimination between the different classes and strata of the country. Everyone participates in the elections equally, and the type of job, class, and membership of a particular faction doesn’t make a difference in this regard:

 

“Election is in the hand of people. The president and prime minister are equal in terms of the election with the subject working on the farm or the worker in the bazaar. The president has one vote, prime minister one vote and that farmer in the remotest part of the country one vote. Their votes are the same. All are responsible.”

 

“Women and men vote equally in elections and they participate in social and political activities with men.”

 

Since people enjoy political growth and awareness, they need to supervise everything; everything must be done at the discretion of the people and under their supervision. This is the duty of all people. In Imam Khomeini’s view, sound criticism will make the country develop faster and help the government do its job better. Therefore, it is the duty of the people to present their suggestions, ideas and criticisms to the government and to warn the authorities when they have done something wrong.

 

This view of Imam Khomeini is in accordance with the concept of Enjoining the Good and Forbidding the Wrong which is one of the religious teachings. It is very interesting that the leader of the Islamic government is asking people not to let him and the officials do whatever they want without being accountable for their actions. this is so because according to the hadith “All of you are guardians and are responsible for your subjects” all people have a responsibility towards each other as well as the government. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution calls on the people to implement the concept of Enjoining the Good and Forbidding the Wrong so that our actions will be carried out in a proper way.

 

“All women and the men ought to involve themselves in the social and political affairs of the country. They must keep an eye on the Majles and the government and must express their views. The nation now ought to oversee the affairs and express their opinions on social and political issues and other governmental affairs, and exert their weight in case they see something amiss.”

 

However, there are so many other instances in which Imam Khomeini addressed the issue of people’s criticism and supervision.

 

2. Political Selection

 

Choosing the eligible and ingenious individuals to assume the important positions in the society will lead to the establishment of the government of the rightful people. Achieving such an aim requires practices through which people will be equitably selected and employed. Imam Khomeini believes that selecting the right individuals by the people is the best way to have a correct selection in society.

 

The reason for this is the trust he placed in people and that people never act against their interests. Therefore, when we have a free election in which corrupt people cannot interfere, the right people, who will always take into account the national interests, will certainly be elected.

 

Appointing the individuals by statesmen is another way of political selection in society. According to Imam Khomeini, commitment, expertise and addressing the national interests and better service to the country are conditions that should be considered when appointing individuals. On the contrary, blind obedience and giving priority to friendship and relations in this regard would make a person fail to serve his country.

 

From Imam Khomeini’s point of view, gaining a high position in the government is by no means of importance, what is important is to deal with the affairs of the country and implement the Islamic precepts in society. Therefore, he calls for managers and officials who do not have enough ability and expertise to perform their duties to resign so that their weakness and imprudence would not harm the country.

 

Another way to select people at the lower levels is to do interviews. By asking questions that have already been chosen from a book or a set of information which one is supposed to know about that particular career the best person to assume that responsibility will be chosen.

 

The founder of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, especially after being informed about some selection boards asking improper questions, ordered that a committee should be formed of committed individuals who are fully aware of the situation of the country and that booklets containing issues regarding the Islamic precepts of which people normally are in need, be prepared. Furthermore, he suggested that the content of these books should be taught and then people are asked to explain them. It should be noted that the criterion of selecting is “the current state of people” unless they are affiliated with gangs or corruptors or they misbehave currently because generally it is forbidden to look into the lives of people who are not corrupt and saboteurs. Moreover, the criteria for selecting people should be Islamic and humane standards, not the personal or factional interests... it is only through this process that we would have a right and Islamic selection.

 

Although Imam Khomeini prohibits the act of spying on those who are not corrupt and are going to pass the interview, yet when it comes to appointing someone to the vital positions it is important to look into his work experience, education and life especially his actions and thoughts before the revolution.

 

One of the reasons for this was the special situation of the country at that time. The existence of a large number of infiltrators and hypocrites among people many of whom could not easily be identified made it necessary to investigate the former status of individuals. For example, there is a character like Bani Sadr whose identity has not been revealed to the public for a long time, and he has inflicted several blows upon the country. In addition, Imam Khomeini believed that if anyone repents of his past misdeeds, his repentance would be accepted, but he should not assume the sensitive positions in the government because it is not clear whether he has truly repented or not.

