The Islamic Republic is an anti-worker and oppressive regime that has kept itself in power by arresting, jailing and executions. The exact number of imprisoned workers and political prisoners is not known.
Here you can see the names and a brief information about a number of workers and teachers who are in prison. We as Free Them Now (FTN) strive and fight for the release of all workers and political prisoners in any way possible:
– On February 21, Nahid Khodajo, one of the well-known labor activist, was arrested by the security forces and transferred to the women’s ward of notorious Evin prison. She was arrested in front of the Islamic Parliament on International Labor Day in 2018 and then sentenced to five years in prison. Thus, they are currently in prison, whose names are: Osman Ismaili, Nasrin Javadi (retired worker), Dawood Razavi, Reza Shahabi, Hassan Saidi, Nasrin Javadi, Abolfazl Ghasali, Abbas Daris, Rehane Ansari Nejaad, Reza Aghdasi, Osman Ismaili, Keyvan Mehtadi, Mehran Rauf, Sepideh Qalian, Arash Johari and Nahid Khodajo.
– Reza Shahabi, Davoud Razavi and Hassan Saeedi, three labor activists and members of the workers’ union of Vahed Company, who are serving their 5-year sentence in Evin prison, are deprived of medicine and treatment despite their poor physical condition. They have been in custody since May 2023 following the arrest of Jacques Parry and Cecil Coller, two members of the teachers’ union from France, for the crime of meeting them and in a security case. Depriving prisoners of treatment is part of the policy of pressure on prisoners and a physical and mental torture against prisoners.
– Sharifeh Mohammadi, a labor activist living in Rasht, was arrested on November 22, 2023 by security forces in her personal home and then transferred to Sanandaj prison. Some reports mention that she is under excessive pressure for forced confession against herself and her colleagues.
— Reza Aghdasi, a labor activist and one of the fired workers of Iran Khodro Company, has been imprisoned in Evin prison since October 23, 2023. Since December 23, 2023, he has suffered a ruptured eardrum and his ear is severely inflamed. Despite this, Reza Aghdasi is denied access to treatment. He was previously sentenced to four years and three months in prison on the charge of “propaganda activity against the Islamic Republic”.
– On February 19, 2023, Mahmoud Melaki, a prisoner teacher and member of the board of directors of Bushehr union center, was sent to Bushehr hospital for knee surgery. On June 25, 2023, he was sentenced to two years in Bushehr prison. The security pressures on teachers have become more intense and every day they are persecuted and pressured in various forms such as issuing prison sentence, dismissal from work, exile and even deprivation of some of their salary. Among other things, on February 20, Sara Siahpour ordered the dismissal of protesting teachers. Previously, the Tehran “Revolutionary Court“ had sentenced this teacher to 5 years in prison.
The names of some of the imprisoned teachers are: Jafar Ebrahimi, Rasul Bodaghi, Masoud Mozadali, Cecile Kohler, Jacques Paris (from France), Abbas Wahidian, Iraj Tobey Najafabadi, Atekeh Rajabi, Mehdi Fathi, Mahmoud Seddiqipour, Asghar Amirzadegan, Anoush Adeli. Mohammad Ali Zahmatakesh, Nahid Shirpisheh, Aziz Qasemzadeh, Zainab Hamrang, Hashem Khastar, Javad Laal Mohammadi, Mahmoud Maleki, Afshin Razmjoo, Gholamreza Gholami Kondoozi.
According to the news published by the Coordinating Council of Cultural Organizations, citing Ramin Safarnia, Rasul Bodaghi’s lawyer, the appeal and retrial of his client for charges of “gathering, collusion and propaganda against the regime” has been accepted in Branch 32 of the Supreme Court of the Islamic Republic of Iran. And according to this vote, he can later be released on bail. The acceptance of his retrial after a year of imprisonment and torture is the result of the pressure of the teachers’ campaign for the release of their colleagues and the struggle against securitizing the protests.
Free Them Now (FTN), the campaign to free jailed workers in Iran,emphasizes the unconditional release of all imprisoned workers, imprisoned teachers and all political prisoners and an end to the securitization of struggles and the closing of security cases against prisoners and political activists.
Free Them Now
February 24, 2024