Cultural Genocide in the name of Islam

By: Amil Imani 

According to The World Encyclopaedia, cultural genocide is a term used to describe the deliberate destruction of the cultural heritage of a people or nation for political or military reasons. Since its inception twenty-six years ago, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been in constant war with the Iranian people as well as the Iranian heritage. 

Over its life span, the Islamic Republic zealots have tried many times to cleanse the pre-Islamic Persian heritage in the name of Islam. First, they declared war against the Persian New Year or “Nowruz”, and then, they attacked other Persian traditions and customs. At the beginning of the revolution, the Islamic zealots rushed to the site of the Persepolis, the magnificent palace of the Achaemenid kings, to demolish it. Fortunately, the total bulldozing of the relics of the Palace was averted by Iranian patriots who wished to preserve their heritage. Who literally stood in front of the bulldozers and did not allow the destruction of this heritage of humanity.  

Recently, the Islamic Republic of Iran has renewed its war of construction and destruction with Persian antiquities. Its intention is to build up an Islamic empire and to change the whole face of Iran into a backward Islamic nation. The Islamic Republic sees Persian heritage as a formidable enemy of its conquest of turning Iran into a pure form of an Islamic nation. Hence, they have waged a war on Persian antiquities in the hope of suppressing Persian pride and nationalism. 

In their latest attempt in the war of destruction, the Islamic Republic has been insidiously planning to obliterate some of the most cherished places in Persian history. They intend to eradicate the Pasargad, the Bolaghi gorge and the Persepolis. 

In Pasargad lays the tomb of Cyrus the Great, the King of Kings and the founding father of Persia. Cyrus the Great, who has been mentioned twenty-five times in the Bible, is known for his compassion and his unprecedented tolerance. Cyrus’s Charter of Human Rights is known to be the first such charter written which refers to the concept of humans as having universal rights, regardless of legal jurisdiction, ethnicity, nationality or religion. 

Cyrus's most notable reputation of a great leader stands high as a Persian king who freed the Jews from captivity by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Cyrus the Great, not only allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem to rebuild their temple, but also assisted the Jews in this endeavour, something which was followed by his heirs. 

Cyrus proclaimed more than 2500 years ago, "Today, I announce that everyone is free to choose a religion and free to live in all regions and take up a job provided that they never violate other's rights." Cyrus was not a conqueror, but a liberator. 

It has been said that Alexander the Great set the torch to Persepolis in a drunken rage, regretting it the following day. Alexander the Great plundered Persia. He destroyed and burned Persepolis, the magnificent palace complex of the Achaemenid kings. Yet, Alexander the Great paid tribute to Cyrus the Great at his tomb. This shows how much the king of kings was respected, even in the eyes of his fierce enemies. What Alexander set on fire more than 2200 years ago, the Islamic Republic intends to submerge today. 

In its war of construction and destruction, the Islamic Republic has been building "Sivand Dam" near the Persian antiquities. The construction of the Sivand Dam on the Polvar River began in 1992 without consultation with or the knowledge of the Cultural Heritage Organization officials. The dam's opening was planned in March 2005, but the Iranian energy ministry has delayed it to early 2006 to give the archaeologists more time to examine the sites. 

This dam will flood the entire Tang-e Bolaghi (Bolaghi Gorge) mountain pass and the surrounding region. That would lead to some 8 kilometres of the Bolaghi Gorge being submerged and lost forever. Thus, experts of ICHCTO and the Pars-e Pasargad Research Foundation quickly undertook a project to study the area.  So far they have identified more than 100 archaeological sites there, 

The Islamic Republic's ulterior motive in building "Sivand Dam" so close to the archeological sites was to intentionally flood the vast archeological area of Pasargad, including the tomb of Cyrus the Great, Bolaghi Gorge, the King's path and the main historical road of Persia which was constructed by the order of Darius of the Achaemenids and the relics of the magnificent palace of Persepolis. 

Although the Islamic Republic’s records speak dismally for itself, there are numerous reasons for this cultural genocide. Last but not least, the Islamic regime's decision to destroy Cyrus the Great's tomb is due to their inner fear of the personification of Cyrus the Great in the heart of every Persian. Since Cyrus the Great released the Jews from captivity some 2500 years ago, the Islamic Republic's intense hatred of the Jews has fuelled their mission of destruction. Also, fear of Persian nationalism is so immense that it stands in their way of creating an Islamic Utopia. These fears are justified, especially following the news on the future release of a British movie on the life of Cyrus the Great. 

Today, we are up against a truly malignant force in radical Islamism that is breeding, sheltering and financing its terrorist armoury. This new enemy of humanity and world heritage is far more radical and dangerous than the Nazi Germany or the old Soviet Russia. The Islamic Republic’s ultimate objective is the destruction of everything in the world that is good and to leave behind a network of Islamic terror around the free world. 

Let us hope that people of the earth become united against the forces of evil and evildoers of radical Islamism. Let us hope that the free world applies pressure to the Islamic Republic to prevent them from purging the Persian heritage.