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As day of action begins Iran govt responds with arrests and intimidation

09/08/07

Today’s worldwide day of action to free jailed union leader Mansour Osanloo has been answered by arrests and prohibition in Iran. This morning five members of the Executive Board of the bus drivers’ union were arrested while state security agents have been positioned at Osanloo’s house and are threatening union members who had planned to rally there to request his release.

Osanloo is being held without charge in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison as the latest move in a brutal two year government campaign against him and his Tehran bus drivers’ union. The arrested men are Ebrahim Madadi, Davood Razawi, Yagoub Salimi, Homayoun Jaberi and Ebrahim Gohari.

Today’s action day has been called by the ITF (International Transport Workers’ Federation) as the latest tactic in its campaign to defend Osanloo and his fellow bus drivers. It is being supported by the ITUC (International Trade Union Confederation), Amnesty International and unions and union organisations worldwide. Protests have today taken place or are shortly to take place in Algeria, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Indonesia, Iran, Finland, Japan, Jordan, Malaysia, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, Trinidad, the USA and Yemen.

ITF General Secretary David Cockroft commented: “If the Iranian Government wanted to know why workers worldwide are putting them under pressure then they’ve just supplied the answer. Today’s arrests and intimidation show that despite all the reasonable approaches made to them in the last two years, they have locked themselves into a descending course of continued repression.”

He continued: “The news for them is that we won’t go away. Mansour, trade unionists around the world and, indeed, their own people aren’t going to give up. The demand is a reasonable one – the basic right to belong to a union. The government’s clumsy, brutal attempts to stifle it are just making it heard more widely and strongly.”

Just weeks after returning from a visit to the ITF in London and meetings with union leaders in Brussels, Osanloo, 47, was attacked and snatched from a bus by unidentified assailants on 10 July. Despite desperate pleas by his family and friends the authorities denied all knowledge of the attack and his whereabouts for two days, after which Revolutionary Court Judge Saeed Mortazavi finally changed his story and admitted that he was being held without charge in Evin prison. Since then he has been denied legal and medical visits, despite problems with an eye wound he suffered in a previous attack.

Immediately after the abduction the international trade union movement mobilised to support him and firstly to force the Iranian authorities to acknowledge that it was their agents who had taken him, and then to secure his release.

Osanloo has fought back against a prolonged Iranian government campaign of arrests and violence and has been snatched and gravely assaulted before by both police and men from the Iranian security services. The leader of the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company (Sherkat-e Vahed), he was brought to Britain in June by the ITF to address trade unionists from around the world about the union’s struggle. He then travelled to Brussels to meet the ITUC and other world trade union leaders. (See http://www.itfglobal.org/urban-transport/tehranbuses.cfm for a history of the union’s struggles or ITF press releases at http://www.itfglobal.org/press-area/index.cfm ). Tomorrow’s action day will also support Mahmoud Salehi, co founder of the Saqez Bakery Workers’ Association and the Coordinating Committee to Form Workers’ Organisations, who has also been jailed for asserting the right to undertake the legal trade union activities which should be guaranteed by Iran’s membership of the ILO.

Worldwide Free Osanloo events 9 August

(Where a press contact is not shown and you require one please contact Sam Dawson)

Algeria

The General Union of Railway Workers will send a protest letter to the Iranian Embassy.

Australia

An ACTU delegation delivered a letter of protest at the Iranian Embassy in Canberra.ITF unions in Melbourne have joined their forces and organised a picket outside the Department of Foreign Affairs to express their solidarity with the Iranian workers. Mansour Osanloo's situation was raised in both the Lower and Upper Houses of the Victorian State Parliament today.

Press contact: iwilson@actu.asn.au Tel: + 61 (03) 9664 7322

Austria

The Austrian union for transport and services, VIDA, is in contact with the Foreign Ministry and has requested a meeting with the Iranian Embassy on 9 August. A rally is planned in front of the Embassy.

Belarus

The ITUC-affiliated Belarussian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BCDTU) has sent a protest letter to the Iranian Mission in Minsk and has requested a meeting with the Ambassador on 9 August.

Canada

The Canadian Labour Congress has written to the Ambassador. A CLC protest vigil will be held in Toronto – Queen’s Park on 9 August between 12:30-13:30.

Press contact: Mehdi Kouhestaninejad, Tel: 001.613.302.5457, email: mkouhestaninejad@clc-ctc.ca

Egypt
The General Union of Air Transport Workers and the General Union of Land Transport will gather in front of the Iranian Embassy to protest and deliver solidarity letters.

France

French unions are planning a demonstration at the Iranian Embassy at 13:00. The CGT as well as Force Ouvrière will join this protest action. The FO will mobilize its transport and food sections.

Germany

Bus workers in Frankfurt are planning a protest action.

Great Britain

The London event will take place from 12:00 to 14:00 outside the Iranian Embassy at 16 Princes Gate, Knightsbridge, London SW7 1PT, with protesters gathering opposite on the Hyde Park side of Kensington Road. ITF General Secretary David Cockroft will deliver several thousand petitions for Osanloo’s release, while protestors hold up placards with the names of all those who have signed. Photos will be available afterwards; email dawson_sam@itf.org.uk to receive these. The event is being supported by the ITUC, British TUC and Amnesty International.