 

Overall, it can be concluded that a particular type of selecting people was not meant by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, what was important to him is selecting the decent, competent, and skilled people for taking the critical careers of society. People who are familiar with the laws and strive for defending the rights of the nation. On the other hand, it can be concluded that when the process of selection revolves around commitment and expertise, a balance will be created in this regard. Emphasizing the choosing of the rightful and eligible individuals as well as the free choice of the people means giving equal opportunity to talented and competent individuals to assume the positions in society.

 

3. Political Security

 

The divine prophets and all of the heavenly religions have considered the issues of security and peace to be among their goals. They considered social justice to be one of the consequences of this situation, which led to the fulfillment of the rights of the poor and the oppressed. For this reason, prophets have had engaged in many wars, including the war between Prophet Moses (a) and Pharaoh or the war between Abraham (a) and Nimrod. These prophets fought to protect the interests of the masses against the aristocracy.

 

Providing security is the responsibility of the police, the army, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and of all people. When the country is invaded, everyone has to stand up for defence. Supporting the army is also another duty that people should fulfill.

 

In addition to safeguarding the country’s borders from foreign invasions, the government activities inside the country are another stage of providing security. That is, the government should provide security in all parts of the country and prevent chaos and tensions. This would become more urgent particularly in areas in which the army forces are more likely to confront criminals and corrupt individuals.

 

One of the ways to prevent the spread of insecurity in the country is to maintain a balance in the distribution of governmental facilities and positions. There should be no discrimination between tribes and different groups, and the government should treat them all equally so that all people feel safe and secure and acknowledge that the state will uphold social justice among them. The special feature of Iran in terms of having different tribes and ethnicities, especially in the border regions, requires the government to pay more attention to these areas and to try to eliminate deprivations and shortcomings over there. In some cases, providing security would be possible through observing justice, as in many cases justice depends on the security of the community, that is to say, these two are correlative.

The confidence of the people in the correctness of government activities plays an important role in ensuring justice. Innovation, creativity and the development of one’s talents can only be achieved through the tranquillity of mind and the security of life, property and honour as well as the creation of a safe and equal opportunity for all. Therefore, Imam Khomeini gives recommendations to the judiciary and intelligence, security forces and government agencies regarding the issue of the security of people:

 

“I ask the Supreme Judicial Council 1 to clear up the woeful conditions in which all legal and judicial matters had sunk during the former regime, to cut off from this sublime tribune the hands of those who play games with the people’s lives and properties, and those judges for whom Islamic justice has the least meaning.”

 

Judicial security is one of the most important instances of security. The judges deal with the rights of the people and their lives, property and honour, and if the just and fair judges are not appointed, or if they prefer their personal and group interests to the rights of the people, no one will be certain of the fulfillment of his rights. In this case, judicial insecurity of the people will create political insecurity for everyone and will also affect the government. Consequently, this would undermine the legitimacy of the government and create riots and fear in the society which result in more rights being trampled on.

 

The law enforcement, security and intelligence agencies have been banned from searching people’s homes and it is not correct to denigrate people except for groups that act against Islam and Muslims. Imam Khomeini warns the government about turning to adopt radical and extremist approaches in performing its duties:

 

“The other side is that one must not behave with the people in such a way that they are insecure in their homes, in their daily lives, in their business and trade. The government of Islam must give assurance to the people in all things; in their assets; in their trade; in their factories; in all things the people must be at peace and the government cannot do injustice to them and they must not be wronged.”

 

In the meantime, Imam Khomeini points to having an equal opportunity for all people to do legitimate business. In his view, such a situation would not only prevent capital and people from outflowing the country but would also bring back those who had left the country.

 

It should be noted that for some any action and behaviour of the Islamic state is put down to Islam. Illegal actions of the government and public officials may make some people hate Islamic precepts, so Imam Khomeini advises government officials to treat people in a way that they understand that Islam seeks to regulate their life in this world and in the Hereafter through which they feel tranquillity and calmness.

 

The newly converted or those who have repented should not be treated harshly because their current state should be considered not their past.

 

The type of security in Imam Khomeini’s view addresses both the psychological and physical dimensions of security. On the other hand, he considers all aspects of security including personal security (protecting the dignity of individuals), public security (regular and meticulous activities of law enforcement), social security (protecting the public from the threats of state and judicial officials), and National security (defending the country’s territorial integrity) believing that they pave the way for people exercising their rights and the achievement of equality in society.

 

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