FAILURE OF POLITICAL ISLAM IN RESPONDING TO SOCIAL DEMANDS: THE CASE OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN, 1980-2020

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2021-10-12
Dilan , Ayverdi
This thesis aims to analyze the failure of political Islam in not responding to the social demands of the Iranian people with the established system after the revolution. The Islamic regime claimed to create a democratic constitution with the Islamic rule (Sharia) and an equal economic system that prioritizes the oppressed people (mustazafin) and responds to society's real expectations, which the Pahlavi monarchy had not responded. However, eliminating revolutionary forces like the socialists, nationalists, liberals, even some oppositional clerics from the newly established system and consolidation of ulema paved the way for changing the form of revolution, power-balance, and the claims of the revolution. Khomeini's Velayat-e Faqih (the Guardianship of Jurist) concept, which provides religious leaders with supra power on the state institutions and ruling the state with the Sharia, makes the ulema leading authority on the whole state system, which also paves the way for the creation of more suppression on society, corruption in economy, and inequality between the gender and class in the country instead of creating the democratic ruling system, equal economic distribution and satisfied society with responding to social demands. These social demands include a democratic election system, gender equality in the public sphere, decreasing unemployment rate, education, freedom of media, and prosperous living standard. However, the Islamic Republic of Iran could not be succesful in responding to society's demands from 1980 to 2020.

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Citation Formats
A. Dilan, “FAILURE OF POLITICAL ISLAM IN RESPONDING TO SOCIAL DEMANDS: THE CASE OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN, 1980-2020,” M.S. - Master of Science, Middle East Technical University, 2021.