RNA – Speaking jurisprudence lesson in Qom’s Grand Mosque, Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem-Shirazi spoke about the blessings of God, saying, “One of the greatest and most important blessings is the blessings of the Islamic system of government. Those who are aware of the era [before the 1979 Islamic Revolution] know what humiliation was imposed on society and the people. This great nation had reached such a point where the list of parliamentarians were sent to the American embassy for approval and you must know that at that time, the Guardian Council was the embassies of the United States and the United Kingdom.”
The revered source of emulation argued that the enemies intervened and destroyed much of the country’s capital and the situation was such that no honour was left for the country in the world but today Iran is very proud.
He said, “We don’t say that there isn’t a problem and no one denies that there are problems which must be solved but this country has honour in the world, doesn’t give in to others and it stood against the firmness of the hegemonic power. The Islamic Republic stood on its own feet and wherever it’s expedient, it helps countries but during the era of the [Pahlavi] regime, Iran didn’t dare to take a step without the approval of the United States and the United Kingdom.”
In another part of his speech, Ayatollah Makarem-Shirazi condemned the ongoing brutal and genocidal crimes against Muslims in Myanmar, adding that Myanmar is a majority Buddhist country which has a minority of several million Muslims and Buddhists have decided to massacre the oppressed Rohingya Muslims in the southeast Asian country’s Rakhine State.
“We now see that every day new instances of the Myanmarese government’s crimes are being carried out and the situation is tragic. I have heard that even the Taliban have condemned them,” he added.
The prominent teacher in the Islamic Seminary of Qom strongly criticized the indifference of the world and the Muslim world in regard to these brutal crimes and stated, “Should Islamic countries not make an uproar? Shouldn’t the so-called Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which is made up of 60 countries, hold a special meeting and think of these oppressed people?”
Ayatollah Makarem-Shirazi said, “If a tiny speck of dust lands on Israel’s lap, the United Nations Security Council won’t sit silent so why have they remained silent in this case? It’s as if honour has left Muslims. It’s not anticipated by the Security Council but Muslims should do their duty.”
His Eminence suggested that the foreign ministers of Islamic countries should hold a meeting to solve the problem of Myanmar and said, “When they see the ministers of 60 Islamic countries discussing this issue, they’ll see that that side is strong and can make decisions.”
He said, “In this case, the Security Council may also take action for its honour and it must take serious action regarding these cases and make an uproar, they must stand against these savage and merciless perpetrators.”
Ayatollah Makarem-Shirazi added, “Most Muslims in Myanmar are Sunnis and we defend them to the same extent as if we were defending the Shi’ahs. This indicates that we don’t differentiate on these issues.”
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