Iranian Workers Call For Continuation Of Protests

“Mr Malley and his colleagues negotiated the release of several Americans last summer and, without explanation, excluded my father. Our family asked why in hell would we leave the one American hostage in Iran on death row defenselessly in the hands of his kidnappers and tormentors; there was zero response,” she said on Tuesday.

“Our family has been disappointed by our State Department officials, particularly the former Iran Envoy Robert Malley, whose tenure has failed to address my father's critical situation for three years,” Sharmahd told lawmakers at the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation.

Malley was quietly removed from his duties last April as first reported by Iran International, apparently for mishandling restricted information, but the Biden administration has so far refused to disclose any details.

A 69-year-old California resident, Jamsjid Sharmahd was abducted by Iranian agents in 2020 while visiting the United Arab Emirates. He was sentenced to death by the Iranian judiciary on charges of endangering national security in February 2023, a verdict that was upheld by the Supreme Court of Iran.

The defendant was convicted of leading a pro-monarchist group known as Tondar that was responsible for a deadly bombing incident that occurred in 2008 at a religious center in Shiraz, killing 14 and injuring 215 others. For the bombing, however, suspects had already been arrested and convicted years before.

The charges are, however, denied by Sharmahd and his family, and Iran provides no evidence to back up its accusations. Amnesty International has blasted the trial as a sham.

“When the Islamic regime showcased the international kidnapping of an American by parading my father on their National TV blindfolded with a swollen face forced to confessions, there was zero response from the US,” Sharmahd told the House subcommittee.

In an interview with Iran International on Tuesday, Sharmahd blamed the State Department’s Iran team for enabling the Iranian regime after last year saw five hostages released for a total of $6bn in released Iranian funds from South Korea. “The regime is putting price tags on people’s lives,” she told Iran International host Fardad Farahzad.

Sharmahd claimed that the regime, “instead of asking the [western] governments directly, talks to the families of hostages and tells them what they want, so they don't have to admit officially they're hostage takers.”

She added, “For my father's release, they sought talks with German authorities, the release of Asadollah Assadi [an Iranian diplomat convicted of terrorism], and billions of dollars.” In March, Iran demanded $2.5 billion for his release.

Since coming to power, the Biden administration has been accused of enabling the Iranian regime in its emboldened hostage taking policy which has seen the likes of European diplomats taken hostage on false allegations. Its soft approach has also seen Iran only enhance nuclear enrichment in the face of international sanctions and maritime seizures continue, as the US refuses to take direct action against the regime. 

‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ refers to the nationwide anti-regime protest that erupted in Iran following the death of Mahsa Jina Amini in the custody of the so-called morality police in 2022.

Experts have noted that the months-long protests presented the greatest challenge to the Islamic Republic since its inception 45 years ago. At least 550 protesters were murdered by the security forces during the demonstrations, including dozens of children.

Workers are among the groups that have been scrutinized more closely since the protests.

Criticizing the "religious rule" in the Islamic Republic, the statement noted: "The regime is based on a violent ideology that exploits and loots people to feed a market in which torture, blood, and death are normalized."

The statement further emphasized that the “only way to end this tyranny is to continue the Woman, Life, Freedom [movement]".

"We, teachers, workers, retirees, and oppressed people, believe a free world is possible through the will of free people," they added.

The Free Union of Iranian Workers, the Coordinating Council of Iranian Cultural Associations, and the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company are among the signatories of this statement, which was released on the former's Telegram channel.

Despite Iran's constitution permitting the formation of independent trade union organizations, the Labor Law specifies certain organizations that workers are allowed to join, such as the Islamic Labor Council.

Thus, Iran has no labor organization in the conventional international sense. The existing unions, such as the ones signing the statement, face pressure and accusations for political and security reasons.

Still, workers and retirees from several industries, including Haft-Tappeh Sugarcane Complex, Construction Workers Association of Kamyaran, and Iran's Social Security Organization, rallied on May 1st to protest the government's lack of response to mounting demands.

The Iranian diaspora also joined the rallies in several cities, including Milan, Stockholm, Hamburg, and Paris, on this day, to represent the workers at home.

During the past few years, there has been a rise in the number of protests by workers in Iran, primarily due to monthly wages being refused and workers’ insurance claims being ignored. Some claimed that their salaries were not paid for the last 30 months.

By voicing their concerns, many workers have faced being targeted by authorities and imprisonment.

According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), at least 51 workers and labor activists have been detained during the last twelve months. The arrests include at least 32 miners in the two gold and stone mines of Agh-Darreh in August and several contractors of the South Pars oil and gas field located in Bushehr.

A sluggish economy and persistent inflation have substantially reduced the purchasing power of ordinary Iranians, causing tens of millions of Iranians to fall into the "working poor" category. According to experts, the poverty line for Tehran residents is approximately 300,000,000 rials (roughly $600) per month, three times the current minimum wage.

The strikes are a direct response to amendments in the tax legislation debated in the parliament, which mandates gold retailers to pay taxes on gold assets exceeding 150 grams.

Many shops have either completely closed or are operating at reduced capacity as part of a growing nationwide movement that began on Sunday.

