Hamadan Teachers Association: Teachers’ Rights Pursuit Cannot Be Diverted by ‘Scenario-Making’
The Hamadan Teachers Association, in a statement supporting imprisoned teachers and protesting against ‘case-building’ against them, warned officials that ‘negligence and disregard for the demands of the teaching community will lead to deepening protests and spreading discontent.’
According to Iran’s Teachers Syndical Channel, in this statement released on Sunday, June 8, it was emphasized that authorities cannot, ‘through such unfair accusations, divert the path of rights-seeking by the nation’s educators.’
‘Failure to respond to the legitimate, lawful, and rational demands of Iran’s esteemed educators has become a practice that the government and parliament have pursued without hesitation in recent years, and to escape their legal responsibilities, they have chosen the simplest way: whitewashing the issue.’
This statement, emphasizing the necessity of ‘eliminating discrimination and injustice’ regarding educators’ rights and free education, added: ‘Instead of trying to secure the release of educators’ union activists from prison, the minister is attempting to intimidate the teaching community through accusations and creating an atmosphere of intimidation, so they abandon pursuing their and their students’ demands.’
The Hamadan Teachers Association, referring to ‘scenario-making and habitual baseless accusations such as the enemy exploiting protests or accusing union activists of connections with foreign powers,’ stated that these accusations ‘are not only rejected by the teaching community, but also prolong the protest process.’
In this statement, naming imprisoned teachers including Rasool Badaghi, Eskander Lotfi, Shaban Mohammadi, Masoud Nikkhah, Ismail Abdi, Jafar Ebrahimi, Mohammad Habibi, and Mohammad Fallahi, it was emphasized that imprisoned teachers ‘from Fars to Bushehr, Khuzestan, and Khorasan are among the most authentic, compassionate, and pure sons of Iran, and no accusation applies to them. They deserve recognition and appreciation, not imprisonment and punishment. These compassionate teachers have been and are merely reflecting the voice of the nation’s educators’ rights-seeking.’
IRIB (Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting) aired a report on May 16 in which it accused two detained French citizens in Iran of ‘contacting’ union activists and attempting to create ‘chaos’ and ‘destabilize society.’ These televised reports are attributed to the Ministry of Intelligence. The report also displayed photos and videos that apparently showed meetings of these two French nationals with some education and labor rights activists.
Syndical activists who met with Cecile Kohler and her husband Jacques Peri, two French nationals, in these images include individuals such as Reza Shahabi, Rasool Badaghi, Eskander Lotfi, and Masoud Nikkhah, who have been detained in recent days.
Last week, the Iranian Writers Association also considered the detention of a number of education rights activists and labor activists following case-building by the Ministry of Intelligence as a sign of the Islamic Republic’s fear.
Source: Voice of America
