Justice for Iranian Workers

Reza Shahabi

18 November 2011

The Tehran bus drivers’ union the Vahed Syndicate, of which imprisoned Iranian trade unionist Reza Shahabi is a board member, has raised concerns about his state of health.

According to the union he has been returned to prison after being taken to hospital for an MRI scan and X rays for a neck injury. He had previously been transferred to hospital due to deteriorating health following his hunger strike last year.

ITF general secretary David Cockroft said: “Reza has now been unjustly held since his arrest in June of last year. This is clearly taking a toll on his health. It is past time for the authorities to withdraw the false charges of endangering national security used against him and let Reza – along with other unjustly detained trade unionists such as Ebrahim Madadi – go free.”

Source: http://www.itfglobal.org/press-area/index.cfm/pressdetail/6708

24 October 2011

The ITF has expressed concern over summonses to attend court issued to Seyed Davood Razavi, a former treasurer of the Tehran bus drivers’ union, the Vahed Syndicate, and to his fellow Vahed executive board member Yaghoub Salimi.

ITF general secretary David Cockroft explained: “We believe that Davood is likely to be questioned over some spurious charges dating back to 2007, of propaganda against regime, illegal gathering and endangering national security. Similar charges were made against Yaghoub.”

He continued:  “I think it’s clear that this treatment is not going to achieve anything, and we would strongly suggest to the authorities that they desist, reflect on how they finally saw sense by freeing Mansour Osanloo, and then also do the same for Reza Shahabi and Ebrahim Madadi.”

Source: http://www.itfglobal.org/press-area/index.cfm/pressdetail/6583

Under strong intimidation and threats, 6,500 workers at the government-owned Mahshahr Bandar Imam Petrochemical complex, in the South-West of Iran, took strike action on 28 September, demanding an end to management’s use of subcontracting firms at the plant. Workers’ rights are continuously undermined by intermediary companies, in a familiar pattern seen around the world. Workers are not directly employed by the factory where they work, and so are unable to bargain collectively with management, forced to work in substandard conditions with low wages and allowances, all based on precariously temporary contracts.

Workers at the Tabriz petrochemical company at the plant conducted an 11-day strike in March this year on the same demands. That strike was suspended after an empty government promise to respond to workers’ demands within three months. While CAL workers do not receive their production and efficiency bonuses, their contract agency collects those benefits. Despite of management threats and arrests of union activists, the union is committed to continuing the action until their demand is met.

On paper, the management has supposedly committed itself to eliminating the subcontracting firms for some time but its actual implementation in most facilities is yet to happen.

The Free Union of Iranian Workers reports that on the seventh day of the strike, three oil workers were summoned to the security office and immediately put under arrest. These were Mansour Abbasi, a worker with the Khawrazmi subcontracting company and a workers’ representative; Mohammad Bagher Bagheri, worker at Fars Industries contracting company and a workers’ representative; and Jasem Bandarani, another worker at the Khawrazmi subcontracting company. The arrests followed protest rallies near the main offices of the petrochemical complex which included marches and chants. The three arrested workers have since been released.

Reports suggest over 70% of Iranian workers are employed on temporary contracts, with no job security. Many other shocking abuses are reported, from poverty wages often beneath the low minimum wage, non-payment of salaries for up to 18 months, extremely dangerous working conditions, and little to no legislative protections.

Source: http://www.icem.org/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4712-Iranian-Petrochemical-Workers-Strike-Demanding-Elimination-of-Subcontractors

2 June 2011

Osanloo free at last

The ITF is delighted to announce that imprisoned trade unionist Mansour Osanloo was today freed from jail in Iran almost four years since his arrest and imprisonment, which set off a storm of international protest.

His release is conditional on his ‘good behaviour’ and the payment of a bond.

The ITF (International Transport Workers’ Federation) has led demands for Mansour Osanloo’s release. ITF general secretary David Cockroft commented: “This is a great day for Mansour and his family – and for his fellow Vahed union members and those of us in the international trade union movement who are honoured to call him a friend. It’s doubly welcome given the deterioration in his health during his time behind bars.

“He is free because trade unionists worldwide demanded justice.”

He continued: “That bail has been set falls short of the full pardon we all wanted, and which the Iranian government promised, but for now we can just take a moment to savour his richly deserved return to his family.”

“But – and sadly even on a day as good as this one there has to be a but – there are other innocents in jail in Iran for the same ‘crime’ of wanting to join a trade union. They include Mansour’s colleagues, Reza Shahabi and Ebrahim Madadi. For all of them, and us, the fight is not over. As much as we welcome the Iranian government’s move and its finally listening to reason, we know we must renew our insistence that those other prisoners are set free and the threat of re-arrest lifted from Mansour, and then commit the ITF, our member unions and friends in the trade union and human rights movements to campaigning on their behalf.”

The Vahed Syndicate responded to the news by saying that they would like to thank everyone who has fought so hard for his release.

