Statements of the Supreme Leader in a Meeting with a Group of Jihadists of Construction Jihad

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Dear brothers and sisters, esteemed and proud jihadists; welcome. One of the honors of the sacred Islamic system has been that in all areas related to the welfare and interests of the nation and the country, it has had innovative and constructive plans. The manifestation of this decision-making power was Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), who, with a divine vision and wise planning, laid down the main lines necessary for governing the country under the shadow of Islam and guiding the general path of this nation towards righteousness in the early days of the revolution. One of these prominent and lasting strategies is this "Construction Jihad."

Construction Jihad is a valuable legacy of our great Imam. It is truly a good tree that was planted by the blessed hand of the great Imam, grew, bore fruit, and benefited the country and the nation at various stages. Before the issue of war arose and the Islamic Iran entered the battlefield of armed conflict, the issue of rebuilding the country was raised. The country that the revolution, the Imam, and this nation inherited from the dependent and corrupt Pahlavi regime was a complete ruin. Prosperity and wealth and the appearances and colors of oil were related to the big cities; and even then, only to the extent that they connected to the interests of the main elements of that regime. The villages were destroyed, without roads, without water, without electricity, without facilities, and without productive work that was useful; the cities were plagued by various problems, and the situation of the country was completely disordered!

In such circumstances, the great Imam established and announced Construction Jihad, and a vast multitude of faithful and enthusiastic youth joined this revolutionary movement. It was clear that what was needed in this organization was work and innovation; tireless work and creativity to save the country. What valuable youths, what pure and radiant individuals, and what talented and thoughtful people became part of this group, working in remote areas, in distant cities and villages, in hot places, in cold places, and in unsuitable living conditions, faced many difficulties.

Even before the imposed war began, Construction Jihad had martyrs. This is very important. Construction Jihad sacrificed martyrs in the field of construction; because those who were enemies of the revolution did not want it to succeed. They saw that this educated and aware youth, or this skilled and hardworking individual, was strengthening the foundations of this system with their construction and work; thus, a number of these dear ones lost their lives and became martyrs at the hands of the hypocrites and opponents of the sacred Islamic Republic before the start of the imposed war. Then the imposed war began, and again Construction Jihad was at the forefront. This proud title of "the trench builder without a trench" signifies many meanings. Throughout the war, the presence of Construction Jihad was evident everywhere, at the front lines, behind the lines, and in the middle of the fronts. You built the trenches. You constructed the access roads for the forces and the ammunition depots. You carried out repairs. You were the pioneers and innovators of great and creative works that no one had thought could be accomplished. The same is true in the period of reconstruction.

Thanks be to God, in these twenty years since the revolution, this vast organization - namely Construction Jihad - has passed one of the best tests. Today, thanks be to God, your valuable and precious existence is still here. You must continue this work. You must engage in the reconstruction of cities and villages and also focus on the reconstruction of human beings. Within yourselves, cultivate worthy managers, prominent individuals, capable hands, and active minds. This country still needs your services and your sincere efforts for many years to come. In this period when the enemies of the revolution are lying in wait to perhaps exploit some economic problems or the cessation of certain works to create a weakness for the system or for the government and the devoted officials, it is the duty of all, especially you, to double your efforts so that you can alleviate the problems of the people with constructive work and help the progress of the country.

The mission of Construction Jihad remains. One should not think that Construction Jihad has lost its revolutionary mission and the responsibility that distinguished it among many other organizations; this is not the case at all. The essential point is that various institutions in the country are all engaged in service. Today, thanks be to God, the governmental institutions, due to the efforts of the devoted and caring statesmen, are each engaged in valuable services in their respective sectors; however, institutions like Construction Jihad, which have emerged from the revolution, have what characteristics? How is it that within this organization, while Islamic values are preserved, great efforts and services are carried out with dedication, and in terms of work, the successes of innovation of these groups are ahead of and higher than those of other sectors? Of course, thanks be to God, today innovation exists everywhere in the country; but the initiation of innovation and the courage and audacity to enter the field of creativity is a point that initially emerged in organizations like Jihad and revolutionary institutions and was centered around it. What is the secret of all this? The secret of all these successes in various sectors is adherence to revolutionary faith; faith in the lofty and brilliant truth that was able to save this country. Save it from what? From the dark, humiliating era of ignorance for the Iranian nation!

