Dispute Over the Ministry of Science: What is the War About?

The views of Hassan Rouhani and Ayatollah Khamenei in the realm of culture and art are in conflict (refer to the article "Iran: The Cultural Confrontation of Khamenei and Rouhani"). This disagreement has manifested itself in various fields. Consequently, a serious dispute has erupted between Hassan Rouhani and the entire principlist faction led by Ayatollah Khamenei over universities. Rouhani's proposed ministers have either been dismissed or have faced votes of no confidence. The Ministry of Science has become the main battleground for political conflict between Rouhani and the principlists. Ayatollah Alam al-Huda, the Friday prayer leader of Mashhad and a member of the Assembly of Experts, stated on November 25, 2014, to the representatives of the Supreme Leader at universities: "Right now, the biggest problem in this government is the cultural current, which primarily manifests itself in universities. It has been over a year since this government took office, and the issue of the Ministry of Science is still not in proper order. At one point, there was a minister, and then when it became minister-less, it got worse, so in the university environment, value-driven forces must work tooth and nail to achieve something." What is this war about? Why are the principlists so fiercely attacking the government? The first cultural revolution of Ahmadinejad occurred when students at Tehran universities were planning to occupy the U.S. embassy; representatives from the University of Science and Technology (Seyednejad and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) opposed this action, stating that it was time to strike against the leftists and Soviet interests. According to one of the Imam's line students: "The leaders of the cultural revolution were Ahmadinejad and Seyednejad... That faction opposed the occupation of the embassy because they saw that universities were empty of religious students and the leftists were gaining prominence, so they initiated the cultural revolution. Part of this effort involved closing universities and another part involved expelling many from the universities. Otherwise, this action did not bring about any fundamental or acceptable change in the cultural sphere. The cultural revolution was somewhat in opposition to the embassy occupation. Essentially, they were looking for another way to show themselves, which, if it had not received support, might not have had any outcome, but this action found two effective defenders: one was Ayatollah Khamenei from the clergy members of the Revolutionary Council, and the other was Abdolkarim Soroush, who represented intellectuals. When these two supported it, the Imam also approved the closure of universities" (of course, Dr. Soroush has repeatedly explained that he had no role in the closure of universities, and the speaker's claim is that support came after the closure action). The cultural revolution aimed at Islamicizing universities had no achievement other than the closure of universities, the purging of professors and students, a new strict selection system, etc. The 'other' of the cultural revolution is constructed based on the distinction of 'us' from 'the other.' To create 'identity,' a 'non' or 'other' must be constructed that is considered an enemy. The cultural revolution was against the godless communists. They were the most dangerous and organized rivals. The communists were the 'other' of the cultural revolution. Closing universities made it easier to suppress communist groups. When universities reopened, there was no news of communist groups there. By eliminating them, new 'others' were created. Liberals had been considered enemies and facilitators of imperialism even before the revolution. After communists and liberals, the regime turned to religious dissenters. The methods of suppressing universities became diverse and intensified, but contrary to the goal of Ayatollah Khomeini, Ayatollah Khamenei and other designers and executors of the cultural revolution, the university remained secular and liberal. For this reason, years later, on October 12, 1991, Ayatollah Khamenei told members of the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution: "Religion must be revived in universities. Our university was born without religion; this is clear. The university in its current style was born without religion; it was designed to be born irreligious. This does not mean that the founder of a university was a religious person or not; it has nothing to do with that; the foundation of the university was a non-religious, even anti-religious foundation; like our country's intellectualism, which was born irreligious from the beginning." He does not want a secular elite, secular domains, secular cinema, secular democracy, secular universities, etc. However, social relations and institutions do not conform to his arbitrary will. According to Khamenei, the presidency of Mohammad Khatami was a period of secular tendencies and concepts. Ahmadinejad's eight-year presidency