NCRI – Despite a series of arrests and oppressive measures carried out by the Iranian regime, student protests continue across Iran as the preplanned anti-government demonstration for “Students Day” on December 7 draws closer.
On November 30, students at School of Technology at University of Tehran staged a protest chanting “Death to dictator” and “With God’s help, victory is close, death to this deceptive government.” They also called for the release of their imprisoned classmates by chanting, “detained students must be freed.” As another act of protest, students also refused to eat lunch and lined up their plates on the ground.
On November 29, students at University of Tehran’s School of Humanity and Literature protested the arrests of their classmates at the schools of Law, Philosophy, and Technology. They posted pictures of their captive friends on the walls of the university along with slogans calling for their freedom. A similar protest was staged last week by Electrical Engineering and Computer Science students at the same university.
Students at Azad University in Tehran – Southern Campus – carried out a demonstration at the School of Technology, chanting “Death to dictator” and “Detained students must be freed.” The protest took place despite blockades and threats by the regime’s intelligence personnel from the Ministry of Intelligence and Security and the paramilitary Bassij .
25 faculty members at the School of Economy at Allameh Tabatabaei University released a statement condemning the arrest of six of the university’s students and called for their immediate and unconditional release. Students on campus supported the move by their professors and also joined the calls for the release of their classmates.
In a separate act of protest, students at Allameh Tabataei’s School of Literary Studies also disrupted a speech by one of the regime’s Majlis (Parliament) deputies, Alireza Zakani. Moreover, hundreds at the university’s School of Social Sciences signed a petition protesting the arrest of some of their colleagues as well as the summoning of 10 students to the campus disciplinary committee where they faced heavy punishments.
At Khaje Nasir Tousi University’s School of Electrical Engineering, students refused to attend classes, deciding to instead protest in front of the department’s building. During their demonstration, they chanted, “Detained students must be released,” “Iran has become a detention center, Evin has become a university,” and “Students die but will not surrender to humiliation.” Afternoon classes were also cancelled by the students and such the protest and sit-ins continued throughout the day.
On November 30, in the northwestern city of Ardebil, students at the Mohaghegh Ardebili University disrupted a speech by Brig. Gen. of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Saffar Harandi, who is also an advisor to the IRGC Commander-in-Chief, and clashed with Herasat agents on campus (Hersat or Protection Office is a branch of the regime’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security on university campuses). Student chants targeted Saffar Harandi, who also headed the Ministry of Culture during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s previous cabinet, included, “Shame, shame, killer of culture,” and “The blood in our veins is a gift to our people.” Intelligence agents attacked the students and confiscated cameras.
On December 1, in Kermanshah, students at the Razi University’s School of Technology, refused to attend classes in protest to the arrest of their friends and other suppressive measures adopted by the regime against the students. They also refused to eat university food, proceeding instead to lay out a series of plates extending from the self-serve section of the cafeteria to the School of Technology building.
In the city of Orumieh, hundreds of students held a demonstration in protest to the death of one of their classmates due to lack of safety measures at the city’s university.
In Hormozgan, students refused to attend classes in protest to the appalling move by the regime to bury the remains of those who died during the unpatriotic war with Iraq on university premises.
Other ongoing anti-regime protest acts carried out by students on an extensive scale throughout the country, include, writing of slogan, posting brochures, setting up photo galleries depicting the regime’s suppressive measures, and destruction of portraits of the regime’s Supreme Leader. Some of the academic locations witnessing such acts include the University of Science and Technology of Tehran, University of Mazandaran, University of Science and Technologies in Babol, the Azad University of Lahijan, and various departments at the University of Tehran such as the School of Literary Studies and Law and Political Science. In addition to expressing their hatred and anger towards the clerical regime, students invite their classmates to join in the protests planned for Student Day on December 7.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
December 3, 2009
