Economist: ‘Mostazaf’ Different From Poor

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Economist: ‘Mostazaf’ Different From Poor

Economist: ‘Mostazaf’ Different From Poor

“The word (mostazaf) means a capable person pushed toward weakness (poverty) because of the system and condition rather than their own faults,” Khoshchehreh said

News ID: 14096 | Date 2010/03/07

نسخه چاپی |

Jamaran News and Information Network - Tehran

The word mostazaf (oppressed or underprivileged) has been used repeatedly in comments of the founder of the Islamic Revolution Imam Khomeini and supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Mohammad Khoshchehreh, a noted economist and university professor, explained the meaning of the term in an interview with Jamaran News Base.
Imam Khomeini laid much emphasis on terms of mostazaf and mahroum (the oppressed and underprivileged) in his comments, the economist said.
The words are included in the Constitution and leader’s comments as well, he said, adding that the understanding the groups of people categorized by Imam as the oppressed or the deprived are important.
“Unfortunately, we abandoned the words and imported new words such as the vulnerable strata from the World Bank and International Monetary Bank whose terminology are based on incomes,” the university professor regretted.
He explained that mostazaf and mahroum (the oppressed and the deprived) were rooted in the country’s Islamic and Iranian culture.
“The word (mostazaf) means a capable person pushed toward weakness (poverty) because of the system and condition rather than their own faults,” Khoshchehreh said
For example, the purchasing power of a person, who has been living and working reputedly for the past 30 years, is reduced due to improper monetary or inflationary policies, he added. As a result of such incorrect policies, the price of land and housing skyrocket and the person loses his/her purchasing power. This person is not able to earn his/her living properly anymore. This person is called ‘mostazaf’ which is different from poor.
Khoshchehreh noted that mostazaf is a person who occupies a place beyond his dignity in the society, adding that many university professors or teachers are mostazaf.

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