Many of you youths do not remember the past. The hardest period during the years of tyrannical monarchical rule for the Iranian nation was this period fifty years before the victory of the revolution. Why? Because in the past, there were always tyrannical monarchies that oppressed the people; however, if the Iranian governments were oppressive, tyrannical, and bad, if they did not deal with the people - which they did not - at least they were not under the command of foreign enemies - except in very limited periods. They were governments for themselves; they were Iranian. But in this recent period of monarchy - that is, from the late Qajar era and throughout the Pahlavi rule - despotism, dictatorship, indifference to the opinions of the people, administrative corruption, oppression, and discrimination, and the abuse of statesmen and courtiers prevailed! - all of this existed, and in addition to these, there was a much harsher reality that was the dominance of foreigners. In this country, an Iranian had to flatter foreigners in his own home! An Iranian president, an Iranian military officer, an Iranian manager and minister had to flatter the American and British ambassadors and the greedy foreign agents - who were hundreds of thousands of foreign agents in this country! They had to work under their command! They had to take orders from them! They had to consider their desires! This is the worst incident for a nation; it is humiliation. A nation may accept poverty and economic problems for a period; but it does not accept humiliation. The Iranian nation was humiliated! The revolution came and saved this nation from humiliation, from dependency, from the corruption of the corrupt monarchical regime, and from oppression; it freed the nation. An Iranian took his own country. The Iranian youth, both men and women, the innovative, knowledgeable, and student Iranians understood that they were working for themselves and with their own will. They saw the horizon clearly.

The brilliant truth of the Islamic system and revolution accomplished this great movement, which no one thought could happen. Some of those so-called intellectuals who sometimes said a political word and comforted themselves that they were working in the field of struggle, their ultimate desire was to become like the satellites of the former Soviet Union, like those unfortunate communist countries in Africa and Asia, or like countries such as Turkey and Pakistan and the like! More than this did not occur to them. That this nation would become independent, stand on its own feet, realize its own talents, speak its own words, choose its own path, elect its own officials, consider the country as belonging to itself, and regard the country's resources as spent in the country itself, did not occur to them! The revolution did this. This was done under the leadership of the Imam and through the efforts of the people who had faith. The pillar of this great tent is faith; faith in that shining truth that performs such miracles. Faith in revolutionary Islam and pure Muhammadan Islam. The enemy understood this too. From the very first day, the enemy understood this and tried to weaken this faith. For twenty years, the enemy has been constantly trying to weaken the faith of the people through various means. Through the revolution, it has been slapped in the face, but it still comes through other means!

My dear ones! Pay close attention to this point: any organization or group that can preserve this lively, vibrant, active, and blessed faith within itself more will be of more benefit to this nation, to this country, and this system and to this history, and you jihadists are among them. You have been able to preserve this faith within yourselves. The main value of jihad is this. My love and affection for groups like yours is because of this. We have no kinship with individuals. The fact that I do not pass a day without praying for you jihadists, especially, is because of this brilliant gem within you and among you. Preserve this. This is what can save the country. This is what gives this nation the strength to resist against pressures. The pressure is great. Since the beginning of the revolution, the pressure has been high; it is not that today has a particular characteristic. Of course, sometimes within, some individuals who are truly strangers - one must say strangers - and foreign in nature, say things or do things that encourage the enemy and increase the pressures! Sometimes it is not like that. What has disappointed and rejected this enemy throughout all periods is this faith. The reason I have warned about newspapers and repeat it again is because of this. Of course, it is not about all newspapers; it is about a few of them. It does not matter; whether few or many. Some from this side and that side have raised loud cries that "Sir, are you against press freedom? You said we tolerate opposing views!" Yes; we still say it. I still say: those who have opposing views - in any issue and in any field - should write, say, print, and publish their opposition; no one cares about that. But there is a difference between someone who has an opposing view and expresses it and someone who, under the guise of expressing an opposing view, plots and acts with hostility. If today someone disrupts the work of this serving government economically, he is our enemy, and we must confront him. Hostility is hostility. Hostility in the economic sphere is hostility and must be confronted. Hostility in the military sphere and hostility in the security field is hostility and must be confronted. Hostility in the cultural field is also hostility.