Mansour Osanloo was a bus driver and is the president and one of the founding members of the Vahed Syndicate, a free trade union representing Tehran’s bus workers. From its beginnings in 2005 the ITF-affiliated union was subjected to heavy repression, including repeated attacks and arrests. Mansour Osanloo was heavily targeted. As well as being beaten up and having his tongue slit he was imprisoned in 2005 and 2006. Then in 2007, just one month after visiting the London head office of the ITF and meeting trade unionists in Brussels, he was arrested. Three months later he was sentenced to five years imprisonment on charges of ‘acting against national security’ and ‘propaganda against the state’; in 2010 another year was added to his sentence. In reality his only offence was to help found a genuinely democratic trade union.

For more details, including a film, press releases and history, please see www.itfglobal.org/campaigns/freeosanloo.cfm

ENDS

Attachment

Photos of Mansour Osanloo at the ITF in London in June 2007, one month before his arrest. Higher resolution copies (2MB) are available on request from dawson_sam@itf.org.uk

11 May 2011

ITF general secretary David Cockroft wrote today to Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei to alert him to the deteriorating health of Mansour Osanloo and Reza Shahabi, and to once again urge immediate treatment and release for the two unjustly imprisoned trade unionists.

He wrote: “On behalf of 4.6 million transport workers and their trade union organisations around the world, I am writing to you to voice our grave concern over the recent deterioration in the health of Mansour Osanloo and Reza Shahabi. The former is the President and the latter is the Treasurer of our Iranian affiliated union the Vahed Syndicate, and both are currently in prison for their trade union activities.

We believe that Mansour Osanloo is again suffering from serious heart problems and was taken to a hospital on the 1st of May. We are informed that his doctors have advised that surgery is urgently needed. Regarding Reza Shahabi, we note that he has been experiencing repeated, unexplained nosebleeds, but again, no adequate medical treatment has been given, even though he has been appealing for this for some time now. Unsurprisingly both his family and colleagues are deeply concerned.

In a response to the Committee on Freedom of Association of the ILO in May last year, the Iranian government stated that Mansour Osanloo would soon be pardoned. However, this promise has never been fulfilled. In the meantime, the ITF, together with its allies in international trade union and human rights organisations, have been demanding the release of all imprisoned trade unionists, including Mansour Osanloo, Reza Shahabi and Ebrahim Madadi. Major trade unions have granted honorary membership to Mansour Osanloo and more unions are planning such an award.

We therefore once again strongly urge your office to provide adequate medical treatment to Mansour Osanloo and Reza Shahabi without any delay, preparatory to their release from imprisonment.”

Source: http://www.itfglobal.org/press-area/index.cfm/pressdetail/5950

28 April 2011

The ITF has received news that Mansour Osanloo’s heart condition has worsened and he urgently needs surgery. The organisation therefore once again calls on the government of Iran to release him from jail so that his medical needs can be met.

The ITF also reminds the Iranian authorities that they will be judged not only by the people of Iran but by the world on their response to the demonstrations that will take place on May the First for worker and human rights.

Meanwhile, Gholamreza Gholamhosseini of the Vahed Syndicate was released on bail (US$30,000) from Rejaishahr prison yesterday after six months of detention. His colleagues, Ebrahim Madadi, Reza Shahabi and of course Mansour Osanloo remain in jail.

Source: http://www.itfglobal.org/press-area/index.cfm/pressdetail/5924

12 April 2011

While the world celebrates the gains of organized labor on May 1st, the Iranian labor movement continues to be viciously suppressed by Islamic Republic of Iran, and many of its rank and files still languish in the prisons. Mansour Ossanloo, a union leader and organizer has been imprisoned for the past four years solely because he executed his right to organize a rally and protest and demand the workers’ overdue wages. So are other prominent union activists such as Ebrahim Madadi, Reza Shahabi, Behnam Ebrahimzadeh, Rasoul Bodaghi, Abdolreza Ghanbari and Gholam Reza Gholam Hossieni, who are in prison for the similar reasons.

The Iranian worker today faces deteriorating working conditions and declining living standards. Unions are forcefully discouraged, labor laws are routinely undermined, collective bargaining not permitted – in short, their drive to achieve economic justice and a better life is stifled. Even the simplest collective action or protest is quashed and its organizers punished.

We invite our fellow citizens of the world, labor unions, human rights organizations, and NGOs active in related fields, to join us on this memorable occasion to condemn the oppressive and inhumane anti-labor policies and practices of the Islamic Republic of Iran and to bring pressure on its government to abide by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, a s a part of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which Iran is a signatory.

Actions such as letter writing campaigns to the UN Special Envoy investigating Human Rights conditions in Iran, organization of rallies demanding the release of political/labor prisoners, dissemination of information about the oppressive condition of workers and labor leaders in Iran, and any other type of support they can muster, would be helpful to the cause of freedom and justice in Iran.

