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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Iran
Index
Intensely concerned with matters of internal security in the
post-1953 environment, the shah authorized the development of one
of the most extensive systems of law enforcement agencies in the
developing world. The Gendarmerie--the rural police--and the
National Police gained in numbers and responsibilities. The secret
police organization, SAVAK, gained special notoriety for its
excessive zeal in "maintaining" internal security. But as in the
regular armed forces, the shah's management style virtually
eliminated all coordination among these agencies. A favorite
approach was to shuffle army personnel back and forth between their
ordinary duties and temporary positions in internal security
agencies, in order to minimize the possibility of any organized
coups against the throne. Added to this list of institutional
shortcomings was agencies' all- important public image, cloaked in
mystery and fear. Iranians in and out of the country came to
perceive these agencies as "arms" of the shah's absolute power and
resented them deeply.
Data as of December 1987
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