If someone sits down and composes a series of writings in ten or twenty days and gradually publishes them in a newspaper, the goal of that writing is to ultimately - at the end of the work - make people hopeless about their future and depict the situation of the country so badly that no one has the enthusiasm to work. This is a conspiracy. If someone introduces the responsible institutions in the country with lies, by stating false claims or by omitting important parts of the truth, in such a way that for a young person studying at the university, for a young person working in a workshop, there remains no hope or enthusiasm for the future - to say, "Sir, what is the benefit of our working?" - is this not treason?! If some sit down and write and question the legitimacy of the Islamic system, which has been achieved with so much blood and sacrifice, these are conspiracies, these are acts of hostility; this is not merely expressing an opposing view. Expressing an opposing view is one thing, and saying an opposing word is another. If various sectors criticize different aspects and policies, it is not a bad thing. Someone says something, someone else answers him, the matter ends; but if someone wants to use his writing to undermine the foundations of the system, the future of this nation and country, and the legitimacy of this system in the minds of the people, this is treason and subversion. Hostility and subversion is one thing, and expressing an opposing view is another. One can clearly see the hands of the enemies.

You should also know that one of the most important tools of imperialist infiltration is these foreign radios! They spend a lot of money, invest, and make investments. In the past year or two, I have given a detailed account of how the Americans, Zionists, and economic world tyrants rely on these mass media. I discussed in Friday prayers how they want to infiltrate nations through this means. Mass media is their tool. Inside, some come and align themselves with them!

Of course, not everyone who does wrong in this field is an enemy; this must also be clear. Some are ignorant friends, some are oblivious insiders. I urgently ask the insiders to open their minds a little and think; to understand who the enemy is today, what he wants, and what he does - and what the enemy's plan is - this is wisdom. You must know in the battlefield whether the direction you are shooting at, bombing, is not the same place the enemy wants to be bombed?! Why do you take on the enemy's work?! Why do you pave the way for the enemy to circumvent your own forces?! This is the issue. The emphasis we always place on individuals having political analysis skills is to prevent such mistakes. Of course, the masked enemies, the duplicitous enemies, the enemies who do not even dare to show themselves, hide behind honest and sometimes simple individuals! They must be recognized and warned. Today, the country and the nation need people to be vigilant and aware, awake and able to identify the enemy and understand what the enemy is doing. Now see that all foreign radios and foreign press and news agencies have united to undermine the Assembly of Experts elections. For them, the issue is not who will be elected and who will not; that is secondary. What is of primary importance to them is that people do not show up at the polls. Do you understand this well? An aware person in our society - regardless of their thoughts, faction, or direction - understands this. Good; we must stand against this.

Everyone must strive for this election to be held with enthusiasm. This election should genuinely reflect the presence of the people in the political arena of the country. Any election that is held with enthusiasm insures the country. Last year's presidential election was held with enthusiasm. The people's turnout was high and insured the country to a great extent, disappointed the enemy, and thwarted some of their political conspiracies. Of course, they entered through another route. After the elections, they began to impose incorrect analyses on the elections. It is natural that the enemy does such things. There is no expectation from the enemy.

Today, regardless of who will come out of the ballot box, who will be elected, and who will take on responsibilities - this is secondary - everyone must participate in the elections. I told the people the same in the presidential elections. Who gets elected is not the first issue; that is the second issue. The first issue is that the people must all participate in the elections; participate enthusiastically, consciously, think, investigate, and choose the one they want. The election itself is important. The presence of the people in the elections is important. Of course, the Assembly of Experts is also significant; but the importance of the elections and the presence of the people is the importance of critique and it effectively insures the country. All political factions in the country must pay attention to this point. Those who believe in the system; now whatever they call themselves - I have no belief in these left and right labels; whoever calls himself left, whoever calls himself right, whoever calls himself centrist, whatever and whoever they are - should set aside factional issues; they should temporarily set aside factional issues and the conflicts of brothers with brothers. The conflicts of various factions in our country are conflicts of brother with brother. When the foreigner comes forward, if brothers have conflicts with each other, if they are even angry with each other, they will unite and stand together against the foreigner. This is how the revolution is. Of course, within the circle of those who believe in the Imam and the revolution and those who believe in pure Islam, there are various differences of opinion; let it be. The existence of such differences ultimately does not harm; provided that they are careful that the enemy does not exploit these differences. Where it is necessary, everyone must unite and support the revolution and support the system; they must not allow the enemy to exploit their words, gestures, and actions. This issue is important.

Of course, I clearly see that the hand of God's infinite power is behind this nation and guides it: "Indeed, my Lord is with me; He will guide me." God has guided this nation correctly in all matters; in critical points, divine grace has come to the aid of this nation. It will continue to be so. Again, this nation, by the grace of the Lord, will be able to deliver a strong blow to the enemy with its decision-making and, God willing, will make the sacred heart of Imam Mahdi happy and satisfied and the pure soul of Imam Khomeini proud and sanctified.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.