On September 8, eight workers and women and plaintiffs organisations and institutions, published a statement on the occasion of the anniversary of the woman life freedom revolution, and anniversary of the murder of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, and emphasized the continuation of the revolution and for freedom from oppression, discrimination, execution and imprisonment against workers and people. These organizations have declared their firm support for the charter of minimum demands of 20 organizations, which is the charter of the woman life freedom revolution.
Free Them Now (FTN) the Campaign to free jailed workers in Iran defends this statement and calls on all workers, women and people to continue the revolution in line with the axes emphasized in this statement and the manifesto of minimum demands.
Below you can read the complete text of the statement.
Free Them Now (Campaign To Free Jailed Workers In Iran-FTN)
10/09/2023
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A statement by the organizations (in Iran) on the occasion of the first anniversary of the revolution, and Mahsa Amini’s murder
We come to the street again
“We can get our rights only by coming to the street!”
On September 15, 2022, Mahsa Amini was killed by the agents of the government’s guidance patrol (the Islamic regime’s morality police). The killing of this young woman was the beginning of a massive and humane revolution against any kind of sexual, gender, economic, social, cultural, ethnic and religious discrimination and inequality.
Iran’s “Woman, Life, Freedom” revolution was quickly supported by free and progressive humanity all over the world due to its universal demands, to the extent that the appeasing Western governments were forced to change their tune and recognize the revolution of the Iranian people.
The “Woman, Life, Freedom” revolution is the continuation of more than 40 years of struggle of the Iranian people against poverty, deprivation and all kinds of discrimination, especially sexual, gender discrimination and all traditions and reactionary laws against women. In this struggle tens of thousands of protesters and freedom-lovers have been killed by the regime in prisons and other battlefields.
The “Woman, Life, Freedom” revolution is a transformative event and movement in the history of global struggles against all discriminations and inequalities, and for this reason, it has been supported by everybody who objects to every aspect of existing discrimination.
We, the signatory organizations of this statement, declare that September 15th, the day Mahsa Amini was murdered, is the date of the beginning of the “Woman, Life, Freedom” revolution.
On September 15, let’s honour the memory of Mahsa Amini, the symbol of the “woman, life, freedom” revolution and the memory of all those who died on the way to freedom in the past 44 years.
Let’s come to the streets and turn this day into our nationwide protest day.
Let’s gather at Mahsa Amini’s grave and honor her memory.
By honoring the memory of each and every one of the victims and by raising the cry of protest, let’s chant the slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom” as loud as possible and mark a new beginning by announcing our strikes.
We also emphasize the demands to end the executions and to abolish the death penalty, the immediate release of all those arrested during the revolution and all political prisoners. We consider “The Charter of Minimum Demands of Twenty Organizations” as the charter of popular unity in the “Woman, Life, Freedom” revolution. Let’s unite around this charter.
In the history of global struggles against cases of discrimination and inequality, milestones, outcomes and decisive events such as the call for a strike by American workers on May 1, 1886 demanding 8 hours of work per day and the March 8, 1857 strike of women textile workers in New York against discrimination in payment of wages between women and men have occurred and these days have been declared and registered as public holidays in the world calendar as International Workers’ Day and International Women’s Day.
With the strength of our struggle, we will turn the 15th of September, the anniversary of the “woman Life Freedom revolution”, into a public holiday every year.
Signatories:
The organising council of oil contract workers’ protests
The organising council of unofficial oil workers’ protests (Third Organs)
Iranian Women’s Neda Organisation
Kermanshah Electric and Metal Association
The plaintiffs’ institution
Follow-up committee to establish labor organizations
Syndicate of Alborz painters
The independent voice of the National Steel Group workers
September 1402