Protest Rally of Kurdish Teachers in Sanandaj: “Imprisoned Teachers Must Be Released”

A number of teachers from various cities in Kurdistan Province, along with representatives of teachers’ professional associations, held a protest rally in front of the General Directorate of Education of the province in support of detained educators.

According to a report from the Coordination Council of Teachers’ Professional Associations in Iran on Tuesday, June 10, representatives of teachers’ professional associations along with a group of teachers went to the General Directorate of Education of Kurdistan to meet and negotiate with the director general, but “by order of security and the director general,” the doors of the office were closed to educators and no one was allowed to enter.

At this rally, the slogan “Imprisoned teacher, must be freed” was chanted.

The teachers present at this rally, whose number was reported as “approximately 200 people,” considered “imprisoning teachers as well as the director general’s avoidance of dialogue and negotiation as illegal and contrary to ethics, humanity, and organizational responsibility.”

Furthermore, with the intensification of pressure on labor activists and teachers in Iran, three thousand professional activists, by signing a petition addressed to the delegations participating in the annual session of the International Labour Organization, demanded the immediate and unconditional removal of all charges attributed to imprisoned professional activists in Iran.

The petition signatories asked the participants in the annual session of the International Labour Organization to place the issue of violation of rights of teachers and labor activists “specifically” on the agenda of the session, and called for the expulsion of representatives of the Islamic Republic from the International Labour Organization’s session and the unconditional release of detained professional activists, including teachers and workers.

The Hamadan Teachers’ Association, in a statement supporting imprisoned teachers and protesting against “file-making” against them, warned officials that “neglect and disregard for the demands of the educator community will lead to deepening protests and spreading dissatisfaction.”