"Secularism" as the main "soft threat" against the Islamic Republic in Ayatollah Khamenei's "Political Security Discourse"

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 PhD Student, Department of Political Sciences, Khorramshahr, International Branch, Islamic Azad University. Khorramshahr, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Political Sciences, Ahvaz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz, Iran

10.22084/rjir.2023.27451.3599

Abstract

The problem of this research is to identify and analyze one of the main "soft" threats against the Islamic Republic in Ayatollah Khamenei's security discourse. Security has always been one of the main indicators in his discourse and he has paid attention to it from various aspects. In this research, the main axis is the category of "political security", which faces both "hard" threats and "soft" threats, where "secularism" is considered as the most important "soft threat" of political security. Since the discourse of the Islamic Revolution is structured around the central sign of "Political Islam", its main "other" should be considered "secularism" and this issue is clearly "highlighted" in the political discourse of Ayatollah Khamenei, and attention to the dimension Its security is very important for a more accurate understanding of the "soft" threats of the Islamic Republic. This research, using the discourse analysis method of Lakla Moff, has reached the following findings: Ayatollah Khamenei considers "secularism" the main soft threat to the Islamic Republic and "strengthening the spirit of people's belief in Islam", "non-passivity in the face of the phenomenon of Islamophobia", "mixing He considers knowledge and religion, "protecting the Islamic revolution" and "trust in God" as opposites of them, which are the indicators of his political security discourse.

Keywords

References

  • Akhavan Kazemi, Bahram (2012). “Critical Discourse Analysis and Evaluation of Laclau Aand Its Application in Policy”, Political Quarterly, Vol. 42, No 4, 1-20. (In Persian)
  • Ameri Golastani Hamed & Nafise-sadat Ghaderi (2012). “A Discourse Approach to Islamophobia”, Quarterly Journal of Political Research in Islamic World, Vol 4, No. 2: 129-153. (In Persian)
  • Barry Buzan (1999). People, States and Fear, Translation: Institute of Strategic Studies, Tehran: Institute of Strategic Studies. (In Persian)
  • Dapeng, Y. et al (2016). “Non-traditional Security: a Study of Endogenous Cultural Security Based on the Buddha Event”, 3rd International Conference on Education, Management and Computing Technology (ICEMCT).
  • Forrest, S. (2004). “Indigenous Identity as a Strategy for Cultural Security”, Presented at Northern Research Forum, Plenary on Security, Yellowknife, NWT, September 18.
  • Gharayagh Zandi, Davood (2009). “Identification of Meaning and Concept of Soft Security; an overturn to IRI's Soft Security”, Strategic Studies Quarterly, Vol. 12, Vol 45, 81-108. (In Persian)
  • Hosseinizadeh, Mohammad Ali (2013). “Discourse Theory and Political Analysis”, Political Science, No. 28: 181-212. (In Persian)
  • https://khamenei.ir/
  • Jahanbin, Farzad & Azam Emami (2014). “Social capital is the communication link of soft power, soft security, soft threat”, Soft power Studies, 4(10): 49-74. (In Persian)
  • Jørgensen, Marianne & Lousie J. Phillips (2002). Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method. SAGE Publications.
  • Jørgensen, Marianne & Lousie J. Phillips (2010). Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method, Translation: Hadi Halili, Tehran: Ney. (In Persian)
  • King, G. & C. J.L. Murray (2001-2002). “Rethinking Human Security”, Political Science Quarterly, vol. 116, No. 4: 585–610.
  • Laclau, Ernesto & Chantal Mouffe (1985). Hegemony and socialist strategy: Towards a radical democratic politics. London: Verso.
  • Mahpishanian, Mahsa (2009). “Soft Security and the Janus Face of Media”, Rasaneh, Vol. 20, No. 2, 223-255. (In Persian)
  • Moghaddami, Mohammadtaghi (2011). “Theory of Discourse Analysis by Lacla and Mouffe and its criticism”, Ma'rifat-i Farhangi Ejtemaii, Vol.2. No.2, spring 2011 91-124. (In Persian)
  • Mouffe C. (2008). “Critique as Counter-Hegemonic Intervention”, Transversal multilingual webjournal. Vienna: European Institute for Progressive Cultural Policies. http://eipcp.net/transversal/0808/mouffe/en/print.
  • Nabatian Mohammadesmaeil (2017). “Feqhi Principles of IRI`s System; Shiite Feqh on Political Security of an Islamic System”, Scientific Quarterly Journal of Islamic Revolution Studies, Vol.13, No 47: 31-48. (In Persian)
  • Nezamipour, Ghadir et.al (2016). “The soft security of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the priorities of the political ethics system”, Security Horizons, Vol.7, No. 24: 5-24. (In Persian)
  • Nye, J.S. (1990). “Soft Power”, Foreign Policy, No. 80, Twentieth Anniversary: 153-171.
  • Nye, J.S. (2004). Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics. New York: Public Affairs.
  • Nye, J.S. (2005). “On the Rise and fall of American Soft Power”, New Perspectives Quarterly, Vol. 22, No 3: 75-77.
  • Nye, J.S. (2021). “Soft power: the evolution of a concept”, Journal of Political Power, Published online: 10 Feb, https://doi.org/10.1080/2158379X.2021.1879572.
  • Nye, Joseph S. (2003). Understanding International Conflicts. New York: Longman.
  • Nye, Joseph S. (2011). The Future of Power. New York: Public Affairs.
  • Pourahmadi, Hossein (2008). Soft power and security in the global system; with an emphasis on the role and position of Basij, in: Soft power, culture and security, Tehran: Imam Sadiq University (peace be upon him). (In Persian)
  • Prasad, D.P. & T.H. Aase (2015). “Discourse Analysis as a Means to Scrutinize REDD+: An Issue of Current Forest Management Debate of Nepal”, Journal of Forest and Livelihood, Vol. 13, No. 1: 44-55.
  • Price, M. (2012). “Iran and the Soft War”, International Journal of Communication, 6: 2397–2415.
  • Rahbar, Abasali & Souri, Farzad (2016). “State and Ideal Political Security Model in Religious Society”, State Studies, Vol. 2, No. 5: 101-133. (In Persian)
  • Sabet, Farzan & Roozbeh Safshekan (2013). Soft War: A New Episode in the Old Conflflicts between Iran and the United States, Soft War: A New Episode in the Old Conflicts between. Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania.
  • Smith, A.M. (1998). Laclau and Mouffe The radical democratic imaginary. London & New York: Routledge.
  • Torfing, Jacob (1999). New theories of Discourse: Laclau, Mouffe and Žižek. Oxford: Blackwell.
  • Wæver, Ole et.al. (1993). Identity, Migration & the New Security Agenda in Europe. Denmark: St. Martin's Press.

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics