IMPERIALIST FINANCIAL AID; A MEANS TO FREEDOM OR CHAINS TO ENSLAVEMENT?!

Following the US government’s 75 million dollar budget in order to so-call promote democracy in Iran and later on Holland’s decision in allocating 15 million euros into radio and television programs towards same “objective”, news agencies recently reported that American Foreign Affairs has also assigned a 1.5 million dollar budget towards 20 projects which will work on “human rights” and “democracy” issues. Of course, US officials have stressed that they will not reveal the names of the recipients. The US government has also stated that in order to enhance this policy it has opened up offices in Dubai, Turkey, London, etc.

The consignment of these budgets to the dissidents of the Islamic Republic (IR) abroad and projects as such, first and foremost demonstrate how, under the pretext of the IR’s “nuclear case”, the imperialist governments are using different channels to achieve their short and long-term objectives in Iran as well as in the Middle East region. It is in relation to this that every now and then we hear of some Iranian personalities and organisations launching TV and radio stations or firing up “news agencies” or “web sites” towards Iran by receiving these “budgets” and “financial help”. Of course, one cannot doubt the anti-people nature of the sponsors or their anti-revolutionary objectives and thus despite the claim that they are fighting against the Islamic Republic, in reality these Iranian recepients are really working for the goals set by the donors of this aid.

To understand the nature of this aid is not difficult. Everyone knows that in the past few years in order to implement its expansionist and aggressive plans around the globe and particularly in the Middle East, the US government has officially spent hundreds of millions of dollars under the pretext of defending “human rights” and “expanding democracy” to form or to feed groups that carry on the anti-people and aggressive objectives of US military machine in Afghanistan and Iraq, and in Ukraine and Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, etc. They have even put out “orange” and “purple” “revolutions” which have resulted in nothing other than the expansion and consolidation of American tyrannical domination over the lives of the oppressed masses, and have ended in nothing but more wars, more killing, more poverty and more destitution and suppression of working and deprived people. The US “projects” and “financial aid” concerning Iran also have no other objective than the above anti-revolutionary aims. Therefore, the denial of this fact by the recipients of this “aid” is but a deceitful and useless attempt to justify treachery.

On the other hand, those receiving US “aid” are basically divided into two groups: first, those who have traditionally been the agents and puppets of imperialism such as the Royalists whose existence has been tied to the calculative support of their imperialist masters. However, the second group consists of some who have even had a combative background and where part of their political identity is tied to speaking of “fighting against imperialism”, particularly American imperialism. In spite of this, today these groups justify receiving US financial aid by alleging that since the US is making efforts to replace the IR’s “totalitarian” regime with a “democratic” one, it would be a “combative tactic” to receive help from the Bush administration in order to fight against the IR. Though, bearing in mind the “verbal” animosity that has been going on between the Islamic Republic and the US government for the past 27 years, one must ask these groups as to why only now have they thought of taking advantage of the conflict between the two? Secondly, the conditions set by the givers of these projects and aid leave no doubt that this aid is not meant to promote the revolutionary goals of our people. In fact, the main condition for granting this financial assistance is that approved projects must not go against the interests of the US. And as long as US strategy is only to put pressure on the IR to change some of its policies, it is clear that this means mere “reforms” rather than a revolution.

In conclusion, the experiences of the past few decades of our people’s struggles against the oppressive regimes of both the Shah and the IR have proven that imperialist domination is indeed the root cause of both the people’s poverty and misery and the continuation of dictatorial regimes in Iran. Therefore, the eradication of imperialist domination is a prerequisite for achieving freedom and democracy in our country. Secondly, under the rule of imperialist-dependent capitalism where the realisation of the smallest genuine reforms towards the people’s needs are intertwined with the abolition of the system’s inherent dictatorship through a revolution, it is clear that in fact the real intention of the conditions set by the US is to safeguard the current exploitative and oppressive system from any revolutionary movements. Therefore, receiving this financial aid is not a “combative tactic” but rather it is being a means in the hands of the US’s strategists. And such actions will lead to nothing other than disgrace and obstruction against the just and righteous movement of the working and oppressed people.