Analysis by PMOI/MEK
Iran, January 2, 2021—Through four decades of destructive policies, warmongering, and corruption, Iran’s regime has destroyed the country's economy and people's livelihood.
While this regime has pushed the people into poverty and misery by stealing public wealth and squandering national assets on nefarious projects, it continues to plunge its hands deeper into the people’s pockets every day under various pretext to steal what little is left of their lives.
One notable case in this respect is the constant increase in the price of basic goods to the point that, in November 2020, basic goods had become 2-4.5 times more expensive than last year.
Among the increasingly expensive items is bread, the one thing the poor segments could resort to when they couldn’t afford to feed their families.
In recent days, the state run-media has been reporting that the government is considering to increase the price of bread.
In a December 28 article titled "Government board considers increasing the price of bread,” the state-run Etemad daily wrote: “It is a big threat to a large part of the deciles that sometimes can’t buy these goods. A clear example of this is some reports that have been published about the sale of ‘leased bread’ in some impoverished cities and provinces.”
Regarding the increase in the price of bread, the Kar Va Kargar daily (Work and Worker) warned on December 28: “They also want to deprive the poor people of food."
This daily pointed out that, in the current situation, 450,000 rials (about $1.7) monthly cash handouts the government has given to some families over the past few years is only enough to buy eight loafs of Sangak bread to eat per month.
Quoting the president of the Traditional Bakers' Union, Kar Va Kargar reported that the union has proposed to "increase the price of bread in Tehran by 70 percent."
The decision of Hassan Rouhani’s government to increase the price of bread comes at a time when many people are borrowing money to buy bread or buy leased bread, according to the media and regime officials, including Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the Speaker of the Parliament.
Of course, hungering for bread is not new to the Iranian people.
In this regard, on August 31, 2016 the Deputy Minister of Health told the state-run Tasnim News Agency that 30 percent of the people are hungry and do not have food.
It is very clear that if the price of bread rises, which is the most essential commodity for the deprived people, they will face even more difficulties because they have no other alternatives. Other foods such as rice, poultry, eggs, meat and dairy products disappeared from the tables of many Iranian families, and bread is their main food and last resort.
In a situation where the price of bread has already increased due to economic difficulties and the government is entertaining to further increase it, authorities do not provide enough subsidized flour to many bakeries, which has led to a decrease in the quantity and quality of bread.
In the current circumstances where the Iranian people are suffering from hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition, the high price of bread will exacerbate this crisis.
Iran is currently among countries suffering from food insecurity.
"Food insecurity is higher in eight provinces, including Sistan and Baluchestan, Kerman, Hormozgan, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, South Khorasan and Khuzestan," according to a December 15 report by the Etemad Online daily.
On December 27, the same newspaper quoted the Statistics Center as reporting that people in 17 provinces are at risk of malnutrition.
The pressure on majority of the poor and deprived people and emptying their tables of bread comes at a time when the Friday prayer leaders and members of parliament in their speeches have been implicitly warning about the deteriorating livelihoods of the Iranian people.
It is very clear that regime officials are worried about the situation might spark another nationwide uprising. As in the nationwide November 2019 uprising, after the decision of the Rouhani government to increase the price of gasoline, the popular uprising shook the foundations of the regime.
"We should be afraid of the day when no one will be able to do anything in front of the volcano of anger, grief and tears, and then it will be too late to find solutions," according to a December 27 report by the Arman daily.
Undoubtedly, the day will come when the people’s volcano will erupt in anger.
