The Political Impact of Mehdi Bazargan and Abolhassan Banisadr on Today's Iran

Mehdi Bazargan, the Prime Minister of the provisional government, and Abolhassan Banisadr, the first elected President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, are both remnants of what Bazargan referred to as the "second movement" of the revolution. The provisional Prime Minister believed that, based on the logic of mathematics and mechanics, the Iranian revolution had a centripetal movement represented by the slogan "all together" and a centrifugal movement that turned everything into "all with me." To what extent did the society filled with revolutionary excitement of February 1979 hear the voice of a Prime Minister whose revolutionary fervor later placed him among the opponents of the ruling religious system, which today’s rulers of Iran did not consider "revolutionary"? According to Bazargan, the provisional government, which was the "ultimate point of the first era," stepped aside as its efforts "did not lead to anything." The last chance was with Abolhassan Banisadr, the elected president who was critical of the provisional government and considered himself a kind of theorist of the "Islamic Revolution," believing that clerics had to cooperate with the government of the "tie-wearing" men like the provisional government. However, when he came to power, he fell short in the power struggle with the Islamic Republic Party, and as his critics say, all his interpretations and investments turned into a miscalculation under the title of one of his books, "Cult of Personality." In the first paragraph, we joined Mehdi Nourbakhsh, a member of the Freedom Movement of Iran and son-in-law of Ibrahim Yazdi, the foreign minister of the provisional government, in the U.S., and Mehran Mostafavi, a Republican political activist and son-in-law of Abolhassan Banisadr, in France, to see whether Bazargan and Banisadr, as their critics say, paved the way for the religious dictatorship ruling Iran. Bazargan's government was "appointed and not revolutionary." Mehdi Nourbakhsh emphasizes the appointed nature of Bazargan's government, stating that in the nine months it was in power, it did what it could, and ultimately, the entire Freedom Movement became an opposition political organization, with many of its leaders, except for Bazargan, going to prison. However, Mehran Mostafavi criticizes Bazargan's government for cooperating with "the clergy and the Islamic Republic Party" and states that three days before the revolution concluded, a representative of the Freedom Movement assured the U.S. embassy in a call that they should not worry, as Banisadr would not have a role in the future. He considers this issue related to the differing views between the two politicians and continues: "The late Engineer Bazargan was a noble and very democratic man, but he was fundamentally not someone who would be for the revolution." Mr. Mostafavi believes that the emergence of new revolutionary institutions like the Revolutionary Guards, revolutionary courts, and construction jihad alongside the formation of the Assembly of Experts and the inclusion of the principle of Velayat-e Faqih in the constitution was a product of the space that Bazargan's government had given to the clergy and states: "And Bazargan's efforts to dissolve the Assembly of Experts went nowhere." Banisadr's son-in-law states that many told the first elected president that this constitution would not allow for democratic progress. According to this political activist, Banisadr had proposed a referendum to Ayatollah Khomeini in response to the opposition from the Islamic Republic Party, but the revolutionary leader responded that if thirty million people said yes, he would say no; and Banisadr was removed from the presidency. Mehran Mostafavi states that Banisadr had attempted to raise the issue of people's sovereignty through a clerical authority, namely Ayatollah Khomeini, in Paris and did not believe, contrary to his friends, that Khomeini would turn weapons against the people. According to Mr. Mostafavi, Banisadr did not compromise with Ayatollah Khomeini; when he was removed from the command of the armed forces, pilots offered him a coup and bombing, which he refused, saying that Iran was at war with Iraq and if they started a civil war, everyone would fail, and it was uncertain whether Iran would remain. Moreover, Mehran Mostafavi does not deny the impossibility of a coup in June 1980 due to the society's support for Ayatollah Khomeini. Mehdi Nourbakhsh reacts to Mr. Mostafavi's statements, saying that the cooperation of the provisional government with the Islamic Republic