Social Security Retirees Gather in Several Iranian Cities; Complain About High Costs and Official Inattention

As in previous weeks, a number of social security retirees held rallies in several major cities in Iran to protest the implementation of equalization of salaries, poor living conditions, and high prices to pursue their demands.

According to videos published on social media, a number of social security retirees gathered in front of their city's administrative buildings, including the Social Security Office, in recent days in cities such as Tehran, Isfahan, Shush, Khorramabad, and Kerman, chanting slogans against the incompetence of the authorities.

Protesting the poor living conditions and inflation prevailing in Iran, these retirees, holding a number of placards and chanting slogans such as "Your Eid is great, our table is empty" and "Yesterday's fighters, today's oppressors," have demanded that their demands be addressed, that the promises of the authorities be fulfilled, and that their rights be strictly implemented.

According to Article 111 of the Social Security Law, the minimum pension for retired workers should not be less than the minimum wage set for employed workers, a law that, according to these retirees, has not been implemented to date.

Retirees in Shush say, "We were happy citizens and the authorities made us miserable."

A group of retirees in Khorramabad also gathered in front of the Lorestan Provincial Social Security Directorate, holding placards.

Social Security retirees in Isfahan also stated that the government's main job is to plunder the nation's money.

In Kerman, a number of social security retirees also demanded that their claims be addressed.

Over the past years and recent months, retirees across Iran have held widespread rallies to criticize the performance of the government and members of parliament, demanding that their demands be addressed, such as equalizing rights and strict implementation of the Civil Service Management Law.

The poor economic situation has worsened in recent months as new dimensions of widespread financial corruption by individuals and institutions affiliated with the Islamic Republic's government are revealed every day. These include cases of economic corruption involving individuals close to the government and the Iranian government's unlimited financial support for terrorist groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas.