How do you say, "Sewer" in Farsi?
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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Tehran Transit Strike Continues, May Expand |
| 2006-02-03 |
| CAIRO, Egypt - As Iran's top nuclear negotiator pushed back against international pressure over its uranium enrichment - threatening to block international weapons inspectors - bus drivers in Tehran were ratcheting up pressure from within. The Sherkat-e Vahed trade union representing the Iranian capital's bus drivers have been on strike since Friday after at least 300 union members from the Tehran bus company and their families were arrested by the regime's security forces. Their efforts received some international attention yesterday with the State Department and Human Rights Watch both issuing harsh statements condemning the forceful crackdowns of the strike leaders. Those statements followed a letter last month from America's largest union, the AFL-CIO urging President Ahmadinejad to release leaders of the union arrested in December. Earlier this week, a spokesman for the families of bus drivers detained in Evin Prison, Gholamreza Mirzaie, said, "Some have violated the sacred family union by arresting wives and the children of our drivers and in some cases the kids and the mothers were beaten ... This is totally unacceptable and we have tolerated this far and we will not let them violate our families' rights." The roots of the strike go back to May 9, when the leader of the trade union, Massoud Osanlou, made his first demand for back wages not paid, more benefits, and increased pay. For this act of defiance he was badly beaten by anti-riot police and hospitalized. According to a January 3 letter from the AFL-CIO's president, John Sweeney, to President Ahmadinejad, "Between March and June 2005, at least 17 workers, including Mansour Osanloo were fired." Seven more leaders were arrested in September protesting the failure to pay back wages. On Friday, the regime made its boldest move yet and arrested scores of potential strike leaders and their families. An opposition news outlet, Rooz online, reported this week that between 300 and 400 workers have been arrested in the latest crackdown. In one particularly brutal case, security forces raided the home of Yaghub Salimi, another member of the union on January 28. He was not home, but his wife and 2-year-old daughter were. According to Human Rights Watch, Mr. Salimi said his daughter sustained facial injuries from the attack. Nonetheless, opposition figures in Iran say plans will proceed with its planned strike. "The attempts of these Iranian workers to seek the redress of legitimate grievances and the right to collectively bargain have been met by the Iranian Government with arrests, threats, and intimidation," the State Department yesterday said in a statement. A spokesman living in America for the Iranian opposition constitutional referendum movement, which has been monitoring the strike closely, Pooya Dayanim said that there are plans underway now for the entire union of 17,000 to go on strike Friday in solidarity with their co-workers now in prison. "The workers in Iran are denied the most basic of human rights. The right to work, to earn a living, and be able to negotiate their salaries. The fact they are asking for labor rights and being tortured and detained and their infant children are being dragged with them to prison is a dramatic example of human rights violations in Iran," he said. |
| Posted by: |
| #8 Ick, Nimble. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2006-02-03 22:40 |
| #7 Sharia procedure for handling union grievance: worker fills out form G-103/1476-34 in triplicate. One copy to steward, one copy to management, one copy to Imam. imam scheudles meeting imam begins meeting by reading form G-103/1476-34. imam asks management what they have to say. management says "Inshallah." imam says, "Off with his lips." worker falls to his knees, begs for mercy, has mouth circumsized. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-02-03 20:05 |
| #6 Oh, a Sharia union! How exactly would the grievance process work under sharia union law? |
| Posted by: Hupomoger Clans9827 2006-02-03 19:35 |
| #5 SW1991: How do you say, "Sewer" in Farsi? |
| Posted by: BigEd 2006-02-03 12:51 |
| #4 We should get old Honeymooners episodes translated. |
| Posted by: Spavilet Whomoling1991 2006-02-03 11:53 |
| #3 My thought too, OS. Let's see if it happens that way. |
| Posted by: lotp 2006-02-03 11:14 |
| #2 Striking bus drivers. Most will shrug their shoulders and say "Eh, so what", and not give it another thought. But I remember this shipyard in Gdansk.... |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2006-02-03 11:09 |
| #1 solidarity with Iranian labor, NOW! |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2006-02-03 11:07 |