Iran: Political prisoners are living under horrifying situation

Seifzadeh described thedenial of medical care and critically needed hospitalization

Mohammad Seifzadeh, the prominent Iranian human rights lawyer who for years defended political prisoners in Iran and railed against the inhumane conditions of their incarceration, was freed on March 10, 2016 after serving his own five-year prison sentence, and spoke at length about the harsh conditions he experienced first-hand as a political prisoner.

Iran must be expelled from Islamic Bloc

Session of the Islamic Summit Conference, Turkey, April 2016

The largest bloc representing Islamic countries is meeting in Turkey Thursday, and the vast majority of those nations have united against one of their own members: Iran.

Across the region Arabs are calling for Iran to be expelled from the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC), a Sunni-heavy group encompassing 57 Muslim countries.

Iran: political prisoner Arzhang Davoudi calls on Federica Mogherini

Letter of political prisoner Arzhang Davoudi to EU foreign policy chief before her visit

Her Excellency Madame Federica Mogherini

European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs

I am one of the most senior political prisoners in Iran who has always respected and acknowledged the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related covenants, and from day one I have based my political activities on these frameworks. However, I have always faced charges of peacefully struggling for freedom, democracy, rights and justice.

Iran – Group letter of southeast Tehran workers to World Labor Organization

Dear Secretary-General of the World Labor Organization

Today, there is an irony about us workers, we who are part of the lower class, living in poverty allocated by the Iranian regime itself that is against workers.

Our salary is below 10 million rials a month, while the poverty line is set at 30 million rials!!!

We are left ashamed before our wives and children

Despite all this, we are not sellers!

We will not sell our dignity and pride, and on Labor Day we will clench our fists and chant against the terrorist regime ruling Iran.

We hope the world conscience will awaken more than ever before, and lead to more isolation for those ruling Iran.

We only have one request:

Widespread condemnation of the anti-labor and terrorist regime in international organizations

 A group of workers living in poverty in southeast Tehran (Shadabad metal market)

Northern Iran: Group letter of communications/electricity workers to World Labor Organization

 To Mr. Guy Ryder Secretary-General of the World Labor Organization

Greetings,

We congratulate you and all workers of our country on International Labor Day, especially those working tirelessly and risking their lives on a daily basis in electricity systems and installing electricity and communications towers. These workers are separated from their families for many months of the year to make ends meet and not be left ashamed before their families.

We would like to inform you that we work in very difficult conditions, at times 13 to 15 hours a day at heights of 30 to 300 meters, while we lack any life insurance and our salaries are stolen. With a monthly salary of only $300 dollars we cannot have a decent meal. On Labor Day we are requesting that you be our voice. Currently, our country’s money is spent on terrorist projects, killing innocent people in Syria, Iraq and European countries.

Mr. Secretary-General,

Any appeasement vis-à-vis Khamenei or Rouhani is a crime against humanity. We are requesting from you to distance yourself from these criminals and condemn this anti-human and anti-labor regime for its human rights violations.

A group of communications/electricity workers in northern Iran

Iran – University students express their solidarity with deprived workers

Students of Tehran’s free University have issued a statement on the occasion of “International Workers Day” and wrote:

“We, some of the students of Tehran’s free university congratulate all the workers on the occasion of “International Workers Day”. We condemn the oppression and injustices applied to you by the Mullahs wicked government”.

We demand all the workers’ rights activists to stand to bring changes in the conditions of Iranian workers.

Tehran – spectators in football stadium shout slogans against government officials

Tehran’s Azadi Stadium

An abusive body search by the security forces in Tehran’s Azadi stadium on Sunday April 10th caused the protest of football fans    who had gathered to watch a match. Spectators cried slogans against the security forces and the government authorities. Skirmishes broke out and the government forces asked for help.  They did not succeed to arrest anyone as the crowd hid the victims and took them away.