'PBHbQAJSAWV THE NATIONAL OF THE IRANIAN RESISTANCE THE ROLE OF A BANNED IN INTERNA TIONA *** Mehrdad Khonsari PhD Thesis W Department of International Relations The London School of Economics And Political Science June 1995 *** UMI Number: U615786 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U615786 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 I W £' £ £ S ^ONO^0 Abstract Banned opposition movements dedicated to the overthrow of repressive governments have existed for centuries. In the second half of the 20th century, while some terrorist organizations in Western Europe, the United States, and Japan have resorted to violence in pursuit of their goal of world revolution, others, particularly, in the Third World, have engaged in acts of resistance, including violence, for the attainment of their democratic rights. Today, the more serious opposition movements are able to obtain support from outside sources for the pursuit of their aims. This thesis, deals first with the fundamental theoretical questions germane to the study of any opposition movement in current times (Chapter 1). Thereafter, as a researched case study, it focuses on "The National Movement of the Iranian Resistance (NAMIR)", led by Dr. Shapour Bakhtiar which was the first political movement to come out in opposition to the theocratic dictatorship in Iran. The thesis recounts Bakhtiar’s political background (Chapter 2) and gives a detailed account of his activities in NAMIR from July 1979 until his brutal assassination in August 1991 (Chapters 3-6). Finally, it is hoped that this researched presentation will facilitate for students of international politics a better understanding of some of the critical concepts and issues relevant to the role of banned opposition movements in contemporary international politics. ItH f CONTENTS Preface 4 Chapter 1: Banned Opposition Movements in Contemporary International Politics: A Conceptual Framework and its Application to the Case Study 11 Why Men Actually Rebel: The "Raison D'etre" of Opposition Movements 12 Disobedience, Legitimacy and Opposition 16 Questioning "Legitimacy" and "Obedience" 16 Towards a Clearer Concept of "Opposition" 17 Classifying "Opposition" 19 Opposition Movements as Transnational Actors 22 Opposition Movements as "Pressure Groups" 22 "Banned" Opposition Movements and the Stakes Involved 26 Structural Requirements for a Credible Opposition Movement 29 The Role of Ideology in Any Opposition Movement 31 The Role of Organization in Any Opposition Movement 32 The Role of Leadership 34 Why People Participate in Revolutions: The Role of Membership 36 Visions 38 Strategy 39 Sustaining an Opposition Movement 41 Concluding Observations on Conceptual Framework 41 Relating Conceptual Framework to the Chosen Case Study 44 Banned Political Movements in the Aftermath of the Iranian Revolution 48 Namir: Origins, Aims, and Purpose 50 Early Indications of Disenchantment with the Regime 52 Namir's Available Options 55 Conclusion 60 Chapter 2: Shapour Bakhtiar - Principles: Frustration of Opposition Politics: Fleeting Success and Continuing Struggle Introduction 64 Bakhtiar: Heir to a Constitutionalist Tradition 67 1. A Glance at the Historical Record of the Development of Modern. • Political Thought in Iran During the Twentieth Century 68 2. The Roots of Bakhtiar's Political Making 72 Bakhtiar, the "Iran Party", and the National Front 74 The Origins of the National Front and the Iran Party 76 The Rise of Bakhtiar as a Key Opposition Figure And the Resurrection of The National Front 81 Responding to Major Issues: Bakhtiar and the National Front (1961 >1963) 88 1. The National Front and the Government of Dr. Ali Amini 89 2. The National Front and the Shah's White Revolution 92 3. The National Front and the Religious Opponents of the White Revolution 95 The Fourth National Front 97 Bakhtiar and the Fourth National Front 99 The Bakhtiar Government: 37 Days after 37 Years 104 Bakhtiar and the Armed Forces 109 Conclusion 116 Chapter 3: Shapour Bakhtiar - the Initial Period (1979-1983) 117 Creating an Effective Organization 120 Bakhtiar's Dilemma 122 The Initial Period (July 1979-July 1983) 122 Bakhtiar's Strategy in the Initial Period 125 Bakhtiar's First Major Opportunity 132 The "Nojeh" Project 135 Organizing Namir 139 Early Activities Outside France 145 Competition and Disagreement with Other Opposition Leaders 148 Bakhtiar's Foreign Policy (1979-1983) 156 Chapter 4: Shapour Bakhtiar - the Intermediate Period (1983-1986) 157 