The simultaneous dismissal of university professors, the arrest, expulsion and intimidation of students, coupled with other repressive and security measures within universities on the eve of the start of the academic year and the anniversary of the 2022 uprising, reflect the clerical regime's fear of the potential for an uprising and betray its vulnerability to universities.
In recent months, a significant number of professors have been expelled from universities. According to the students, the security agencies play a central role in all decisions related to the university and the repressive forces have surrounded the campuses.
In the midst of these purges, which have sparked numerous protests, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, today tried to justify them. According to a report broadcast on August 29 by official television, Raisi said: "If some individuals intend to break the law, it is up to the university itself not to allow it (...) Today there are those who seek to enter the university with the intention of violating the law, disturbing order. Well, universities operate within a framework (...) Undoubtedly, when it comes to universities, it is necessary to constantly emphasize the importance of respect for the law and respect for discipline".
The purges and expulsions of teachers are carried out on the instructions of Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of the regime. In the recently unveiled confidential documents of the presidency of the regime, there is a document dated January 10, 2023, in which Ahmad Vahidi, the Minister of the Interior, sent a letter to Raisi entitled "notes on the need to adopt a special approach in the recruitment of faculty members and ratifications in 5 points of the Security Council meeting". In it, Vahidi writes: "Thanks to the recent unrest, we have learned the following: some professors played a provocative role by inciting protest actions, disrupting student structures and participating in university riots, which was the central cause of the crisis. In universities where dedicated and revolutionary professors were present, even if there were few of them, effective management was carried out. However, in most universities, where the network of professors was not aligned with the system or, at best, a significant number were indifferent, this led to significant disruptions.”
The fifth section of this document presents the five points ratified by the country's Security Council concerning the supervision of academic faculties within universities: "5-1 - Special recruitment authority (by assigning the labor code) to recruit 5,000 university faculty members by the Ministry of Health, and 10,000 people by the Ministry of Science should be considered before the end of the current government's mandate". The objective is to place within the universities a certain number of members of the pasdarans and the Basidj militia under the guise of professors.
AFP/HO/PRESIDENCIA IRAN - Members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)
On August 28, Hossein Shariatmadar, Khamenei's representative at the Kayhan daily, wrote: "A number of university professors who not only supported the riots and rioters during the unrest last fall, but also, in some cases, collaborated with the hooligans and criminals among the rioters to perpetrate crimes against defenseless people, have been dismissed from the university. This represents a minor form of retaliation for their reprehensible and inhumane conduct".
According to the regime's television report, before this incident, Hossein Salami, the commander of the Pasdaran corps, had addressed a gathering of Basidj commanders on August 1, stating: "The enemy undoubtedly aims to provoke unrest once again on the occasion of the anniversary of past unrest (...) support the universities and the students of the Bassij (...) the intrusion occurs through a small opening; sometimes an important barrier can be crossed by a minor crack. Develop intelligence activities, identify the leaders of these currents, contain their activities and keep your bases proactive".
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the Iranian Resistance (CNRI), declared that the inhuman regime of the mullahs, terminally ill, will not achieve its objectives by the repression of students and the purges of university professors. Their efforts to quell the uprisings through widespread arrests cannot protect them from the anger of Iranian youth and students. She urged student unions, professors and intellectuals around the world to condemn the repressive actions of the regime against universities and to show solidarity with Iranian students and professors.