AUT: Iran - articles and links #2

["rc-am" <rcollins@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Protest against the destitution enforced on workers in Iran
http://www.wpiran.org/NewsRelease/FALAKAT.html


Unpaid wages should be paid immediately!
Minimum pay must be set by the true representatives of workers!
Unrestricted freedom of organisation and expression must be established
immediately!

The Islamic Republic has enforced an unprecedented destitution on workers in
Iran. Workers in Iran have been pushed to the depths of poverty and the
physical being and emotional existence of workers? families is on the brink
of destruction.

Non-payment of workers? wages has become a general phenomena. Even Mahjoob,
Secretary of the Islamic Republic?s Workers? House, admits that nearly 400
factories with 400,000 workers have not been able to pay the workers? wages,
and the wages of another 400,000 has been halved. The textile industry is
almost at a stand still. The building industry is in the same state.
Thousands of workers have been made redundant, and tens of thousands of
workers at cement factories and related industries are facing late payments
and are under the threat of being made redundant. Many local government
employees face late payments, and the government itself has announced
teachers and some of the pensioners have not been paid. Workers? protests are
taking place everyday. These struggles encompass strikes within a factory to
marches and occupation of governmental buildings and pickets in the streets.

Determining the minimum wage by the Islamic Republic is in fact a means of
reducing wages in real terms. The regime increased the minimum wage by only
18% in 1998, when the rate inflation was 60%. At a time when the poverty
line, based on the 1997 statistics and according to the definition of the
Central Bank of Iran, is at 113,000 Tomans per months, the Islamic Republic
set the minimum wage at 30,000 Tomans. According to the department of Social
Security, almost 60% of workers covered by the Labour Code, live under the
poverty line. This year?s rate of inflation, according to the Central Bank,
is announced to be 52%, but the real rate of inflation is well above 200%.
However, this is not the whole picture. Of the whole population of 10 million
workers in Iran, only 2.4 million are covered by the Labour Code, and the
rest are not even covered by the so-called minimum wage.

The Islamic Republic blames the drop in oil prices and international crisis
for the current situation. This is a big lie. Workers create the wealth. The
government spends the produced wealth on its herd of clergy, Pasdaran and

Hezbollah. There are over a million clerics who are catered for by the
government and outpour nothing but superstition and ignorance. The network of
mosques and various committees, and the wide scale organisation of the
Leader, costs millions of dollars. The Islamic Republic spends billions on
its two official armies, Pasdaran and the army, and millions on its
intelligence service and terrorist organisation. The Moslem capitalists and
merchants, and the army of governmental millionaires, not only do not pay any
taxes but also further their income under the protection of the government.
The Islamic Republic does have money but spends it on its own organisation.
The vast army of darkness, terror and oppression is not only not faced with
lack of budgets or the problem of unpaid "wages", but is witnessing the real
increase in payments. Not only payments to Khamanei, Rafsanjani, Khatami and
clerics, Pasdaran and Hizbollah are not delayed but also the officially
announced terrorists face no difficulties.

In Iran there is no right to strike or organisation. Workers? protests face
oppression all the time. Arrest and execution of workers activists, military
invasion of work places to break strike actions, threatening and sacking of
workers are well-recognised methods of the Iranian regime. The truth is that
the civil republic of Mr Khatami is also nothing to workers and large masses
of people but destitution and rightlessness that has been made "civil".

Workers and freedom loving people outside Iran!

Support workers in Iran any which way possible. Put pressure on the Islamic
Republic to recognise basic rights of workers :

* immediate payment of delayed wages

* determining the minimum wage level by the true representatives of workers

* freedom to organisation, strike and expression

Through protest actions, passing resolutions in support of workers in Iran,
sending letters of protest to the Islamic Republic authorities and reflecting
the news of the protests, or any other appropriate means, support workers in
Iran in their struggle to achieve their just demands.

Worker-communist Party of Iran

28 February 1999

http://www.wpiran.org/NewsRelease/oil/struggle.html

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http://www.etehadchap.com/index.html
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News From Iran
Workers Left Unity Iran
13th July

http://www.etehadchap.com/n15.html

Tehran 13-7-99 Several thousand Iranian students have openly defied an
official ban on all rallies and unofficial gatherings and taken to the
streets of Tehran for the sixth day running. Police in Iran fired tear gas at
the students who had gathered outside the gates of Tehran University in the
country's worst student unrest since the aftermath of the 1979 Islamic
revolution. Eye-witnesses said many of the students were arrested and taken
away in police trucks after the crowd ignored an order from police circling
in helicopters to disperse. But the clashes have continued, with running
fights breaking out between students and volunteer Islamist militias, who
oppose the demonstrations. "We don't want a government of force, we don't
want a mercenary police," students chanted. Students have officially ended
their demonstrations. However, more than 100,000 people have poured to
streets of Tehran and shouting death to dictatorship. marg bar estebdad.
Ansar is committing crime and the leader is supporting them. ansar jenayat
mikonad, rahbar hemayat mikonad. Tear gas and baton are used to disperse
people. It has not been successful until now (12 a.m. Tehran time).

