We remember the Facebook revolution that
began from Tunisia, and then, spread to Egypt and Libya in December 2010.
Currently, some of the global public is disappointed with the Arab Spring, in
view of the rise of Islamists. From this point, Facebook movements for Iranian
freedom is worthy of attention as it pursues secular democracy. Various
associations found pages and groups on Facebook to promote freedom movements of
Iran.
Let me explain pages and groups. On
Facebook, there are two types of communications. Page is a one way communication
in which a handful of administrators send messages to those who expressed support
for them by clicking “like”. On the other hand, “group” is a mutual
communication between administrators and members. Once the membership is
approved, anyone can write a wall post of the group. Through both ways, Iran’s democracy
rallies are launched one after another. There is no way of knowing whether
their rallies will succeed like those in Tunisia, but it is apparent that the
theocratic government in Tehran cannot control Internet movements.
Unlike those in Tunisia and Egypt, Iranian Facebook
movements are strongly secular, because they fight against theocracy instead of
military rule. While the Arab Spring was driven by a loose network of students,
Iranian movements are more cohesive. This is a vital point, because student
activities were hijacked by Islamists, particularly in Egypt. In case of
Iranian movements, Former Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi plays a pivotal role. He
may not return to the throne, but as often witnessed in Europe, monarchy is a
built in stabilizer against religious fanaticism and military dictatorship.
Currently, Pahlavi lives in Bethesda,
Maryland, and urges Western civil societies to support Iranian freedom through
the media on both sides of the Atlantic. His official page on Facebook draws
nearly 158 thousand “like” clicks from all over the world, the most of them are
from Tehran despite severe censorship. In addition to his own official page, his
supporters created “Prince Reza Pahlavi Fan Page”. Through pages and groups on
Facebook, Iranian democracy proponents exchange information and opinions,
promote values, and create a sense of unity around the globe. Quite a few
individuals use photos of the Pahlavi family members for their profile picture.
The Lion and the Sun, or Shir o Khorshid is
another symbol among Iranian freedom fighters. It has been a traditional mark
of Iran since the Sassanid era, and various dynasties used this emblem until
the fall of the Pahlavi regime. After the Iranian revolution, Shiite theocrats
adopted more Islamic symbol of four crescents and a line to represent Tawhid or
monotheism. As a result, Iranian protesters use their traditional national
emblem to show patriotism and resistance to the theocracy. Some pages and groups
like “Official Page of Reza Pahlavi” and “Iranian and their Friends” use Shir o
Khorshid cover photos. Compare Iranian national flags before and after the
revolution.
Politically, those pages and groups show
strong solidarities with the United States and Israel. Some of them are closely
tied to conservative American civil networks for their detestation of Islamism and
Sharia rule. While most of the participants seem to be Americans and Iranians
in exile in the West, a substantial number of Iranians living in Iran join freedom
networks despite strict censorship under a repressive regime at home. As witnessed
in the Green Movement in 2009, Iranian freedom activists and general public are
craving for American help. But why Israel? Historically, Iran was in good
relations with Jewish people. It is Cyrus the Great who relieved ancient
Hebrews from Babylonian oppression. Today, Iran has the largest Jewish
population in the Middle East. Moreover, Former Israeli President Moshe Katsav
was born in Iran, and Iranians are proud of it. Current theocracy ruins such
ancient and deep friendship with Israel.
The Internet is not the only way for
Iranian freedom activists. Iranian Americans a held an event called the Persian
Parade on April 14 this year in New York. Originally, the parade started to
celebrate Nowruz in 2004. Though primary objective of this event is to enhance
unity among Iranians living in the United States and promote understandings in
traditional Persian culture, Iranian freedom activists advertise the event to
raise awareness to their advocacy for regime change at home. The Persian Parade
is entirely run by grassroots, without depending on anti-regime celebrities
like Reza Pahlavi, Mariam Rajavi, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi. In
the parade American mounted policemen march, raising the Shir o Khorshid and the
Stars and Stripes side by side. This is a visual appeal of close ties between
Iranian freedom movements and American civil societies. See the photo below.
Secular democracy in Iran will have
significant implication from Africa to China. Currently, Islamists rise in
Egypt and Turkey, and Al Qaeda found their safe havens in the Sahel area, the
Caucasus, and throughout the Middle East. However, Al Qaeda’s sphere of
influence has not expanded in both East and West Turkestan (“The al Qaeda
Franchise Threat”; Wall Street Journal; April 30, 2013). Sponsoring secular
democracy movements for Iran will help promote democracy free of religious
biases from North Africa to Xinjiang, beyond the Arab regions. Particularly,
Persian cultural traditions are strong in Iranian and Turkic areas in Central
Asia. Therefore, once positive dominos of democracy without fanaticism spread,
things across Eurasia will be strategically advantageous for free nations,
including East Asia. Once the quest for secular take root there, the West need
not compromise with China in the War on Terror, which enables free nations to
stand steadfast against China’s maritime
expansionism and human rights abuse. Therefore , I hope this post will be of
some help to draw worldwide attention to Iranian freedom movements.