The “Imam Khomeini Relief Committee” can be placed alongside the Jihad for Construction, the Revolutionary Guards, the 15 Khordad Foundation, and a wide range of other institutions formed in the years following the revolution in a list known as “Revolutionary Institutions”. However, there must be a serious distinction between the Imam Khomeini Relief Committee and the Foundation for the Oppressed of the Islamic Revolution and other cases. Unlike the other mentioned institutions, these two were not established after the birth of the political system following the revolution, when the shape and content of the new system were not yet clear and talking about any political system was only talking about a possibility among all other possibilities.

Placing these two institutions at the forefront of revolutionary institutions was not merely a coincidence; on the contrary, in both cases, their constitution was based on detailed political statements that explained the views of the spectrum of revolutionary Islamists about the form and content of the new government.

In article three of the constitution of the Relief Committee, we read the following:

“Imam Relief is a legal entity with independent financial, administrative, and employment regulations that is under the supervision of the esteemed leader of the absolute guardianship, according to the provisions of this charter. It has been previously explained in Article 1 that the name of the Imam Khomeini Relief Committee in this charter is referred to as Imam Relief for short.”

The ninth article is the first article of the articles of association that talks about the power structure within “Imam Relief” and explains to us that: “The pillars of Imam Relief consist of: …”

The Board of Trustees.

Head of Imam Relief.

Auditor and Inspector (Supervisory Member)

The articles of association help us to learn more about each of these components; for example, in Article 10 we read that “the Board of Trustees consists of five to seven members, appointed by the esteemed leader for a term of five years.”

Directive 1: The Board of Trustees, in its first meeting, chooses two members among themselves as the President and Vice President.

Bylaw 2: The Board of Trustees has secretariats that their duties, authorities, and responsibilities are determined according to their approved regulations.

Article 3: The board of trustees appoints an individual as secretary.

Article 4: The Board of Trustees is officially recognized with the presence of the majority of its members, and its decisions are approved by at least three or four members with a favorable vote, in proportion to the number of members.

Article 11 is also as follows: “The duties and powers of the Board of Trustees are as follows:

1- The proposal of the head of Imam’s Relief Organization from among its members to the esteemed position of the Supreme Leader, may his highness confirm and issue the decree.

2- Reviewing necessary changes in the articles of association and proposing them to the esteemed office of the Supreme Leader, may his eminence be glorified.

3- Proposal for major policies to be approved by His Excellency the Supreme Leader (may his sublime presence continue).

4- Reviewing and approving the policies and strategies of Imam’s Relief Committee based on the proposal of the head of the committee.

5- Review and approval of the structure, responsibilities, and major tasks of the Imam Relief Organization with a focus on jihad and popular management, based on the proposal of the head of the Imam Relief Organization, in accordance with the regulations issued by the Office of the Supreme Leader.

6- Reviewing and approving the annual program and budget of Imam’s Relief within the framework of the regulations issued by the Office of the Supreme Leader, based on the proposal of the head of Imam’s Relief.

7- Reviewing the annual performance report of Imam’s Relief and confirming it for presentation to the esteemed leader, may his highness be glorified.

8- Listening to the report of the head of Imam’s Relief and approving financial statements and performance based on the report of the auditor and legal inspector.

9- Review and approval of financial, transactional, employment, and other necessary regulations of Imam’s Relief within the framework of the guidelines issued by the Office of the Supreme Leader.

10. Approval of the bylaws of organizations and institutions affiliated with the proposal of the head of Imam’s Relief Organization within the framework of the regulations issued by the Office of the Supreme Leader.

11- Confirmation of the Deputy Head of Imam’s Relief with his proposal..

12- Determining the salary of the head of Imam’s Relief, their deputy, and the secretary of the board of trustees.

13- Supervision over the proper implementation of orders and policies issued by the esteemed Leader (may his highness be preserved) and decisions of the Board of Trustees.

14- Confirmation, establishment or dissolution of main offices and units.

Finally, Article 12 explicitly and clearly defines the responsibilities of the supervisory pillar: “The duties of the supervisory pillar, including the assistance of the Imam and the affiliated institutions and units, are under the supervision and auditing of the Office of the Supreme Leader’s Deputy for Supervision and Audit.”