gave him the opportunity to launch another cultural revolution in universities. Ahmadinejad had the full approval of Ayatollah Khamenei and all principlists. He quickly changed all university and faculty heads and down to the lowest levels of management. Now it was time to place their unqualified forces at the top. On the other hand, many of his forces were employed as students at various levels of undergraduate, master's, and doctoral programs. Law and regulations had no value for him. The principlists were rewarded for their extremism. Non-aligned professors, including reformists, were dismissed and retired, and extremist principlist forces replaced them. Several thousand illegal scholarships were one of Ahmadinejad's minor actions. Universities were brought to a state where now theses ready for various fields are sold between 600,000 to three million tomans. Academic theft has spread, and no one dares to fight it. The university, which was largely alive and dynamic during the reform period, was suppressed and stifled under a military order. The presence of the student Basij was strengthened, and unknown martyrs were sent to universities to rest there. On August 24, 2008, Ayatollah Khamenei approved Ahmadinejad's actions in these areas under the title of fighting secular tendencies within the regime. He told Ahmadinejad and his cabinet members: "Secular tendencies - which unfortunately were still infiltrating the body of the country's managers - were stopped. The revolutionary regime was formed based on religion and based on Islam and the Quran, and for this reason, it has received the millions of support of this nation, who have put their lives on the line and sent their youth to the fields of danger; then the officials of such a regime talk about secular concepts?! "One cuts the branch on which they sit"; that is, they sit down and start digging the foundation of this principle and rule! It was a very dangerous thing. Well, thank God, this was stopped." They fear universities. The principlists know that universities have never been with them and will never be. They are extremely concerned about the state of universities. If the university environment becomes non-security-oriented and students can hold speeches and debates, the non-aligned identity of the university will become apparent. In such conditions, students can appear in an organizing role and can influence political developments and the political structure. An impact that will certainly be detrimental to the principlists. Ayatollah Khamenei opposes a mobilizing university because he is not confident about the mobilizing result of students. If the product of student organization were like the Basij organization under the presidency of General Gholamreza Naghdi, he would certainly defend it and consider it a high value. Thus, the university structure is such that despite all manipulations, it is not malleable to take the desired shape. Therefore, control and suppression are the only ways principlists can confront universities. Khamenei was pleased that Ahmadinejad ended an era. But he was wrong and continues to be wrong. The death of Morteza Pashaei showed that he is mistaken (refer to the article "The Margins and Text of Morteza Pashaei's Death"). The wave of people surprised the Basijis. A Hezbollah cyber activist wrote: "Our workplace is at the intersection of Hafez (College) and near the Vahdat Hall and the funeral ceremony for the late Pashaei... The traffic created is another matter. Being late for work is also another. But the change in people's taste has surprisingly amazed me! People have poured in like locusts. There are all sorts of social types. From well-dressed to poorly dressed. From bearded to clean-shaven. Everyone is there... Cultural gentlemen! Where are we rushing this country to?! What havoc have we wreaked on the social and cultural taste of the people? What have we done that the center of social actions has undergone such fundamental changes?" The contradiction of universities. The principlists led by Ayatollah Khamenei do not want any change in universities. Because the majority of the educated middle class is not with them. University students may not say anything due to suppression and the high cost of activity, but their thoughts, words, and behaviors (lifestyles) do not align with the official principles of the regime. Rouhani promised to grant independence to universities. This is something that is absolutely unacceptable to Khamenei and the principlists. During his presidency, he introduced individuals for leadership or the Ministry of Science who were not acceptable to the principlists: Jafar Milimani, Jafar Tofighi, Reza Faraji-Dana (9 months in office), Mahmoud Nili Ahmadabadi, Fakhruddin Danesh-Ashtiani. The parliament disqualified all of them as seditionists. This policy was dictated by Khamenei himself. On September 26, 2014, in a meeting with the President and government members, he said: "The issue of sedition and seditionists is one of the important issues and red lines that the ministers must adhere