Rouhani: A Liar and Abusive Person is Not Revolutionary

The President of Iran, on Sunday, criticized the "suppression of morality" and the "spread of lies and accusations" in society, expressing dissatisfaction with the prevalence of a discourse of despair. He emphasized that individuals who are "liars, abusive, and spread despair" should not consider themselves revolutionary. During his visit to Arak on November 2, he stated: "Our literature should be one of unity and hope; a group should not promote a discourse of despair and worse, the collapse of the management power of this great nation." He added, "A liar and an abuser and a spreader of despair is never a revolutionary, and those who speak of despair have no relation to the Islamic Revolution of Iran." Rouhani stressed that "we should not allow a group to suppress morality in society and spread lies, mockery, and accusations." He also mentioned that there is "no dual management in Iran" and that "those who think there are two paths in this country are mistaken." On Saturday, he had also called for an end to "childish disputes" in the country and urged the media in Iran to refrain from lies, accusations, discord, and unnecessary factionalism. Officials in Rouhani's government have repeatedly criticized the "destruction of the government" and the dissemination of "lies" by media and bulletins close to the Revolutionary Guards and other institutions under the Supreme Leader. For instance, First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri and Legal Deputy Majid Ansari have stated that the eleventh government has faced "the most criticism, destruction, and accusations." Government spokesman Mohammad Baqer Nobakht also mentioned that there is a "think tank" formed with "political motivations" against the government, which "determines every Saturday what should happen." Rouhani also referred to the U.S. presidential election, describing the choice between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump as a choice between bad and worse. He said: "At the [United Nations] General Assembly, one of the leaders of the countries asked me which of the two is better, I said, should I prefer the bad over the worse or the worse over the bad?" He continued, "Look at their way of speaking, their way of accusing, their way of mocking and ridiculing." He stated, "The Americans, who claim to have democracy for over 200 years and have held more than 50 presidential elections, do not have ethics; we see what situation they have reached, you saw the presidential candidates' debates; everyone saw their way of speaking and manner of talking." He then said, "We do not want such democracy and elections in our country." In another part of his speech, Rouhani referred to critics of the Vienna nuclear agreement as "a group of children" who lack patience for the results of this agreement and said they cannot "dishearten the Iranian nation with their false words." He pointed out the results of the Vienna nuclear agreement, asking, "Is there anyone in Iran who is not proud of the restoration of the rights of the Iranian nation, the freedom of trade with the world, the opening of the way for agricultural and industrial exports, and the cancellation of six unjust resolutions against the nation?" He added, "We have expelled the usurper from our garden, and the door of the garden is open to the people, and today a group of children come to the door of the garden and ask, where are the apples and pears we want to eat?" Rouhani continued, "Today, this garden, whose saplings have just been planted, is ready to bear fruit, but patience is needed for it to bear fruit." He stated that "those who think they can dishearten the Iranian nation with false words are mistaken." On October 29, Rouhani also responded to critics of the Vienna nuclear agreement, saying that if the government does not buy airplanes, these critics say, "What happened to the JCPOA?" and if the government buys airplanes, they say, "These airplanes are luxurious and new." He also emphasized that disputes with the world do not lead to exports and called for increased relations with other countries and trust in the people regarding this matter, stressing that one cannot rely solely on "four security forces." These remarks led to protests from several Friday prayer leaders. Close associates of the Supreme Leader have repeatedly stated that the Vienna nuclear agreement has not had a tangible achievement, and Ayatollah Khamenei has emphasized that the results of the visits of European governments and companies and their negotiations with Iran after the Vienna nuclear agreement "have not been noticeable so far." Officials in Rouhani's government and media close to the government describe the opponents of the nuclear agreement as a group that previously claimed sanctions had no impact on the Iranian economy and that this agreement has no positive outcome, but after the agreement, they criticize why the agreement is not implemented and why Western sanctions are not lifted. In response to such criticisms, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the head of the Expediency Discernment Council of Iran, stated in May that if the achievements of the Vienna nuclear agreement are announced, the critics will "be ashamed."