Press contact: Sam Dawson, ITF, Tel: +44 (0)20 7940 9260, email: dawson_sam@itf.org.uk

Elly Brenchley, TUC, Tel: +44 (0) 20 7467 1337, email ebrenchley@tuc.org.uk

Iran

The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company (Sherkat-e Vahed) has asked supporters to gather at Mansour Osanloo's house in Tehran between 10.00 and 19:00. Independent workers’ groups have called a demonstration in front of Tehran University.

India

NUSI and TDWU will organise a coordinated protest today at the Iranian Consulate in Mumbai.

Report just received from Dehli: Today at around 11.30am, more than 500 members of AIRF-NRMU-HMS were gathered at Parliament Street to protest against the abduction of Mansour Osanloo. Due to high security in Delhi the police refused permission to hold the demonstration in front of the Iranian embassy. After a heated argument with them they finally agreed to allow representatives to go to the Iranian embassy to meet the Consul who was surprised to know that Indians are protesting for the release of an Iranian citizen. He promised to forward the protests to his own government.

Indonesia

The protest in the front of Iranian Embassy began at 10.00. After one hour protest letters were delivered and the Ambassador was persuaded to allow the First Secretary to meet with representatives of ITF affiliated unions.

Press contact: Hanafi Rustandi: Tel: +62(0)21 314 1495 / 21 336 040, email: ebrenchley@tuc.org.uk

Finland

AKT will visit the Iranian Embassy in Helsinki together with the Finnish Food Workers’ Union and submit the ITF petition as well as the union’s petition.

France

The CFDT will participate in the activity outside the Iranian Embassy in Paris and has written to the Iranian President.

Jordan

Unions will deliver protest letters to the Iranian Embassy

Japan

The Japanese trade union delegation visited the Iranian Embassy in Tokyo today. Representatives from Rengo, ITF, ITF-JC and IUF-JCC met with the Minister Counsellor, Mohammade Ali Sarmadi Rad. They submitted their protest letters, ITF petition and campaign posters and demanded an immediate release of Mansour Osanloo and Mahmoud Salehi as well as proper medical treatment and access to their lawyers and families. The delegation stressed that the Iranian government must guarantee fundamental trade union rights to their workers as a member of the ILO.

Malaysia

The ITF Malaysia Council plans to deliver a protest letter to the Iranian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

Morocco
Union leaders from the General Union of Land Transport and the General Federation of Port Workers, together with other colleagues, will demonstrate in front of the Iranian Embassy and send protest letters to the Iranian government.

Nepal

As there is no Iranian diplomatic mission in the country, NETWON will submit a protest letter to the Nepal Government.

Netherlands

Unions will deliver a petition to the Iranian Ambassador demanding the release of Mansour Osanloo.

Norway

Four trade unions (Norsk Transportarbeiderforbund, Norsk Jernbaneforbund, Fagforbundet og Yrkestrafikkforbundet) will demonstrate in front of the Iranian Embassy at 12.00. A letter of protest will be handed over to the Ambassador.

Panama

ITF affiliates in Panama will deliver a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs requesting that the Government communicate the unions' request that Mansour Osanloo and Mahmoud Salehi are released immediately to the Iranian Government.

Pakistan

Demonstration held in Lahore.

Palestine

The General Union of Transport Workers will send solidarity letters to the Iranian Embassy.

Romania

Federatia Sindicala Transloc will picket the Iranian Embassy and distribute leaflets calling for the release of Mansour Osanloo and Mahmoud Salehi.

Spain

UGT will submit the ITF petition to the Iranian Embassy on 9 August. The union is coordinating its activities for the Action Day with CC.OO.

Sweden

A delegation from LO Sweden will deliver a letter to the Iranian Embassy.

Switzerland and Belgium

SEV will organise a protest action in front of the Iranian Embassy in Berne and submit the union's protest letter.

In Geneva, a delegation composed of representatives from Global Unions including the ITUC, UNI, PSI and IUF will visit the Mission to Iran and meet with the Ambassador at 15:30. The ITUC is also planning a meeting with the Iranian Mission in Brussels.

Press contact: ITUC press department, Tel: +32(0)22240210, email: press@ituc-csi.org

Thailand

The Iranian Embassy in Bangkok was picketed today.

Trinidad

The Seamen & Waterfront Workers' Trade Union will hold a press conference to highlight the plight of the Iranian prisoners.

Tunisia
Workers from the National Federation of Transport will gather in front of the Iranian Embassy to protest and deliver solidarity letters

USA

Representatives from the Teamsters Union, AFL-CIO and Solidarity Center will visit the Iranian Interest Section in Washington DC to deliver protest letters.

ENDS

For more information contact ITF press officer, Sam Dawson.
Direct line: + 44 (0)20 7940 9260.
Email: dawson_sam@itf.org.uk

International Transport Workers' Federation - ITF:
HEAD OFFICE
ITF House, 49 - 60 Borough Road, London SE1 1DS
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7403 2733
Fax: + 44 (0) 20 7375 7871
Email: mail@itf.org.uk
Web: www.itfglobal.org

صفحات ذات علاقة:

Tehran Bus Dispute
Information and a chronology of events regarding the Tehran Bus...

الصحف ذات العلاقة:

08/08/07
Protests against Iranian government repression worldwide tomorrow
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