to, just as they emphasized distancing themselves from it in their confidence vote session." During the confidence vote for Danesh-Ashtiani, Ayatollah Alam al-Huda said: "The new proposed minister for the Ministry of Science is the first person who opposed the formation of the student Basij while the Imam considered the Basij to be the guardian of the revolution, and such a person cannot manage the university, which is one of the most sensitive areas of the country, with these thoughts in this system and revolution. Students must also stand firm with religious aspirations in this process. This is a duty defined by the Supreme Leader." It was also interesting that the spokesperson for the Followers' faction (affiliated with Ali Larijani) said: "Danesh-Ashtiani, while opposing the representatives' request to disavow sedition, said that by doing so, I will gain votes from the parliament, but later I will be ashamed of my friends." It seems that the principlists are burning and yearning for repentance for participating in the Green electoral movement and by repeating this request, they are keeping the memory of that movement alive. The minister and heads of the Ministry of Science took small steps towards change, which faced severe opposition from the parliament and even stronger resistance from the Supreme Cultural Revolution Council. More than 14 months into Rouhani's presidency, most of the heads and managers of universities from Ahmadinejad's era remain in power. The principlists' problem is that they do not distinguish between the university and the IRGC/Basij. The state - according to Louis Althusser - has two apparatuses: a) the repressive state apparatus (army, police, courts, prisons, etc.). b) the ideological state apparatus (the system of various churches, the system of public and private schools and universities, media such as radio, television, and press, parties, etc.). The repressive dimensions of the state display direct and naked relations of force. However, the ideological dimensions legitimize worldviews, interpretations, and conceptual systems. Schools and universities and media must serve as ideological apparatuses to legitimize the state in civil society, rather than becoming part of the repression themselves. In Gramsci's words, one cannot govern solely by force; cultural power - hegemony - must be used to gain the consent of the oppressed people. The world of 'common understanding' is constructed by such institutions, not that the university becomes another Basij. Ayatollah Jannati also thanked the no-confidence vote against the proposed ministers due to their support for the Green movement, and commanded: "The government must establish Basij thought in the country and ministries, not attract extremist individuals, and not reject moderate individuals, and these Basij youth with Basij thought must take over the work in the future and not be corrupt." Moderate principlists also know that this method is not sustainable. Ahmad Tavakoli, one of the moderate principlists, stated after the Green electoral movement that he did not intend to vote for Ahmadinejad in the 2009 presidential election, but he was caught in a dilemma. According to him, both Mousavi and Ahmadinejad wanted to harm the regime, with the difference that Mousavi was capable of extensive social mobilization and Ahmadinejad lacked a social base that could incite anyone against the regime. For this reason, he voted for Ahmadinejad. In a letter to Hassan Rouhani on November 15, Tavakoli wrote that sedition remains a red line for the parliament. However, if you intend to hand the Ministry of Science to one of the reformists, introduce a successful reformist manager with a good record who has had no role in the sedition (Green movement), so that the parliament will vote for him. Tavakoli concluded his letter by reminding: "You certainly remember that I was the only principlist who declared my preference for a reformist Minister of Science and I have been supportive of my friends during the confidence vote for Dr. Faraji-Dana. Therefore, you can consider these words as coming from goodwill and accept the solution." The point that Ahmad Tavakoli understood, other principlists are unable to comprehend. The Minister of Science must be acceptable to university people and pursue the independence of the university. Now Hassan Rouhani has introduced Mohammad Farhadi as the minister to the parliament in his last step. Although Farhadi was a member of the cabinets of Engineer Mousavi and Mohammad Khatami, he has presented a more apolitical image. Nevertheless, he is one of the signatories of the August 2009 letter to the religious authorities. Mohammad Najafi, the current caretaker of the Ministry of Science, was unable to gain the parliament's confidence for the Ministry of Education due to the signature of this very letter. The principlists want a minister who does not change the course of Ahmadinejad's era. Corruption should continue. Sedition is the code name for rent-seeking. A regime based on discrimination - that is, governance...