When the motivation of the masses for a collective reaction against the government has peaked, any phenomenon can be used as an excuse for the masses to threaten the government.
Iranian people are prone to react to the ruling regime for a variety of reasons.
The deplorable economic situation, the distance between the real models of the majority of Iranian urbanites and the imposed models of the authoritarian regime, the increasing psychological pressure on the people in recent years and the way the ruling government deals with the opposition and liberals in Iran are all causes for Iranian people to react against the ruling group.
In such a situation, every event plays the role of an excuse, because people need a point to focus their energy and attention, and that point can be any event, case or issue. For example, the death of Morteza Pashaei, a middle-rank singer in Iran, became an excuse for millions to go to the streets. The number of Morteza Pashaei’s supporters in Iran before his death was far less than after his death. Pashaei became the subject of a general sympathy and the Iranian society used his death as an excuse, and finally after his death he became more popular for a while than before his death. In fact, people use this technique to drain the energy accumulated inside them.
The increased tension between the people and the ruling group in Iran has left thousands of victims in recent years.
Shajarian’s Death
The death of Mohammad Reza Shajarian, beyond any other discussion, is a great loss for Persian speakers and art lovers around the world. But for some reason, it could be another opportunity for a street confrontation between the government and the Iranian people.
Shajarian was a free man, as can be seen from the role, spirit and content of his art. Some of the songs he composed have political dimensions and are directly related to the issue of tension between the government and the Iranian people. The song (Morgh-e-Sahar) is one of the most famous songs of Shajarian in recent years and has been used as the slogan of the Popular Front against the current government by the people many times. As tensions between the people and the ruling group escalated in recent years, Shajarian openly sided with the people and repeatedly spoke out against the regime’s treatment of the people. Once in the midst of street tensions between the people and the rulers, he accused the government for abusing his art by publishing his song on Iranian radio and television.
This angered the government, and the government introduced a policy of banning the voice and image of the most prominent singer in the society, and no one heard Shajarian’s song in the Iranian state media. Shajarian is definitely the most popular songwriter among the people of Iran due to his special place in the field of Eastern art, especially Persian languages, and he carries the hearts and souls of the people with him. The Iranian government was unable to deal directly with Shajarian. Shajarian’s special place between people had drawn the line of immunity around him so that the Iranian government could not deal with him like many others. Shamloo had a similar fate. Although he was openly criticizing the regime, the ruling group took a tolerant approach to Shamloo, calculating the dangers that dealing with Shamloo could pose to the regime. Shamloo died in 1379. The social and political atmosphere in Iran at that time was very different from what is happening today.
Twenty years after Shamloo’s death, the Iranian government is facing the death of Shajarian today. The Iranian government’s policy in the face of such cases is silence, isolation, and ultimately a long wait to eliminate the threat. Shajarian has now joined eternity, but it is clear that the consequences of Shajarian’s death, due to the special psychological state of the Iranian people and the recent escalation of tensions, may be deeply problematic for the government.
Shajarian’s death and the attitude of the rulers of Iran towards it
Iranian government’s dissatisfaction with Shajarian has silenced senior Iranian officials over his death. So far, none of Iran’s top officials has commented on Shajarian’s death. The difficulty for the Iranian rulers is that whether they talk, or they keep quiet, both can be controversial and can be a tool for the Iranian people to put pressure on the regime. In this sense, Shajarian’s death has deep political implications. Undoubtedly, the government has plans in place to control the situation in the coming days, and it knows the exact dimensions of the danger of this loss in terms of its survival. The Iranian people, however, have a very big excuse. In such a situation, all political, economic and value dissatisfaction go hand in hand. At a time when the Iranian government is facing a series of major foreign and domestic challenges, massive popular movements are considered a serious threat. Iranian government’s funding has dwindled under US and a string of international sanctions, and Iran’s leaders have long waited for an opportunity to pass this phase.
Any excuse is used by the people to take to the streets and express their dissatisfaction with the current situation, and Shajarian’s death is a great excuse to create such a scene. The government’s approach to street protests has always been very harsh. Thousands are said to have been killed and imprisoned by Iranian troops in street protests in the past two years. The use of violence is one of the most important signs of a system’s instability. When the level of peoples’ dissatisfaction with the government rises, the distance resulting from dissatisfaction is always considered a potential threat, and the use of force against the people reinforces motivation and hatred on both sides. With each violent move, the people’s hatred of the ruling elements increases and finally, at some point and for some reason, control is lost from the government. Although the Iranian rulers have shown that they have a great deal of power to control such situations, but these violent treatments cannot last forever.
