Reported by PMOI/MEK
Iran, Jan. 2019 – Protests by Iranian teachers continued in several cities across the country in mid-January. On January 10 and 11, Iranian teachers held demonstrations in Isfahan, Ardebil, and Kermanshah.
In Isfahan, the teachers came to the streets in spite of the rain and unfavorable weather conditions. The teachers gathered in front of the offices of the Education Ministry and protested to their low wages and the government’s lack of response to their demands.
Instead of hearing out the teachers and responding to their demands, the Iranian regime had dispatched security forces to create an environment of repression and fear and dissuade the teachers from gathering for their demonstrations. But unfazed by the heavy security presence, the teachers of Isfahan held their demonstration anyway.
At the same time in Kermanshah, teachers and education workers held demonstrations in protest to unpaid wages. The protesters haven’t received their salaries for more than two months and haven’t received any response to their other demands. The demonstration was held in front of the Education Ministry’s offices in the city of Kermanshah.
The teachers were chanting, “The government betrays, the Majlis (parliament) supports it.” The teachers are also protesting to the endemic financial corruption that is plaguing the entirety of the regime and is causing damage to every sector of the nation, including education. “If there’s one less case of embezzlement, our problems will be solved,” the teachers were chanting.
Teachers in Ardebil also held protests in front of the Education Ministry’s offices and held banners on which their demands were written.
The demands of protesting Iranian teachers
The main demand of the protesting teachers is the unpaid wages and low pay. This is a problem that many other sectors of the Iranian economy is faced with and is a direct result of the corruption and mismanagement of the Iranian regime.
However, teachers also have other demands, such as the release of their colleagues who have been arrested and imprisoned by security forces because of their activism and pursuing the rights of teachers. The teachers are also demanding better opportunities and services for working and retired teachers, who are tasked with training the future generations of Iran. The teachers are also protesting to the privatization of the education sector, which is a scheme used by government officials to run fraud scams and increase their own wealth at the expense of the Iranian people.
It is worth noting that in the past year, Iranian teachers have been regularly holding demonstrations to achieve their most basic rights and demands. In 2018, teachers across Iran organized and held strikes on several occasions.
The history of Iranian teachers’ protests in 2018
Teachers are among the forerunners of social movements in Iran both during the rule of Shah and the mullahs. They have a long history of standing up against the tyranny and corruption of the ruling mullahs in the past 40 years.
But the past year has seen an uptick in the activities of Iranian teachers on the political and social front. One three occasions, in May, October and November, teachers in several Iranian cities held strikes that lasted several days.
In December, teachers and students held undeclared demonstrations in Hamedan and Kermanshah at the same time. A few days later, similar protests erupted in Yazd and Isfahan and was met with large attention from online media. The teachers of Isfahan continued their demonstrations for several days even though security forces tried to quell them by cracking down on the protesters and attacking them with batons and pepper spray.
The continued bravery and courage of teachers spread to other cities. In late December, the teachers of Tabriz held protests and didn’t allow security forces to stop their movement.
Currently, teachers and retired teachers continue their protests in several Iranian cities. As the demonstrations and protests join and gain momentum in several sectors of the Iranian society, the regime is finding itself less and less capable of maintaining its hold on power and stifle the voice of justice.