Following is a summary of the Iranian workers’ demands:
*Immediate and unconditional release of all imprisoned workers
*Abolishing (Revision of) anti-labor laws
*Recognition of the right to protest, organize and strike according to International Laws
*Abolishing Child labor and equal protection of children under the law
*Equal pay compensation for working women, and abolishment of discriminatory laws and practices against women
*Immediate payment of overdue wages (Some factories and institutions are 6 months behind)
*Unemployment benefits for all unemployed workers

Organized by 48 human rights and democracy organizations in Europe and North America
Supported by 16 human rights and democracy groups in Europe and North America

Please email us if you need more information about these actions in different cities or if you would like to join this action and an organizing organization in your city.

free.iran.for.all.iranians@gmail.com

امروز جنبش اتحادیه های بین المللی کارگری تبریکات صمیمانه خود را به مناسبت نوروز در ایران به شما خواهران و برادران   خود که برای استحقاق حقوق اولیه خود بر علیه رژیم  سرکوبگر مبارزه میکنید اعلام میکند
برای شجاعت در سخن گفتن و ایستادگی برای گرفتن حق تشکیل اتحادیه کارگری جهت نمایندگی و دفاع از منافع شما در مقابل کارفرما، کارگران ایرانی اخراج و بازداشت شده اند و شکنجه و زندانی گشته اند. برخی نیز مانند کمانگر اعدام شدند، و دیگرانی که علیرغم تهدید به مرگ و جنایت قضائی، با مبارزه در راه سازماندهی کارگران، بدبختی و سرکوب را به مقابله طلبیده اند.
شما بدانید که ما در این مبارزه با شما هستیم و به این همراهی خود با شما ادامه خواهیم داد تا تمام زندانیان آزاد گردند و حقوق تمامی کارگران ایران در عمل و در قانون مورد حمایت قرار بگیرد.

Today, New Year in Iran, the international trade union movement sends fraternal greetings to you, our sisters and brothers, fighting for basic worker rights against an oppressive regime.

For daring to speak out and to exercise your right to form trade unions, to represent and defend your interests and to bargain with employers, Iranian workers have been sacked, arrested as criminals, tortured and imprisoned. Some, like Kamangar, have been executed; others await their execution; and the threat of death and possible judicial murder hangs over all those who seek to challenge misery and oppression by organizing at their workplace for collective action.

Know that we are with you in your struggle, and that we will continue to stand by you and with you until all prisoners are released and the rights of Iranian workers are fully protected in law and in practice.

Amnesty has learnt that on Friday 11 February Mansour Ossanlu has had a heart attack in Rajai Shahr Prison, Iran. Some time on Sunday he was transferred to a hospital where he is reportedly shackled to his bed by metal cuffs on hands and feet. Over preceding days contact with his family has been restricted and access to the open air has been limited. Amnesty in deeply concerned about his health and the continuing poor conditions he is experiencing in prison. He had been repeatedly denied medical leave from Rajai Shahr Prison, contrary to recommendations of the prison doctor.

Learn more and take action: http://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions_details.asp?ActionID=628

Read also the TUC message: http://www.tuc.org.uk/international/tuc-19151-f0.cfm

14 February 2011

Mansour Osanloo, the Iranian trade union leader unjustly imprisoned for the last four years, has been taken to an outside hospital after suffering chest pains this weekend that could be caused by a heart attack.

ITF general secretary David Cockroft stated: “Frankly, I believe that if he hadn’t had his life threatened, been beaten, arrested, re-arrested and held for years in awful Iranian prisons, he would today be a well man.”

“His maltreatment is part of a campaign to crush his voice and that of his trade union, the Vahed Syndicate. The blame for it lies with the government of Iran, a government that is today letting loose its so-called security forces against protesters in cities across the country.”

He concluded: “Hasn’t that government learnt from the experience of its neighbours: that no one is too powerful to be held to account, and that injustice – such as has been meted out to Mansour Osanloo – cannot be sustained indefinitely?”

In July 2007 Mansour Osanloo, now aged 50, president of the ITF-affiliated Vahed Syndicate (Tehran Bus Workers’ Union) was dragged from a Tehran bus by men who only later were identified as Iranian security forces. Three months later he was sentenced to five years imprisonment on charges of ‘acting against national security’ and ‘propaganda against the state’; in 2010 another year was added to his sentence. In reality his only ‘crime’ has been to help found a genuinely democratic trade union for his fellow bus drivers.

ENDS

For more information contact ITF press officer, Sam Dawson.
Direct line: + 44 (0)20 7940 9260.
Email: dawson_sam@itf.org.uk

International Transport Workers’ Federation – ITF:
HEAD OFFICE
ITF House, 49 – 60 Borough Road, London SE1 1DS
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7403 2733
Fax: + 44 (0) 20 7375 7871
Email: mail@itf.org.uk
Web: www.itfglobal.org

Source: http://www.itfglobal.org/press-area/index.cfm/pressdetail/5652/region/1/section/0/order/1

Two activists from the ITF-affiliated bus workers’ union in Iran have been released from detention. The move follows a letter from the ITF to the Iranian president in early December, demanding the release of all the detained unionists; four, including Mansour Osanloo, still remain in prison. Read more…