Like a Storm: the Insurrection in Iran
Jun 20 2009 14:43
LIKE A STORM: THE INSURRECTION IN IRAN
No one is waiting any longer: Iran has exploded and not even the Islamic regime is surprised.
Years of student strikes, militant street battles, workplace struggles, constant repression―
and then a spark. One spark to unleash the tidal wave of rage and despair that was once
confined to barely audible whispers behind closed doors.
Now the fury is here and everyone is in the streets, young and old, men and women,
militant and pacifist.
CHAOTIC RESONANCE
The specter of ‘79 is colliding with the insurrections of Europe, but the flames of Iran burn far brighter than the 2005 uprising in metropolitan France or the Greek insurrection in December.
Everywhere the normal functioning of things has been paralyzed: people refuse to just simply go back to work, squares and streets are blockaded, universities are not functioning, police stations
are looted, and everyday social relations are negated.
The human gears that everywhere allow any regime to function are now engaged in a total war
that points beyond just stolen elections.
All of the established organizations within the conflict (whether in Iran or in exile)
are exploiting it to build their own political power, for their own place at the roundtable.
But when has it ever been different? Their “politics” are always more of the same.
Some wear green like they wear the “Yes We Can” in America.
Is that all we want?
Can the world we want ever be expressed simply by a vote?
Some complain that there are no leaders, no one to direct the insurrection, but this is to the revolt’s credit. Its spontaneous and uncontrollable nature is exactly what has allowed it to spread so quickly and resonate so widely.
This is not about an identity, a minority, an issue, or a stolen election.
It’s about everything!
As Anonymous Sinners (Iranian hip-hop group) asked,
“What is it that we want other than freedom?”
THE DEMOCRATIC LIE
They have no future to offer us; the democratic lie can’t hide this.
The children of the metropolis are everywhere bound by common conditions, by lived experience;
no more so in the West than in Iran. It takes the uproar and rage of an entire generation born outside of the democratic process to expose its illusions and false hopes.
There could be so much more than a regime change.
What if the insurrection doesn’t end?
What if the fires keep burning, and spread to the whole of society?
This is the real threat, the potential for revolution: that the return to the university, the workplace, and the home might not ever take place.
That the paralysis becomes total, that finally there is no going back…
Fundamentally, we must reach this point of no return.
JUNE 2009/ KHORDAD 1388
Jun 21 2009 22:10
#2
I am sceptical. There could be more, surely - but what chance is there of being more if people are not prepared for it?
I commented on this text in more depth on Infoshop. I won't repeat all the arguments there, but my general feeling is that while insurrections may be exciting, we shouldn't have illusions about social movements that lack deeper substance in terms of having a clear idea of what they want to accomplish. I think we need to look at the situation very soberly and realize that this is most probably going to end in one of two ways: repression and an authoritarian regime or a government run by elites, perhaps even a puppet government of US or British emigre-returnees, with programs for economic liberalization.
Insurrections, just like any social protests, have beautiful aspects and certainly we need to encourage rebellion, but people need to coordinate themselves, or they go nowhere.
By the way, I don't understand the point about the specter of 79 colliding - it isn't clear what you mean. Do you mean the specter of 79 in the sense of a reaction against the Iranian revolution, or do you mean that the revolution was essentially good, or was "stolen" - what do you mean?
Jun 21 2009 22:36
#3
WHERE ARE THE VOISES OF IRANIAN REVOLUTIONARIS?
I wood like to say that we still did not hear any voises of iranisn revolutionary groopes (i mean anarcho-communists or counselists)!
There is no any friends voises not from Iran not from iranian immigrants!
On my blogg i publish every day's comments of russian and armenian analitics and some iranian bloggers.
http://shraibman.livejournal.com/
Here is my own article about iranian revolution:
http://shraibman.livejournal.com/312545.html
and there are olso some comments from spesialists inside
But where are iranian anarchist or ultraleft revolutionaris themselvs?
Jun 21 2009 22:36
#4
Agree
Jun 22 2009 08:09
#5
We recently received this on the comments section of our website. We don't know much about who produced it but it seems to come from Iran. The IBRP have also published it.
Submitted by Internationalist (not verified) on June 21, 2009 - 15:42.
Neither Ahmadinejad nor Mosavi
Long live class struggle
After the election circus, Ahmadinejad was presented as winner and this resulted in political confrontation and crisis between bourgeois gangs. The leader of one rival, Mosavi would not accept the result and mobilize protestors throughout the entire country which resulted in some demonstrators got wounded or killed. The fact is that in our epoch, in the epoch of decadent capitalism, parliament and elections are not than a mystification and the main task of parliament is, legislate wage slavery.
Mosavi, with his green flag, presented himself as a reformist. What does it means to be reformist? It was during Mosavi’s time as a Prime Minster that hundreds of striking worker jailed or were beaten to death. Thousands of political prisoners were executed when Mosavi was Prime Minster. Mass grave of political prisoners (Khavaran) was created when Mosavi was Prime Minster. This list can be very long. Mosavi is not less guilty than Ahmadinejad when it comes to workers right or other human right issues.
The green movement does not belong to workers and it belongs to a rival of bourgeois. We must avoid acting as canon fodder for any of the struggling bourgeois gangs. Instead of green flag, we must raise our flag, the flag of proletariat and the red flag.
Capitalism is the origin of all misery and adversity in the world. Capitalism means, a real hell, not only for working class but also for all humanity. We must never forget that capitalist democracy and capitalist dictatorship are two sides of the same coin. Where the Goddess of Freedom stands, thousands of workers are unemployed and homeless. In the paradise of capitalism, where the social democratic governments have been in place for more than hundred years, unemployment has been a nightmare for working class.
The future of our movement only depends on our struggle. We must expand our struggle, independent of all bourgeois gangs, against capitalism. Our slogan must be against wage slavery, exploitation, unemployment, inflation and we must spread our struggle from streets to workplaces in all sectors and if it is possible to other countries as well. Internationalist positions are very weak in Iran and its militants very isolated. We must try to break down this isolation and establish connection and collaboration with other internationalists throughout the world.
The working class is the only social class that can put an end to capitalist barbarism and misery. This alternative that communists had proposed in the past is more valid today than ever:
“Communist revolution or the destruction of humanity!”
19 June 2009
Internationalist
Jun 22 2009 10:43
#6
magidd;
are you from Armenia? If you are, do you belong to an internationalist/revolutionary group or circle? Or is there any that you know?
I am trying to write something about armenian genocide. If you are from armenia and if any communist group have any article or anything that can help me, I will be glad to use them.
By the way I am from Turkey..
Jun 22 2009 13:25
#7
We have some Iranian anarchists on our mailing list, but, as you may suppose, when things are happening, they probably have no time to write.
On the other hand, someone from Iran wrote something for our site:
http://cia.bzzz.net/wybory_w_iranie
Unfortunately, there's not much analysis in it, so I didn't translate it. The IBRP thing is more interesting.
Jun 22 2009 18:46
#8
No i am anarcho-communist from Russia
A really exciting text! Is it written by people in Iran or abroad?
Looking forward to more info on that blog.