Can Molotov cocktails remedy our people's pains?

Translation of article from Gozareshgaran.

Can Molotov cocktails remedy our people's pains?
By: Behrooz Sooren / Feb. 16. 2011

Discourse regarding self-defense on the part of the people -- who daily come under the assault of the security forces of the Islamic Republic in the streets for various reasons -- is one of the subjects of discussion and commentary among the political organized forces and individuals inside and outside Iran. The points of divergence among these forces are reflections of their views on the leadership and the future of the movement, and the fate of the protests and demonstrations, which have accompanied the entirety of the Islamic Republic's three inauspicious decades of occupation of the state power and running of country. In a violent system that the Islamic Republic has imposed on our people, and which has stripped the people of all personal and social rights, there remains no other choice other than self-defense against the violence that this regime has perpetrated against women, the youth, the students, workers and ...

We remember that a year and a half ago, when the vast street presence of the people was the subject of headlines around Iran and the world, many people still spoke of civic/non-violent struggle, and would advertise non-violent methods of fighting against knife-wielding murderers of the Basij and the Sepaah [Revolutionary Guards]. The slogans such as, 'Death to dictator and dictatorship!' were interpreted as misplaced.

Political perceptions and experience of many in the organized forces as well as individuals confronted these conformists and compromisers, and today we witness that the chief slogan of the people on the streets is, 'Death to Dictators', and 'Down with Islamic Republic'. [The slogan of] separation of religion and state is raised, as opposed to the reactionary slogan [proposed by reformists, Mousavi and Karroubi], "The [Islamic Republic's] Constitution, not a word more nor one less!" and the views of the hangman, Khomeini, the darling of the [reformists]. Mousavi and Karroubi have expressed their dreams and ideals in a recent statement: keeping the existing system and returning it to the golden era of their hangman imam [Khomeini].

These dreams are, however, very far from the level of growth of awareness and experience of the people, who in the streets have repeatedly experienced the bloody face of the Islamic Republic. The idea of self-defense, and preparation for confronting the violent forces protecting the regime, is strengthened daily. It is obvious that if there existed the alternative of removing the regime without shedding blood, and with reference to a free vote of the people, not a single person would opt for a violent overthrow.

It is an elementary fact that people do not want wars, and think of peace, freedom and equality. It is also elementary that any revolution necessitates the burden of some costs, including human lives as well as economic costs. However, the truth is that tyranny never leaves the political scene due merely to some wise advice or diplomatic prodding.

The truth is that a system like the Islamic Republic has been busy for thirty-two years deceiving, oppressing, and looting the people of Iran, and it is the truth that hoarding money and wealth is the one thing that gives the system, from its top to the bottom, its stability and motivation. This utopia -- that at some point, the rulers will give up their tyranny and brutality and ask for forgiveness -- can only be propagated by people who find their interests in keeping this system and its constitution.

Molotov cocktail, throughout its history, has been portrayed not as an instrument of violence, but a symbol of resistance of unarmed people in their own defense. A defense against armed forces, who give themselves the right to attack defenseless people when they demand their rights, which are in conflict with the interests of the rulers; armed forces whose only reason for existence is to keep the existing system; who have bases and garrisons, hot and cold weapons, prisons, rooms and instruments for torture; who expropriate large portions of the national budget so as to line up against the hungry masses, to defend the wealthy, and to stop any change to the status quo.

Their forces, however, will sooner or later confront the will of the people, who are countless, who have ingenuity, and who are not ignorant of other nations' experiences, nor those of their own. Many of those experiences have been put into use in recent years, and have been shared on the cyber space as well. These lessons are now available in many forms. Including, how to put together Molotov cocktails for self-defense.

Most certainly, the executions and the street slaughters by the Islamic Republic will be confronted admirably by dissidents in the streets.

DISCLAIMER: Legality: As incendiary devices, Molotov cocktails are illegal to manufacture or possess in many regions. In the United States, Molotov cocktails are considered "destructive devices" under the National Firearms Act and regulated by the ATF.