Promoting Namir as a Credible Organization 163 1. Forming the Required Structures 163 A. The Council of Advisers 164 B. The Namir Council 165 C. Namir - Military Wing (MW) 167 2. Namir's Political Strategy (1983-1986) 168 Promoting "Negative Resistance" 172 Demonstrating Internal Support and General Credibility 174 Attempt at Creating Political Consensus 175 Promoting an Active Foreign Policy 181 Establishment of the "Shapour Bakhtiar Liaison Office" * 183 Identifying Foreign Policy Targets and Making a Plausible Cause for Support 185 1. France 186 2 2. Iraq 186 3. Egypt 188 Achieving a Notable Breakthrough 190 Producing an Anti-Khomeini Farsi Newspaper During "Haj" 191 Promoting Bakhtiar in the UK 196 Conclusion 198 Chapter 5: Bakhtiar's Last Hurrah: Operation White Star - a Plan Mismanaged 199 Coming up with a Comprehensive Plan of Action 200 Operation White Star 203 Developing White Star 205 Mounting Financial Pressures on Bakhtiar 207 Bakhtiar's Trip to Saudi Arabia 209 The Collapse of White Star and the Beginning <jf the End for Bakhtiar 213 Main Sources of Internal Tension 215 Rivalry and Competition Amongst the Namir Elite 218 Bakhtiar and the "Irangate" Scandal 225 Chapter 6: The Final Period (1987-1991) 229 The Breakdown of Entente with Other Moderate Leaders 231 Changing Objectives: Namir's Quest for Survival 235 Re-Defining Namir's Mission 237 1. The Namir Council 239 2. The Council of Advisers 243 3. The Military Wing 244 4. The Propaganda Wing and its main Themes: 246 A. The Call for Ending the War 247 B. The Death of Ayatollah Khomeini 260 Bakhtiar and the Controversy of UNSCR 598 248 A New Foreign Policy Agenda 262 1. Relations with Saudi Arabia 266 2. Relations with Iraq 269 3. Relations with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) 270 Epilogue 276 Conclusion 281 Appendixes 285 Selected Bibliography 327 --------------------------- I ----------------------- 3 PREFACE Banned opposition movements dedicated to the overthrow of governments have existed for centuries. In modem times - i.e., in the second half of the 20th century - the most notorious groups were the terrorists in Europe. They used robbery, kidnapping, and murder to undermine democratic governments in Italy, Germany, and Spain. While some terrorist organizations in Western Europe, the United States, and Japan have rejected their own democratic societies and resorted to acts of violence in pursuit of their goal of world revolution, others, particularly in the Third World, have engaged in acts of violence for the purpose of attaining (or re-establishing) their democratic rights. It follows that organizational goals can vary a great deal amongst opposition groups. Some groups are purely nationalistic. The Provisional Irish Republican Army wants the British to get out of Northern Ireland and to unite the two Irelands into a single nation. The Puerto Rican Armed Forces of National Liberation (FALN) wants an independent Puerto Rico with a socialist government. Basque terrorists in northern Spain would like to establish an independent homeland. In the Middle East, most Palestinian groups seek to undermine Israel and recover lost territory; and since the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the advent of Ayatollah Khomeini, there has been a plethora of religiously motivated political groups in the Islamic world that have resorted to hostage taking and other acts of extreme violence for purposes of promoting their political agendas. At on stage, most opposition movements resorted to such acts as robbery and kidnapping for ransom in order to secure the funds needed for their existence. While some still engage in such activities, the more significant opposition movements in the present international environment, also receive large amounts of money from outside sources such as foreign governments and international business consortiums - e.g., some oil -rich Arab nations continue to provide substantial funds to some Palestinian groups. Furthermore, it is a reality that many Third World countries are governed by extremely inefficient, repressive, and corrupt regimes, few of which have achieved notable success in improving the quality of life in their country. They largely depend on money provided from external sources for development, but much of the money is diverted into personal bank accounts by their corrupt rulers. Repressive regimes are rarely stable. They are vulnerable to internecine power struggles, insurrections and, as happened in much of Latin America,