June 20th is the International Day in Support of Political Prisoners in Iran. “Free Them Now!” The Campaign to Free Jailed Workers in calls on all workers’ and human rights’ organisations to support this movement to free all jailed workers and political prisoners in Iran.
Currently at the height of Covid-19 pandemic, thousands of prisoners including labor activists, teachers, and women’s rights advoctaes are under increasing pressure in prisons in Iran, including: Shapoor Ehsani Rad, Arash Johari, Mehran Raouf, Maziar Seyed Nejad, Esmail Abdi, Esmail Gerami, Nahid Fath’alian, Zeinab Hamrang, Hashem Khastar, Mohammad Hossein Sepehri, Abolfazl Ghasali, Sajjad Shokri, Athena Daemi, and Sepideh Qolyan. Just recently, Esmail Gerami, a retired teacher, was sentenced to 5 years in prison, 74 lashes and a fine of two million tomans for participating in a retirees’ protest rally for their demands.
Also it’s worrying that covid19 test of Mrs Nahid Fath’alian, a retired jailed teacher, has been positive, and her life and the lives of other prisoners are in danger.
A regime which arrests, jails and flogs workers should be boycotted and isolated worldwide. This regime does not represent the Iranian people at all, but it is their enemy and murderer and should not be a member of ILO!
The persecution of workers and teachers and violence against them must be stopped! Workers must be able to freely exercise their fundamental right to set up their own organisations, meet, assemble as they wish, take strike action, organise and take part in rallies and protests without fear of being arrested and thrown into jail. All jailed workers must be immediately and unconditionally freed!
-We condemn the Islamic regime of Iran for its persecution of worker activists and political dissidents.
– We demand the Cancellation of the all chargers against all worker’s activists, teachers, and political prisoners who have been charged for being “threat to national security”.
– We demand an end to securitizing workers’, teachers’ and other people’s activities by the government.
– We strongly support the struggle of the workers and people of Iran for freedom, the right to organise and strike, and for welfare, equality, justice and a life of dignity.
-We call for the international boycott of the regime of Iran by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and all world organisations.
– We call on all trade unions and human rights organisations around the world appalled by the horrific human rights abuse in Iran to support these demands.
On the special day of global support for political prisoners in Iran, workers and protesters in Iran are seeking justice for more than 40 years of crimes committed by the Islamic regime against them. The global boycott of this criminal dictatorship is an appropriate response to this demand by the oppressed people.
Campaign To Free Jailed Workers In Iran (Free Them Now)
Shahla.daneshfar2@gmail.com
June, 2021