Party is not accurate, and it was Mr. Banisadr who briefly became a member of this party and had close relations with Mr. (Mohammad) Beheshti. According to the Deputy of the Council for Global Affairs in Harrisburg, Abolhassan Banisadr was supportive of the resignation of the provisional government in opposition to the hostage-taking of U.S. embassy staff. He also states that regarding the inclusion of the principle of Velayat-e Faqih in the constitution of the Islamic Republic, this constitution was written by Mr. (Hassan) Habibi based on the constitution of the Fifth Republic of France, and when Mr. Dr. Yazdi and Mr. (Mostafa) Chamran presented it to Mr. Khomeini, they reached a consensus on certain issues with him. He continues: Therefore, when Mr. Khomeini is asked how your republic is a republic, he says something like the republic in France; meaning they had his signature on the constitution that did not include Velayat-e Faqih. According to this political activist, Mehdi Bazargan was the only choice that "had legitimacy after the revolution." He states that Mr. Bazargan consulted with clerics like Ayatollah Shariati and all encouraged him to accept this responsibility and prevent the destruction by radical clerics, the only one who disagreed and told him that they would betray you was Mr. (Mahmoud) Taleghani. Mehdi Nourbakhsh confirms the non-revolutionary nature of Bazargan's government, stating that after the revolution, he told revolutionaries that the phase of destruction was over and now they must enter the phase of construction. Mr. Nourbakhsh believes that the clerics and part of the intellectuals seeking power did not allow Bazargan's government to take root. Morteza Beheshti; the true apparatus of the Islamic Republic. Banisadr was "incompatible" with Bazargan. Mehdi Nourbakhsh, reacting to the statements of Banisadr's son-in-law, states that the cooperation of the provisional government with the Islamic Republic Party is not accurate and it was Mr. Banisadr who briefly became a member of this party and had close relations with Mr. (Mohammad) Beheshti. According to the Deputy of the Council for Global Affairs in Harrisburg, Abolhassan Banisadr was supportive of the resignation of the provisional government in opposition to the hostage-taking of U.S. embassy staff. He also states that regarding the inclusion of the principle of Velayat-e Faqih in the constitution of the Islamic Republic, this constitution was written by Mr. (Hassan) Habibi based on the constitution of the Fifth Republic of France, and when Mr. Dr. Yazdi and Mr. (Mostafa) Chamran presented it to Mr. Khomeini, they reached a consensus on certain issues with him. He continues: Therefore, when Mr. Khomeini is asked how your republic is a republic, he says something like the republic in France; meaning they had his signature on the constitution that did not include Velayat-e Faqih. According to this political activist, Mehdi Bazargan was the only choice that "had legitimacy after the revolution." He states that Mr. Bazargan consulted with clerics like Ayatollah Shariati and all encouraged him to accept this responsibility and prevent the destruction by radical clerics, the only one who disagreed and told him that they would betray you was Mr. (Mahmoud) Taleghani. Mehdi Nourbakhsh confirms the non-revolutionary nature of Bazargan's government, stating that after the revolution, he told revolutionaries that the phase of destruction was over and now they must enter the phase of construction. Mr. Nourbakhsh believes that the clerics and part of the intellectuals seeking power did not allow Bazargan's government to take root. The "dictatorship of the righteous." Mehdi Nourbakhsh refers to one of Bazargan's discussions with Mohammad Beheshti in the Revolutionary Council, stating that Mr. Beheshti, at a time when the conditions of government were favorable for clerics, first named the type of future government "dictatorship of the righteous," which met with a reaction from Mr. Bazargan, who said, "A righteous person is in contradiction with dictatorship." He refers to the formation of the Islamic Republic Party as a move toward a kind of single-party system and Beheshti's invitation to intellectuals to gather under its umbrella. Mr. Nourbakhsh states that revolutionaries at that time wanted clenched fists and executions, but Engineer Bazargan sought different conditions, and for this reason, he lost the support of a large portion of the people. According to the son-in-law of the foreign minister of the provisional government, unlike Abolhassan Banisadr, Mehdi Bazargan never kissed Ayatollah Khomeini's hand even once. He states