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Trade union rights are our rights, says Iranian union leader
14 June 2007
The persecuted leader of an Iranian bus workers’ union, Mansour Osanloo, yesterday told fellow transport workers that the struggle for trade union rights in Iran would continue.
Osanloo who has been repeatedly attacked and arrested for his trade union involvement, was speaking at the ITF’s three-day annual Road Transport Section meeting in London, UK. There had been fears that he would be detained in Tehran and prevented from making the trip to the UK.
During the meeting, Osanloo described how members of the ITF-affiliated bus workers’ union, Sandikaye Kargarane Sherkate Vahed (Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company), were suffering at the hands of their employers and the Iranian government. He told delegates that members of the union had been arrested more than 10 times; their family members, including young children had also been beaten, arrested and subjected to inhumane treatment.
However, support from the ITF and trade unions around the world was crucial. “Perhaps our government may not recognise us yet but it’s important that the ITF and trade unions around the world recognise us. We are proud to have your support.”
Referring to the murdered Guatemalan dockers’ union leader, he said: “We are continuing this fight for people like Pedro Zamora. We are fighting on behalf of workers in countries like Colombia and Iraq, who are living in a difficult situation.
“Our slogan this year is that independent trade unionism is our right. This is based on what is in the Iranian constitution, which recognises trade union rights,” he stated.
ITF General Secretary David Cockroft reiterated the ITF’s support for the union and said: “We would like to see the principles of independent trade unionism applied universally. We see no reason why Iran should be an exception.”
Osanloo will also be speaking about the plight of the bus workers at the International Trade Union Confederation’s general council meeting in Belgium next week.
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