Iran Reports

A brief report on June 13th day of action in support of workers’ rights and struggles in Iran


On 13 June 2013, nearly 150 trade union activists from across the globe took part in a rally and demonstration supporting Iranian workers, in front ILO’s headquarters. Labour activists, social and political organizations representing labor and democratic activists in Iran, France, Britain, Sweden, Germany, Senegal, Netherlands, Denmark and Switzerland participated in this rally.
 
On 13 June 2013, nearly 150 trade union activists from across the globe took part in a rally and demonstration supporting Iranian workers, in front ILO’s headquarters. Labour activists, social and political organizations representing labor and democratic activists in Iran, France, Britain, Sweden, Germany, Senegal, Netherlands, Denmark and Switzerland participated in this rally.
 
The rally was initiated and called by the French trade union federations including CFDT, CGT, FSU, Solidaires and UNSA on the occasion of the 102dn session of the International Labour Conference taking place in Geneva from June 5th to 20th, 2013. Speakers at this protest called for unconditional freedom of workers in creating their own independent labour organizations, protesting ongoing repression and incarceration of labour activists in Iran, and Islamic republic of Iran’s continued violation of ILO’s conventions on workers’ rights.
 
Thousands of leaflets by French trade unions and a special bulletin by IASWI were distributed in front of the UN office, which helped inform the attending delegates of the action in progress.
 
The French Workers’ Collective in Support of Workers in Maghreb and Middle East, which includes Five major French Trade Union federations, CGT, CFDT, FSU, Solidaires and UNSA has been a leading force internationally in support of workers’ struggles in Iran.
 
They have organized conferences, issued protest letters and organized similar demonstrations in the past couple of years. IASWI-Paris Branch and Socialist Solidarity with Iranian workers-Paris work in solidarity with this collective.
 
It is imperative to remind everyone that the entire delegates from Iran to the ILO are made up of the representatives of the Islamic Regime of Iran. The so-called “worker’s representatives” among Iranian delegates are representatives of government-sponsored organizations, like “Workers’ House”  and  “Islamic Labour Councils” and “guild associations” which have had a direct role in repression of the labour activists and workers’ rights in Iran.
 
In the past number of years, independent workers’ organizations in Iran have been sending numerous protest letters to the ILO regarding this lack of representation and the violation of workers’ rights without receiving a favourable response.

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