Political culture and identity in Iran - Essay Example

Introduction People are defined by their cultures. This is because culture defines all widely shared beliefs and values of the people. It determineswhat the society consider to be ethical and how people evaluate the physical and social world at any given setting. Therefore, culture is force that influences the criterion for which people make choices regarding the social, economic and political status of any country. Political culture and identity in Iran Political culture defines the relationship between the ruling elites and the citizens, amongst citizens themselves, and the economy of a given state.

It also a blinding factor to the society as defines what a given group should believe in any situation rather than the actual observed occurrence. Therefore, political culture is an important in understanding the setting and dynamics of a country. In Iran, the political culture is interpreted as the collection of Iran’s history that has shaped the perceptions of Iranians and created their unique identity (Samih and Mehrdad p1-3). The most dominant culture in Iran is Islam, and the political culture is more of consensual as opposed to “conflictual” political culture i.e. many different groups rarely clash with the hegemonic group.

All ethnic groups, with exception to a few, identify strongly with major features of Iranian culture and civilization. This form of political culture and orientation came into existences as result of Iran’s history, and forms the major basis for identity of Iranians In 1906, Iran changed its constitution and adopted the monarchy as system of governance. The system worked well until 1953. In that year, Shah, with the help of western powers, staged a successful coup against the governing body to become king.

His autocratic reign and tolerance to the western allies frustrated the citizens leading to revolution in Iran. The rebels and the guerillas fought side by side to defeat shah and his allies, thus marking the end of the monarchy system in Iran. Ayatollah Khomeini became the first leader of Iran after the monarchy system. His immediate action was to fuse religion and politics, and “desecularization” of all the country’s institution. Hence, Iran became an Islamic state that follows the Islamic value system (Samih and Mehrdad, viii).

As consequence of Iran’s history, Identity is perceived to be a means of protection for the Iranians, and thus has contributed significantly to the political setup in Iran. The political system and its entire structure is tailored to be in phase with the Islamic religious system. Thus, Iranians identify themselves with the Islamic culture. Although there are other cultures and forms of identity in Iran, their influence have been reduced or totally overshadowed by Shi’ism which is believed be a means of protecting Iranians.

The high belief in Shi’ism adopted by Iranians gives a sufficient reason for the adoption Islamic culture and hence the political configurations. Factors influencing Iranian’s politics beyond the political culture The supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khomeini, is the commander in chief, appoints the judiciary, influences the appointment of government officials and controls the national radio. Moreover, he is the ultimate decision maker. Thus, the excessive powers awarded to, and the hidden dictatorial nature of a single individual, supreme leader, influences in totality the Iranian political system.

For instance, the disputed 2009 presidential election was marked with massive irregularities sparking protest all over Iran. However, when the supreme leader declared the elections a divine assessment and declared denounced the Pro-Musavi demonstrators, the demonstrators were dealt with harshly by the government forces. Therefore, it can be concluded that individual decisions and leadership of the supreme leader explains largely the politics in Iran. The presence of a theoretical constitution in Iran specifies that the government and the ruling elites obtain their legitimacy from God and the people of Iran.

Thus, those in power claim to representatives chosen by God to lead Iranians. Hence, any uprising individual or groups that attempts to revolt against the government are interpreted to resist god’s will. Therefore the must be eliminated. This principle has been extended to businesses and secular organizations. For example, Iranians are deeply entrenched in their religion such that anybody who rises against the Islamic religion or avoids mixing religion with business is branded as anti-Islamic.

The state has no choice but to revoke businesses operating licenses of such persons or secular organizations. Thus, the economic structures and policies force people in Iran to sing in unison the same political tune to survive. Opposition mobilization is an effective tool that has shaped and strengthened Iran’s political regimes. At the time of abolishment of the monarchy system, there existed many political parties. However, after Khomeini fused Islamic religion with politics, other political parties were disbanded, went underground or allowed to survive only if they abide by the principles of Islamic religion.

This oppression led to the opposition mobilization and attempted coups. Khomeini triumphed and made the political arena extremely belligerent for the existence and formation of other political parties. Thus, the presence of one political party and many clandestine parties in Iran can be attributed to previous opposition mobilizations. Conclusion The entire political culture and orientation in Iran is based on the cultural identity which is the Islamic culture. However, other factors that have probed the Iran’s political culture periodically have significantly contributed to the strengthening and shaping the political system in Iran.

Works Cited Farsoun, Samih, and Mehrdad Mashayekhi. Iran: political culture in the Islamic republic. London Routledge, 1992 print.