Haft Tappeh Workers Strike for Seventh Day

Reports indicate that Haft Tappeh sugar cane factory workers have been on strike for the seventh consecutive day at the facility.

The Haft Tappeh Workers Syndicate announced on its Telegram channel that Haft Tappeh workers began their strike on Sunday, the first day of Tir month, in the factory premises. Among the workers’ demands is the return of the factory from the private sector.

The Haft Tappeh sugar cane workers’ syndicate also condemned “any threats, intimidation, and conspiracies” against the protesting workers.

Previously, Haft Tappeh workers have repeatedly staged protest gatherings to address their wages and demands.

Haft Tappeh sugar cane workers went on strike for 21 days in November 2018 in protest of unpaid wages. The protesters believed that the private sector employer lacks the capability to manage the factory and that the workers’ council could better operate the Haft Tappeh sugar cane complex than the employer.

These protests continue amid circumstances where Omid Asadbeigi, the former CEO of Haft Tappeh sugar cane factory, is currently the primary defendant in a case involving disruption of the currency and monetary system. The indictment against him includes charges of leading an organized scheme to disrupt the country’s currency and monetary system through large-scale currency smuggling and unauthorized dealings in government-backed currencies.

While Iran faces an economic crisis and labor protests continue, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced that the Islamic Republic will “continue its economic cooperation” with Syria. Hassan Rouhani, Iran’s president, also stated in February 2019 that one of the main objectives of his government’s foreign policy was to return the Syrian people to normal life.

The Islamic Republic continues to spend in Syria while Iranian people have repeatedly called on authorities during their protests with the slogan “Let go of Syria, pay attention to our situation” to address Iran’s dire economic conditions instead of Syrian affairs.

Islamic Republic officials have also taken security measures against professional protests in recent years, including protests by Haft Tappeh workers.

The United States has repeatedly condemned Iran’s security treatment of workers, and previously, the U.S. State Department’s Persian-language Twitter account announced in a post that “the Islamic Republic regime, with the amount it has spent in Syria, could have paid workers’ wages in Iran.”

Source: Voice of America