Reading of the message of Seyed Mostafa Tajzadeh from Evin Prison, on the occasion of Student Day and the program "For Iran Tomorrow" at the University of Tehran.

Liberal and Justice-Seeking Students, Ladies and Gentlemen!

Our beloved Iran is going through difficult and very sensitive days under the shadow of external threats, unprecedented livelihood pressures, and environmental crises. This situation is the product of decades of ignoring the public will and preferring conflict over engagement in domestic and foreign policy. Contrary to the cliché narrative that Iranians know what they don't want but don't know what they do want, I believe that Iranian society recognizes both its demands and its undesirable elements. What it lacks is the mechanism and strategy for realizing its ideals.

One of the causes of this inability is the weakness of citizens' and even elites' organization. Despite high public awareness, the willingness for collective and organized work among Iranians is very low. This gap enables the government to ignore widespread dissatisfaction and allows a small but cohesive minority to dominate a critical but scattered majority.

This is while public opinion transforms into "effective power" only when it can organize itself and manifest its "self" through elections or boycotts, peaceful protests, civil disobedience, or countering censorship and other civil methods. Furthermore, one of the most effective ways to convert public demand into social power is the organization of citizens; ranging from university associations and labor and professional unions to NGOs and political parties.

Students, as one of the most pioneering groups in society, must start collective and organized work from within the university and academic institutions so that they can later play an effective organized role in civil institutions for the benefit of improving the situation. The organization of citizens is a prerequisite for achieving a developed and democratic Iran—a country that, by guaranteeing the civil and political rights of its citizens, is a messenger of peace and peaceful coexistence on the global stage.

Dear Students,

Alongside the weakness of disorganization, another historical problem in Iranian politics since the Constitutional Revolution has been political monopolization. This is a long-standing pattern based on a win-lose game, the "winner takes all and the loser loses everything" approach, and the "victory of one and the elimination of others."

The way out of this historical deadlock is identifying the rights of opponents, accepting political diversity, respecting minority rights, and submitting to the free vote of the majority. Without moving past the patterns of "believing oneself to be absolutely right" and monopolization, we cannot witness a stable transition to democracy.

Dear Students,

Removing the shadow of war, sanctions, and tension from Iran's skies is only possible when the people once again become sovereign over their own destiny, make maximum use of their right to organize, discard exclusionary strategies, and prioritize national dialogue. In this case, with the help of God and the efforts of the people, we will be able to overcome internal crises and external threats.

We must not forget that Iran has room for all of us. To achieve freedom, equality, welfare, and progress while maintaining security, it is necessary to organize, safeguard dialogue, respect each other's rights—especially those of our opponents—resist any form of despotism, avoid violence in every form, and be content with our actual share in the country's administration, proportional to the people's free vote. Only then can we achieve a prosperous Iran with a democratic future that guarantees the rights of all inhabitants of this land, and Iran will become a country for all Iranians.

Seyed Mostafa Tajzadeh Evin Prison December 7, 2025