Iran-reyshahri-university university turmoil result of wrong decision says
reyshahri shahr-e rey, tehran prov., july 12, Irna -- representative of the
supreme jurisprudence and custodian of the holy shrine of hadrat abdul-azim,
mohammad mohammadi reyshahri said here monday that which is being raised in
the local and foreign press today as the cause of turmoil in universities is
the result of thoughtlessness, weak management and incorrect decisions. he
told a group of 260 city councilors that one of the key slogans during the
revolution was that of freedom and one of the most clear evidence of freedom
is the freedom of expression within he framework of law. ''if the students
cannot speak out their minds in quiet and tranquility, where else can they
express their beliefs?'' asked reyshahri. he said the method used by the
prophet of islam (pbuh) and the infallible imams (as) was to deal with
opposition through logic and explanations and even the first shiite imam,
hazrat ali (as) never permitted his followers to attack those engaged in
mud-slinging in regard to his rule. he said what the country needs today is
calm and more than at any other time, the enemies will make use of the
atmosphere of tension to reach their ominous intentions.

According to Movahedin in Tabriz, 60 to 70 people were wounded yesterday and
one person was killed. The victim was Hojjatul-Islam Bostanabadi's son, the
commander of Tabriz Basij. The victim was killed by gun-shot fired by
plain-coat armed Hezbullahis. In Maralan, studetns of Tarbiyat Moealem
students (girls college) marched toward city. During their march, fight
between students-people against hezbullahis windows of some banks were
broken. The situation is very hot. According to the reporter, students are
against vioelnce and they were not carrying guns.

Iran-students-statement office to foster unity warns against extremist moves
tehran, july 12, Irna -- the office to foster unity (daftar tahkim vahdat)
said in a press release on monday that any extremist and unlawful move is not
confirmed by the office. the press release, saying that the office to foster
unity, pursues its activities after receiving necessary legal authorizations,
noted that the responsibility for any illegal move such as demonstrations or
gatherings running counter to the law, rests with violators. in its press
release, a copy of which was faxed to Irna on monday, the office said ''no
doubt that the unity and cohesion of students aiming to consolidate civil
society and political development... and revolutionary vigilance vis-a-vis
violent elements opposed to the current reform movement are, and will be,
among the genuine characteristics of the student movement.'' evelopmentplan.
the president said affront to the sanctity of universities s well as the
harsh and disgusting encounter with academicians at tehran university
dormitory was one of the most bitter incidents for the universities, adding
that such incidents indicate that universities have numerous enemies who do
not want these centers to be present on the scene dynamically and actively.
khatami added that of course an active presence of academicians who are
curious and sensitive has a price that should be paid. what is important is
that a national consensus exists in condemnation of this incident covering
the supreme leader, senior ulema and various sectors of the society, he said,
adding that a kind of mobilization of public opinion has been created which
should not be taken as a minor achievement. it is important to guide this
national consensus towards more basic affairs such as institutionalization of
the system within the framework of law and safeguarding people's rights and
observing freedom and security with the objective of the oociety's progress
and consolidation of the pillars of the system, he said. turning to the
growth of student movements and stressing the aroused feelings of the muslim
students, he said the main body of the students showed self-restraint, thus
preventing the incident to turn into a difficult national problem.

tehran, july 12, Irna -- the leader of the islamic revolution ayatollah seyed
ali khamenei said on monday, "what i tell the students is to watch and
identify the enemy.'' the leader also called on the students to beware to
identify enemies. ''strangers disguised as friends come among you. identify
them. you should look out for hidden hands. no one is admired for negligence.
''when a blow is dealt on a negligent person, he is the primary person
responsible for the damage... be careful. the students belong to a honorable
strata of society. the enemy has targeted the students. in the past few
years.'' the leader of the islamic revolution also said that the enemy has
worked hard to pit the students against the islamic republic, but of no
avail. ''when some infiltrators took advantage of an opportunity to fish in
the troubled waters and entered student circles, making some slogans and
uttering some words, they should not think that we will make mistake. no we
will not make a mistake. we know our audience and our enemy. ''the students
are our children who belong to us and to the country. this is the enemy who
wants to do mischief by infiltrating the ranks of students...the students
themselves should be vigilant," the leader said. ayatollah khamenei said that
during this sensitive season when students are to take their final exams and
young applicants are to sit for entrance examinations, which hands and which
enemy are trying to deviate the youth and dissuade them from studying.
''here, the students themselves are the first ones who should open their eyes
and decide,''the leader said.

salaam manager calls on press writers not to put down pens tehran, july 12,
Irna -- managing director of the now banned daily salaam hojatoleslam
mohammad mousavi khoeini here monday requested the press writers not to put
down their pens on tuesday. these days when the Iranian nation is in the dire
need of news and information, it is necessary to provide the society with
clear and explicit pieces of news, he said calling on his colleagues not to
stop publishing their papers for one day. he, on behalf of his colleagues,
thanked all journalists and reporters throughout the country who had
protested the ban on salaam daily as a token of solidarity with the paper. at
a time brave college students are passing through a hard time and facing
difficulties in their attempts to defend freedom, they, more than ever
before, need journalistic support of the independent press, khoeini told
Irna. he further expressed his sympathy will all students and academicians in
the country, particularly those who were attacked while defending the freedom
in the tehran university campus.

police disperse student demonstartors tehran, july 12, Irna -- a group of
demonstrating university students clashed with police forces at valiye asr
avenue monday morning despite a ban by the supreme national security council
on sunday night that no illegal rally must be held anymore. the desmontrators
after throwing stones and sticks at the police forces, attacked them but were
dispersed by the police who are trying to avoid clashes and restore calm. the
demonstrators who are about 1,000 in number, also set fire to a police
vehicle at the square. unlike other students who have staged a sit-in at the
university campus, this group of studnets took to the streets to voice their
protests over the past few days' tragic incidents.

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