Reported by PMOI/MEK
Iran, Nov. 28, 2018 – On Wednesday, the workers of Haft Tapeh, Iran’s largest sugar factory, gathered in front of the mayor’s office in Shush to protest against unpaid wages, the arrest of their colleagues and the corrupt practices of the company’s private owners.
The protesters were chanting, “Death to oppressors, hail the workers.”
The workers of Haft Tapeh, who have not received their salaries for several months, are faced with severe challenges since most of them are the sole breadwinners of their homes. Regime officials have stalled repaying their salaries and have reneged time and again on promises they made to the Haft Tapeh workers. As a result, the workers only see strikes and protests as their only means of achieving their demands.
The regime has tried to dissuade the workers from continuing their protests through threats and suppression. In the past weeks, the Iranian regime’s security forces arrested several of the protesting Haft Tapeh workers but were later forced to release most of them due to the increasing pressure from the continued protests and the growing national solidarity with the demands of the workers.
24th day of protests by workers of Haft Tapeh sugar mill
In the past days, the Iranian regime’s chief of judiciary tried to associate the workers with the Iranian opposition and foreign states to create the grounds to arrest and persecute them. Yesterday, the chief of police of Shush declared that any kind of gathering and assembly in the city was prohibited. Nonetheless, the workers, who virtually have nothing to lose, continue to take to the streets day after day to demand their rights.
One of the worker’s demands is the ouster of private owners. In the past years, the Iranian regime has allowed private investors to acquire government-owned companies and organizations. Haft Tapeh is one of these companies. But the private owners have effectively used their position to make profits and increase their own wealth while the company has inched toward bankruptcy. The collapse of Haft Tapeh will threaten the livelihoods of thousands of workers and their families.
Yesterday, in a statement, the workers called for the protests to be taken to Tehran and in front of the Iranian regime’s parliament. “Because authorities have ignored our demands, it’s time to take our protests to Tehran in front of the parliament,” the workers wrote.
The workers have also reiterated their demands in a separate statement, which include the following:
- The release of Esmail Bakshi, the representative of the protesting workers still in custody of the Iranian regime’s security forces
- The ouster of private owners and the control of the factory transferred to the government
- The payment of overdue salaries
- The implementation of job classification laws
The workers of Haft Tapeh have earned national and international support as they continue to persist in their protests and their demands. On Tuesday, the members of the Movement for Socialism in Zurich, Switzerland declared their support for the demands of the workers.
Members of Movement for Socialism, Zurich, Switzerland, declare their support for the workers of Haft Tapeh
The protests of the workers of Haft Tapeh have also become very popular among the locals of Sush, Khuzestan, where the factory is located. In recent weeks, teachers and students have intermittently joined the demonstrations with the workers. Many merchants have closed down their shops in solidarity with the protesting workers. Taxi drivers have provided free service for the workers and their families. And children have helped prepare food for the protesting workers.
The growing support and solidarity with the workers of Haft Tapeh has become a problem for the Iranian regime. Haft Tapeh is one of several factories and companies across Iran that is facing growing dissatisfaction and mistrust among its employees. Regime officials are warning that the situation in Haft Tapeh may soon expand to other areas, and with protests supporting and linking to each other, the situation can spin out of the regime’s control.
Updated 12:00 pm local time: One of the workers of Haft Tapeh stressed to other protesters that all factions in the regime are to blame for the current situation. In a message, this worker wrote, “You think that since the faction of [Hassan] Rouhani and [Eshaq] Jahangiri are behind the privatization of Haft Tapeh, then the rivaling faction opposes them? No, they don’t. They are taking their own share from thousands of other places. None of them are opposed to privatization. We the workers are the only people whose lives have been ruined from the privatization [of the factory].”
24th day of protests by workers of Haft Tapeh
