Condemn Continued Detention and Trial of May Day Arrestees

Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company:

Condemn continued detention and trial of May Day arrestees

July 5, 2019 – More than two months after the brutal crackdown of the peaceful May Day rally in front of Iranian parliament in Tehran, on the occasion of the International Workers’ Day, the pressure on the detainees continues to grow.

Ms. Anisha Asadollahi, who had been arrested on May 1^st rally and temporarily released after three days, on bail of 30 million tomans, was arrested again on June 18, 2019, after leaving work. The security forces also seized her laptop computer and some other belongings after searching her home and her brother’s residence. She was transferred to ward 209 of Evin Prison. She is an English teacher.

Atefeh Rangriz, Neda Naji and Marzieh Amiri are three women amongst the arrestees of the violent crackdown of the May Day rally who continue to be incarcerated.  Although their interrogation procedure ended more than one month ago and they should have been released in accordance with the law and the court proceedings, unfortunately they are still in prison. Atefeh Rangriz and Neda Naji, both university graduates and job seekers, as well as Marziyeh Amiri, a student and journalist, are workers’ rights’ defenders whose only “crime” is attending a peaceful May Day rally. The follow-up and the steps taken by their families with the security and judicial authorities have so far been unsuccessful and they have received no clear answer. It is apparent that they are targets of a systemic harassment and intimidation by the judiciary and intelligence forces.

About 50 people were arrested on May 1^st rally in Tehran and the majority were temporarily released on bail. Since then, many of them have been summoned to court.

On June 25^th, Seyed Rasool Taleb Moghadam, and on June 26^th, Vahid Fereydouni, both members of the Tehran Bus Workers’ Syndicate, were summoned to court.

The indictment, initially issued against Mr. Seyed Rasoul Taleb Moghaddam by the Branch 26 of the Islamic Revolution Court, is based on Article 500 of the Islamic Penal Code on charges of propaganda against the system and under Article 618 of the Islamic Penal Code for disturbing public order. However, due to mistakes in the case, his trial was postponed.

Vahid Fereydouni, was tried in the state employees’ court on charges of disturbing the public order and disrupting the detention centre.

Other members of our union, like Hasan Saeidi, arrested on May 1^st, was released after 33 days of detention on bail of 330 million tomans and Reza Shahabi was released on May 7^th on bail with a surety of 250 million tomans.

There are currently many other workers and labour activists who are imprisoned and prosecuted. Some of these cases require urgent attention. Esmail Bakhshi, a worker representative and member of the Haft Tapeh Sugarcane Workers’ Syndicate, as well as Sepideh Gholian, Sanaz Elahyari, Amir Amirgholi and Amir Hossein Mohammadifard, who are independent journalists and workers’ rights defenders, all arrested in connection with the Haf Tapeh sugarcane workers’ strikes and protests, are still in prison despite the end of their interrogation several months ago. Ali Nejati, a member of the Haft Tapeh Sugar Cane Workers’ Syndicate, also released on bail and his trial is ongoing. It is evident that the only purpose of these illegal arrests and incarcerations is to intimate activists of the workers’ movement and curb workers’ demands in various workplaces.

A call for solidarity and action:

The most recognizable and basic rights of workers in our country’s exploitative capitalist relations in the industrial, manufacturing, service, education and health care sectors are flouted, and workers’ rights are suppressed, and their wages and insurance premiums are not paid. Simultaneously the justice seeking cries of workers are suppressed by police-security-judicial apparatus, and their protest gatherings are disallowed.

The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company strongly condemns the arrest and imprisonment of workers at the International workers’ Day gathering. We also condemn the imprisonment of other workers, teachers, and social activists and demand their immediate and unconditional release and an end to their prosecution.

We call on all workers’, teachers’ and student’s organizations, as well as well as trade unions and other concerned organizations around the world to condemn these arrests and demand the immediate and unconditional release of all detainees. Persecution and prosecution of workers in Iran for exercising their most basic and internationally recognized workers’ rights must be stopped.

Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company

Tir 14, 1398 (July 5, 2019)

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.vahedsyndica.com

Telegram: @vahedsyndica  

 Please send your protest letters to: (See also the attached photos)

 · Leader of the Islamic Republic
Ayatollah Sayed ‘Ali Khamenei
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]

 · President of the Islamic Republic of Iran
Hassan Rouhani
Email: [email protected]

· The Judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran – High Council of Human Rights
[email protected];