Teachers Protest in 14 Provinces Against Unfair Treatment and Rights Violations
Despite intense security measures today, May 9, 2023, teachers held gatherings and protests in 14 provinces against violating their basic rights, the arrest of teachers, the lack of ranking, and the equalization of salaries.
The teachers protest against the government’s failure to implement the ranking plan, which has transformed from a tool for encouraging teachers to a means of exerting control over them. In addition, teachers have been waiting for more than a decade to equalize pensions, and there are concerns about psychological insecurity and threats to students’ physical health, particularly female students. The government’s practice of filing and using security pressures against union activists have also continued, further fueling the teachers’ discontent.
Teachers held gatherings and protests in Tehran in front of the parliament and in other cities, including Rasht, Ardabil, Jolfa, Torbat Heydariyeh, Arak, Qazvin, Takestan, Isfahan, Kermanshah, Islamshahr, Harsin, Ahvaz, Khuzestan, Abadan, Sanandaj, Hamedan, Ahvaz, and Shush outside the Departments of Education.
In their gatherings, the teachers chanted slogans such as “The imprisoned teacher must be released,” “A teacher dies, does not accept humiliation,” “Chemical attack must be condemned,” and “Promises are not enough, our table is empty.”
The teachers carried placards that read: “Inflation is the scourge of people’s lives,” “Stop filing against union activists,” and “There is no place for a teacher in prison, there is no answer to the demand for imprisonment.” In some cities such as Rasht, Arak, Ardabil, and Langroud, protesters chanted slogans such as “Every teacher’s cry is death to the oppressor, be it the shah or the mullahs’ leader,” “Hail to Rajavi,” and “The teacher is awake, disgusted with the Shah and the mullah.”
Female teachers were particularly active in Isfahan, Arak, and Qazvin and took the lead in chanting slogans and leading the protests.
Teachers’ Protests in Iran Met With Violence in Sanandaj
Due to the large number of anti-riot forces in Sanandaj, teachers could not gather in the main location and were divided into several smaller groups. Suppressive forces beat a group of teachers stationed on Taleghani Street, and the teachers confronted them with the slogan, “Police, you are our ISIS.”
Teachers in Sanandaj chanted the slogan “Political prisoners must be released” in their protests.
In Hamedan, security forces prevented teachers from gathering in front of the education and training office, but the teachers held their gathering on the street.
