Against the odds

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محتوى الصفحة: Home > مجلة النقل الدولي "Transport International" > Issue 36 - July 2009 > Against the odds

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Jailed, beaten, and threatened with death: Saeid Torabian, a trade unionist from Iran shares his experience of working under a repressive regime.

Since 2005, the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company Workers’ Syndicate (Sherkat-e Vahed) has represented bus drivers in and around Iran’s capital. The union was re-established after being forcibly shut down in 1983. Its work has come at a cost, as union leaders and members have faced jail. Mansour Osanloo, the subject of an ITF campaign, is still in jail despite serious health problems caused by vicious beatings. But Vahed continues to defy the repressive policies of the government and work on behalf of its members.

We spoke to Saeid Torabian, who works for the bus drivers’ union, about the challenges for trade unions in Iran.

How do trade unionists feel about the restrictions they face – it possible to carry out trade union work without fear?

Workers throughout history have faced fear and apprehension in their struggles and their fight has always been accompanied by

suppression. However, if our trade union had been overly concerned with such obstacles and burdened itself with fear, it would have never taken the steps that it has. Sherkat-e Vahed activists have paid a huge cost for their struggles in the last four years.

Yet, despite the immense hardships they have faced, including expulsion, imprisonment, threats, and the denial of social rights, they continue to fight for the official recognition of our trade union, the right for expelled workers to return to work, the abolishment of unjust laws, and the opportunity to live a decent life. The restrictions we face have only made us more steadfast in continuing along the path we have chosen and, as all workers’ activists have expressed, we will continue our struggles until we attain our rights.

What do you hope will happen in Iran to make it easier to fight for workers’ rights?

Our hopes are manifested in our struggles and our successes. With every passing day, we are witnessing the realisation of our aims. It was our hope a decade ago for women, youths and other sectors of the workers’ movement to join our struggle and for genuine activists to emerge and carry the banner of our struggle. We now hope that government officials bear witness to the existence of the workers’ movement and accept that suppression will not work. We hope that they change their approach and begin to abide by international labour laws.

Increased workers’ awareness of the existing issues, the eradication of barriers through the establishment of independent workers’ unions and the amalgamation of such unions into workers’ federations would allow us to take steps towards transforming Iran into a society capable of providing a decent standard of living.

How has international solidarity helped your union?

In the last decade, the support of international workers’ unions, most notably the ITF and the ITUC (formerly ICFTU), has been crucial. As a result of such kinds of solidarity with our union, the state can no longer suppress the workers’ movement as it pleases and realises that our allies around the world are carefully monitoring their actions. The state must now defend its behaviour to international organisations. Our trade union’s membership in the ITF has also been an important factor in raising global awareness of our struggles.

The immense international support that our various actions and campaigns have received has allowed our union to stand strong and continue along its path despite the hardships and burdens it has faced and we hope that this support continues until we obtain our legal and collective rights. Without this material and moral support, our struggle might have found itself moving in a different direction and would not have grown to cover its current scope.

What message would you like to send to transport trade unions around the world – how can they support you in your fight?

We continue to seek retribution from the state for its illegal actions. We seek reparations from the state, whether material or in the form of an apology to the workers, and the awarding of their rights. We also seek the punishment of those responsible for the illegal actions committed against us. We remain thankful and appreciative of all the workers’ organisations and activists around the world, particularly our allies in the transportation sector, for their immense support.

We declare that the fate of our workers’ movement would have faced a grave outcome in the absence of such support, and we hope that this support remains strong and unwavering until the attainment of our goals. We hope that people all over the world inform their societies of our current circumstances and find a suitable mechanism for exerting pressure on the anti-labour government of Iran, even going as far as our comrades in Indonesia who refused to receive Iranian cargo ships.

Iran and trade unions

The labour environment in Iran has become increasingly difficult. Workers face increasing privatisation, workplace discrimination, lack of safety standards, demands for increased productivity in the face of minimum rights and resources and, most importantly, the absence of appropriate wage regulations, which has become more palpable in recent years with the increasing dominance of neoliberal policies. In addition, Islamic Labour Councils have ostensibly been established by the state to represent workers’ interests, but have in effect failed to further workers’ rights and are deeply committed to the state’s neoliberal policies.

The unchallenged domination of the Workers’ House was one of the catalysts for the restoration of the Sherkat-e Vahed union. Faced with an employer benefiting from the full support of the state, workers became conscious of the importance of waging a collective struggle. Activists launched a series of educational workshops for workers on the basic principles of trade unionism and strategies for securing increased rights within this framework. These activities put the union in conflict with the Workers’ House, which saw the establishment of an independent union as opposed to its neoliberal agenda. It responded by maintaining close surveillance of Vahed members and their activities, making life increasingly difficult for the union.

Trade union leaders in all sectors have faced persecution. Many have been unjustly jailed. Earlier this year, two female labour activists were punished by flogging for simply participating in May Day celebrations. The global labour movement has widely condemned the actions of the Iranian authorities in repressing workers’ rights.

الصفحة الرئيسية للأقسام:
Issue 36 - July 2009

نسخة الرسومات الكاملة

إمكانية الدخول | مساعدة الموقع | خريطة الموقع

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