UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles Out of the Mouth of the Leader: The Political Ideology of Ayatollah ʿAli Hosseini Khamenei, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Islamic Studies by Yvette Hovsepian Bearce 2013 © Copyright by Yvette Hovsepian Bearce 2013 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Out of the Mouth of the Leader: The Political Ideology of Ayatollah ʿAli Hosseini Khamenei, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran by Yvette Hovsepian Bearce Doctor of Philosophy in Islamic Studies University of California, Los Angeles, 2013 Professor Leonard Binder, Chair The political ideologies of Ayatollah ʿAli Hosseini Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran, are identified and analyzed based on 500 speeches (1989-2013), 100 interviews (1981-1989), his biography and other works published in Iran. Islamic supremacy, resistance to foreign powers, and progress are the core elements of his ideology. Several critical themes emerge that are consistently reflected in the formation of his domestic and foreign policies: America, Palestine, Israel, Muslim unity, freedom, progress, the nuclear program, youth, and religious democracy. Khamenei’s sociopolitical development is examined in three critical phases: In Phase I, prior to the revolution, he is seen as a political activist protesting for an Islamic government; factors shaping his early political ideology are evaluated. Phase II examines Khamenei’s post- ii revolutionary appointments and election to president; he governs the country through the eight- year Iraq-Iran war. After the death of the father of the revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini, Khamenei enters into Phase III when he assumes the office of supreme leadership; internal and external issues test and reveal his political ideologies. Research indicates that Khamenei continues to proclaim Khomeini’s ideals from the 1979 Islamic Revolution which include supremacy of Islam, the isolation policy of “Neither East, Nor West,” and enmity with the U.S. and Israel. His chief foreign policies are to free Palestine, spread the ideals of Iran’s Islamic Revolution, and create a global Islamic power. His main domestic focus is progress which entails advances in knowledge, science and technology, and military and nuclear power. Despite severe economic sanctions and confrontations with the West, Khamenei claims that Iran is not producing a bomb. While he clings to an ideology that began over 50 years ago—ideals rooted in a government where religious rule is interpreted within a political setting—Khamenei is faced with discontent Iranian youth who feel isolated from the global community. With few emotional ties to the revolution, they prefer a government separate from religion. For Khamenei, however, there is no compartmentalization. He maintains his predecessor’s isolation policy of resisting colonization, oppression, domination, and opposition (CODO). Out of the mouth of the leader presents Khamenei’s ideology in his own words. iii The Dissertation of Yvette Hovsepian Bearce is approved. _______________________________________ Steven L. Spiegel _______________________________________ Michael G. Morony _______________________________________ Richard Hrair Dekmejian _______________________________________ Leonard Binder, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 2013 iv To ODETTE for openness, diplomacy, engagement, transparency, trust, and education v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES............................................................................................. xv NOTES ON TRANSLITERATION OF PERSIAN FARSI WORDS ........................................ xvi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................................................................................................... xvii VITA ............................................................................................................................................. xx CHAPTER 1 ................................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................... 1 Need for the Study ................................................................................................................... 1 Scope of the Study ................................................................................................................... 3 Background of the Study ......................................................................................................... 4 Methodology ............................................................................................................................ 6 Questions Asked In the Analysis of Speeches ..................................................................... 7 Method of Gathering Information ....................................................................................... 8 Limitations of the Study .......................................................................................................... 9 Results of the Study ................................................................................................................. 9 Chapter Outlines .................................................................................................................... 10 Phase I ................................................................................................................................ 10 Phase II............................................................................................................................... 10 Phase III ............................................................................................................................. 11 Literature Review .................................................................................................................. 13 Contributions to the Field ...................................................................................................... 16 Qualifications to Conduct this Research ............................................................................... 16 CHAPTER 2 ................................................................................................................................. 21 THE RISE OF SHIʿI POLITICO-RELIGIOUS HIERARCHY IN IRAN ............................... 21 The Shah as the Representative of the Hidden Imam During the Safavid Period ................. 22 Opposition: Akhbārī School vs. Usūlī School ....................................................................... 25 The Increased Power and Influence of the ʿUlamaʾ Under the Safavids .............................. 26 vi Shiʿite Orthodoxy Under the Qajars (1796-1925) ................................................................. 28 The Pahlavi Dynasty and the ʿUlamaʾ (1925-1979) .............................................................. 30 CHAPTER 3 ................................................................................................................................. 34 THE RISE OF AYATOLLAH KHOMEINI THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN ............................. 34 Khomeini’s Pre-Revolutionary Activism in Iran ................................................................... 34 Khomeini’s Pre-Revolutionary Activism in Exile ................................................................. 37 Signs of the 1979 Islamic Revolution .................................................................................... 39 The Victory of the 1979 Islamic Revolution of Iran ............................................................. 40 Khomeini’s Return from Exile .............................................................................................. 41 Origin of Khomeini’s Political Ideologies ............................................................................. 42 CHAPTER 4 ................................................................................................................................. 44 THE CONCEPT OF VILĀYAT-I FAQIH AND DEBATES AMONG THE IRANIAN ʿULAMAʾ .................................................... 44 The Formation of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic .................................................. 44 Controversies over the Concept of Vilāyat-i Faqīh ............................................................... 47 Debates over the Political Role of Vilāyat-i Faqīh................................................................ 48 The Absolute, Appointive Vilāyat-i Faqīh ........................................................................ 49 The Elective, Conditional Vilāyat-i Faqīh ......................................................................... 55 Invalidity of Vilāyat-i Faqīh .............................................................................................. 58 Conditions for Vilāyat-i Faqīh .............................................................................................. 60 CHAPTER 5 ................................................................................................................................. 62 THE POLITICAL JOURNEY OF AYATOLLAH ʿALI HOSSEINI KHAMENEI (1962-1979) ............................................ 62 Religious Training ................................................................................................................. 62