I do not know why the events that are currently taking place in Iran – and which are on the verge of toppling the regime that came to power as a result of the old revolution – remind me of the May 1968 uprising in France. This famous revolutionary uprising of workers and students almost resulted in the Fifth Republic of France being overthrown…The famous slogan that embodied this uprising, and particularly the students, was a well-known quote from Rimbaud that reads “we must change life, this life of monotony and convention no longer suits us.” This same quote applies to the new generation of Iranians who took to the streets in protest of the results of the recent presidential elections…Iran and France are similar in many regards, and today we will examine the shared vitality of the French and the Iranian public with regards to the revolutionary uprisings that are seen from time to time in both these countries…I feel no hostility towards the Islamic Republic of Iran, except when I witness open hostility towards my country [Saudi Arabia]..Despite this I believe that this will help us…in providing a good human rights model. However…I feel despair when I witness the lack of human rights [in Iran], especially since this regime came to power under a platform of human rights..I feel despair at our inability as Muslims to achieve a genuine democracy. I feel despair at our lack of human rights. I feel despair at those who consider the public to have no say… >>>
