August 4 (Mordad 14) is known in Iran as the day when King Mozaffar ad-Din Shah of the Qajar Dynasty proclaimed the Constitutionalism in Iran. There are some days in the history which are so important that their annual reviews gives us effective lessons. For sure, all of us from the childhood and the adolescent times have heard something about the Constitutional Revolution and the day Constitutionalism was proclaimed. Do you know why this date is so important in our history? Mordad 14 (August 4) has appropriated one day of our calendar.
IRAN NEWS POLITICAL DESK
The Second Constitutionalism was to take shape during the nuclear talks between President Hassan Rouhani’s government with signatories of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) that the enemies even feared even to give this whit of concession to Iran or retreated. In Other words, the Constitutionalism had some concessions in its nature but it nourished and strengthened the dependent anti-religion and intellectual current and above all the Freemasonry.
In 1906, people protested about the domestic condition and the performance of kings of Qajar Dynasty. One can find the roots of protests in issues like revelation of corruption in the administrative bodies, extravagance of the kings and their courts with the government treasury, pleasure trips of Mozaffar ad-Din Shah abroad, tyranny and oppression against people.
All these factors plus people’s awareness of the world news formed the Constitutional Revolution. The origin of the world Mashrotiate (constitutionalism) in Persian comes from Arabic word of “shart” (condition). So we can say the word Mashrooteh (Constitutional) means something that is conditional. The JCPOA was like the Constitutionalism where different agreements forced Iran to accept conditions whose disgrace was everlasting.
This movement, or according to the so-called betrayed people of the revolution, undoubtedly formed one of the most important events of Iran’s history during the Qajar Dynasty ruling. And ultimately Mozaffar ad-Din Shah on August 4 (Mordad 14) proclaimed the Constitutional ruling in the country and two days later he ordered for establishment of the first National Consultative Assembly. With this decision, the power seemed to exit from one person’s monopoly. The power was to shift to a behind-the-scene current which was run by the British in order to increase their influence more over the country.
With the king’s order, the assembly had two sessions a week and the sessions convened in the capital which was today’s Khordad 15 Square of Tehran. During the assembly’s meetings, some lawmakers were elected with the approvals of the king. And finally on December 30, 1906, the” political regulations” which is actually considered as the first Constitutions of Iran was prepared. This Constitution was comprised of 51 articles and it has been inspired by the constitutions of Belgium, France and Bulgaria and had been endorsed by the king. Ten days after this royal signature, Mozaffar ad-Din Shah died on January 9, 1907. After his death, Muhammad Ali Shah took power who was ardent opponent of Constitutionalism.
So when the first session of the National Consultative Assembly, two years after its foundation in 1907, convened, it was bombarded by Russian troops with full support of Muhammad Ali Shah’s kingdom. After this event, the climate of the society moved towards full suffocation. Some freedom-seekers, clerics and journalists staged protest rallies in support of the constitutionalism and they were hanged. In other words, the British were behind the pro-Constitutionalists and Russians were hidden behind the anti-Constitutionalists. The clerics had also been divided as some thought of the advantages of the constitutionalism and believed it could help the country get rid of dictatorship by limiting the power of the king and some clerics thought that the British are behind the Constitutionalists and they should align with the Russians to get rid of the Old Fox. Muhammad Ali Shah was in alignment with the Russians. Amid this conflict, the World War I broke out. Due to the war, the domestic political and economic condition fell in disarray more than before.
Ultimately Constitutionalism Movement began in Tabriz and with actions of two sardars (commanders), Sattar Khan and Baqer Khan, that later some hands presented both as national commanders. The movement began as the British wished it to confront Russia’s elements in the country. These two commanders resisted against the government forces and created link with freedom-seekers in other cities of Iran and finally invaded Tehran to topple King Muhammad Ali Shah and celebrated the victory.
With the victory of the Constitutionalists, Iran moved towards the Western intellectualism with more pace, and the western-oriented epidemics injection in the country’s structures accelerated day by day in a way that it was on the verge of closing down the seminaries in Najaf (Iraq) and Iran which had been established to promote Islam.
When we put the goals of the JCPOA beside the Constitutionalism, we see they are homogenous because we see some conditions had been set the JCPOA for the arrival of the Westerners and expansion of their economic and political influences, and according to the Supreme Leader’s remarks, they have inflicted huge damages on Iranian nation.
By: Hamid Reza Naghashian- source : IRAN NEWS
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