July 16th: Large numbers of retirees held gatherings in different cities and shouted their demands despite the high heat. These gatherings were held in protest against the low and disproportionate salaries with high prices and rampant inflation and the humiliating increase of their pensions by the government and non-response to other demands. The received reports indicate that the gatherings took place in different cities such as Tehran, Khorramshahr, Shush, Babol, Arak, Isfahan, Ahvaz, Hamedan, Karaj, Sirjan, Khorramabad, Ilam, Tabriz, Shushtar, Zanjan, Kermanshah, Ardabil, Birjand, Qazvin, Ramhormoz and Rasht.
In Shush family members of retirees also participated in the protests. The pensioners were chanting: “The cost of inflation is the bane of people’s lives”, “pensioners! Shout! For your rights”, “Only on the street, we will get our rights”, “Not the parliament, nor the government, Care about the people”, and “Raisi the liar! Where is the result of your promises?” (Raisi is Iran’s president), “until we get our rights, we are here every day”.
In Tehran, the gathering of social security retirees and retired teachers in front of the Social Security Organization and the Ministry of Labour was attacked by government security forces and several retirees were arrested. A detailed report of the number and identity of those arrested has not yet been received. Despite this attack, groups of retirees remained in place and chanted their protest slogans. Among others, they chanted: “Government betrays, parliament supports”.
Pensioners are the voice of all people’s protest against poverty and insecurity and tsunami of high prices. Retirees have created a strong barrier against the regime’s economic austerity plan. Their urgent demands include: cancelling the limited ten percent increase in salaries and raising the level of pensions above the poverty line, free health care, and having the right to housing, ending embezzlement and theft, and paying back the government’s millions dollar debt to the pension fund, and ending the securitization of struggles. The wishes and demands of retirees should be widely supported.
July 2, 2022