False security charges against mine workers in Aghadeh

Workers arrested in the mines of the village of Aghdare faced false security charges from the government.

According to the Sharq network, on August 30 of this year, a number of mine workers from the village of "Aghdara Wasti" in West Azerbaijan province were arrested and taken to prison for protesting in front of a travertine mine demanding "employment of local people," which was met with police intervention and resulted in shooting and injury to two residents.

26 workers were released on bail of 600 million Tomans last week, but 6 of them are still in Urmia prison. It should be noted that the aforementioned individuals are workers from the two Aghadeh gold and stone mines.

The charges against the workers, who demanded work from the residents, include “disturbing public order,” “acting against the country’s internal security,” and the trumped-up charge of “kidnapping.” According to the workers, the July and August salaries of the workers who participated in the protest rally have not been paid, and the workers who have been released from prison on bail are no longer allowed to work.

Their protest was due to “permanent employment,” which resulted in the employer’s complaint, conviction of the protesting workers, payment of fines, and unfair execution of the flogging sentence. The workers expressed concern regarding the continued detention of those still in prison, the reopening of legal cases against them, the trial process, the handling of cases, the escalation of confrontations, and the false accusations against them.

Their concern about the charges against them has left their families worried. They suspect that the same false charges that have been leveled against people in nationwide protests, which have led to the death and execution of some of them, will befall them as well. Workers who are only looking for rights and a permanent job are now in a state of life and death anxiety.