According to Donya-e-Eqtesad, many Tehran merchants are even holding off on selling their assets, fearing losses due to the current downward trends in currency and gold rates.

Nader Bazrafshan, head of the Tehran Gold, Coin, and Jewelry Union, highlighted that the reimplementation of the comprehensive trade system has been met with opposition from the sector due to its impracticality and concerns over potential future capital gains taxes.

In December, following a week-long strike, Ehsan Khandouzi, the Minister of Economy, acknowledged the industry's grievances and announced a step back from enforcing the registration of jewelers' information in the comprehensive trade system.

As the regime gears up to impose new tax schemes on various markets, including gold, currency, housing, and automobiles, tensions remain high, with significant impacts on the gold market already being felt.

It is the latest industry to go on strike amid Iran's collapsing economy and skyrocketing inflation as at least one third of the country is now living below the poverty line.

Khamenei and his loyalists in the Iranian regime have seen victory in pro-Hamas protests in American universities, and the Supreme Leader made sure to highlight this to his audience.

“Despite the extensive efforts of Zionists and their American and European supporters, the issue of Gaza remains the top global concern. Protests against the crimes of the Zionist regime in American universities and their expansion to European universities are signs of the continued sensitivity of public opinion worldwide to the Gaza issue,” Iran’s authoritarian ruler said.

Khamenei has invested 35 years of his rule to relentlessly campaign against Israel, the United States and Western influence, not only in the Middle East but also in distant places in Africa and Latin America.

In the process, energy-rich Iran has become isolated and cut-off from the global economy, gradually losing its economic viability, with a shrinking GDP, high inflation and dependence on China and Russia.

With heavy political and military investment on Hamas and other militant groups in the region, Khamenei seems desperate to showcase any sign of anti-Israeli and anti-Western public opinion at home and abroad as a sign of vindication for his worldview.

“The brutal and merciless behavior of the rabid Zionist dog proved the righteousness of the Islamic Republic's position and the Iranian people, and the massacre of thirty-some thousand people, half of whom are women and children, demonstrated the evil nature of the Zionist regime and the perpetual righteousness of Iran to the whole world,” Khamenei stated.

Claiming repression against protesters on US campuses, Khamenei said, "This issue has shown to everyone that America is complicit in the crime and an accomplice to the unforgivable sin of the massacre of the people of Gaza by the Zionists, and some of their seemingly sympathetic words are lies; therefore, the position of the Islamic Republic, which cannot be optimistic about the US government and trust it, has been proven."

Khamenei feels insecure after years of anti-regime protests by ordinary Iranians, whose social freedoms are being curtailed by Islamic restrictions and their economic status degraded by high inflation and lack of real jobs. He is most likely aware that especially the younger generation cares little about his anti-West ideology and yearns for living like their peers in free and prosperous societies.

Most protesters belong to Generation Z, ranging from teenagers to those in their early 20s. Hundreds of them have been killed by security forces during rounds of protests since 2017. Despite relentless propaganda by the government and dozens of state and religious institutions, there have been clear indications that many in Iran oppose the regime’s anti-Israeli and anti-Western ideology. From chants during protests and football matches, to graffities popping up on the walls and Israeli flags appearing in Tehran, some Iranians let the government know what they think about sacrificing their well-being to support militant Palestinians.

However, Khamenei insists on having no diplomatic and economic relations with the United States and continuing to spend billions of dollars arming regional militant proxy groups with the stated goal of driving the US out of the Middle East and “wiping Israel off the map.”

The report said that 16-year-old Shakarami was sexually assaulted and murdered by members of Iran's security forces last year, in the midst of the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising. 

The journalists arrested are the latest among dozens targeted since 2022. At least 79 have been arrested, including the two women who first covered the arrest and death of Mahsa Amini, with reports suggesting numbers as high as 100. In February alone, over 35 were targeted in Iran, which is one of the world's 'least free' countries according to Freedom House. 

After announcing the latest arrests, Mizan, Iran's judiciary news agency, labeled the BBC report as "fake," criticizing it for containing “false, insulting content, and for acting as propaganda against the regime” on social media platforms. Mizan did not reveal the names or identities of those charged.

According to the BBC report, a "highly confidential" document implicated three security personnel in the direct sexual assault and murder of Shakarami. The document, based on statements from the security forces, named the perpetrators and senior commanders who covered up the details of the crime. The BBC claimed one officer sat on Shakarami as she resisted, which ultimately led to a violent response with batons.

Just four days after Amini was killed, videos showed Shakarami setting fire to her hijab at a protest in Tehran. When Nika suddenly went missing, authorities refused to give the family any answers but after 10 days, authorities informed the family that Nika’s body had been found, later claiming she had committed suicide.

The teen's death, in which she was found to have severe blows to the head, echoed the murder of Kurdish-Iranian Mahsa Amini in September 2022, which triggered the nationwide uprising dubbed Woman, Life, Freedom.

Arrested by morality police for not wearing her hijab correctly, Amini's death has seen Iran's security apparatus since turn to brutal oppression to quash dissent and unrest, in addition to the continued hardening of hijab laws as the country rebels against the state's strict Islamic dress code.