that the Freedom Movement published a two-hundred-page pamphlet during Khomeini's lifetime, equating Velayat-e Faqih with dictatorship, and from there, arrests began. Myths about Banisadr in the Republic. Bazargan and the foundations of tyranny. Mehran Mostafavi considers the basis of Banisadr's "incompatibility" with Bazargan to be the establishment of new foundations like the Guards and revolutionary courts that have endured to this day and became the main pillars of tyranny. Mr. Mostafavi believes that Mehdi Bazargan prepared the ground for the Islamic Republic Party, and "tyranny does not just happen; it must establish itself on a solid foundation, and that is the Revolutionary Guards, which gained power through the continuation of the war and the weakening of the army." This political activist states that the Freedom Movement has participated in all elections of the Islamic Republic since 1980 or has had a candidate who was disqualified or supported another candidate and has never said that they cannot work with the foundation of this government. Mehdi Nourbakhsh reacts to Mr. Mostafavi's statements, stating that it was Mr. Banisadr who supported the Cultural Revolution Council and the cultural revolution within universities. He added: They say that the Freedom Movement participated in all elections after the revolution, which is also an incorrect statement. The Freedom Movement of Iran passed on Ahmadinejad's election and boycotted it and boycotted Raisi's term. They accepted and supported the first term of Rouhani and were fully behind Mr. Khatami. Abolhassan Banisadr; the second failure in establishing a republic. The Islamic Revolution and Ibrahim Yazdi's "request for forgiveness." Abolhassan Banisadr became the publisher of a newspaper in Iran named after the official name of the February 57 revolution, namely "Islamic Revolution," and later when he secretly left Iran, he published it with the prefix "Islamic Revolution in Exile" in the form of a weekly. Mehran Mostafavi, his son-in-law, states that Mr. Banisadr's stance was that a revolutionary shape must emerge in Islam that cleanses all the Shariati that the clergy has created and caused the backwardness of Iranians. He refers to Khomeini's statements that the clergy has no place in the government, and he himself goes to Qom and engages in teaching, believing that the hostage crisis changed everything. Mehdi Nourbakhsh also refers to his last meeting with Ibrahim Yazdi in Turkey and states that he wants to recount this topic from the foreign minister of the provisional government on Radio Farda for public opinion. Mr. Nourbakhsh asks the revolutionary politician of that time if the circumstances were to give you another chance to participate in such a revolution... but his words remain unfinished. Ibrahim Yazdi immediately says, never! Mehdi Nourbakhsh states that his father-in-law sought "forgiveness" from collaborating with those who broke their commitment to democracy and republicanism in Iran. "57ers"; projection or historical simplification? Apologies to the young generation for the 57 revolution. Mehdi Nourbakhsh, who was a 24-year-old revolutionary at the time of the revolution, states that he and his father-in-law, as intellectuals, should not have trusted the clerics; if we had not been alongside them, the revolution would not have happened. This member of the Freedom Movement believes that they had no understanding of the clerics and fundamentally made a mistake in trusting Ruhollah Khomeini. Mr. Nourbakhsh states, I apologize to all the young people whose lives were trampled. From Muhammad ibn Abdullah to Mohammad Mossadegh at Abolhassan Banisadr's gathering. "Do not set generations against each other." However, Mehran Mostafavi does not find the act of apologizing "appropriate" and believes that every generation has its achievements and weaknesses and states that we cannot say that the responsibility for the current situation lies with the generation that made that great revolution in 57. He states that Banisadr wrote a book in 1980 and said he made 12 mistakes, the first mistake being "trusting Khomeini." Mr. Mostafavi criticizes the term "57ers," stating that this term has become an insult, adding that those who say one should not trust the clergy voted for Mr. Rouhani; this is something our generation did not do. Mehran Mostafavi believes that the young generation should be "shaken" and made aware of their responsibilities, as the issues of Iran will be resolved through the continuation of the experience of 57, but Mehdi Nourbakhsh asks why we should shake a generation whose entire life was destroyed by this revolution.