Summary of what can be obtained from the lines of the Imam’s Relief Charter is as follows: The Board of Trustees, which is appointed by the Supreme Leader, chooses a person from among themselves as the head, but they do not have the power to install him and only inform the Supreme Leader of the designated person’s qualifications for the position of presidency – which is unlikely to be rejected by the Supreme Leader – and finally the supervisory pillar, which is nothing but the Deputy of Supervision and Auditing of the Office of the Supreme Leader. As can be seen, there is no connection between the Imam’s Relief and any of the three powers. The Imam’s Relief cannot be considered a subsidiary of any power; it is a part of the government that is not accountable to the parliament like ministries, nor is it like other institutions to ministries. More importantly, according to paragraph 2 of Article 10 of the Duties, Powers and Responsibilities Determination Act, the internal structure of this institution is

This means that in the winter days when the eyes of the king were blinded, and in the spring when the promise of determining the fate of the nation was given to the people, an institution was established that did not allow any form of management or supervision from below. None of its members were chosen by the people, nor were they accountable to any of the institutions that emerged from the people’s vote; neither the Council nor the Cabinet of the President. This can be considered the exact moment of the birth of the Relief Committee, a form of unaccountable executive power towards the people.

The birth of this form of accumulated and intensely concentrated power also brought with it another interconnected element; an element that relied on the formation of individual identities. The establishment of the Relief Committee and the Foundation for the Oppressed in the very first moment was a testament to the inverted interpretation of one of the most important dreams of the revolutionaries. The establishment of the Foundation for the Oppressed and the moment of its naming stirred up this dream, which after the revolution would take the form of an equal and just society where the oppressed and the arrogant would no longer hold any meaning, and by fate, emphasized the firm belief that the term “oppressed” would never lose its meaning. This stirring up of the revolutionary dream is more evident in the Relief Committee.

The Committee for Special Anthropology Relief is based on a particular division of individuals into two categories: recipients of aid and benefactors. Although this division, on one hand, defines the disadvantaged as worthy of compassion through the application of the identity of “relief committee”, and on the other hand, by bestowing titles of benefactor and philanthropist upon the leaders, it increases their social capital, and in this way, reinforces the power of the powerful. However, the issue does not end here. The relief committee also marginalizes the right of the disadvantaged to access government aid through mind-boggling miracles. An obvious and inclusive example of this issue is the current coronavirus pandemic. In a critical time when government financial and livelihood assistance should be considered the duty and natural right of the disadvantaged, it has been turned into charity and kindness by the relief committee for the benefit of needy households and recipients.

Other things can also be added to these cases and another implicit inference can be made from this anthropology. In fact, this division itself indicates the type of change that the Islamists have in mind. From the perspective of Islamists, the 1957 revolution was a spiritual revolution, not a material one. It was a revolution in the souls of individuals, a revolution whose goal is the guidance, education, and elevation of human beings, not the change of their material and class status. Therefore, the goal of the revolution is not to eliminate the domination of the ruling class over wealth and means of production, but to guide and educate them. The ruling class will remain in power and there will be no change in their material and class status, but they must be open to change in their souls and hearts. This means that while enjoying wealth and blessings, they must also be generous, charitable, and kind. Revolution has no other meaning in hearts and souls.

“At the end, I return to the beginning of the writing. In February 1979, during the days when there were still many possibilities and options about the form and content of the post-revolutionary order, the Committee of Relief was a highly concentrated and top-down power alongside its necessary solidarity. It was a dual humanistic approach of good/impoverished and a competing approach against other rival approaches. For example, this rival approach believed that the material situation of society must change and the power itself must be challenged and instead of a vertical power system based on executive bodies and detached from the people’s vote and opinion, a horizontal system composed of people’s councils who are in charge of managing and supervising all affairs should be formed. Or instead of the leaders showing mercy and compassion towards those under them, the order itself should be challenged, based on those above and below. Nevertheless, the formation of the Committee of Relief in February 1979 was seen by some revolutionaries as a clear