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Iranians Demand a Normal State

(Gatestone Institute) Amir Taheri - As the leadership in Tehran prepares to mark the 40th anniversary of the Khomeinist revolution, a growing number of Iranians are wondering whether the time has come for their country to close that chapter. The Khomeinist revolution in Iran has failed to "export" its model to a single country, while making Iran poorer and more vulnerable than it had been under the Shah. The Khomeinist rulers tried to create parallel organs for exercising state power, which meant that those who have power have no responsibility while those who are held responsible have no power. Over the past two years, Iran has witnessed more than 100 strikes by people from virtually all walks of life. It has also been shaken by two nationwide uprisings mobilizing millions of protesters. The important point here is that those strikes and uprisings were prompted by demands that only a normal nation-state and not a revolutionary outfit can understand and satisfy. Therefore, at least implicitly, what millions of Iranians demand is a restoration of the authority of their state, which requires the closure of the revolutionary chapter. The writer was the executive editor-in-chief of the Iran daily Kayhan from 1972 to 1979.
2019-01-11 00:00:00
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