FREEMASONRY

iv. THE 1979 REVOLUTION

Persecution of Freemasons. From the onset of the 1978-79 revolutionary upheavals the Persian Freemasons became vulnerable to the anti-Masonic sentiments and threats of the main participants in the revolutionary coalition, including Islamic Fundamentalists, Leftist organizations, and Liberal-Nationalist forces who identified Masons as Anglo-American and Anglo-Zionist agents and thus largely responsible for all the misery and trouble of the country in modern times. The secretive and elitist character of the Masonic order in Persia made it susceptible to conspiracy theories and widely believed myths of Masonic omnipotence and secret designs. Meanwhile, the main blow to Persian Masonry came from the disclosure of the Masonic archive and roster of members of various lodges under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Iran. These documents were found in the residence of Jaʿfar Šarīf-Emāmī, the grand master of the Lodge. Membership in freemasonry was declared a crime and the roster was used by the evolutionary committees and tribunals of the Islamic Republic to persecute hundreds of Persian Masons whose names appeared on the list. Consequently, with the establishment of the Islamic regime, some Masons were executed, many more imprisoned, and a large number were purged from government offices and universities. Many had their property sequestrated and were not allowed to leave the country. In this period many books and articles were published accusing them of all kinds of conspiracies against Persia and the Islamic community.